Youth voice

Youth voice is a fairly common neologism to refers to the distinct ideas, opinions, attitudes, knowledge, and actions of young people as a collective body.

Background

The term youth voice is often intended to group together a diversity of perspectives and experiences, regardless of backgrounds, identities, and cultural differences. Alternately, the plural forms of either word are usually intended to recognize plurality and diversity of experience, as in youths voice or youth voices. The concept is traditionally acknowledged by community and classroom educators and youth workers; it is increasingly employed by politicians, researchers, and mainstream media.

Student voice is an increasingly common neologism that encapsulates the spirit of youth voice in the context of schools. Whether expressed in the course of learning, the process of decision-making, or the passion of self-advocacy, student voice acknowledges the unique position of the learner as an informed contributor in teaching, learning, and leadership throughout education.

The history of youth voice extends at least to the Middle Ages, when as a youth of 14 Joan of Arc led armies into battle. Other sources cite the historic examples of young lamas in Buddhism, such as the current Dalai Lama who was only 6 when he was identified as the next spiritual and political leader of Tibet; or Jesus Christ, who according to Christian tradition was just 12 when he began his effort to educate his community about his spiritual beliefs.

In modern times, youth activism, which is reliant upon youth voice, began in the United States in the late 1800s. The US has seen continuous interest (although not sustained) in youth voice since that time, with particular upsurges in the 1930s (American Youth Congress), the 1960s (SDS, SNCC, Youth Liberation of Ann Arbor) through to the early 1970s (National Commission on Resources for Youth). In the 1950s and 60s sociologist Margaret Mead actively promoted deepened understanding and engagement of youth voice.

Recently, a growing number of nonprofit, educational, and governmental programs around the world claim to advocate and/or engage youth voice in a variety of ways. They include YouthBuild USA, National Youth Rights Association, and youth councils around the world. The United Nations has heavily proponented youth voice through its Youth Unit, as well as the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Articles 5 and 12. A number of academics, authors, and advocates also proponent youth voice, including cultural critic Henry Giroux, activist/author William Upski Wimsatt, critical pedagogue Peter McLaren, and anti-racist/feminist/anti-imperialist theorist bell hooks.

Applications

Youth voice has many applications, as mentioned above. In communities, youth voice is acknowledged through youth service community youth development, Youth activism, and Youth councils; in schools, youth voice is heard in service learning, democratic schooling methods, and student activism. Other methods for acknowledging youth voice include engaging young people in city planning, program evaluation, community organizing, government advisory boards, nonprofit leadership, news reporting, and paticipatory action research.

Criticism

There are numerous detractors to both the concept of youth voice and the practice of gathering, invoking, extolling, or otherwise hearing youth voice. Perspectives range from what some call the inherent noblesse oblige involved: that is, listening to youth voice involves adults feeling "humble" enough to "stoop" to the level of youth. There are also a number of concerns regarding the diversity of the youth who speak, as well as the reception of those who listen.

See also

• community youth development
• critical pedagogy
• collaborative learning
• Democratic Schools
• youth participation
• The Freechild Project
• Take Children Seriously
• National Youth Rights Association
• Young Religious Unitarian Universalists

External links

• Youth Service America - Youth Voice
• Survey of International Youth Involvement
• TakingITGlobal Voice - Youth involved in decision-making processes
• Youth Activism Project
• Collegiate Forum, the first international student-run policy center
• What Kids Can Do
• The International Voice, a youth-run human rights newsmagazine
• At The Table
• Online Teen Magazine, helping youth voice their opinion
• School Survival, an online community for young people who hate being forced to attend school.
• SoundOut - Promoting youth voice in schools
• The Roosevelt Institution, a student think tank
• The Youth Innovation Fund
• Uth TV, Original media created bt youth for youth.
• The Wellspring, a web log about youth affairs opportunities in Australia and at the United Nations (UN).
• TeenSpeak Online, a web-based commentary and opinions site designed for teenagers and written by teenagers.
• Surveys for Teens, an online resource for fun teen surveys.
• StandUp For Kids National all-volunteer program for homeless and street kids and at-risk youth North America