Poetic inquiry: understanding youth on the margins of education

In this article, I argue that poetic inquiry is a valuable method for producing knowledge that complements current research into ‘what works’ in reintegrating young people into secondary education. Researching ‘what works’ and ‘finding effects’ leads to insight into which interventions and tools are the focus of the research, and effectiveness is the goal. In contrast, poetic inquiry shifts the focus from the tools and interventions to the young people and their experience of their situation, the system, and opportunities. The goal is a more general understanding, rather than an assessment of effectiveness. I argue that as a qualitative research method, poetic inquiry can evoke emotion and illuminate the polyvocality of experience, which is important when understanding these young people. By use of poetic examples, the article demonstrates how the young people have pronounced experiences of deficiency, uncertainty, failure, but also of hope, certainty, and belonging.