Participatory Action Research With Youth of Color as a Tool for Teacher Development

• In Event: Repositioning Youth of Color in Teacher Education

Abstract

Participatory action research (PAR) is empirical research in which representatives of the population directly affected by the topic(s) under study participate in all stages of the investigation (Authors, 2009). PAR also includes direct action that addresses the problems studied. Rooted in efforts to disrupt conventional power hierarchies and advance social justice, PAR scholars conduct research with, rather than on, socially marginalized peoples (Fals-Borda & Tahman, 1991; Freire, 1970). Given these objectives, a growing number of researchers have used PAR with marginalized youth to improve and advance scholarly knowledge about their schooling experiences. This paper examines how PAR with youth of color can be used as a tool for teacher training that can transform beliefs and practices among pre- and in-service, K-12 teachers that contribute to racial/ethnic inequalities.

Despite decades of research on educational disparities, Black, Latinx/e, and Indigenous students lag behind White students on many school measures, such as grade promotion/retention, disciplinary action, and high school graduation, and studies show teachers significantly contribute to such disparities (Authors, 2019; Liu et al., 2023; Lorenz, 2021). Many scholars who study schooling outcomes among students of color lack meaningful relationships with these youth, often resulting in research that frames them through deficit lenses. In contrast, PAR researchers work in collaboration with youth, capitalizing on their “on the ground,” experiential and conceptual knowledge. PAR repositions youth of color in academic research from “problems” to be studied to “experts” who define, produce knowledge about, and confront the schooling challenges they face.

The paper begins with a rationale for why teacher training should capitalize on PAR with youth of color. We follow with a review of theoretical and research literature on PAR, broadly—its defining features, history, and guiding principles—and on PAR with youth in K-12 education. Next, we examine studies on PAR projects with youth that have informed teacher development. Drawing on this research and our own experiences with PAR, we offer models for how university researchers and faculty and K-12 educators can use PAR with youth of color to impact teachers’ beliefs and practices in ways that support students of color. We highlight various PAR methods and approaches to implementation as well as common obstacles within the unique contexts of K-12 schools and teacher education programs. For example, because youth often critique school policies and practices through PAR, their research can be perceived as a threat in the K-12 school context if trust is not established between school staff and students and any outside researchers.

Because they hold significant power over students’ academic outcomes and everyday schooling experiences, we know some teachers may view learning from students as an unwelcome challenge to their competencies and influence. This paper seeks to provide theoretical and practical guidance for K-12 educators and university-based researchers and faculty to create productive PAR projects with youth that can improve teacher development in ways that better supports the success and well-being of students of color.

Authors

• Tara Marie Brown, University of Maryland

• Tifanee McCaskill, Baltimore City Community College

• Vaughn I. Parham, University of Maryland