The goal of the present study was to explore the relations between social avoidance, peer preference, loneliness, and social sensitivity among urban Chinese children. Participants were 951 children attending primary and middle schools from grade 3 to grade 7. Cross-sectional data were collected using self-report assessments and peer nominations.…

Youth civic engagement is relatively low in the United States. However, when students are involved in an action civics class (like Generation Citizen), they enthusiastically take action on a wide variety of topics. To systematically assess what issues youth are interested in, we analyzed administrative data from 1,651 action projects conducted by…

The efficacy of a three-week career construction counselling group intervention that was structured using the My Career Story workbook [Savickas, M. L., & Hartung, P. J. (2012). My career story: An autobiographical workbook for life-career success. www.vocopher.com] was examined using a pre/post-test design. The group intervention was…

This paper presents the argument that climate change should be taught in schools as a sociopolitical and scientific process, and that students should be able to use their science knowledge to think critically about climate change as a social justice issue. A necessary and achievable outcome of science education is critical climate awareness--an…

This study explored the perspectives and lived experiences of urban youth in relation to Restorative Practices at a free public charter school in Los Angeles, California. This qualitative study used a series of semi-structured interviews with four high school students. This adaptable design allowed for the nature of questions to evolve and shift…

This study explored the relationship between social interaction anxiety (SIA) and problematic smartphone use (PSU) among Chinese adolescents. Further, the roles of online basic psychological needs satisfaction (online BPNS), nature connectedness (NC), and related differences between urban and rural adolescents were examined. We recruited 840…

Critical pedagogies often prioritize critical thinking and social awareness at the expense of preparing urban youth for social action. Though sociopolitical efficacy is argued to bridge critical reflection and social action, this relationship is undetermined. We argue that critical reflection and sociopolitical efficacy are independent predictors…

This case study examines the motivations of, and processes used by teacher leaders to establish a peace program at their middle school. These teacher leaders creatively engaged students in transforming school culture using empowering strategies to build positive peace among students, administrators, and teachers. Theories of peace education are…

People who regard nature as important and personally meaningful are often compelled to conserve it. This compulsion is increasingly vital in a world where global climate and biodiversity crises are worsening, with younger generations set to bear most of the resulting ecological burden. By understanding why children and adolescents value nature, we…

The first few years after high school are often viewed as crucial, laying the groundwork for the rest of a young person's life. Decisions made between the ages of 18-24 often guide further steps in a young person's life and can influence their ability to establish a satisfying and financially sustaining career. With that in mind, our new site,…

Prior research on anti-blackness in education demonstrates that Black bodies are marked as undesirable and therefore require exclusion, neglect, or mistreatment. Building on this research, I turn to geographical theories to understand the lived, everyday experiences of Black students who attended a predominately Latinx high school. Via visceral…

This phenomenological case study examined the emergence of critical scholar identities among five urban youth who participated in a 2-year critical research fellows program. The program was grounded on the theoretical framework of Social Justice Youth Development, which included the development of self, social/community, and global awareness…

This qualitative classroom-based study investigates the writing practices, choices and reflections of Latinx high school students during an instructional unit on writing testimonio. The study is grounded in a sociocultural theory of writing and draws from LatCrit and Testimonio to understand how writing about self as testimonio shapes the writing…

This study aimed to (a) identify mentoring quality profiles based on characteristics of informal mentoring relationships, (b) examine how mentor and youth demographic characteristics were related to the profiles, and (c) investigate whether the profiles were related to youth's academic outcomes. Participants were 411 ninth-grade urban, low-income…

This article draws from a two-year youth-informed, multi-site ethnographic study, in which interracial anti-racist youth activist groups (IAYAG) amplified their own pedagogical leadership in their schools. The demand for curricular relevance in urban schools is at an all-time high, and the work of youth organizers is in direct opposition to a…