Insights from Inclusive Participatory Fieldwork with Learners with Deafblindness and Other Marginalised Impairments

Abstract

This paper describes and discusses a piece of inclusive and participatory fieldwork carried out at two sites in Bangladesh in close collaboration with local and international NGOs working on disability as part of the UK government (FCDO) funded Disability Inclusive Development (DID) programme. Our research fieldwork engaged two small groups of learners with specific identities (deafblind or young women) in workshops aiming to gather examples of and understand their experiences as young people with disabilities, both in general terms and about a work-focussed programme. Creative, visual and arts based multi-modal methods were used to encourage maximum participation, including from those with little or no spoken language or literacy. Some were accompanied by carers or supporters who also shared their perspectives. Local staff teams from collaborating INGOs and Organisations of People with Disabilities (OPDs) supported, participated in and learnt from the process. Detail about the workshop activities and data from the participants are presented and discussed. Recommendations from the participants and reflections on the methodological aspects are provided. We concluded that using inclusive, participatory and creative research methods generates rich insights into people’s experiences, which can increase understandings about marginalised people’s lives and inform future interventions to promote their inclusion.