Background
In Bespoke Tailoring there is a lot of specialist vocabulary, from the names of tools and materials to parts of garments and trade jargon. We explain the terminology during our sessions, and provide the students with written presentations and some glossary lists. However, I find a lot of students still struggle with the terminology. This affects their understanding of the content delivered, and their ability to talk about their work and ask questions.
We have a lot of students with dyslexia and ADHD, and many others are visual learners. This might make it difficult for them to interpret our written resources. At UAL, 18% of the students have a declared disability, of which 6.9% have a specific learning difficulty, and 6.5% other or multiple impairments (UAL Dashboards). Currently on our course, 23% of year 1 students and 28% of our year 2 students have an ISA (Individual Support Agreement).
Approximately half of UAL students are from overseas, and for many of those, English is not their first language.
Banerjee (2024) found that one of the factors behind the degree awarding gap for students from “lower socio-economic backgrounds and minority groups” is a “scarcity of social and cultural capital.” These students are less likely to have a preexisting vocabulary from the milieu of bespoke tailoring, such as terminology relating to formal dress and hunting suits. In addition, autonomy support and well-organised and clear learning actives were found to relate positively to student engagement, which in turn enhanced study results.
At the same time, students who do not identify with above characteristics might still have similar learning preferences (for example, visual learners). Creating a resource for learning tailoring terminology will benefit the vast majority of my students.
My positionally
I am interested in languages and the social psychology of communication. I have studied languages and linguistics, and worked briefly as a foreign language teacher. English is not my first language, and there were a lot of cultural references related to tailoring that I did not know when I started my degree at UAL.
Intervention
I would like to provide an accessible, inclusive and multi-purpose glossary that can be both a revision aid for tailoring terminology and a game.
The glossary will be imaged based, with an accessible design. Stripped back layout will minimise visual noise. Each page, or card, will show the terminology alongside an image of the object or concept to explain it. Where helpful, a short definition in text will be included. Ideally, there would be the option of listening to a recorded voice pronouncing the word.
The glossary could be organised as a PowerPoint presentation, one term per page. The vocabulary could be divided into chapters, such as Tools, Trousers Components, Tailoring Terminology.
The glossary could also be printed as revision cards, the image on one side and the word on the other.
Further development ideas
If possible I would like to make digital revision cards, where the image appears first, then the word next to it when you click on the card.
Ideally these digital cards would be converted into a digital game or app, where users can pair the images with the words and score points. Gamified learning has been repeatedly shown to increase the engagement and the motivation of students, and help them learn more effectively. A friend working in special needs education suggested the coding for this digital game might be achievable using AI.
The physical revision cards could be used to play a kind of Pictionary game in-class, with one student drawing a term and the rest trying to guess it. Drawing enhances memory (Salamon, 2018), so this game would aid their learning. Played in groups it will also promote community, which can help in reducing the awarding gap (Banerjee, 2024). A good time to do this would be with first year students during the the Welcome event, or at the beginning of their first unit (we have a field trip where we ask the students to sketch. Pictionary would be a good warming up exercise).
I would like to explore if the glossary can be translate into different languages, possibly using the free AI translation tool DeepL.
Resources:
Aldrich, W. (2011) Metric Pattern Cutting for menswear. Fifth edition. Chichester: John Wiley
Banerjee, P. (2024). ‘Connecting the dots: a systematic review of explanatory factors linking contextual indicators, institutional culture and degree awarding gaps.’ Higher Education Evaluation and Development, Vol. 18 No. 1, pp. 31-52
Cabrera, R and Meyers, P.F. (2022) Classic Tailoring Techniques for menswear: a construction giude. 3rd edition. New York: Fairchild.
Cambridge Dictionary. Available at: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/deconstruct. (Accessed 2 February 2025)
Crenshaw, K. (1991). ‘Mapping the Margins: intersectionality, Identity Politics and Violence against Women of Colour.’ Stanford Law Review. Vol. 43, No.6 pp. 1241-1299
pixels.com. Free stock photos.
Pixabay.com. Free stock photos.
Salamon, M. (2018) UAL ‘Drawing Laboratory: Research workshops and outcomes’. Spark: UAL Creative Teaching and Learning Journal. Vol 3/Issue 2 pp. 131-141
Savile Row Bespoke. Tailoring Terms. Available at: https://www.savilerowbespoke.com/about-us/tailoring-terms/ (Accessed 23 May 2025)
UAL Dashboard. (Accessed 23 May 2025)
UAL (2019) Guidance for Inclusive Teaching and Learning. Available at: https://canvas.arts.ac.uk/documents/sppreview/3550bb2f-db31-4a28-8223-6a13d80001e7 (Accessed 23 May 2025)
UAL (no date) Creating Accessible Documents. Available at: https://canvas.arts.ac.uk/sites/explore/SitePage/61338/creating-accessible-documents (Accessed 23 May 2025)
I think this sounds like a really promising intervention Maria, building on your experience in linguistics but also as someone who has had to learn a technical vocabulary in a new language. If you felt able to share that this was also new for you once, and challenging to learn, then I think students would relate to that.
I’ve been trying to find the references we discussed at our Peer-to-Peer presentations! The Banerjee text has an interesting part about the benefit of students being able to visualise themself as a success in the future- it might help them to hear your journey in this respect. The Bamber text also talks about defining key ideas or terminology at the beginning of a course also goes a long way towards mitigating the differences in cultural capital that students arrive with.
There is an embarrassment many students (and staff!) feel when they feel they should know things – making a visual reference that can be referred back to would go a long way towards making it feel acceptable to not know, or to ask.
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Bamber, V & Jones, A 2015, Challenging students: enabling inclusive learning. in H Fry, S Ketteridge & S Marshall (eds), A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education: Enhancing Academic Practice. 4th edn, Routledge , Abingdon, pp. 152-168.
Banerjee, P. (2024) ‘Connecting the dots: a systematic review of explanatory factors linking contextual indicators, institutional culture and degree awarding gaps’ in Higher Education Evaluation and Development. Leeds: Emerald Publishing.
I really relate to this, especially thinking about international students encountering these terms for the first time. I remember how frustrating it was not having the right vocabulary to talk about painting or explain what I needed to make in the workshop. Providing students with accessible glossary cards would definitely help them communicate better, build confidence, and gain specialised vocabulary.
The idea of gamifying the learning sounds fun. Personally, I would also appreciate having the cards handy during presentations and tutorials as a quick reference – my memory is not great, so having that support would make me feel much more comfortable.
I think this could also be interesting for students to engage in some way with the making. I wonder if a project like this could qualify to the Teaching and Learning fund that support tutors and students with projects: https://www.arts.ac.uk/about-ual/teaching-and-learning-exchange/awards-and-funding/teaching-and-learning-fund1
This is such an exciting and thoughtfully developed intervention. Your proposal bridges so many layers: language, neurodiversity, and cultural capital, with a strong sense of play and accessibility. I especially appreciate how you’ve positioned the glossary as both a learning tool and a community builder. The use of visual and audio elements, combined with gamification, feels incredibly inclusive and well-suited to the diverse learning preferences you’ve identified – useful for external staff and Visiting practitioners too, I guess! Your reflection on your own positionality also adds depth and it’s clear this intervention is informed by both empathy and lived experience (I totally relate myself to this too!). I’d be really keen to hear how students respond to the physical and digital formats!