The emancipatory potential of transformative mixed methods designs: informing youth participatory action research and restorative practices within a district-wide school transformation project

ABSTRACT

This paper considers the emancipatory potential of incorporating youth participatory action research (YPAR) and restorative practices (RP) implementation into a transformative mixed methods study design as a means to create equitable and caring school systems for marginalized youth. The utilization of transformative mixed methods research offers a methodological orientation to legitimize, illuminate, and prioritize perspectives from marginalized youth that may be undervalued, decontextualized, and oversimplified in traditional quantitative and qualitative research methodologies. Furthermore, the authors suggest that YPAR and RP align with Critical Theory and Quantitative Criticalism, which are theoretical and methodological frameworks consistent with the transformative paradigm. The integration of these various theoretical, methodological and applied frameworks provides researchers opportunities to flatten hierarchies and actively engage marginalized youth to address the structural and programmatic inequities they experience in schools. Informed by the authors’ multi-year university-school district action research partnership, this paper explores how the alignment of YPAR, RP, and transformative mixed methods may promote critical consciousness amongst students, families, staff, and administration in schools. Finally, we also demonstrate how social science researchers can blend YPAR, RP, and transformative mixed methods design to partner with school districts to address structural societal problems, such as racism and inequity.

KEYWORDS:

• Transformative
• mixed methods
• restorative practices
• youth participatory action research
• critical theory

Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge our community partners within our school district and partnering community agencies. We would also like to acknowledge the youth connected with our YPAR projects and their commitment and enthusiasm for this work. Finally, we would like to acknowledge the College of Education and Social Services at the University of Vermont who has supported this work through various internal seed grants.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

ORCID

Eliaquin Gonell http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0283-6501