A small but significant cross-cultural Arts Based Education Research project has been quietly unfolding between Northumbria University, Newcastle and Karel de Grote (KdG) University College in Antwerp, Belgium, one that puts collage at the heart of international pedagogy.

The partnership, initiated following Lucy Barker’s presentation on collage as inquiry at the European Teacher Education Network (ETEN) Symposium in Hasselt in 2025, brought together undergraduate students and staff from both institutions within a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) framework. Students were invited to create magazine collages in response to the question: “How do you, as a teacher, make a difference for all pupils?” before sharing and discussing their work in a live 90-minute online exchange via Microsoft Teams.

Ruben De Witte, lecturer at KdG, reflected on why the collage format proved so well-suited to this group of students, many of whom are career changers or in-service trainees with limited access to traditional forms of internationalisation:

“Working with collage in small international groups proved particularly powerful. The creative process encouraged students to open up, exchange viewpoints, and engage in deeper reflection. The visual and collaborative nature of the method helped to loosen tongues, fostering rich discussions and allowing multiple perspectives on inclusion to surface.”

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Dr Lucy Barker, Northumbria University

Categories: Coil, Internationalisation