Chloe Newman shares processes, findings and next steps of her research using Photovoice to advocate for the voices of children with autism in a mainstream EYFS setting
By Chloe Newman (chloe2.newman@live.uwe.ac.uk)
This blog discusses the process, findings and next steps of Chloe Newman’s 2024 Masters project; ‘Are we listening? Photovoice research advocating for the voices of children with autism in a mainstream EYFS setting’.
I grew up being educated in both English and Welsh schools and now, having been an undergraduate and postgraduate student at UWE Bristol, I am proud to be a neurodiverse teacher in mainstream and special schools. My values in education are ever-growing but at my core I believe in continual personal reflection and creating meaningful relationships with students as individuals. In fact, countless conversations with my Masters supervisor have led me to acknowledge myself as a Freirean who does not fit within the traditional ‘banking model’ of education where teachers hold the power and students are simply taught, disciplined, and comply instead, I am driven by a Freirean sense of mutual respect, care and hope for social change from the current political framework of education.
Working with four-year-old children with autism and limited verbal communication I wanted to examine if, with the right support, they would be able to express views. I wanted to know what was important to them in school, how I could help them to share their voice and how we, as educators, could respond to Reception aged children with autism’s voices.
This research would allow me to shine a light on important, yet often minoritised, individual voices. It enabled me to challenge what is often the line of least resistance for mainstream educators due to competing educational demands. My hope was, and still is, to continue to open the conversation around more awareness of strategies that authentically invite children with special needs to the table.
My search for an appropriate methodology led me to Burris and Wang’s 1990’s Photovoice which was created to give a voice to marginalised groups of society. For me, another appealing feature was it’s underpinning in Freire’s belief in a researcher as a facilitator with the hope of having an impact on policy. Photovoice typically follows the structure of using the method of participant led photography, reflection upon photographs and sharing with the community to promote policy.
It is widely acknowledged within special schools that children with autism benefit from a total communication approach and using Alternative and Augmentative Communication (more can be read on this within the New Siblands Special School Total Communication Policy). Using self-led photography felt like an innovative tool for which could be used as a type of AAC. Do. et al.’s meta-synthesis in 2021 found that photovoice has been used with individuals with autism. However, in these studies the youngest children were eight years old and had verbal communication, this was notably different in comparison to my project. This created an interesting reflection point for me and as a Freirean based methodology, relationships had to be at the heart of the study which meant adapting and then extending the methods used.
The project used a variety of AAC strategies including the iPad for self-led photography and an additional communication board for one student. These, alongside using a relational approach and parents to support with reflections, were the flexible tools that begun a process of allowing children to share their viewpoints. When holding the iPad to explore their world, I was surprised to find both children’s imaginative play and vocabulary was increased. This has led me to consider further exploration into whether using a camera as a relational tool could support children with autism’s imaginative vocabulary.
The findings of my project and supporting literature appeared to create some generalised answers which would be worth further investigation. These included both children’s desire to communicate with trusted adults, the importance for them of accessing outdoor spaces and chosen quiet spaces and their interest in school display art. However, the children also surprised me in their own individual ways. For example, there was a held assumption prior to the project that one child did not understand emotions and yet during their self-led photography they chose to take countless photos of other children who they described as ‘friends’ who ‘were happy’.
A key aspect of my title was ‘Are We Listening?’ and when considering the educators’ responses to these children’s expression of self, it would have been too simplistic for me to say educators listened to children’s voices and actioned these to give the children agency. Within the political and social climate of mainstream education, educators held what appeared to be deep-rooted concerns around funding available for support these children and debates around whether mainstream was an appropriate setting. Educators had good intentions and were surprised by the children’s ability to express themselves, but real change is an authentic process which takes time.
The project has created what feels like a responsibility to continue a collective dialogue across educational settings around the following questions:
- Could special schools and mainstream schools be working closer together to share their best practice? And could this in turn, help to foster a holistic approach to education where guidance can be given on how to appropriately implement AAC within mainstream schools?
- Do we give children with SEN, parents and educators the agency to contribute to conversations around ongoing improvements for the AAC which impact them directly?
- How are we preparing our future teachers at initial teacher training to use practical and experiential approaches to total communication for children regardless of if they are training to be in mainstream, specialist or alternative provision?
For more information around this project and future research, please contact Chloe Newman (chloe2.newman@live.uwe.ac.uk).
References
- Do, P. L., Frawley, P., Goldingay, S., O’Shea, A. (2021) The use of Photovoice in research with people on the autism spectrum: A meta-synthesis of the literature. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorder. 87 1-14. Available from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1750946721001033 [Accessed 24 April 2024]
- Freire, P. (2014) Pedagogy of Hope. London: Bloomsbury.
- Freire, P. (2013) Education for Critical Consciousness. London: Bloomsbury.
- Freire, P. (2005) Teachers as Cultural Workers: Those who dare teach. Boulder, Routledge Second Ed.
- Freire, P. (1972). Pedagogy of the oppressed. Penguin Books
- New Siblands School (2025) Total Communication Procedure. Available from: https://www.newsiblands.org.uk/Policies-and-Documents/ [Accessed 9 April 2025]
