Students’ Negotiations of Perspectives on the Atlantic Salmon, Humans, and Nature: Analysing a Student-Created Film

Abstract

Several reports have argued that we need to renegotiate our relationship with nature, with transdisciplinary aesthetics and cultural approaches being highlighted as key to success. In this article, we present a case study of a transdisciplinary open schooling intervention in a lower secondary school, where students created a film about the red-listed Atlantic salmon. The aim of this paper is to explore how narrative filmmaking, created within a transdisciplinary open schooling setting, supports students in developing agency. The following research question guided the multimodal discourse analysis: What attitudes towards salmon, humans, and nature are communicated and negotiated in the film, and how do the interactive, multimodal resources in filmmaking support students in negotiating perspectives on human–nature relationships? Analytical tools from the appraisal framework and social semiotics were utilised in the analysis. The study demonstrates how the students conveyed a strong appreciation for the salmon and emotionally engaged with its perspective, and how this was realized multimodally through the film’s linguistic and visual resources. Our analysis reveals that the students enacted agency by setting out to inform and surprise with facts about the salmon and its magnificence, challenge anthropocentric views on salmon, and negotiate conflicting perspectives. Finally, the results also show that the students negotiated different human perspectives on salmon, such as scientists’ mechanistic view and a more relational philosophy, ultimately inviting and inspiring the audience to take action.