The artistic and aesthetic dimensions of data visualisations have been extensively discussed in academic circles and beyond (Brinch, 2020; Lupi et al. 2016; Cairo, 2016, 2013; McCandless, 2009; Cox, 2006). In addition, given the widespread use of data visualisations in different domains of contemporary societies (Rettberg, 2020; Buzato 2018), the ability to critically interpret data presented visually has become a crucial form of literacy in recent years (Tønnessen, 2020; Bhargava & D'Ignazio, 2015).
In this paper, we present digital data visualisations designed for the specific purpose of making participants interact with research data they had previously helped generate. Drawing on the visual-haptic properties of digital media (Storto, 2021; Lupton, 2017), the visualisations represent answers to the prompts "to be multilingual means…" and "are you multilingual?", taken from an online questionnaire answered by 593 lower secondary school students. The visuals were subsequently used in interactive sessions with 114 students in one of the participant schools. Taken together, the visuals and the sessions represent an innovative, participatory approach to multilingualism and multilingual identity (Storto, 2022).
The paper focuses on the interactive, ludic design of the visuals and how they were developed to facilitate novel and unexpected readings of the data (Bhargava & D'Ignazio, 2015). We conclude the session with a discussion of participants' reflections on multilingualism and multilingual identity based on their interaction with the visuals, researchers and their peers.
References
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Brinch, S. "What We Talk about When We Talk about Beautiful Data Visualizations." In Data Visualization in Society, 259-76. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2020.
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Storto, A. (2021). Fingerprints: towards a multisensory approach to meaning in digital media. Nordic Journal of Digital Literacy, 16(3-4), 132–143. https://doi.org/10.18261/issn.1891-943x-2021-03-04-04
Storto, A. (2022). 'To be multilingual means…': Exploring a participatory approach to multilingual identity with schoolchildren. International Journal of Multilingualism. https://doi.org/10.1080/14790718.2022.2082441
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https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvzgb8c7
