Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-ndw9j Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-01T20:17:01.626Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

2 - Critical Consciousness Development in the Context of a School-Based Action Civics Intervention

from Part I - Pedagogical, Curricular, and School-Based Contexts

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2023

By
Parissa J. Ballard ,
Elena Maker Castro ,
Juliana E. Karras ,
Scott Warren  and
Alison K. Cohen
Edited by
Erin B. Godfrey  and
Luke J. Rapa
Erin B. Godfrey
Affiliation:
New York University
Luke J. Rapa
Affiliation:
Clemson University, South Carolina
Get access

Summary

This chapter presents school-based action civics interventions as a setting for critical consciousness (CC) development. Action civics programs guide students to take collective action to address locally relevant civic issues within a context that promotes reflection and skills development. We highlight one action civics program, Generation Citizen (GC), and overlay programmatic components with the core elements of CC to elucidate how action civics may support CC development and where the constraints may be. The features of GC that we propose align with CC development are: placing action at the center of the program; fostering critical social analysis and reflection; valuing children’s right to participation; and focusing on skill-building. Images of youth-generated action civics presentation posters are used to illustrate aspects of CC. Finally, this chapter offers next steps to bridge across CC and action civics theory, research, and practice.

Keywords

action civicsschool-based interventioncritical consciousnessgeneration citizencivic curricula
Type
Chapter
Information
Developing Critical Consciousness in Youth
Contexts and Settings
 , pp. 41 - 59
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Aldana, A., Bañales, J., & Richards-Schuster, K. (2019). Youth anti-racist engagement: Conceptualization, development, and validation of an anti-racism action scale. Adolescent Research Review, 4(4), 369–381.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ballard, P. J., Cohen, A. K., & Littenberg‐Tobias, J. (2016). Action civics for promoting civic development: Main effects of program participation and differences by project characteristics. American Journal of Community Psychology, 58(3–4), 377–390.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ballard, P. J., Suleiman, A. B., Hoyt, L. T. et al. (2019). Participatory approaches to youth civic interventions in multicultural societies. In Titzmann, P. F. & Jugert, P. (Eds). Youth in Superdiverse Societies (pp. 251–267). Routledge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blevins, B., LeCompte, K. N., Riggers-Piehl, T., Scholten, N., & Magill, K. R. (2020). The impact of an action civics program on the community & political engagement of youth. The Social Studies, 112(3), 146–160. https://doi.org/10.1080/00377996.2020.1854163.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clark, S., & Seider, S. (2017). Developing critical curiosity in adolescents. Equity & Excellence in Education, 50(2), 125–141. https://doi.org/10.1080/10665684.2017.1301835.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clark, S., & Seider, S. (2020). The role of curiosity in the sociopolitical development of Black and Latinx adolescents. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 30(1), 189–202. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12511.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cohen, A. K., Littenberg-Tobias, J., Ridley-Kerr, A. et al. (2018). Action civics education and civic outcomes for urban youth: An evaluation of the impact of Generation Citizen. Citizenship Teaching & Learning, 13(3), 351–368.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Diemer, M. A. (2020). Pushing the envelope: The who, what, when, and why of critical consciousness. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 70, 1–4. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2020.101192.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Diemer, M. A., Rapa, L. J., Voight, A. M., & McWhirter, E. H. (2016). Critical consciousness: A developmental approach to addressing marginalization and oppression. Child Development Perspectives, 10(4), 216–221.Google Scholar
Fitzgerald, J. (2017). Pre-planning civic action: An analysis of civic leaders’ problem solving strategies. Journal of International Social Studies, 6(2), 58–83.Google Scholar
Fitzgerald, J. C., & Andes, S. (2012). Preparing active citizens: Exploring ethical issues of providing educative civic experiences for youth. Issues in Engaged Scholarship, 2, 4–14.Google Scholar
Freire, P. (1973). Education for critical consciousness. Seabury Press.Google Scholar
Freire, P. (2000). Pedagogy of the oppressed (30th anniversary ed). (M. Bergman Ramos, Trans.). Continuum.Google Scholar
Freire, P. (2021). Education for critical consciousness. Bloomsbury Publishing.Google Scholar
Generation Citizen. (n.d.) Everyday Equity. https://generationcitizen.org/everydayequity/.Google Scholar
Generation Citizen. (n.d.) Framework for Action. https://generationcitizen.org/our-approach/framework-for-action/.Google Scholar
Generation Citizen (2019). 360 Civic Learning. https://generationcitizen.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/360-Civic-Learning-updated-8.12.19.pdf.Google Scholar
Godfrey, E. B., & Burson, E. (2018). Interrogating the intersections: How intersectional perspectives can inform developmental scholarship on critical consciousness. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 2018 (161), 17–38.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hazelbaker, T., Brown, C. S., Nenadal, L., & Mistry, R. (2021). Raising white resisters: Studying the development of anti-racist white children and youth [preprint]. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/ej9a5.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Heberle, A. E., Rapa, L. J., & Farago, F. (2020). Critical consciousness in children and adolescents: A systematic review, critical assessment, and recommendations for future research. Psychological Bulletin, 146(6), 525–551. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000230.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Helwig, C. C., Ruck, M. D., & Peterson-Badali, M. (2014). Rights, civil liberties, and democracy across cultures. In Killen, M. & Smetana, J. (Eds.), Handbook of moral development (pp. 46–69). Psychology Press. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203581957.ch3.Google Scholar
Hershberg, R. M., & Johnson, S. K. (2019). Critical reflection about socioeconomic inequalities among White young men from poor and working-class backgrounds. Developmental Psychology, 55(3), 562–573. https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0000587.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hope, E. C., & Bañales, J. (2019). Black early adolescent critical reflection of inequitable sociopolitical conditions: A qualitative investigation. Journal of Adolescent Research, 34(2), 167–200. https://doi.org/10.1177/0743558418756360.Google Scholar
Jemal, A. (2017). Critical consciousness: A critique and critical analysis of the literature. The Urban Review, 49(4), 602–626.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Karras, J., Ruck, M. D., Peterson-Badali, M., & Emuka, C. (2022). Being and becoming: Centering the morality of social responsibility through children’s right to participate in society. In Killen, M. & Smetana, J. (Eds.), Handbook of moral development (3rd ed.) (pp. 118–132). Routledge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kosher, H., & Ben-Arieh, A. (2017). What children think about their rights and their well-being: A cross-national comparison. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 87(3), 256–273. https://doi.org/10.1037/ort0000222.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Larson, R., & Walker, K. C. (2010). Dilemmas of practice: Challenges to program quality encountered by youth program leaders. American Journal of Community Psychology, 45(3–4), 338–349. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-010-9307-z.Google Scholar
Larson, R., Walker, K., & Pearce, N. (2005). A comparison of youth-driven and adult-driven youth programs: Balancing inputs from youth and adults. Journal of Community Psychology, 33(1), 57–74.Google Scholar
LeCompte, K., & Blevins, B. (2015). Building civic bridges: Community-centered action civics. The Social Studies, 106(5), 209–217.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
LeCompte, K., Blevins, B., & Riggers-Piehl, T. (2020). Developing civic competence through action civics: A longitudinal look at the data. The Journal of Social Studies Research, 44(1), 127–137.Google Scholar
Maton, K. I. (2008). Empowering community settings: Agents of individual development, community betterment, and positive social change. American Journal of Community Psychology, 41(1–2), 4–21.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McAvoy, P., & Hess, D. (2013). Classroom deliberation in an era of political polarization. Curriculum Inquiry, 43(1), 14–47.Google Scholar
McWhirter, E. H., & McWhirter, B. T. (2016). Critical consciousness and vocational development among Latina/o high school youth: Initial development and testing of a measure. Journal of Career Assessment, 24(3), 543–558. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069072715599535.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morgan, K. Y., & Ballard, P. J. (in press). Action civics. In B. D. Christens (Ed.), The Cambridge handbook of community empowerment. Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Morgan, K. Y., Christens, B. D., & Gibson, M. (2022). Design your neighborhood: The evolution of a city-wide urban design learning initiative in Nashville, Tennessee. In Stoecker, R. & Falcón, A. (Eds.), Handbook on participatory action research and community development. Edward Elgar.Google Scholar
Ozer, E. J., Newlan, S., Douglas, L., & Hubbard, E. (2013).“Bounded” empowerment: Analyzing tensions in the practice of youth-led participatory research in urban public schools. American Journal of Community Psychology, 52(1), 13–26.Google Scholar
Pope, A., Stolte, L., & Cohen, A. (2011). Closing the civic engagement gap: The potential of action civics. Social Education, 75(5), 265–268.Google Scholar
Prilleltensky, I. (2008). The role of power in wellness, oppression, and liberation: The promise of psychopolitical validity. Journal of Community Psychology, 36(2), 116–136Google Scholar
Rapa, L. J., Bolding, C. W., & Jamil, F. M. (2020). Development and initial validation of the short critical consciousness scale (CCS-S). Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 70, 101–164.Google Scholar
Ruck, M. D., Keating, D. P., Saewyc, E. M., Earls, F., & Ben-Arieh, A. (2014). The United Nations Convention on the rights of the child: Its relevance for adolescents. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 26(1), 16–29. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12172.Google Scholar
Sánchez Carmen, S. A., Domínguez, M., Greene, A. C. et al. (2015). Revisiting the collective in critical consciousness: Diverse sociopolitical wisdoms and ontological healing in sociopolitical development. The Urban Review, 47(5), 824–846. https://doi.org/10.1007/.Google Scholar
Seider, S., Clark, S., & Graves, D. (2020). The development of critical consciousness and its relation to academic achievement in adolescents of color. Child Development, 91(2), e451–e474. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13262.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Seider, S., & Graves, D. (2020). Schooling for critical consciousness. Engaging Black and Latinx youth in analyzing, navigating, and challenging racial inequality. Harvard Education Press.Google Scholar
Shin, R. Q., Ezeofor, I., Smith, L. C., Welch, J. C., & Goldrich, K. M. (2016). The development and validation of the contemporary critical consciousness measure. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 63(2), 210–223.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
United Nations General Assembly. (1989, November 17). Adoption of a convention on the rights of the child. http://wunrn.org/reference/pdf/Convention_Rights_Child.PDF.Google Scholar
Walker, T. (2000). The service/politics split: Rethinking service to teach political engagement. PS: Political Science and Politics, 33(3), 647–649.Google Scholar
Walker, T. (2002). Service as a pathway to political participation: What research tells us. Applied Developmental Science, 6(4), 183–188.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Watts, R. J., Abdul-Adil, J. K., & Pratt, T. (2002). Enhancing critical consciousness in young African American men: A psychoeducational approach. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 3(1), 41–50. https://doi.org/10.1037/1524-9220.3.1.41.Google Scholar
Watts, R. J., Diemer, M. A., & Voight, A. M. (2011). Critical consciousness: Current status and future directions. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 2011(134), 43–57. https://doi.org/10.1002/cd.310.Google Scholar
Watts, R. J., Griffith, D. M., & Abdul-Adil, J. (1999). Sociopolitical development as an antidote for oppression – Theory and action. American Journal of Community Psychology, 27, 255–271. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022839818873.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Watts, R. J., & Hipólito-Delgado, C. (2015). Thinking ourselves to liberation? Advancing sociopolitical action in critical consciousness. Urban Review, 47, 847–867. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11256-015-0341.Google Scholar
Westheimer, J., & Kahne, J. (2004). What kind of citizen? The politics of educating for democracy. American Educational Research Journal, 41(2), 237–269.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wray-Lake, L., & Syvertsen, A. (2011). The developmental roots of social responsibility in childhood and adolescence. In Flanagan, C. A & Christens, B. D (Eds.), Youth civic development: Work at the cutting edge. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 2011(134), 11–25. https://doi.org/10.1002/cd.308.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×