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Abstract
Museums and galleries, having received increased funding to engage in their programmes young people who have traditionally been excluded by museums, are under pressure to demonstrate the impact of the programmes they offer. This paper drawing on a three-year Participatory Action Research (PAR) programme explores the hidden tensions that underpin the notion of young people's inclusion in museums. First it considers the reasons for adopting the PAR approach and presents its key principles. Then it reflects on the research processes and discusses the findings to provide an insight into the quality of the experiences offered to young people. It argues that there is an implicit deficiency perception of youth and suggests the use of PAR as a response both to the need for a deeper notion of inclusion and for research that values young people's voices.
Acknowledgements
The author wishes to express her gratitude to the young people and artists who participated in this project. She would also like to thank Dr Bridget Egan for reviewing an earlier draft of this paper.
Notes
1. The museum's identity is withheld and all participants’ names are changed to safeguard anonymity.
2. To name a few of these programmes and initiatives: ‘Renaissance in the Regions’, ‘Creative Partnerships’, the ‘Strategic Commissioning Programme for Museum and Gallery Education’ and the series of action research initiatives led by ‘Engage’ in the area of visual art and gallery education.
3. At the Whitechapel Art Gallery young people participated in the production of videos that were shown in the galleries (Herne and McLaren Citation2001). Tate Galleries in the UK searching for new channels to communicate with young people extended their marketing approaches to young people and showcased music based on the artworks to give youth an access point into collection displays (Briggs Citation2007). They developed a series of youth programmes among which the language-based workshops called ‘we are all experts’ to enable young people to voice and have their views about art heard (Sayers Citation2011).
4. Trust in participants’ abilities is also highlighted by Simon (Citation2010) as a prerequisite for the development of co-creative projects in museums.