Scaling Up Youth Participatory Action Research Through Collaborative Research in Action

• In Event: 42.060 - Linking Knowledge to Action Through Youth Participatory Action Research to Reduce Latina/o Educational Disparities

Abstract

Youth participatory action research (YPAR) is shown to be effective in engaging youth in academic rigor and community participation (Cammarota & Fine, 2008). One of YPAR’s limitations is that projects are usually carried out at a site level rather than at a systems level. This presentation utilizes Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory (1979) to assess a program that challenges the norms of scale in YPAR. By combining elements of ecological systems theory with a collective impact lens (Kania & Kramer, 2011), a framework for scalable social change is investigated with collaborative YPAR across university, community college and middle-school/high school settings.
The ethnographic study of a multi-institutional YPAR project, entitled Collaborative Research in Action (CRiA), was conducted over a two-year period. Twelve college students (6 university and 6 community college) attended trainings at social justice oriented community-based organizations (CBOs) in their fall semester. In the spring semester, these students facilitated research workshops at partnering middle and high schools, reaching approximately 220 students each week.
CRiA culminated in a regional youth symposium where middle and high school students presented their research on social justice and ethnic studies. The goal was for youth to examine the lived experiences of their communities, share findings, and enact action to address these identified issues. Critical to the CRiA structure were the partnerships with CBOs in the arts, health, social justice/human rights, education, and environment sectors. CRiA created opportunities for youth and college students to share knowledge from community organizations, in a manner that allowed for a weaving of ecological layers.
Methods: As a participant-researcher, the methods of investigation included ethno-graphic observation of meetings with teachers, professors, school administrators, and CBO representatives. Semi-structured interviews were recorded with the college students (n=12), host teachers (n=6), community college and university professors (n=4), and CBO representatives (n=5). This project was approved by the university IRB for human subjects participation.
Findings: Time, care, and flexibility were essential in the development of partnerships across the multiple ecological systems. Knowledge of the critical issues in the target communities was incorporated in the selection processes of partners. The perceived prestige of the institution I was affiliated with (the university) greatly facilitated my ability to form partnerships, beginning with the community college. Middle schools and high schools were supportive of the collaboration largely because it brought resources and programing to their students at no financial cost. The community organizations found in their participation the opportunity to define what the collaboration meant to them and their missions, whether working with new demographics or raising awareness.
The purpose of CRiA was to build a city-wide support system designed to engage with historically underrepresented populations in academia. The processes of partnership development were of critical importance in the establishment of a collaborative framework. Further, the ability to support participating youth and students spanning the educational pipeline directly affected the strength of each partnership. Overall, the collective impact lens and ecological systems theory helped reveal the importance of genuine partnership in addressing scale in CRiA’s YPAR programming.

Author

• Gabriel Higuera, The University of Arizona