What Constitutes Action? Promises and Pitfalls of Youth Participatory Action Research

• In Event: Roundtable Session 43
  In Roundtable Session: Urban Learning, Teaching, and Research SIG Roundtable 2

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative case study is to explore the promises and pitfalls of Youth Participatory Action Research as observed and analyzed in the context of a mixed-grade level sociology class designed to foster youth leadership within an alternative school setting in Oakland, CA. Employing a Freirean lens this study considers the ways that youth critically read their social, historical, and educational contexts, and their subsequent efforts to rewrite circumstances in their classrooms and beyond. This study examines the relationship between inquiry and action and ultimately argues that for this particular group of young people, just raising the issues and articulating awareness about the injustices they faced was not enough.

Author

• Logan Alexis Manning, The University of Texas - San Antonio