Unlearning in the Classroom: Collaboratives, Arts-Based, and Restful Modes of Learning

Abstract

This art piece and subsequent reflections emerge from my master’s research that intends to develop a Metis-feminist theory of rest as resistance. I use an expansive understanding of rest that sees itself as anything that operates as a break from everyday stressors or routines to soothe and rejuvenate. In an effort to shift the sense of “meaningful” classroom engagement, I created a collaborative art piece with classmates to insert an art break into a long day of presentations. This art break intervenes in classroom spaces that overwhelmingly prioritize colonial methods of producing and disseminating knowledge. It also interferes in the overwhelmingly large expectations of productivity in graduate student spaces. We open space for reflection by stepping away from the colonial and capitalistic pressure always to formulate the best question or response.