Sensory Tours as a Method for Engaging Children as Active Researchers: Exploring the Use of Wearable Cameras in Early Childhood Research

Abstract

This article explores the use of wearable cameras with children as a data collection means to engage young children as active researchers in recording their experiences in natural environments. This method captures children’s unique perspectives of being-in-the-world, depicting what they see, hear, say, touch, and their interactions with others. In this paper, this method is called Sensory Tours, informed by the tradition of walking tours used in environmental education. It is a nonintrusive means of collecting data, providing children with control over what data they collect, and removing the need for an adult researcher with a video camera propping and prodding over children’s day-to-day activities. In this paper, the advantages, challenges, and opportunities of wearable cameras are evaluated and illustrated through the video records made by children. The method provides opportunities for subsequent video-stimulated group discussions and other interactive activities that can enrich understandings of children’s lived experiences. Sensory Tours provide a means for children to analyze, reconstruct, and interpret salient aspects of their experiences in discussions with peers and adults.