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Arts-Based Approaches to Inquiry in Language Education

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Research Methods in Language and Education

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Language and Education ((ELE))

Abstract

What does it mean to engage in arts-based research? Where does this tradition come from and how has it been accepted in the world of language education research and scholarship? This chapter defines arts-based research, identifying early developments, major contributions, and the current state of the field. Numerous contributors’ works, or scholARTistry, are discussed and new questions are raised regarding arts-based research quality, utility, ethical validity, and feasibility. Arts-based approaches to inquiry are not presented as an “either-or” proposition to traditional research paradigms. Rather, the literary, visual, and performing arts are discussed as a means to stretch the researcher’s capacity for creativity and knowing, creating a healthy synthesis of approaches to collect, analyze, and represent data in ways that paint a full picture of a heterogeneous movement to improve language education.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Language and Literacy Education, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA

    Melisa Cahnmann Taylor

Authors
  1. Melisa Cahnmann Taylor
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Correspondence to Melisa Cahnmann Taylor .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

    Kendall A. King

  2. University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

    Yi-Ju Lai

  3. Faculty of Education and Social Work, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

    Stephen May

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© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

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Taylor, M.C. (2017). Arts-Based Approaches to Inquiry in Language Education. In: King, K., Lai, YJ., May, S. (eds) Research Methods in Language and Education. Encyclopedia of Language and Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02249-9_26

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