Presentation on Arts-Rich Bookmaking Experiences at 2023 Melbourne Graduate School of Education Research Conference

Arts West Building, The University of Melbourne, Parkville VIC 3052

The ARTP Lab researchers, Associate Professor Julie Choi and Dr Rafaela Cleeve Gerkens presented their research project titled “My book ideas were spinning in my head”: Arts-rich bookmaking experiences to create and sustain multilingual children’s meaning making flows and authorial voices” at the MGSE (currently, Faculty of Education) research conference, “Education Research: Adapting to a Changing Landscape.”

Published in a professional, refereed journal, TESOL Quarterly, their project explores the transformative power of arts-rich bookmaking experiences for multilingual children, demonstrating the importance of creating conditions that allow all children, regardless of linguistic background, to draw on their full range of meaning-making resources. By integrating arts-rich experiences into literacy education, educators can empower multilingual students to express their unique perspectives and foster a deeper engagement in learning. At the end of the presentation, the researchers highlighted the potential for community-based arts projects to transform educational practices, bridging the gap between home and school literacy experiences and supporting the development of young authors’ voices.

For more details about the research, visit: https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.3279