3+Prepare

Figure 2: PAR Cycle for Research Facilitators

====There are a number of tasks that must be done to prepare for a PAR project. For that reason, the research cycle for research facilitators begins with the "Prepare" phase. Having these preparation tasks done before you begin your work with students will make the process much easier. The tasks include:====

====**•Number of students**: Determine how many students you will be able to collaborate with and how you will do that. Whether the students you are inviting to do research with you are attending the same college or different ones, they are all likely to be busy balancing work, college, and free time. It is up to you to work around their schedules. It will also be important to consider how many times you plan to meet with them and for how long. Prepare a written invitation that specifically outlines what you expect from research collaborators.====

====**• Research support**: When working with students with ID, it is sometimes helpful to have another person in the loop, such as a mentor or educational coach, program director, or teacher. This support person can help you and the student find free time to meet, and choose an appropriate location.====

====**• Modifications**: When inviting students to do research with you, consider how you can make your invitation and instruction as accessible and universally designed as possible (see Figure 3). Depending on the needs of your student researchers, you may need to request a Brailler or sign-language interpreter from the college.====

Shaded box: Figure 3: PAR Invitation ====**• Number of digital media tools needed**: Make data collection as accessible as possible for the students you work with. Digital media tools such as digital cameras and pocket video cameras make it simple for students to document or collect data. Consider how many of these tools you will need and decide how students will share or take turns with the tools.====

====**• Keeping track of digital media tools**: If you are loaning out digital media tools, it will be important to review with students how to take responsibility for the equipment as well as returning it to you at an agreed-upon time. If you are working with a number of students, you may find it helpful to number each PAR toolkit (explained further in the “Document” phase) and keep a record of the toolkit loans (see Table 1).====

Table 1
 * = Toolkit # ||= Borrower || Campus ||= Date loaned ||= Date returned ||
 * = #1 ||= Allie || Holyoke Community College ||= Jan 23 ||= Feb 17 ||
 * = #2 ||= Meaghan || Holyoke Community College ||= Jan 23 ||= Feb 10 ||
 * = #3 ||= Anthony || Holyoke Community College ||= Jan 23 ||= Feb 17 ||
 * = #4 ||= Grace || Quinsigamond Community College ||= Feb 1 ||= Feb 28 ||
 * = #5 ||= Cassidy || Quinsigamond Community College ||= Feb 1 ||= March 3 ||
 * = #6 || Arielle || Roxbury Community College ||= Feb 8 ||= March 10 ||
 * = #7 || Aaron || MassBay Community College ||= Feb 8 ||= March 16 ||


 * • Where PAR takes place**: Plan with students where meetings can take place. Ideally, it’s best to meet on campus, but sometimes this is just not possible due to their tight college and work schedules. In those cases, consider meeting at a local library, the student’s house, or even back at high school, if the student is still concurrently enrolled at school and college.

====**• Number of meetings**: Consider how many times you will need to meet with students, whether in person or via video conferencing, social media, or phone. Students with ID are rarely invited to do activities such as this, and they will need encouragement and support. Plan to meet with students at least every 2-3 weeks in between phases of the PAR project.====

====**• Budget**: Keep in mind: (1) the cost of digital tools, (2) the cost of travel to meet with students, (3) the fee to store images on a password-protected website for students’ work, and (4) compensation for student researchers. All of these potential costs are further explained in this module. Some researchers include PAR as part of their assessment or evaluation activities, and thus build funding into their project budgets. Other researchers tap into foundation or youth or community research funds.====

====**•Time commitment**: Consider the time it takes to support students with ID in PAR. Unlike other research methods, PAR extends over time and minimally requires going through the six action research stages. As a PAR facilitator, you’ll need to be prepared for this time commitment.====

====**•Student compensation**: Consider how you will compensate the students who are committing time and knowledge to this initiative. Financial compensation, the most fair method, might be built into grant budgets. It can include hourly pay, stipends, or gift cards. Students may also be compensated in other ways, such as through authorship in publications related to the work or through presentations. Some researchers offer to give students the cameras or pocket video cameras they have been using for the project as compensation for their work.====

**(2) Preparing an IRB protocol**
====If your university, college, or school district has an institutional review board (IRB), you will need to submit a research protocol in order to do PAR with students. Federal regulations require that IRBs give special consideration to protecting the welfare of certain individuals, including those with intellectual disabilities (ID). This means that you will have to be very clear not only how you are inviting students with ID to do research with you but also how you are instructing the students themselves to conduct research and asking other people for consent.====

====**Research questions:** Consider what aspects of the college experience you want to explore with students. Although students themselves will determine what aspects of college they want to document, it will be necessary to seek institutional approval first before approaching students. The questions may be fairly open-ended, for example:====

====Two things make an IRB protocol to facilitate PAR more time-consuming than other IRB protocols. First, you may need to prepare a number of permission forms to take into account assent and/or consent, approved release forms should you and the students decide to disseminate the data, and consent to document the process with digital media yourself. Second, this type of research often stands out because you are asking students to partner with you to do research, not just to be the subject of the research.====

(3) Securing digital media tools
====Although it is not necessary for students to use digital media for data collection, there are a lot of advantages to using this format. First, students are often very enthusiastic about taking pictures or videotaping their experiences. This enthusiasm can often motivate them to collect data. Second, by collecting digital photos and/or video clips, and providing recorded captions, students have a way to share data that is accessible and meaningful for a broader audience.====

====There are several ways to secure digital media tools for students. First, for $300 or less, you could purchase some used digital cameras or pocket video cameras through websites such as Amazon, Craigslist, or eBay. You could also write a small grant to buy refurbished media tools.====

====Students may also have camera or video features on their cell phone, smart phone, or tablet computer. But be aware that sometimes, the quality of the images taken with those tools are not as clear as the photographer hoped they would be.====

**(4)** Determining how to use digital notepads and apps in your research (if preferred)
====For research facilitators and student researchers using tablet computers and apps, some preliminary suggestions for their use are included in several sections of this module. Clearly this field is exploding. It will be up to the researchers to identify and try out apps that would augment or enhance the PAR phases.====

====**Relevant apps:** Two apps that may be useful for PAR projects are Dropbox and iCloud. These are both storage apps, and will allow you ready access to student files and instructional materials no matter where you are working with students.====

(2) Graphic that highlights the PAR phases (See figure 5) (two graphics)
Sample graphic display used by research facilitator Laura Lorenz to describe the research phases:

(3) Introductory PowerPoint or fact sheet that describes PAR and how other people have used it.
Before seeking their consent, take some time to walk students through the PAR process. Use the invitation to highlight what you hope will come out of the PAR, and use the graphic of the PAR phases to walk through each step. Your introductory PowerPoint should include (a) an explanation of PAR, (b) examples of how others, including those with intellectual disabilities, have used PAR to describe and share personal experiences, and (c) a breakdown of the activities students will complete at each stage of PAR. Show students examples of how other people have done PAR, and discuss their reactions.

====(4) Examples of other PAR projects, especially those that were done with students about the same age. There are many examples of PAR and Photovoice projects online. Here are some links to projects summarized on YouTube:====

DreamGirls Photovoice Project

VOYCE: Voices of Youth in Chicago Education

Photovoice: Community Participation after a spinal cord injury

Aboriginal Youth Group

Sharing Stories. Creating Change ( Outdoor Education)