Scielo RSS http://www.scielo.org.za/rss.php?pid=2221-407020190002&lang=en vol. 8 num. 2 lang. en http://www.scielo.org.za/img/en/fbpelogp.gif http://www.scielo.org.za http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2221-40702019000200001&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2221-40702019000200002&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en Globally, science teachers have been tasked with developing new pedagogies that incorporate inquiry-based and problem-based teaching strategies. In this article, we focus on a duoethnographic study of two teachers (the authors of the article). One of the authors teaches high school science in Canada, and the second has taught high school science in India and Ethiopia. We share our remarkably similar stories, which began with unaddressed pedagogical dilemmas and which, because of a lack in professional development opportunities, culminated in our return to graduate studies in science education. Drawing on the theoretical constructs of Bourdieu, we present our narratives as a study of how we negotiated the current science curriculum reform discourses that have shaped our professional identities. Our struggle to transform our professional identities has provided us with valuable insights as we work with preservice, novice, and in-service teachers to develop the reform-based pedagogies of inquiry-based and problem-based teaching. http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2221-40702019000200003&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en Storywork is an indigenous research practice of making meaning through stories. This article offers an account of storywork as a self-study method for educational research. It brings into dialogue the distinctive personal stories of two South African primary school teachers, S'phiwe Madondo and Ntokozo Mkhize, who engaged in self-study research with the support of their supervisor, Kathleen Pithouse-Morgan. S'phiwe's and Ntokozo's storywork centred on stories of remembered childhood and adolescent experiences. The article presents S'phiwe's personal story piece, "An Outdoor School," which is accompanied by S'phiwe's reflection on his learning from the piece. Next, is Ntokozo's piece, "Lifetime Treasures," and her reflection. Then, S'phiwe's and Ntokozo's voices converge in a dialogue piece to demonstrate their mutually respectful, reciprocal learning in relation to the process of composing, reflecting on, and sharing personal stories. Writing and reflecting searchingly on these stories highlighted the pedagogic significance of finding out about children's and adolescents' cultural encounters and viewpoints, and incorporating these into learning and teaching. Additionally, engaging in storywork opened up possibilities for taking a simultaneously appreciative and critical stance on stories of the past, with the educative intention of contributing to educational and social change. http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2221-40702019000200004&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en This article focuses on preservice teachers' critical reflections on after-school, one-on-one tutoring of learners. We discuss the conceptualisation of two modules in which the tutoring is located. Reflective dialogue is used to capture preservice teachers' tutoring experiences and perceptions. A critical theory lens is used to analyse preservice teachers' reflections to distinguish between reflection that remains at a descriptive level and that involving more criticality and consideration of social change. We argue that the after-school tutoring approach creates opportunities for preservice teachers to reflect on the practice of tutoring and creates opportunities for advancing their critical reflection on social change as pedagogy. Our analysis shows opportunities to critically reflect on key elements of pedagogy that arose within the tutoring experience, but preservice teachers needed support in challenging assumptions they have of learners, and what it means to engage them explicitly. http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2221-40702019000200005&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en This article is the outcome of a classroom-based study that explored whether body mapping, used in a workshop, facilitated a critical analysis of HIV and AIDS amongst a group of trainee psychologists, and orientated them towards addressing some of the factors that drive the epidemic. The article outlines the body mapping exercise and describes how it fits into a broader HIV and AIDS workshop informed by a social justice approach. Key pedagogical insights that emerged about running the body mapping exercise and the workshop as a whole are discussed. The central finding of the study is that body mapping, integrated into a wider social justice workshop, is a useful pedagogical tool that facilitates a critical analysis and orientates students towards addressing HIV and AIDS through their professional practices. However, if this teaching method is to contribute to the kinds of substantial social and systemic change needed to address many of the social issues that drive the epidemic, it needs to be complemented with wider changes in the way in which psychologists are trained. http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2221-40702019000200006&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en This paper is based on a follow-up study of a participatory action research (PAR) project aimed at improving environmental education (EE) in teacher colleges and primary schools in Tanzania. The aim of the current paper is to discuss the power relations involved in sustaining the EE process initiated in the PAR project. We developed two research questions: "To what degree do the democratic processes in the PAR project enable the tutors, teachers, and local community members to continue developing EE while simultaneously addressing the environmental challenges?" and "In what ways do the power relations influence the further development of EE?" We conducted focus-group discussions and interviews with the college dean, tutors from the selected teacher college, and teachers from primary schools who had participated in the project, one year after the researcher left the project. In addition, we interviewed village leaders and local experts. Finally, we undertook nonparticipant observations. We found that, despite hierarchical decisions to transfer teachers, the EE learning processes started in the PAR project continued. We discuss the possibilities for strengthening democratic relations in the educational system in Tanzania through PAR, and recommend the inclusion of PAR in the teacher education curriculum in Tanzania. http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2221-40702019000200007&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en Schools should be enabling spaces that nurture the holistic development of learners. However, in under-resourced communities in South Africa this is not always the case because learners, already vulnerable due to the effects of poverty, are exposed to added stressors within the school gates. We explored how engaging vulnerable learners in a rural high school in a youth participatory action research (YPAR) process could enable them to take action to make their school a more enabling space. This article reports on the data generated by the participants during the first cycle of the YPAR, which was to inform the planning of future advocacy through answering the question: "How do youth perceive the current school climate?" The three themes that emerged indicate that the climate in the school was not conducive to creating a physical, emotional, or social space for learners to attain positive outcomes. This first cycle enabled the participating youth to develop an evidence base on which to ground further action and the tools to do so. Although not without its tensions, we conclude that YPAR is a powerful pathway to develop the agency of learners, enabling them to transform from vulnerable victims into advocates with the ability to influence positive transformation in themselves, their peers, and the climate of their school. http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2221-40702019000200008&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en Schools should be enabling spaces that nurture the holistic development of learners. However, in under-resourced communities in South Africa this is not always the case because learners, already vulnerable due to the effects of poverty, are exposed to added stressors within the school gates. We explored how engaging vulnerable learners in a rural high school in a youth participatory action research (YPAR) process could enable them to take action to make their school a more enabling space. This article reports on the data generated by the participants during the first cycle of the YPAR, which was to inform the planning of future advocacy through answering the question: "How do youth perceive the current school climate?" The three themes that emerged indicate that the climate in the school was not conducive to creating a physical, emotional, or social space for learners to attain positive outcomes. This first cycle enabled the participating youth to develop an evidence base on which to ground further action and the tools to do so. Although not without its tensions, we conclude that YPAR is a powerful pathway to develop the agency of learners, enabling them to transform from vulnerable victims into advocates with the ability to influence positive transformation in themselves, their peers, and the climate of their school. http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2221-40702019000200009&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en Schools should be enabling spaces that nurture the holistic development of learners. However, in under-resourced communities in South Africa this is not always the case because learners, already vulnerable due to the effects of poverty, are exposed to added stressors within the school gates. We explored how engaging vulnerable learners in a rural high school in a youth participatory action research (YPAR) process could enable them to take action to make their school a more enabling space. This article reports on the data generated by the participants during the first cycle of the YPAR, which was to inform the planning of future advocacy through answering the question: "How do youth perceive the current school climate?" The three themes that emerged indicate that the climate in the school was not conducive to creating a physical, emotional, or social space for learners to attain positive outcomes. This first cycle enabled the participating youth to develop an evidence base on which to ground further action and the tools to do so. Although not without its tensions, we conclude that YPAR is a powerful pathway to develop the agency of learners, enabling them to transform from vulnerable victims into advocates with the ability to influence positive transformation in themselves, their peers, and the climate of their school.