Why I ditched presentations for paper and scissors

As an ESOL lecturer in a busy department, I’m constantly trying to make our courses relevant and interesting for our students. Long gone are the pre-Brexit days when many of our students were mostly economic migrants with similar study skills and a shared cultural knowledge. Our intake has changed dramatically, with more students with little or no educational experience who have recently arrived in Scotland and many with trauma from war-torn countries. It’s been challenging rising to meet these changes, but pedagogically interesting and deeply rewarding to see these students flourish.

A big challenge we face is trying to help them complete our core skills units – a set of SQA certificates in areas like communication and working with others. A key assessment involves researching a topic as a team and presenting findings to the class. These are valuable skills, but a real challenge for students with little classroom experience who are managing the effects of trauma.

Normally I ask students to present their findings on PowerPoint in front of the class. Whilst some thrive at presenting, many lower level students find it nerve-racking. With many already functioning at a very low tolerance for stress, I wanted to find another way for students to communicate their research.

At a college-run training day I came across a colleague, Jennifer Ouson, who has been working with zines for many years and is most passionate about their ability to help students express themselves. Zines come in all shapes, sizes and formats, including a mini eight-page booklet made from a single page of A4 paper. They are quick to assemble, cheap to make and easy to photocopy and distribute. They can be as simple or intricate as you like. They can be a vehicle for spreading information or a catalyst for change. There’s almost something quite subversive about them – a voice for marginalised people, hand-made, grass-roots and counter-cultural.

Jennifer and I decided to do a two hour workshop to practice the paper folding and introduce my pre-intermediate ESOL class to the concept. She supplied lots of ideas but we let the students pick the topic they wanted. We discussed in class what they might want to explore; ‘things I’m good at, what I do in a day, my culture, things I like, what I think about Scotland, my happy place’.

The power in zines is the freedom. Zines are authentic forms of self-expression and often contain personal narratives, and assessing or dictating content negates this. With this in mind we gave the students free rein, telling them that drawings were OK, or just using one word or writing in their first language, and not worrying about spelling. The aim was to give them control, creativity and a voice, without pressure to produce perfect English.

I had a niggling concern that the students wouldn’t take it seriously or would think it was a waste of time. But they were eager to get started. Jennifer supplied lots of beautiful, colourful photocopies to cut up, some glue sticks and scissors. It was quite daunting to be faced with a blank page but students were soon snipping away and chatting together about their ideas with a peaceful focus. Topics ranged from love expressed to a daughter, to how to keep calm in times of war, to war and religion in Sudan. Some were visually beautiful, some carried a message of hope, some were heart-breaking. A young student with severe mental health problems designed his booklet as separate postcards, each page giving thoughts about his soul.

In the end, the zines workshop challenged my own preconceptions about delivering ESOL. Rather than typing at a screen to make a PowerPoint, students can use their hands and connect with their bodies to produce something personal and real. All the students managed to complete a zine and 90 per cent made something they were extremely proud of.

Zines give traumatised students a direct connection between their inner thoughts and outward expression. They offer choices and a sense of empowerment in a world where students may not feel they have much control.  Participating without any pressure, in a quiet environment, brings a sense of mindfulness and relaxation, helping them process experiences in a creative way.

This workshop has made me rethink our core skills unit and how we can find ways to make it more student-lead, reduce anxiety and increase confidence. Zines offer a humane approach to research and communication. They allow choices, creativity and control.

As the students left with colour photocopies of their work to take home to family and friends, I understood the transformative power of these A4 sheets and their ability to give a voice, foster confidence and possibly transform lives.