'We got the power!' The political potential of street choirs

Soundings ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 73 (73) ◽  
pp. 129-143
Author(s):  
Campaign Choirs Writing Collective

Song has the power to express a social truth and is consistently employed in actions across the world in solidarity with political struggle. This article discusses the campaigning work of the Campaign Choirs Network, a UK network of radical political choirs, whose story is founded on diverse solidarities and a commitment to singing as a means of emotional engagement and pedagogy. The network has conducted a participatory action research programme, including oral history interviews with 42 members of 11 street choirs, exploring members' life-course activism and their utopian imaginaries. As one aspect of their research, the authors sought to more fully understand the emotions that song and singing release, and the connections that can then be made between people – in order to find out more about the nature of the power of song and the political possibilities of such connections. Drawing extensively on the interviews, this article discusses the political and pedagogic possibilities of the emotions released through singing.

2008 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 142-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robyn R.M. Gershon ◽  
Marcie S. Rubin ◽  
Kristine A. Qureshi ◽  
Allison N. Canton ◽  
Frederick J. Matzner

ABSTRACTObjective: Participatory action research (PAR) methodology is an effective tool in identifying and implementing risk-reduction interventions. It has been used extensively in occupational health research, but not, to our knowledge, in disaster research. A PAR framework was incorporated into the World Trade Center evacuation study, which was designed to identify the individual, organizational, and structural (environmental) factors that affected evacuation from the World Trade Center Towers 1 and 2 on September 11, 2001. PAR teams—comprising World Trade Center evacuees, study investigators, and expert consultants—worked collaboratively to develop a set of recommendations designed to facilitate evacuation from high-rise office buildings and reduce risk of injury among evacuees.Methods: Two PAR teams worked first separately and then collectively to identify data-driven strategies for improvement of high-rise building evacuation.Results: The teams identified interventions targeting individual, organizational, and structural (environmental) barriers to safe and rapid evacuation.Conclusions: PAR teams were effective in identifying numerous feasible and cost-effective strategies for improvement of high-rise emergency preparedness and evacuation. This approach may have utility in other workplace disaster prevention planning and response programs. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2008;2:142–149)


Author(s):  
Fiki Fitriyah ◽  
Yeny Fitriyani ◽  
Milna Wafirah ◽  
Achmad Labib ◽  
Titis Rosowulan

Tatanan Hidup Baru (New Normal) dimasa pandemi COVID-19 memberikan pengalaman yang benar-benar baru bagi dunia pendidikan khususnya siswa Sekolah Dasar (SD) di Indonesia. Kewajiban untuk taat protokoler kesehatan yang salah satu klausulnya adalah tidak berkerumun dan menjauhi krumunan menjadikan kegiatan belajar mengajar sangat tidak biasa. Tidak ada tatapmuka baik dengan guru ataupun teman, semua dilakukan secara daring (online). Hal tersebut membuat pelajar mempunyai waktu luang yang banyak dan cenderung tanpa pengawasan baik dari orang tua maupun guru. Tujuan pengabdian ini adalah untuk mengoptimalkan waktu luang siswa dengan manajemen waktu di masa normal baru. Metode yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini menggunakan metode Participatory Action Research (PAR). Tahapan penting dalam PAR adalah Research (pemetaan masalah), Action (rencana aksi dalam penyelesaian masalah) and Participatory (orang tua dan siswa SD di Desa Desekan). Teknik Pengumpulan data dilakukan dengan observasi, survei, dokumen dan wawancara. Pendampingan diharapakan dapat membantu siswa memahami pentingnya manajemen waktu dengan membuat jadwal kegiatan harian sehingga siswa dapat memanage waktunya dengan efektif dan efisien. Kesimpulan dari pengabdian ini adalah para siswa belum memahami dengan baik mengenai manajemen waktu dan banyak menghabiskan waktu dengan dawai dan bermain yang tidak berhubungan dengan pendidikan. Kata kunci: Tatanan Hidup Baru, COVID-19, Manajemen Waktu, PAR ABSTRACT The New Living Order (New Normal) during the COVID-19 pandemic provided a completely new experience for the world of education, especially elementary school students in Indonesia. The obligation to comply with the Health protocol makes learning without face-to-face either with teachers or friends and everything is done online. This makes students have a lot of free time and tends to be without supervision from either parents or teachers. The aim of this service is to optimize students' free time with time management in the new normal. The method used in this study uses the Participatory Action Research (PAR) method. The important stages in PAR are Research (mapping problems), Action (action plans in solving problems) and Participatory (participation of parents and elementary students in Desekan village). The technique of collecting data was carried out by observation, surveys, documents and interviews. It is hoped that mentoring can help students understand the importance of time management by scheduling daily activities so that students can manage their time effectively and efficiently. The conclusion of this dedication is that the students do not understand well about time management and spend a lot of time with strings and games that are not related to education. Keywords: New Normal, COVID-19, Time Management, PAR


2021 ◽  
pp. 146879412110399
Author(s):  
Verusca Calabria ◽  
Di Bailey

This article explores the similarities and differences between oral history and participatory action research (PAR) as two qualitative research methods that both accord with an interpretivist paradigm. It examines how combining these two methodologies can benefit mental health research, offering opportunities for reflection and reciprocity. Drawing from the authors’ respective knowledge and experience of using oral history and PAR methods within social care and mental health settings in the UK, the article considers these opportunities in relation to key concepts, namely, the sharing of power, reciprocity and positionality that are inherent in both methodological approaches. The article concludes that PAR-led oral history offers a trans-disciplinary methodology that can offer fresh insights for improving practices and social outcomes and for reducing inequalities.


Author(s):  
Ashley Walker ◽  
Jody Oomen-Early

Sierra Leone currently has one of the highest child mortality rates in the world. Among those children who have the greatest chance of survival are those who have access to life’s basic needs. Because the government of Sierra Leone does not provide child welfare programming, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are often lifelines for millions of children. Few studies have explored the barriers facing these NGOs or have used participatory action research methods to do so. This case study serves agencies working to address barriers to individual and community health in war-torn and developing countries. This research also makes a case for using technology as a tool for community engagement and empowerment. This chapter will highlight the findings of a participatory action research study and describe how Photovoice can be used to build community capacity and mobilize communities, organizations, and governments to bring about social change.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Troy Crayton, Ph.D.

The K-12 system of education is a complex organization that has historically denied students of low socio-economic status the opportunity for political engagement through the exercise of power (Apple, 1993; Ben-Porath, 2013; Boggs, 2000; Crayton, 2014; Ethiraj & Levinthal, 2009; Fazzaro, 2006; Gordon, 1980; Horowitz, 1969; Karabel, 1977; Lukes, 2005; Shipps, 2008; Wedel, 2009). This statement is in response to a series of questions presented by members of my Academic Advisory Committee, respectively, as a Qualifying Exam for doctoral candidacy in Urban Education Studies. This article is a response to the series of questions that will address the concern of the opening statement including: Professor Peter Seybold’s Questions of Power in the K-12 Education System; Professor Brendan Maxcy’s request on the state of political youth engagement in Urban Secondary Schools; and Professor Jim Scheurich’s request for focus on PAR (Participatory Action Research) and YPAR (Youth Participatory Action Research) in the education system as they relate to the political engagement of Urban Secondary Students.


2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-37
Author(s):  
Brian David Lozenski

This article explores the outcomes of using participatory action research with youth (YPAR) as an entry point into Africana Studies. The author draws from empirical research and anecdotal narratives to document a program where youth of African descent in the US engage in Ethnic Studies through the lens of action research. Beginning with a tracing of the development of Ethnic Studies in the US, the author shows how combining Ethnic Studies and YPAR builds a dual-subjectivity within youth where they are subjects of their own curricular exploration and simultaneously developing a subjectivity as researchers and knowledge producers. The article highlights three major implications of this dual-subjectivity for the political agency of youth of African descent living in a midsized US city.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Troy Crayton, Ph.D.

The K-12 system of education is a complex organization that has historically denied students of low socio-economic status the opportunity for political engagement through the exercise of power (Apple, 1993; Ben-Porath, 2013; Boggs, 2000; Crayton, 2014; Ethiraj & Levinthal, 2009; Fazzaro, 2006; Gordon, 1980; Horowitz, 1969; Karabel, 1977; Lukes, 2005; Shipps, 2008; Wedel, 2009). This statement is in response to a series of questions presented by members of my Academic Advisory Committee, respectively, as a Qualifying Exam for doctoral candidacy in Urban Education Studies. This article is a response to the series of questions that will address the concern of the opening statement including: Professor Peter Seybold’s Questions of Power in the K-12 Education System; Professor Brendan Maxcy’s request on the state of political youth engagement in Urban Secondary Schools; and Professor Jim Scheurich’s request for focus on PAR (Participatory Action Research) and YPAR (Youth Participatory Action Research) in the education system as they relate to the political engagement of Urban Secondary Students.


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