Colloquium: Perspectives on Collaborative Research

Perspectives on Collaborative Research                                                                                              
Kate Collins, Melissa Crum, & Ruth Smith

PARTICIPATORY ACTION RESEARCH (PAR)
- important to be inclusive
- results should, ideally, benefit the participants
- participants should have some manner of influence on the study and questions in the first place

1) Prioritizes context-specific dialogue - a collective commitment to investigate n issue or problem. A desire to engage in self- and collective-reflection to gain clarity about the issues under investigation
2)  Social justice-oriented - a joint decision to engage in individual and/or collective action that leads to a useful solution that benefits the people involved; how can the participants be transformed or emancipated in some way?
3) Collaboration - building of alliances between researchers and participants in the planning, implementation, and dissemination of the research process; make sure that the participants are advocating what they are hoping to achieve and that the researcher is adding to the conversation and facilitating the project

Examples: 
Citizen Artist Dine & Dialogue Initiative (Kate Collins) - students from across the arts designed an arts collaboration that is centered on art making that focuses on dialogue and dialogic exchange, particularly on cross-cultural concerns
Mosaic Homeschool Education Network (Melissa Crum) - group of families that were dissatisfied with the quality of education their children were receiving in the public school system; wanted an educational environment that was more strongly based in the arts. Primarily low-income, African American families (vs. a more traditional conservative, upper-class Caucasian community of homeschoolers). Montessori-style teaching with students coming from multiple levels in one environment with an Afro-cultural foundation
Dumarka Soomaaliyeed Voices Unveiled (Ruth Smith) - collaboration with the Somali Women and Children's Alliance; started with disbanding misconceptions of who Somali women are. "Community through the eyes of young Somali women." Photography-based, all-female project facilitated by Ruth but largely executed, organized, and directed by the Somali women involved in the project

Kate's Challenges
What kinds of questions should one be asking when entering into a new partnership?
In a classroom setting, how does one employ participant observation when one is actively engaging with students the whole time?
What challenges might one face in relation to seeking equity and balance when working with disparate groups?

Autoethnography (reflective) vs. Field Notes (exact)

*can rent a recorder from Central Classroom for the entire year for free!!

Melissa's Challenges
How can art education be used as a tool for communities to transform and/or enhance their material and mental livelihoods in a noticeable and relevant way?
- Most art projects tend to be very short-lived; what kind of tools and materials are lasting? 
"If you give a man a fish, he will eat for one day. If you teach a man to fish, he will never be hungry."

Ruth's Challenges
How do I represent and re-present participants and their experiences to different audiences?
Where is the line between participatory processes and PAR? Is it even important to distinguish? How does it effect methods and methodology?

Using the word "research" with participants may be intimidating and off-putting; rather, encourage that they are part of the education process