Facilitating Co-Creation of Knowledge in Two Community-University
                    Research Partnerships

Alice Home; Laura A. Chubb; Christa B. Fouche

doi:10.33596/coll.68

Co-researching complexities: Learning strategies for edge walking in community–university research partnerships

Research for All ◽

10.14324/rfa.05.1.12 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Laura A. Chubb ◽

Christa B. Fouché ◽

Karen Sadeh Kengah

Keyword(s):

Learning Strategies ◽

Cross Cultural ◽

University Research ◽

Diverse Group ◽

Academic Researcher ◽

Research Partnerships ◽

Governmental Organization ◽

Course Of Action ◽

Positive Experiences ◽

Careful Navigation

Community–university research partnerships (CURPs) comprise a diverse group of stakeholders who share differing capabilities and diverse insights into the same issues, and they are widely regarded as valuable to navigate the best course of action. Partnering as co-researchers is core to nurturing these partnerships, but it requires careful navigation of complexities. The different insider and outsider positionalities occupied by co-researchers highlight experiences of ‘walking on the edges’ of each other’s worlds. This not only challenges these collaborations, but also enables a depth of understanding that may not be achieved in CURPs where the luxury of, or effort in, building a team of co-researchers to collect, analyse and write up data is not present. This article focuses on learning strategies to advance the co-researching capacities of CURPs where stakeholders occupy divergent positions. The focus will be on lessons from a co-researching partnership comprising a university-affiliated academic researcher, a local Kenyan non-governmental organization (NGO) and members of a community in which the NGO worked. We argue that applying selected learning strategies may facilitate positive experiences of edge walking and enhance the meaningful two-way sharing required for cross-cultural CURPs. It is recommended that community and university research partners examine the utility of these learning strategies for strengthening co-researching in CURP contexts.

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Community Development, Community Organising and Third SectorâUniversity Research Partnerships

Community Research for Community Development ◽

10.1057/9781137034748.0006 ◽

2013 ◽

Author(s):

Marjorie Mayo ◽

Zoraida Mendiwelso-Bendek ◽

Carol Packham

Keyword(s):

Community Development ◽

University Research ◽

Research Partnerships

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Features and impacts of five multidisciplinary community-university research partnerships

Health & Social Care in the Community ◽

10.1111/j.1365-2524.2009.00874.x ◽

2009 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Gillian King ◽

Michelle Servais ◽

Cheryl Forchuk ◽

Heather Chalmers ◽

Melissa Currie ◽

...

Keyword(s):

University Research ◽

Research Partnerships

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Urban School District–University Research Collaboration: Challenges and Strategies for Success

Education and Urban Society ◽

10.1177/0013124517713611 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 50 (7) ◽

pp. 617-640 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jenifer J. Hartman

Keyword(s):

School District ◽

Research Collaboration ◽

Organizational Structures ◽

University Research ◽

Research Partnerships ◽

High School Math ◽

Math Success ◽

Research Collaborations ◽

College Going ◽

Successful School

School district–university research collaborations represent one strategy to increase educators’ ability to use current, research-based information in program decision making and efforts to improve student achievement. However, differences in organizational structures, goals, values, and prior collaborative experiences have made successful school–university research partnerships challenging. This project intentionally structured and examined a mutually beneficial research collaboration between one small urban university with a significant percentage of first-generation college-going students and two local school districts (P-12) to examine high school math achievement and subsequent college math success. One partnership successfully conducted the study and identified actions to increase student success. The other was successful only to the point of partial data collection. This article describes the structures, mechanisms, and conditions that led to the successful partnership and compares them with the unsuccessful one. It contributes to our understanding of developing effective, mutually beneficial school–university research collaborations to improve student outcomes.

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