Alternative Path: Evaluation of an Alternative Education Program Using Photovoice Methodology

Overview: This presentation will discuss the results of an alternative school program evaluation conducted using Photovoice, a qualitative participatory action methodology. The factors affecting the academic and behavioral outcomes of expelled youth who are at risk of committing crimes will be discussed.Proposal text:

Background:
Although the number of youth arrests decreased in the United States over the past 20 years, time-served in juvenile detention facilities and subsequent rates of recidivism remains consistently high in the majority of states (Palmer, 2018). High juvenile recidivism rates are attributed to an overuse of incarceration with a lack of evidence-based practices (ex. Aos, Miller, & Drake, 2006). Instead, researchers and policy experts recommend community-based alternatives that can better address the root causes of criminal behavior, particularly related to education (ex. Pesta & Blomberg, 2016). Educational deficits are considered a major risk factor for youths’ involvement in the juvenile justice system (ex. Wolff & Baglivio, 2017). Alternative education programs are designed for at-risk youth who have difficulty conforming to the expectations of traditional schools (Palmer, 2018). Research on the impacts of alternative education on at-risk youth is scarce, even more so if we consider the studies done in a participatory manner with youth (ex. Fine et al., 2018). This study aims at evaluating a community-based alternative school in a midwestern state.

Method:
Photovoice methodology, a qualitative community-focused participatory action approach, was utilized. The researchers met with a total of 11 participants (out of 13 enrolled at the time of research) six times over six weeks beginning with the orientation and training session, followed by three in-person Photovoice sessions, and participatory data analysis and recommendation development meetings. Students were instructed to take photos in regards to their average everyday experience in the school, helpful program components, and program changes that would help them succeed. A community photo exhibit was held at the researchers’ university. In order to conduct data analysis, Dedoose was used by three independent coders. Data were analyzed using code co-occurrence charts. The most prevalent co-occurring codes are described below.

Results:
Students have identified both positive and negative factors affecting their success in the alternative schools across five themes: school culture, relationship, academic and behavioral outcomes, and community engagement. In general, they described school culture as caring but highly restrictive to the extent that it made them feel imprisoned and criminalized. Students discussed the positive effect of building a healthy relationship with the school director and teacher as being a supportive factor of their success but noted that due to school rules, healthy socialization among peers is not promoted to the extent they would feel connected to one another. In addition, students discussed the positive impact of the online-based curriculum in combination with one-on-one teacher support as being highly beneficial for their learning. Students noted that the school’s rules and approach to discipline, in addition to the relationship with teachers, helped them to improve on their sense of control, conflict avoidance, and self-esteem.

Conclusion:
Evaluation of alternative education programs from the youth’s perspective allows practitioners to re-evaluate their approach to working with students. Students’ voices allowed us to identify factors such as organizational culture, relationship quality with adults and peers, and opportunities for community engagement that might amplify or diminish these two key outcomes.