Knowledge and Engagement: Building Capacity for the Next Generation of Community Based Researchers

Abstract

Knowledge and Engagement summarizes the main findings of a global study titled ‘Building the Next Generation of Community-Based Researchers’ (a.k.a. the Next Gen project) undertaken between May 2014 and April 2016, funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). The overall objective of the Next Gen project was to increase access to high quality training in Community Based Research (CBR) within higher education institutions (HEIs) and civil society organizations (CSOs). The research aimed to understand the current state-of-the-art in pedagogies and strategies for building CBR capacities, and to work towards the strengthening of existing training fieldwork and the theoretical and curricular content on participatory research within and outside academia. The book opens with a theoretical chapter on pedagogical principles about training, teaching and learning CBR, which have been elaborated by triangulating three data sources: systematic literature reviews, a global survey, and case studies on CBR training. It advances the discussion on capacity building for CBR because, while large amounts of literature abound on doing CBR, very little is available on training for CBR. The results of the first-ever global survey on training modalities, materials and locations for CBR are presented in Chapter 3. It confirms, among other things, that the demand for training in CBR far exceeds the supply of training opportunities. Twenty-one case studies (of nine HEIs and 12 CSOs from 14 countries) with lessons form Chapter 4, followed by a comparative analysis of the case studies using the pedagogical principles of training, teaching and learning CBR as an analytical framework. A detailed summary of the project’s findings, conclusions and recommendations round off the book, with appendices containing the guidelines for conducting thematic reviews, the survey questions, a list of institutions providing top training programs in CBR, and the case study framework. Knowledge and Engagement represents a collective effort to highlight many issues and areas of work in CBR training, analyzes the current scenario and opportunities, and provides recommendations on what can be done to provide best quality training for the next generation of community based researchers.