Occupational Travellers and Researchers as Educational Border Crossers: Methods for Researching with Australian and British Fairground People

The work of occupational Travellers requires them to cross geographical borders regularly, which in turn generates challenges and opportunities for educating their children. Similarly, education scholars researching with occupational Travellers cross axiological, epistemological and ontological borders in striving to research ethically and reciprocally with the research participants in spaces that mainstream cultures position as being on the margins of educational provision. This chapter explores and evaluates the methods deployed by the authors in conducting and publishing research with members of the Australian and British fairground communities over several years. These methods centre on issues of rapport, reciprocity and representation, and they include intercultural communication, nuanced vocality and co-authorship where possible. Conceptually, the discussion is framed by an updating of Giroux’s (Border crossings: Cultural workers and the politics of education [2nd ed.]. New York, NY: Routledge, 2005) provocation around border crossings