Creating Pro-Black Math Spaces: YPAR (Youth Participatory Action Research) and CRT (Critical Race Theory) Examination of Identity and Math Practices

• In Event: We Will Rise Up for Youth and Mathematical Youth Participatory Action Research

Abstract

This paper details what engagement in Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) looks like for Black boys, girls and non-binary youth of the African diaspora who have diverse racial, ethnic, gender and linguistic identities. This study leverages YPAR, a critical methodology that engages youth in cycles of critical inquiry (Yang, 2009; Terry, 2012; Fine, 2012). In YPAR students learn foundational skills in research and take action to ameliorate a school issue identified by students. Emerging themes of this study reveal, first Black youth drew on their African diaspora cultural perspective and knowledge to propose and design a pro-Black math index number. Black youth then engaged the school district math team to inform mathematics instructional practices that advance Black student success and enjoyment of mathematics. The second theme illuminates the effective and creative ways in which Black students disseminate knowledge and findings using zines, Instagram, and a research poster. Zines are self-published print outs designed to communicate the intention of the authors and are commonly used by youth along with Instagram. Youth used zines and posters to share their findings about (a) the mental health challenges and support that are needed at the school and (b) making informed college, career, and life readiness resources accessible to students, school administrators, teachers, and school counselors. Youth engaged in data-to-action cycles that involved the school district math leaders, school’s Student Body Association, school counselors and the district continuous improvement plan.
The study uses a Critical Race Theory lens to examine what a pro-Black YPAR space can look like when it engages Black youth in critical mathematics. The fifteen-week study was conducted at a STEM high school in a metropolitan city located in the Pacific Northwest region. Participants in this study drew on academic, community and critical mathematics to research social issues that matter to them and produce knowledge that is rooted in their African diaspora culture and Black identity. The significance of this work is its race-conscious analysis of racial and ethnic identity and what it means to engage in collaborative group work for Black youth, and the social justice mathematics knowledge students produce to conduct their research. This study explores how (i) the group of students utilize their mathematics and critical interdisciplinary knowledge and expertise to advocate for students at their school, and (ii) the youth leaders make sense of what it means to create a pro-Black YPAR space that is characterized by Black joy, rigorous research work and advocacy.

Author

• Dawit Endale Alemayehu, University of Washington