The Messy Room

Recurso 21

Pretend a tornado ripped through the room, leaving it soooo messy. What happens when you ask a group of young researchers to fix it as they want? The first step in taking ownership of the research process, is to learn how to co-create a common working space.

Recurso 14

Written by

Kirsten Williams

Edited by

Denisse Albornoz

Developed by

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Our Experience Using this Technique

We used this technique during our first day of a training course on Participatory Action Research (PAR) in Colombia. We watched participants nervously enter the space in its disastrous state. A look of confusion crossed their faces while we giggled – equally nervous to see if it would work out. Once they all settled uncomfortably on the floor, we asked them the first question: so, how are you all feeling? Seeing them sufficiently awkward, we asked them to recreate the space in the way they want. We put a song on and they started reorganizing.

For us, it was an important way to get participants involved in co-creating space, as a first act of taking ownership in the research process.

The Messy Room - Research Technique

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