Imagining possibilities with and for contemporary youth: (re)writing and (re)visioning education today

Dimitriadis, Greg; Weis, Lois

doi:10.1177/146879410100100207

Cited by 14 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…With its emphasis on combining theory and practice, his work has influenced the fields of action research and community-based research. Since Lewin's (1946Lewin's ( /1948Lewin's ( , 1947 early writings on the subject, numerous (2) articles have been published that discuss action research, some including case studies (Alvarez, 1998;Atweh et al, 1998;Bach and Weinzimmer, 2011;Bargal et al, 1992; Berg and Eikeland, 2008;Cassell and Johnson, 2006;Coghlan and Shani, 2005;Dickens and Watkins, 1999;Dimitriadis and Weis, 2001;Edelson and Bible, 1999; Eden and Huxhum, 1996; Elden and Chrisholm, 1993;Fine et al, 2000;Gaventa, 1993;Giachello et al, 2003;Gonzalez et al, 2005;Hattam et al, 2009;Peters and Robinson, 1984;Sussman and Evered, 1978). Peter Reason and Hilary Bradbury's Handbook of Action Research (2001) provides an excellent framework on some of the various practices of action research.…”

Section: Linking Research To Actionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Making a difference: Linking research and action in practice, pedagogy, and policy for social justice: Introduction

Abraham

Purkayastha

2012

Current Sociology

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The origins and chronology of linking research and action are complex and cannot be attributed to any single discipline or any part of the world. People within and outside academe have linked research and action. In this introductory article, we begin by briefly tracing the methodological background to linking research and action, focusing particularly on action research, participatory research, and feminist research in order to situate the research presented in this monograph issue of Current Sociology. We then provide an outline of the articles that showcase through specific case studies how sociologists link research and practice in diverse contexts including health, culture, education, labor, migration, violence against women, and polling. We end by commenting that linking research and action has important implications for knowledge creation, distribution, shifting power relations for achieving social change, and, ultimately, challenging social structures for social justice.

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Section: Linking Research To Actionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Making a difference: Linking research and action in practice, pedagogy, and policy for social justice: Introduction

Abraham

Purkayastha

2012

Current Sociology

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“…As an insider, I chose a critical ethnographic approach for this study, as it was the most appropriate to learn, and in my case, relearn the cultural practices of participants by being immersed in the organization. A critical ethnographic approach seeks to gain insight and understanding by considering the totality of the entire social context in which participants operate (Dimitriadis & Weis, 2001). Critical ethnography attempts to create social change through research by uncovering inequalities and problematizing them (Kincheloe & McLaren, 2000;Madison, 2005).…”

Section: Research Context and Methodologymentioning

confidence: 99%

On Educational Advocacy and Cultural Work: Situating Community-Based Youth Work[ers] in Broader Educational Discourse

Baldridge

2018

Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education

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Background/Context The current educational market nestled in neoliberal and market-based reform efforts has shifted the nature of public education. Community-based educational spaces are also shaped within this context. As such, given the political and educational climate youth workers are situated in, their role as advocates, cultural workers, and pedagogues warrants greater exploration within educational scholarship. Although previous scholarship captures the significance of community-based youth workers in the lives of marginalized youth, their voices and experiences are absent from broader educational discourse. Subsequently, community-based youth workers’ relationship with schools, engagement with youth, and their pedagogical practices remain underutilized and undervalued. Purpose The purpose of this article is to highlight the critical space youth workers occupy in the academic, social, and cultural lives of Black youth within community-based educational spaces. This article critically examines the intricate roles that youth workers play in the academic and social lives of youth and proposes deeper inquiry into the practices of youth workers and implications for broader education discourse. Setting The study takes place at Educational Excellence (EE), a community-based educational program operating after school in the Northeastern part of the United States. Research Design This study employed a critical qualitative design with ethnographic methods. Participant observations occurred at program events for youth and their families over 13 months, events during the holidays (2), middle and high school retreats (2), staff retreats (2), parent orientation meetings (4), curriculum planning meetings (13), and staff-development trainings (10). In order to triangulate participant observation data, every youth worker was interviewed individually (n = 20) and observed during (or in) staff meetings, organizational events, and interaction with coworkers and students in the program. A total of three focus groups, lasting between 60 minutes and 90 minutes were held with participants. Findings/Results Findings indicate that a combination of factors contributes to the important role that youth workers play in the lives of students. From their vantage point, youth workers are community members that have extensive knowledge of the current educational landscape and the ways in which it shapes the experiences, opportunities, and outcomes of youth in their program. As former school administrators, teachers, and life-long community-based educators, youth workers’ understanding and analysis of students’ experiences in schools is extremely significant to their understanding of educational problems and the needs of their students. As such, youth workers were able to revive students through culturally responsive and relevant curricula and engagement that gave students an opportunity to think critically about the world around them and to also think more deeply about their social, academic, and political identities. Conclusions/Recommendations Youth workers within community-based educational spaces serve as essential actors in the lives of young people. Recognizing and validating these educators and community-based spaces as distinct, equally important, and complimentary spaces to schools and classroom teachers is an essential step in the process of reimagining the possibilities of youth work in community-based settings and in broader conceptions of educational opportunity. Further research and practice should recognize community-based spaces as vital sites of learning and growth for young people. In addition, education research and policy should acknowledge the distinct value and pedagogical practices of community-based educational spaces from traditional school spaces.

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“…Like other segments of the population, young people are located in multiple global-local and temporal spaces further contextualised by manifold intersecting differences and thus they engage with their worlds in a great variety of ways, developing strategic ways to 'talk back' to oppression. (Dimitriadis and Weiss 2001). Nonetheless, the evidence of growing global inequalities and their impacts upon young people must be foregrounded as part of a counter-narrative to discourses of escalating youthful mental illness and disengagement (Ecclestone and Hayes 2009).…”

Section: Responding To 'Risk': Young People On the Edgementioning

confidence: 99%

Counter-narratives that challenge neo-liberal discourses of schooling ‘disengagement’: youth professionals informing the work of teachers

McGregor

2015

British Journal of Sociology of Education

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Contemporary global economic contexts are shaped by a neoliberal paradigm of hyper-individualism and meritocratic frameworks that are increasingly guiding national policies in education and welfare. Schools are expected to focus on the production of human capital and student achievements are internationally benchmarked for competitive advantage. As social safety nets diminish, citizens are expected to be more personally accountable. This has created challenges for the poor and marginalised who are positionally disadvantaged in highly competitive neo-capitalist economies. Young people from social categories that sit below the traditional working class due to the precariousness of employment and living conditions are among the most vulnerable people in any society. Resource poor, many struggle to connect with schools and find meaning in a world that has relegated them to the margins. Such young people make up the apparently growing numbers of 'disengaged', 'at risk' and sometimes 'dangerous' and 'sick' youth who have become a focal point for official interventions that may be punitive and/or therapeutic or medical. Drawing upon the contrasting perspectives of teaching staff and youth workers in one Australian state, this paper argues for a change in the way schooling authorities construct and respond to the phenomenon of schooling 'disengagement'.

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Imagining possibilities with and for contemporary youth: (re)writing and (re)visioning education today

Cited by 14 publications

References 8 publications

Making a difference: Linking research and action in practice, pedagogy, and policy for social justice: Introduction

Making a difference: Linking research and action in practice, pedagogy, and policy for social justice: Introduction

On Educational Advocacy and Cultural Work: Situating Community-Based Youth Work[ers] in Broader Educational Discourse

Counter-narratives that challenge neo-liberal discourses of schooling ‘disengagement’: youth professionals informing the work of teachers

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