Participatory Action Research
PAR: What's it all about?
Participatory action research is a process of on-going reflection and targeted action flushed out by a skilled facilitator in collaboration with members of local communities rather than on them. Local knowledge and perspectives are not only acknowledged but form the basis for research and planning.
Many of the methods and techniques used in participatory action research are drawn from mainstream social science disciplines such as political science, sociology, or psychology. The key difference between participatory action and conventional research methodologies, however, lies in the locus of power in the research process, one centered on the members of a targeted community themselves.
Participatory Action Research is TGOW-I's principal method for engaging local communities in the ongoing struggle to attain human rights and cultural dignity. Members of groups and organizations agree to address a common violation of rights or a social emergency through a strategic process that culminates in:
- An agreement on the nature of the problem faced and it's impact on the local community;
- A cooperative design of intervention steps to address a problem or crisis;
- The practical implementation of intervention steps to actually resolve the crisis;
- An assessment of strengths and weaknesses of strategies adopted to determine their reliability for continued use; and
- Reflection, revisions & re-introduction of intervention steps that emerge from evaluation-based data & recommendations.
It's Really a Matter of Praxis!
Do you have questions about your own "Theory of Change"? Let TGOW-I guide you along the path of discovery - moving from your goals to the design of intervention strategies, and on to effective implementation steps to secure your desired future!
Engaging Communities in the Struggle for Human Rights & Cultural Dignity
Examples of Past TGOW-I PAR Initiatives:
- Sankore' Roundtable: African-centered vs. Multi-Cultural Infusion into the Dayton Public Schools Curriculum - Which Way Do We Go?
- Delta Catalyst Roundtable: Early Childhood Learning & Care Policies & Practice in the Mississippi Delta;
- Civil Rights & Human Wrongs: Developing a Human Rights Database on Current Crimes Against Humanity in the Mississippi Delta;
- Designing Service-Learning for Social Change: Greenville-Weston High School Community, Teachers & Administrators Collaborative.
- The Afrikan Roots of the Blues: Developing an Alternative Framework for Understanding, Managing & Safeguarding Intangible Afrikan Cultural Heritage.
Take a moment and review any of the PAR guides listed below in our Toolkit!
Feel free to drop us a note if you have questions, need support with developing your own PAR initiative, or if you see this as a path you'd like to explore. We'll be glad to assist!
