ERIC Number: EJ1306855
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 7
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1555-9734
EISSN: N/A
When Tactical Hope Doesn't Feel Like Enough: A Graduate Student's Reflection on Precarity and Community-Engaged Research
McCool, Megan
Community Literacy Journal, v14 n2 Article 9 p138-143 Spr 2020
In this reflection, using the work of Ellen Cushman and Paula Mathieu as a framework from which to extend, I explore how my positionality as a graduate student affected my experience wading into community-engaged literacy work. Specifically, I reflect on my time with a nonprofit organization that provides no-cost legal support and safety planning for survivors of intimate partner violence, sexual assault, and harassment. Indeed, because of the ethical imperatives that thoughtful community-engaged research requires--such as reciprocity and a tactical orientation--many graduate students find themselves occupying a precarious position. I assert that, yes, we must realize the precarious nature of graduate students doing community-engaged literacy research. However, we can also turn to useful approaches, such as tactical responsivity, to help us navigate these relationships with community partners.
Descriptors: Graduate Students, Reflection, Community Involvement, Literacy, Nonprofit Organizations, Family Violence, Service Learning
Community Literacy Journal. Veronica House 317 UCB, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309. e-mail: editorsclj@gmail.com; Web site: http://communityliteracy.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Opinion Papers; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A