Research Materials

Urban School Awakening — by Khadigah Alasry — last modified 2010-10-25 11:58

A presentation of a framework for facilitating true, self-sustaining school reform. The three elements we believe are critical in such a reform are critical pedagogy, academic rigor, and complementary and effective community-school interactions.

How Educators Can Address Homophobia in Elementary School — by Joleen Hanlon — last modified 2010-10-20 07:56

This article provides a literature review of existing research on addressing homophobia in elementary schools. It also explores how a group of New York City teachers feel towards responding to and preventing homophobic behaviors.

A NEW CONSCIOUSNESS TRUDGING TOWARD LEADERSHIP — by Charles Payne — last modified 2009-01-27 08:43

Integrating elements of oppression psychology, Popular Education (1999), critical pedagogy, and critical race theory, this article highlights a study of seven African American elders who graduated from a Senior Advocacy Leadership Training (SALT) program. These elders confronted external and internal oppressive ideologies and challenged the stereotypes of African American elders.

“Represent”: Reframing risk through participatory video research — by caitlin cahill — last modified 2008-12-03 02:11

Why is the exploitation of undocumented immigrants tolerated? and the education of their children jeopardized? Why are young people of color disappearing from our schools before they graduate? And, what is our role and responsibility as researchers (young and old) to address the social injustices in our communities? These questions, and others, structure our inquiry. Our research focuses upon what Robin D.

The personal is political: Developing new subjectivities in a participatory action research process — by caitlin cahill — last modified 2008-12-03 02:11

Participatory action research (PAR) is gaining critical attention from scholars across the field, and in the field of geography more specifically, as it promises a viable alternative for researchers concerned with social justice. If most of the benefits of PAR are identified in terms of its potential as vehicle for social change and action, PAR’s role in personal change is less understood.

Repositioning ethical commitments: Participatory action research as a relational praxis of social change — by caitlin cahill — last modified 2008-12-03 02:11

The development of participatory action research (PAR) reflects an ethical commitment to creating conditions for social change to be used by the community for their own purposes. But what are the ethical issues and responsibilities involved in participatory research? And how do these differ from the ethical guidelines mandated by our Institutional Review Boards (IRB)? Here I illustrate how participatory research grounds the IRB’s abstract ethical principles in terms that are meaningful to the community, referencing a youth participatory video research project “Equal access to higher education for all “ that focuses on the challenges undocumented students face trying to go to college.

‘At risk' ? The Fed Up Honeys re-present the gentrification of the Lower East Side — by caitlin cahill — last modified 2008-12-03 02:12

While gentrification is often represented within the framework of real estate capital as evidence of urban progress, this emphasis loses sight of not only its role in processes of community transformation, but also how it is experienced within a broader context of disenfranchisement by working class communities. This paper considers the experience of urban economic restructuring from the “inside” perspective of young working class women of color who have grown up in the Lower East Side neighborhood of New York City during the 1990s, a time of intensive gentrification, witnessing their neighborhood change while still living in it.

Different Eyes / Open Eyes: Community-Based PAR — by caitlin cahill — last modified 2008-12-03 02:12

In this chapter, we detail a process that was profoundly personal, sometimes painful, and, in the end, definitively political. None of us knew quite what we were getting into when we signed on the dotted line and decided to be part of this project; we didn’t know where our journey would take us.

Beyond the journal article: Representations, audience, and the presentation of participatory research — by caitlin cahill — last modified 2008-12-03 02:11

Post colonialist scholars have raised the critical problem of academic research being a conversation of ‘us’ with ‘us’ about ‘them’ (Grande 2004; Kelley 1997; Marker 2006). This process reproduces raced, gendered, and classed hierarchies and informs policies which too often reinforce structural and social inequalities and in this way the social sciences become complicit in producing particular types of subjects.

Untempered tongues: Teaching performance poetry for social justice — by Patrick Camangian — last modified 2008-11-12 16:25

Despite high levels of disengagement in urban literacy classrooms, few teachers have seen fit to explore spoken word – the performance of poetry – as a tool to engage students in literacy. Spoken word poetry serves as a powerful means of self-representation for youth that are traditionally portrayed as threatening, menaces to society that do not know how to productively manage their temperaments.

Teaching Outside One's Race — by Bree Picower — last modified 2008-11-14 17:42

This article is a reflection of a White teacher's experience at Prescott Elementary School in Oakland, California- the school that broke the "ebonics debate" in the mid-1990's. The article discusses aspects of the school that are unique: the culturally relevant pedagogy, the other teachers on the staff including Carrie Secret, the professional development at the school, the Ebonics debate, and, finally, racial identity development and how it informed relationships at the school.

Supporting New Educators to Teach for Social Justice: The Critical Inquiry Project Model — by Bree Picower — last modified 2008-11-12 16:26

Urban public schools and their teachers are under siege. From increased standardization, privatization and testing to a growing number of students whose needs are not being met by schools, urban public school teachers face a daunting task.

Community Education and Critical Race Praxis: The Power of Voice — by Cassandra McKay — last modified 2011-06-30 15:14

When critical pedagogy and critical race theory (CRT) act in concert, adult education gives stage to the voice of the learner. Moreover, beyond the formal classroom and closer to home, African American community education may allow adults to find their own voices and speak; reclaim their self-worth, their lives and ways of doing things.

Raising the spirits of young people — by Cassandra McKay — last modified 2008-11-13 20:56

Youth at risk of violent and antisocial behavior often suffer from alienation and lack of bonding to family, school and community (Hawkins & Catalano, 1992). The role of the school social worker is often to employ interventions that support inclusion and connection to these entities.

Toward a critical classroom discourse: Promoting academic literacy with urban youth through engaging hip-hop culture — by K. Wayne Yang — last modified 2008-09-30 16:32

This paper describes the theories, methods and practices of two urban high school teachers in designing and implementing a hip-hop curriculum as part of the poetry unit in an honors English classroom