Abstract
The purpose of this research was to examine question asking practices in a youth participatory action research (yPAR) after school program housed at an elementary school. The research question was: In which ways did the adult question asking practices in a yPAR setting challenge and/or reproduce conventional models of power in educational settings? We aligned Fink’s taxonomy (Creating significant learning experiences: an integrated approach to designing college courses. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, 2003) to Freire’s (The pedagogy of the oppressed. Continuum, New York, 1970/2000) banking concept and problem-posing educational models. All adult questions were categorized from twelve randomly selected yPAR sessions over 2 years. The program served 4th and 5th grade students. Of the 500+ questions adults asked, 17 % were foundational (aligned with Freire’s banking concept). All other questions were aligned with Freire’s problem-posing model. Specifically, 34 % were application, 3 % were integration, 15 % were caring, 11 % were human dimension, and 8 % were learning how to learn questions. By studying question asking patterns and practices, we gained a better understanding of how students and adults navigated this particular after school space, which, at its core, sought to disrupt conventional notions of power and status.
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Acknowledgments
The authors wish to thank the students in “Change 4 Good,” the Maplewood School community, and Brooke Davidson, Brenda Garibay Natalie Henry, Danielle Kohfeldt, Jessenia Meza, and Jeremy Rosen-Prinz. This research was supported through the Center for Justice, Tolerance, and Community; a Division of Social Sciences Junior Faculty Research Grant; and University-Community Links.
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Grace, S., Langhout, R.D. Questioning Our Questions: Assessing Question Asking Practices to Evaluate a yPAR Program. Urban Rev 46, 703–724 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11256-014-0279-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11256-014-0279-4