Applied ethnopoetic analysis, poetic inquiry and a practice of vulnerability: uncovering and undoing the vulnerabilities of refugees and asylum seekers seeking access to Higher Education

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ABSTRACT This paper discusses the experience of four refugee and asylum seekers seeking access to Higher Education. The methodological framework intersects applied ethnopoetic analysis and poetic inquiry, underpinned by Freirean, Translanguaging dialogue. The approach foregrounds participants’ voices to address a structural refusal to recognise the repertoires of multilingual marginalised participants. The paper deals with two types of vulnerability: vulnerability imposed on participants and vulnerability practiced by the researcher. A practice of vulnerability disrupts traditional power dynamics through ‘an attitude of not knowing, discovery, critical self-dialogue’ with an emphasis on co-creation.