Kelli Watson: Academic research

Glenney and Mull explore the paradoxical definitions of skateboarding within an ecological framework in this essay. They explore the definition of skateboarding as a ‘sport’, ‘action sport’ or ‘lifestyle sport’ in consideration of what defines these in a fundamental sense. In parallel he explores skateboarding as a ‘subversion’ of sport:  undefinable and unique or ‘mysterious’ (Lundry, 2003) in its nature.  

In relation to my studies there are key elements that interest me throughout this text. The first is the definable elements of mainstream sport that Glenney and Mull discuss. For example, safety equipment; in relation to whether skateboarding fits within the category of action sport they explore the lack of safety equipment used in skateboarding. This point is further emphasized throughout their discussions around the spatial factors of skateboarding in a constructed environment verses an urban/organic environment (e.g. the street). Glenney and Mull describe skateboarding as “interactive”, by this they are referring to the subverted use of handrails and stairs in relation to the organic or intuitive nature of skateboarding. When referring to street skateboarding this “interactivity” subverts the traditional positioning of ‘sport’ with a defined location or architecture e.g. a pitch, track or course.  They substantiate this in consideration of the association that sports have (largely) with “rule-bound activities”, considering how even ‘performative’ sports such as ice-skating are governed by points systems which are in the main regulated through these architectural restraints.  The positioning of Street League and the introduction of skateboarding into the Olympics directly imposes these boundaries on to skateboarding. I am no expert on Ice-dancing, but surely the creativity and expression of the art of dance cannot be purely restricted to these “points total”. Innovation comes from breaking the rules in all forms of performance, art and craft.  In skateboarding, as Glenney ad Mull point out “such innovative rule-breaking is not only encouraged but anticipated” (Glenney & Mull. 2018, P4).

“Skateboarding, as commonly practiced and conceived, appears to defy “rule governance” of sport and its perceived as a subcultural lifestyle involved in symbolic and embodied performances to subvert mainstream rules and norms” (Glenney & Mull. 2018. pp.4-5)

The instinctiveness of the practice of skateboarding is largely a manner of ‘self-expression” but also generally reactionary. When a skateboarder skates the same spot or a constructed environment such as a skatepark these reactions become more rehearsed and therefore less intuitive. The skatepark therefore could be compared to the controlled environments which situate most mainstream sports (e.g. the rink, the pitch or the course). The introduction of elements such as time-limits and points systems in competitive skateboarding such as seen in Street League and proposed for the 2020 Olympics further substantiates skateboarding sport-like attributes.   In contrast Glenney and Mull describe skateboarding as a “wild” activity that deploys a kinetic ‘push-pull’ energy. They compare a sense of wilderness and freedom to surfing, parkour and even walking in the wild; “in the wild, there are no fixed fences or boundaries, or “private” spaces”. They describe the notion of going off the beaten track as akin to disrupting “social political lines; climbing over fences” (Glenney & Mull, 2018 P8). I think here they are referring to how skateboarding changes metaphorical landscapes as well as fundamental ones. A skateboarder interacts and integrates themselves with in environment in a wild way (Glenney & Mull 2018.p8). They describe skateparks as “hybrid “wild” spaces. They include stairs, rails, curbs and barriers designed to recreate the natural built environment for the more controlled use of skateboarding”. (Glenney & Mull 2018. P12)

This text is thought provoking in its subtle comparison between skateboarding and generic sports in relation to Play; “Skateboarding is play or performance that innovates without rules”. Glenney and Mull go on to describe it’s “distinctive and subversive characteristics or sometimes sports characterization in its public perception or performances, but only as modes of an otherwise uncategorized activity” (Glenney & Mull 2018. P3). The words ‘Play’ and ‘Performance’ are intriguing here. In this essay they mention the game “SKATE”, whereby a skateboarder performs a trick and another skateboarder has to perform the same trick. This game is ‘played’ by skateboarders as a means of practice and fun (although there is of course an element of ego included), much like a group may ‘play’ a game of football. The semantics of the word ‘play’ are really interesting to me in an educational context. ‘Play’ to me does not suggest competition, points or prizes rather practice, comradery and fun. In a learning environment it would be interesting to see if learners were more successful in a competitive environment verses a playful one?  In skateboarding reward generally comes from the ‘self’. It comes from the personal achievement of overcoming the battle between mind and body. This contrasts to the generic “rush of emotions” associated with a win in competitive sport. Glenney and Mull discus the elements of “wow” and “stoke” in this essay as a means to describe the ‘raw kind of inner experience’ that a skateboarder experiences when they achieve a trick. I personally think that the WOW is an external factor experienced by onlookers whereas the STOKE is the internal emotion experienced by the skateboarder themselves.

Another interesting element highlighted in the essay is the need to define or categories skateboarding as a sport, an art or a lifestyle at all. Glenney and Mull suggest that this is a commodity of institutionalization, commercialization and ‘street cred hungry’ commercial organizations and brands; “Companies who want to establish street-cred” (Lundry 2002). These ‘companies’ are in the main sports brands such as “Nike’ and “Addidas” who are more traditionally associated with mainstream sports. Glenney and Mull cite Vivonio’s links between commercialism and competition and ponder whether the commodification of skateboarding is a result of the capitalization of the activity.    

Glenney and Mull conclude that skateboarding, for all of the above reasons must resist categorization; “We answer that any “sport” definition impoverishes emergent activities like skateboarding” (Glenney,  & Mull 2018, p13) and that sport can learn from skateboarding’s wild interactivity “As Sport attempts to stifle creativity of the human spirit by limiting participants ‘activity” and controlling their spaces, skateboarding can exhibit a natural evolution toward interactive play and rewilding space” (Glenney & Mull, 2018. P13). I think that this statement can easily be deployed in an educational context. The classroom construct, for example, the rules and boundaries that are institutionally defined are reflective of the same definitions and governance that is stifling creativity in sports.

References:

Glenney, B and Mull, S (2018), Skateboarding and the Ecology of Urban Space, Journal of Sport and Social Issues 1-17, SAGE 2018

Lundry, W (2003) To Classify... is to Control. Thrasher; 267, 134-149

Lundry, W (2002, October 1). Subvert the dominant paradigm. Thrasher; 261, 144-149

Based on Sophie Friedel’s “The Art of Living Sideways” 

When I met Sophie Friedel for the first time in person at the recent Pushing Boarders Conference in London, she told me that WeCanFly struck a chord with her. I didn’t realise why until I read her book The Art of Living Sideways: Skateboarding, Peace and Elicite Conflict Transformation. Sophie’s insight kindles more potentials than I realised in relation to both WeCanFly and my notion concerning skateboarding’s capacity to be used in an educational context to increase autonomy and resilience to develop teaching and learning methods for disenfranchised young people.  

Friedel graduated from Innsbruck University, Austria with Masters in Peace Studies. The Art of Living Sideways is a self-reflective perspective of the potentials of skateboarding, written from her own experiences teaching skateboarding with Skateistan in Kabul, Afghanistan.  “The art of living sideways” is an ambiguous, metaphysical principle relating to the physical stance of a skateboarder. Friedel conceptualise this as “a vehicle to the bodily sensation of feeling at peace in the here and now” (Friedel, 2015: 13). The dynamics of the term: The Art of Living Sideways is interesting, not least because of it play on the title of Alan Fletcher’s The Art of Looking Sideways (2001). In Friedel’s interpretation, the use of the word Art interests me because of the inherent themes of creativity within skateboarding. Friedel suggests that the connectivity between the skater and their board transform that act from a sport into a form of art. The notion of Life/living is defined by Friedel as an extension of this artistic expression which transforms in to (more than) a life style to a way of life or “life into a work of art” (Friedel, 2015: 53), an art of living. She says “Skateboarding is an art that incorporates many shapes and styles that include a rich texture of perspective and most importantly can be lived” (Friedel, 2015: 50). She also describes the sensation of “flying with a skateboard”, which of course holds personal resonance in relation to my documentary series WeCanFly.

Friedel recognises that not everyone who skateboards experiences The Art of Living Sideways, rather this is a state of mind that must be mastered. To master The Art of Living Sideways one must be disciplined, practiced and “not be shattered by frustrations or failures […]. A skateboarder tries and tries again […] until she/he achieves his/her desired trick” (Friedel, 2015: 48). A more adept skateboarder sees the skateboard as “part of her or his body, and so integral to their relation to the external world” (Borden, 2011: 97); Thus it could be argued has mastered The Art of Living Sideways.  Friedel suggests that once the art of living sideways is mastered “the boundaries between the vehicle and self-blur [and] art can emerge” (Friedel, 2015: 50). The way in which Friedel describes the transcendence into The Art of living Sideways is unquestionably spiritual. She describes feeling at one with the board and the “unimpeded flow [that] resembles a radical immanent experience of oneself in the here and now” as “an essential part of living artfully” (Friedel, 2015:52)

Skateboarding to me is a movement (in more than one sense of the word). Recent enlightenments in the ways in which it sees itself in relation to diversity, equality and unity are emblematic of the progressive nature of skateboarding as a crusade. As a movement, skateboarding embraces difference and individuality whilst also promoting community and collectivism. In another sense of the word, skateboarders describe the literal movement of skateboarding as a sensation akin to flying; “When the air is temporarily charged with fruitful energy and joy is echoing through our body” (Friedel, 2015:79). In both interpretations, the act of skateboarding is something that insights a sense of freedom and liberation. Friedel suggests that this sense of freedom has medicinal potentials that can aid mental health. She sees the embodied process of skateboarding as medicine that gives us the possibility to reconnect with the body, mind and soul (Roth 1998).  She recounts her own experience of this “Skateboarding saved my soul, skateboarding helped me to go through terrible times and skateboarding got me in to trouble (Friedel, 2015: 58) […] I learned to transfer the sadness outside my knees through movement […] I found that I could divert unbearable energies into artist expressions that helped me to cope” (Friedel, 2015:80).

Paradoxically, skateboarding also creates physical pain; maybe it is this transference of internal pain that relieves the psyche. Overcoming the fear of physical pain is all part of the process of learning to skateboard. For me, the trick is to get the right balance between fear and confidence. ‘Balance’ is another double entendre in the context of skateboarding. In a physical sense a skateboarder relies on their centre of gravity and their understanding of the impact of shifting their bodily core. Skateboarding also relies heavily on the balance and connection between the skater’s “mind, heart and soul in order to feel confident and centred”. The less fearful you are, the less stiff you become and thus:- shifts in body reflect shifts in mind; the body becomes more fluid and enables the skateboarder to connect to the flow.  Friedel suggests that with, ”every new learner trick [the skateboarder gets] a feeling of accomplishment, self-confidence, awareness and even self-actualisation”[1]. Personally, Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs reminds me of my teacher training and I have to be honest, I’ve always thought of this theory as quixotic. Friedel connects the  intense feeling of “stoke” [2] with Maslow’s “Self-Actualisation” and finally manages to contextualises this theory for me; “feelings of limitless horizons opening up the vision, the feeling of being simultaneously more powerful and more helpless than one ever was before, the feeling of great ecstasy and wonder and awe, the loss of placing in time and space” (Maslow, 1970:164). Friedel explores the possibilities of skateboarding as an “aid to clean the self from ego structures” (Naranjo, 1990), suggesting that experiences such as these can lead to “increased personal awareness and understanding”; A key part of achieving self-actualisation is caring for others (Friedel, 2015: 84)

By challenging the idea that peace is just an absence of war/ conflict, Friedel explores how the “movement of skateboarding can be used to facilitate a peaceful state of being for one-self [and] also within groups” (Friedel, 2015 p. 19). She recognises that Skateboarding is not in itself a means to cultivate peace but a means to gain peace of mind, inner happiness and fulfilment, in short ‘getting stoked’; peace is not a state but a state of being.  

Friedel suggests that “skateboarding is an activity in the grey world between childlike play and public disobedience and it is exactly in that space that it provides most of it potentials” (Friedel, 2015: 48). From an educational standpoint, I couldn’t agree more with this statement. I believe that this is precisely why it offers such opportunities within both disenfranchised youth cultures in the UK and amidst world conflicts. The irony of skateboarding’s tendency to create its own conflicts (both internally and externally) is in my opinion paramount to its potentials within teaching and learning, in particular for young people from environments where conflict is rife (whether this be on a domestic or global level). Skateboarding “embraces conflict because it understands conflictive as being an integrative part of its relational becoming” (Friedel, 2015: 51). The external nature of conflict can be transformed once they are realised. 

Skateistan was created with the “aim of changing the lives of youth in conflict regions and creating leaders through skateboarding and access to education” (Friedel, 2015:57). Skateistan founder Oliver Percovich credits “The revolutionary idea of linking skateboarding and education” to his experience of witnessing young girls being pulled out of education to work on the streets to support their family’s income.  Percovich began to witness the unifying power that skateboarding had in relation to creating bonds between girls from different socio-political backgrounds and realised the potential for intercultural communication, promoting the message of non-violence and non-discrimination. Skateistan ‘schools’ deploy participatory learning techniques AKA The Freirean Approach. This didactic approach, named after Brazilian educator Paulo Freire “has been used in the developing world in successful native and secondary language literacy projects” (Spener, 1992:1).  The method has an ethnographical stance focusing on the cultural context of the learner(s). This teaching technique has a multi-purpose within Afghanistan because of the cultural and linguistic differences between the teachers and students.  The Freirean Approach is based on the premise that “teacher poses the knowledge of reading and writing; students poses knowledge of their concrete culture” (Spener, 1992:1). The student and teacher must work together to combine this knowledge. They are on a level playing field; “subjects of respect not pity” (Percovich, 2014; 08:16) the focus is on “trust, ownership, creativity, respect, equality as much as quality” (Friedel, 2015: 60). I would surmise that this principle could be applied in a wider didactic framework using skateboarding culture as the paradigm.  Jim Fitzpatrick (editor of Skateistan: The Tale of Skateboarding in Afghanistan, 2017) describes the pillars of skateboarding as “independence persistence, self-reliance and creativity” (Fitzpatrick, 2012: 7) and these are key elements to my own hypothesis.

This text presents opportunities for me to further explore skateboarding as an educational tool. I am particularly interested to study how the participatory learning techniques deployed by Skateistan could be deployed in a Western context. The Art of Living Sideways has also led me to consider the importance of the mental welfare of the students, with regards to disenfranchised youth in the UK and the rising number of young people with mental health issues, Friedel’s notions of skateboarding potential medicinal qualities are inspiring. Conflict, is also an interesting theme to consider within my studies. Conflict can be domestic or internal as well as global and this is something to consider within the didactic context; “Peace is a bodily experience that can be facilitated” (Friedel: 2015: 51)

 [1] Self-Actualisation is a term to describe the realization or fulfilment of one's talents and potentialities derived from Abraham Maslow’s: Hierarchy of Needs

 [2] Getting Stoked: this term derives from the Dutch Stoken – to feed and stir up fire, in skateboarding vocabulary it resembles joy and enthusiasm (Friedel, 2015: 22, Pisano, 2010:50, Harper, 2013)

References 

Borden, Iain. 2001. Skateboarding, Space and the City: Architecture and the Body. Ox- ford: Berg. 

Fitzpatrick, Jim (editor). 2012. Skateistan: The Tale of Skateboarding in Afghanistan. Berlin: Skateistan. 

Friedel, S. 2015 The Art of Living Sideways: Skateboarding, Peace and Elicite Conflict Transformation, Springer 2015

Harper, Douglas. 2013. Online Etymology Dictionary. http://www.etymonline.com/index. php?allowed_in_frame=0& search=stoke&search mode= none. [Accessed 16-6-18] 

Percovich, Oliver. 2014. Skateboarding in Afghanistan: Oliver Percovich at TEDxSydney. http://www.skateistan.org/blog/oliver-speaks-tedxsydney. [Accessed 16-6-18]. 

Pisano, James. 2010. The Tao of Skate. In Concrete Wave Magazine, 8(4), 48-53. Ontario: Michael Brooks. http://issuu.com/concretewave/docs/january2010. [Accessed 16-6-18]


Maslow, Abraham. 1970. Motivation and Personality. New York: Harper & Row.

Naranjo, Clauio. 1991. Ennea-Type Structures: Self-Analysis for the Seeker. Nevada City: Gateways.

Roth, Gabrielle. 1989. Maps to Ecstasy. A Healing Journey for the Untamed Spirit. Nova- to, Nataraj Publishing. (E-book). 

Henry Lefebvre’s studies of Rhythmanalysis within everyday life include a wide range of discussion which redefine elements of time and space. His Marxist notions are highly complex and multi-stranded but as the concept of every-day suggests are applicable to the conventional. Lefebvre created interrelation between space and time in everyday life, “taking the concept of rhythm and turning it in to a ‘science, a new field of knowledge: the analysis of rhythms; with practical consequences’” (Elden, 2004. P6, Lefebvre, 1992. P11). These ‘practical consequences’ have been successfully applied to the physical and spatial act of skateboarding and Lefebvre’s works are widely cited in skateboarding literature. My interest is in how Rhythmanalysis could apply to an educational context.

Central to the concept of rhythm is repetition. In teaching and learning it could be argued that repetition deepens the learner’s engagement process. “If one adopts a student-centered

teaching approach, repetition will be a very important tactic for enhancing learning” (Bruner, 2000. P1). This learner-centric approach is also key to Dylan William’s methods that are currently deployed at the Bryggeriet Gymnasium, Sweden which uses skateboarding at the centre of its curriculum. William’s methods focus on processes and feedback. The learning process is monitored “during the act of production itself:” (Royce Sadler, 1989 p. 121). This concept can be applied in the learning of a new trick but equally to learning a new skill such as woodwork. The important factor is failure. The learner can repeat the action, fail, receive feedback on why and what to do better next time and then try again. Williams adds to this the hypothesis that paramount to the process of learning is the learners understanding that they must work to achieve something. The student must be able to recognises the teacher’s standard of what quality work is and will want to strive to reach that expectation The student knows in these situations that to improve “must practice things they can’t yet do, rather than just simply rehearse the things they know how to do” (Williams, 2013 p.19).  Lefebvre surmises that there is “no rhythm without repetition in time and space, without reprises, without returns, in short without measure” (Lefebvre, 1992 p.6). The measure in an educational context would be methods of assessment. In a skateboarding context the affirmation or measure comes from a more extrinsic motivation.

 It is essential to differentiate between the types of motivations behind skateboarding and mainstream education. The controlled motivation that is present in most classrooms is defined by Deci and Ryan as consisting of external factors such as reward or punishment and internal factors such as approval and avoidance of shame. These ego-driven motivations are not important to skateboarders unless they are contained within the skateboarding community itself. The skateboarder only seeks approval from their peers or role models (who are usually older members of the skate community). The motivation of skateboarding is distinct because it is autonomously driven. This type of motivation, according to Deci and Ryan “comprises both intrinsic motivation and the types of extrinsic motivation in which people have integrated in to their sense of self” (Deci, EL and Ryan, RM, 2008, p 182)

 In a traditional educational context, learning motivation comprises of both “cyclical and linear [processes that] exert a reciprocal action: [the learner] measure themselves against each other” thus creating further cynical repetitions; “one reaches by this road by others” (Lefebvre. 1992 p.8). By creating rhythm in a learning environment it could be argued that a learner is prevented from dancing to the beat of their own drum (so to speak). Within the framework of skateboarding and for disenfranchised learners this concept creates conflict. The duel meaning of Lefebvre’s Rhythmanalysis in Everyday Life in itself also presents discourse.  The notion of everyday alludes to repetitiveness, monotony and the ordinary.  Lefebvre considers these inherent oppositions as indispensable; Repetition generates difference and discovery generates creation. If the learner does not challenge what they have been told, they come into conflict with themselves and do not contest the rhythm of the world (Lefebvre, 1992).  

 If rhythm is a tool for analysis, the element of the moment in teaching and learning is significant here. Lefebvre describes his theory of moments as “significant times when existing orthodoxies are open to challenge” (Elden, 2004. P6). These ‘moments’ when you hear the metaphorical pennies dropping are what a teacher lives for. In teaching and learning the challenges to the rhythm and the ‘off beats’ create revelation and opportunities for deeper thinking. In a classroom there is a reactionary quality to these ‘moments’ whereby the learning will reverberate creating reactions and reprises. This kind of peer interaction is heavily influential in learning to skateboard. Consider a game of skate for example. To successfully deploy teaching techniques inspired by Skateboarding, one must embrace Lefebvre’s rhythmical reverberations.  This statement from Lefebvre sums up this process; “When relations of power overcome relations of alliance, when rhythms ‘of the other’ make rhythms ‘of the self’ impossible, then total crisis breaks out” (Lefebvre, 1992. P.99)

 In conclusion, there are many opportunities to deploy theories of rhythmanalysis within teaching and learning alone but combined with those presented by skateboarding these have further resonance. Key to this theory are the elements of self, identity and individuality that drive skateboarding; the push-pull dynamics of a community driven by both individualism and collectivism.

 Sources 

Bruner, RF (2000) Repetition is the First Principle of All learning https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228318502_Repetition_is_the_First_Principle_of_All_Learning [accessed May 13 2018].

Deci, EL and Ryan, RM (2008) Self-determination theory: A macrotheory of human development and health. Canadian psychological association, Vol 49, no. 3 pp182-185

 Elden S (2004) – introduction to Lefebvre H (2004), Rhythmanalysis Space, Time and Everyday Life Continuum 2004

Lefebvre, H (1992), Elements of Rythmanalysis: An Introduction to the Understanding of Rhythms, Editions Syllepse, Paris 1992

Sadler, D. R. (1989). Formative assessment and the design of instructional systems. Instructional Sci- ence, 18, 119–144.

http://www.vogue.co.uk/article/southbank-skate-exhibition

Hollett’s research could be placed within the pedagogical strategy of peer learning. He is principally interested in the relationship between the skater and the videographer and the resulting media artefact. Hollett identifies the unique consequence of the ‘respective crafts’; skateboarding and videography and celebrates the notion that the resulting video is entirely collaborative. Hollett’s aim of “drawing out potential implications for the design of digital media learning settings” (Hollett, 2017: p.1) is particularly interesting from a personal perspective, coming from both my professional stand (as I currently lecture in media production) and from a creative viewpoint in consideration of my documentary series WeCanFly.

Written in 2017, Hollett grasps the opportunity to contemporize previous thesis on the ethnographic skateboard lens in consideration of social media platforms. His observations highlight the relevance of social, visual, communication techniques and the potential that this has for reaching corporate sponsors. He describes the work produced by the skater/ videographers partnership as a “portfolio of one’s capabilities” (Hollett, 2017: p.2). Quoting from Snyder’s The city and the subculture career: Professional street skateboarding in LA. (2012) Hollett observes that the skateboarder “cannot achieve these feats alone- in order to contribute to this progression, they need photographers and filmers to document their tricks’ (Snyder, 2012: p. 321). Further to both Snyder’s and Hollett’s observations here, I would suggest that the videographer is more likely to be able to use platforms such as Instagram, YouTube and Vimeo to create some form of commercial success, revenue or career path.  The media industry is notoriously difficult to break into and many young people completing under graduates in this field end up working freelance. The skills that the skate videographer has are highly transferable with the commercial sector, and can provide an excellent platform for progression within this industry. “The filmer must also have an encyclopedic knowledge of tricks in order to know how to frame the shot, how to follow the trick’s movement., how to choose an angle and more – all while managing technical aspects, like shutter speed and lighting (Snyder, 2012: p. 323). Alongside their cinematography skills, the videographer is also responsible for the sound and editing processes, both of which have highly complex skills prerequisites. From a teaching and learning perspective, the videographer’s ability to multi task should not be underestimated. Alongside these technical skills, the videographer must also demonstrate entrepreneurial skills: they must have the wherewithal to manage their ‘business’ from a promotional and financial perspective.  Thus the role of the videographer offers many teaching and learning opportunities in regards to my proposed area of study.

In Hollett’s essay he investigates the Symbiotic leaning partnerships between the skater and the videographer. Within my proposed Ph.D., I am to look at the fundamentals of learning when it comes to learning to skateboard to see if these strategies could be applied in a wider didactic framework. Hollett’s observations in regards to relationships with skateboarding are predominantly concerned with the element of peer to peer rapports. This is both an obstacle and opportunity when it comes to my study. The question that it raises concerns whether skateboarding in an educational context can only work if both teacher and learner are on mutual levels. As Hollett explains through the use of the phrase “Vibing”, “there is a rhythmic quality” (Hollett, 2017: p.3). Drawing on the work of Lefebvre, Hollett homes in on the notion of the interaction between skate and videographer as a paradigm for the interaction between time and space: “everywhere there is an interaction between place, a time and an exploration of energy, there is a rhythm” (Lefebvre, 2004: p.15). With this in mind, a key consideration in employing skateboarding’s intrinsic learning model would have to disregard the traditional teacher/ student hierarchy. Hollett observes this within this paragraph:

“This emphasis on collaborative partnerships is important when bridging them toward designed learning opportunities, especially given the fact that much of the literature on youth digital media production focuses on individual efforts, especially in out-of-school settings (Barron et al., 2014; Ito et al., 2013). While there is certainly a need to track the progression of individual, media-related skill sets (Bevan et al., 2012), or how mentors broker digital production opportunities for youth (Ching et al., 2015), there is also a need to investigate cross- domain partnerships, such as those that grow among skateboarders and digital media learners, like photographers and videographers. More specifically, digital media production within the action sports community – and especially the critical partnership between athlete and photographer or videographer – points not towards individual learning pathways, but rather towards entangled, bound pathways that emerge alongside each other” (Hollett, 2017: p 4)

Hollett’s study intrigues me mostly, because of how he observes the importance of togetherness. His principle findings focus around how the skater and videographer experience a symbiosis in the production of a media artefact. What must be noted within this synergy is the element of perseverance for both parties. The videographer must persist in getting the shot, just as much as the skater must endure many fails before they land the trick (in most cases). Hollet describes this process as a “cycle of reflection and nurture”. The videographer often taking on the role of the councilor, or encourager (much like a good teacher). The notion of learning partnerships such as that of the skater and the filmer has immense potential within any educational context. We often consider the importance of self-reflection and evaluation within a didactic framework where as Hollett puts this notion into the context of “nurture and joint success”. Within my own classroom we often produce projects in groups. These are challenging situations within the setting of further education as learners are often faced with working with other students with varying levels of motivation towards their outcomes. My goal is to continue to investigate how skateboarding and the arts that surround it is able to support such intrinsic learning. I haven’t found the answer yet but the mission continues.

References

Hollett, T (2017) Symbiotic learning partnerships in youth action sports: Vibing, rhythm, and analytic cycles, Convergence: The International Journal of Research into
New Media Technologies
1–14, Published by Sage 2017

Lefebvre H (2004) Rhythmanalysis: Space, Time and Everyday Life. London: Blackwell.