The Reciprocal Relationship of Joy and Critical Literacies in a Youth Participatory Action Research Project

• In Event: The Dynamic Presence and Futures of Writing and Literacies

Abstract

Critical literacy instruction and youth participatory action research are two approaches that have been used to support youth in investigating justice issues that impact them personally. This analysis is drawn from a critical ethnographic study of a YPAR project with BIPOC youth who were interested in challenging racial injustice in their local school district but also weary from its persistence. The researcher found that joy was a pathway to critical literacies for youth, but that critical literacies could also bring them joy. Joy was activated through pedagogical approaches that utilized youth’s everyday literacies such as smartphone photography. This study expands the concept of critical literacies and critical literacies methods to include joy alongside investigation and action.

Author

• Aimee Hendrix-Soto, Texas Woman's University
  Presenting Author