Disruptive moments as opportunities towards justice‐oriented pedagogical practice in Informal Science Learning

Bibliographic Data

ID21392908
AuthorsAngela Calabrese Barton (0000-0002-9555-5214, Educational Studies University of Michigan Ann Arbor Michigan USA, corresponding author), Day Greenberg (0000-0003-0615-6236, Educational Studies University of Michigan Ann Arbor Michigan USA), W J Kim (0000-0002-3914-6854, Teacher Education Michigan State University East Lansing Michigan USA), Sinead Brien (0000-0001-7677-7041, Teacher Education Michigan State University East Lansing Michigan USA), ReAnna S Roby (0000-0002-3065-2654, Center for Excellence Vanderbilt University Nashville Tennessee USA), Micaela Balzer (Impression 5 Science Center Lansing Michigan USA), Carmen Turner (Boys and Girls Clubs of Lansing Lansing Michigan USA), Louise Archer (0000-0002-0254-4234, Institute of Education University College London London UK)
Year2021
Volume105
Issue6
Pages1229-1251
Publication date2021-11-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueScience Education (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0036-8326 • E-ISSN: 1098-237X
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/sce.21682
OpenAlexW3199794870
LanguageEN
Citations received22
References cited32

Despite the promise of Informal Science Learning settings (ISLs) in supporting youth science engagement in ways that value their experiences and communities, in practice, such opportunities are limited. While some ISLs promote more culturally relevant approaches to science engagement, many still reflect White supremacist and patriarchal worldviews in discourse and practice. In Research Practice Partnerships, we engaged eight ISL educators from two partner sites—a community center and science center, and youth from across their six programs. Using participatory ethnography we explore how educators' pedagogical practices supported youth in codeveloping more justice‐oriented ISL experiences—experiences which disrupt these dominant and oppressive norms. Our analysis pays attention, in particular, to those fraught moments when youth, in interaction with peers and educators, sought to disrupt their ISL experience in ways that centered and amplified their lives, hopes, and desires for being and learning in ISL and humanized the ISL learning community. Two kinds of pedagogical response patterns emerged that we report on in our findings: (1) collaborative critique and (2) critically being with each other towards new relationalities . We discuss how these two practices centered political and ethical dimensions of teaching and learning, fundamentally shifting power and relationalities towards new ISL possibilities. We also discuss how these practices involved leveraging specific moments to resee youths' activities in new ways, making visible how an ISL space limited opportunities for youth visibility of presence in science—a kind of pausing for justice

Citizen journalism · Participatory action research · Pedagogy · Political science · Science education · Sociology · Educational Environments and Student Outcomes · Higher Education Practises and Engagement · Outdoor and Experiential Education