There is great excitement at An Cosán about our upcoming Learner Photovoice Exhibition!

The Whirlwind and The Path exhibition comprises a fascinating collection of some of our adult learners’ photos and narratives showcasing their experience of Community Education through the Personal and Professional Development Certificate programme we have developed over the past two years with our linked partner South East Technological University.

You won’t want to miss this exhibition if you have an interest in the power of education to change the lives of adults, families and communities.

Through the exhibition, you will discover the motivations of adult learners, the challenges they experience, the role of supports, as well as the impact of their participation. Among the issues raised are racism, substance use, bereavement, migration, domestic violence, learning difficulties, bullying, homelessness, and mental health.

This is a collection of powerful testimonies about being open to, and embracing, change. Through the photos and narratives, the learners’ courage, resilience, tenacity, curiosity, and hunger to learn shine through.

All are welcome to the launch, which will take place in the Russell Centre, Tallaght, on 30th June from 2pm-4pm. Bring your colleagues, family and friends too!

Please register here so we have a rough idea of numbers in advance >> https://bit.ly/PhotovoiceLaunch

This project was developed by our Higher Education Lead, Thomas Murray, supported by Yasmin Kutub and Rebekah Brennan, in collaboration with the Personal and Professional Development programme participants. Without the learners’ enthusiasm, the exhibition would never have got off the ground!

The Whirlwind and The Path aims to acknowledge and celebrate An Cosán’s lifelong learning community and encourage participation in adult community education.

If you can’t make it on 30th June, you will have the opportunity to view the exhibition in our community centre at Kiltalown Village Centre, Jobstown, Tallaght, D24 R3PN, from 10th to 14th July 10am-4pm.

For further information, please contact Foluke by emailing f.oladosu@ancosan.ie

Background to the project

An Cosán recently partnered with South East Technological University on the Higher Education Pathway for Non-Traditional Learners Project to create a new, flexible, and digitally inclusive third-level award, responsive to the needs of marginalised adult learners and to the future world of work and lifelong learning. Over two years, 50 adult learners engaged in the resulting Certificate in Personal and Professional Development (NFQ Level 6). As part of this Certificate programme, learners were invited to participate in a photovoice research project.

Photovoice is a creative, participatory research method that combines photographic images and text to present individual perspectives. In this project adult learners from communities across Ireland used photos and narratives to offer us their unique accounts about their lifelong learning pathways, the challenges they experience, as well as the influences in learners’ lives that have helped them along the way. The Whirlwind and The Path exhibition is the outcome of this photovoice research process involving researcher-educators from An Cosán and adult learners.

The Higher Education Pathway for Non-Traditional Learners Project is supported by the Higher Education Authority under its Higher Education System Innovation and Transformation Call 2018.