Dialogical Exchanges: Convention Refugee Youth And Creative Movement Programming

Background: Convention refugees are individuals who have fled their home countries due to a substantiated fear of persecution. Many young Convention refugees are disconnected from their environment as they enter host countries. Convention refugee youth suffer from forced flight. Forced flight provides a unique inquiry into movement patterns. Movement patterns are pertinent to physical activity. Purpose: The purpose of this critical and democratic pedagogical inquiry was to record physical literacy through a physical activity biography. Through post-intentional phenomenological lens these captured nuances followed community footprints of Convention refugee youth in Windsor, ON. Methods: Significant moments were captured at data saturation through a visual biography method. Visual biography recorded three distinct stages of physical activity. Validation of data points were recorded through participant observations, three phenomenological interviews, artifact sharing and photovoice activities. Storyboards and movement boards created a finale dance performance. Results: Data interrogation points through post-intentional phenomenological methodology produced six themes: a) creativity b) motion c) imagineering d) space connectors e) place making f) place attachment. The exploration of physical literacy through critical pedagogy revealed a “dialogical self” (Gabel, 2002, p. 180). Critical voices harmonized physical activity curricula through participatory action research. A dialogical self positioned in the life-world revealed creative movement. Conclusions: Creative movement pedagogy is critical to the development of globalized narratives. A dialogical self positions itself within locality influenced by the natural world. A walk-story in community settings illuminates’ nuances of physical literacy and physical activity. When nurtured in a democratic pedagogy, Convention refugee youth revealed meaning. These “coming to know” (Nilges, 2004, p. 299) moments bridged meaning and experience. Lived experiences are pertinent to the exploration of physical activity. Physical literacy seeks and records physical activity in order to define the concept of lifelong participation. In a culturally responsive pedagogy, visual biographies can create a praxis. Praxis is a purposeful engagement with stimuli where reflection and action reveal belonging. Physical and dance education lends itself to creative curricula because the essence of classroom experiences is found in movement patterns. Physical and dance curricula can harness creative movement pedagogy in order to support acculturation for all community members. Physical and dance education can be a platform for social educational change