Transformation and Re-Storying: A Journey Through Conocimiento as an Analytic Lens for Latine Youth Experiences

• In Event: Thursday Roundtable Session 10:50 am
  In Roundtable Session: Critical Consciousness With Children and Youth (Table 18)

Abstract

Through this piece, I explore Gloria Anzaldúa’s conocimiento – a self-reflective, transformative storying process – as an analytic lens for understanding the experiences of Latine students. Its seven stages shine a light on the intricate and nuanced experiences often had by those who are consistently marginalized and who experience fragmentation. My theoretical interpretations weave together conocimiento with the transformation and re-storying that occurred for the students. This process involved exploring student generated data and interviews to develop four primary findings and then applying each stage of conocimiento to illustrate the students’ healing journey of wholeness and humanity. I found through this analysis that decolonizing, feminist theories such as conocimiento provide a critical and supportive framework for the experiences of Latine youth.

Author

• Jyoti H. Kaneria, Georgia Institute of Technology