"Cause We Young People Decide What the Future Looks Like" : - Students' Cultural Capital and Art Pedagogical Consequences

The present study investigates how students encounter and interpret images based on their individual perspectives and previous experiences. The research questions are how students’ cultural capital can be understood based on their visual encounters and preferences, and what ways they use their cultural capital to interpret a surrealistic photo. The concept cultural capital is based on field theory. A web-based questionnaire with photo-elicitation was constructed, with basis in qualitative methodology. Participants consisted of 15 students, aged 15, from an elementary school in the South of Sweden. Results indicate that participants have different forms of cultural capital and seek out images based on personal interests. The environments where visual meetings take place are largely digital, and peers as well as the art-teacher encourage these creative activities. The participants demonstrate awareness of the world and global/human issues, which they use to decode and create narratives about a surreal photo. Pedagogic consequences include that the art teacher should function as a cultural intermediary, engage in, and adapt teaching to students’ digital visual interests, and cultural capital