Practical worlds: enskilment as pedagogical practice

Abstract

ABSTRACT In 2000 Tim Ingold considered the nature of skill acquisition in physical locations where our attentive dwelling forms the basis from which learning occurs. He called this ‘enskilment’. Although generally considered in relation to ecological/anthropological study, enskilment has more recently been applied to areas like sports education (Woods et al. [2021]. “Enskilment: An ecological anthropological worldview of skill, learning and education in sport.” Sports Medicine - Open 7 (33).) and craft (Gowlland [2019]. “The sociality of enskilment.” Ethnos 84 (3): 508–524.). By extension, this article employs a case study to unpack the enskilment experience of six doctoral students who immersed themselves inside a feature film production (Punch – 2020–2022). The participants were all concurrently developing projects associated with narrative creation. Seeking opportunities for immersion across pre-production, production and postproduction phases of the project, they experienced a form of learning where skill acquisition was inseparable from collaborative practice and idiosyncratic environments, and insight emerged in non-linear ways. While the article draws correlations between their experiences and existing discourses on enskilment, it also suggests that this pedagogical model might contribute something useful to ongoing discussions around creative endeavours during, and after students have completed their degree studies.