Youth Participatory Action Research
Overview
Youth participatory action research (YPAR) is a student-centered approach that puts the learner at the helm of the research process, from ideation to dissemination, to investigate and advocate for change they want to see in their schools and communities. YPAR supports learners along the key steps of the research process and provides them an opportunity to research a problem that is affecting them in their schools or communities and have a say in how to address it. This supports their development of agency, self-advocacy, and Critical Thinking skills. Importantly, YPAR is action-oriented, meaning that the research findings can highlight issues and contribute to solutions that are important to the learners and their communities, a key aspect of Civic Mindedness.
Example: Use This Strategy in the Classroom
Watch students as they demonstrate the importance of YPAR and the importance of co-designing with subjects through a skit, and learn from them about their findings from their YPAR experience:
Design It into Your Product
Additional Resources
Additional examples, research, and professional development. These resources are possible representations of this strategy, not endorsements.
Factors Supported by this Strategy
More Active Learning Strategies
Encouraging learners to draw as a form of synthesizing key concepts and to explain their drawings in the classroom, can support the development of Core Academic Literacies, especially when solving complex problems across content areas.
Students explaining their thinking during learning is a metacognitive process that involves actively self-questioning or being questioned while exploring new concepts, and explaining thoughts and reasoning in response.
Visiting places connected to classroom learning provides opportunities to add relevance to classroom topics and deepen understanding through firsthand experiences.
Games support learning, as learners engage with new information in fun and informal ways.
Simulations involve students engaging in interactive experiences that mimic real-world scenarios to explore content, practice skills, and solve problems.
