“I Wanna Be That Voice”: Youth’s Perspectives on Educational Spaces Conducive to Critical Consciousness

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Sunday 11:40 am Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Consciousness and Future Possibilities: Rethinking Discipline and Carcerality: (Table 11)

Abstract

Critical consciousness (CC) is a framework that can contribute to the growth of equitable educational spaces and the thriving of students of color, but more work is needed to understand how contexts contribute to CC. The current study leverages qualitative analyses to highlight the ways in which youth of color describe settings conducive to CC. Thirty-five youth of color completed a semi-structured interview with the Stanford Civic Purpose Project (Damon, 2011-2013); interviews were coded and analyzed using a flexible coding approach. The results show that school and extracurricular programs can contribute to CC by providing support for youth’s self-expression around issues that matter to them. These findings inform theory on CC development and practice towards creating more equitable educational spaces.

Authors

• Deanna Ibrahim, University of Pittsburgh

• Shakira Thompson, New York University

• Erin B. Godfrey, New York University