#668: Assessing Leadership Learning in Youth Participatory Action Research

When students engage in Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) to improve their schools, they practice and develop key habits of democratic citizenship, including critical social analysis, collective leadership, and courage. These habits, however, are rarely aligned with or legible to school assessment systems, which poses barriers for the adoption and sustainability of YPAR programs in schools. In response to this problem of practice voiced by educator partners, our team facilitated a co-design process for a leadership development assessment. In this paper, we share the rationale, design principles, and key elements of the Habits of a Social Change Leader Assessment. We also share data from a focus group with teachers that elicited feedback and revisions prior to piloting it this year. This assessment contributes to the wider project of designing learning resources that support young people’s agency and critical consciousness.