Final Blog

Brace yourselves, I am going to be talking about different things. In my post a few weeks ago, I had mentioned the vast uncertainty of knowledge, skills and attributes necessary in youth work. And my goal is to do a comprehensive work analysis, highlight the roles and competencies required/ necessary in this field, and then synthesize findings into a manual for new professionals. I think this may help provide a roadmap and foundational guidance for new professionals in the field, or even veterans as they make lateral transitions within the field. Now there have been developments in my capstone project. I thought about all the methods that could be used to do this- interview, observation, critical incident report, job inventory, questionnaire etc. With time not being on our side, I will not have time to do intervews or surveys. I think I am better off doing a qualitative document-based work analysis using artifact analysis( reviewing existing documents,and materials that reflect how a job or role is performed) as well as content analysis (systematically coding and interpreting them to identify themes and KSAO). This way, all I have to do is look into job postings and job descriptions found online to derive the data I need to make my analysis. Aditionally, instead of thinking about my project as a roadmap for new professionals, I now have a different target audience. I am doing the project with YDEV undergraduate students in mind, this makes this project a bit more personal and hopefully it can be a great resource for them as they think about their future careers in YDEV.

When I think of where I want my influence to be in the world. It will be through education. Not the eurocentric filled curriculum but the one that centers culture. The one that does not unintentionally or intentionally distance people from their heritage, identity and culture. I attended an international highschool and the entire curriculum reflected western espitemologies, history, literature, philosophy etc. This system often reinforce European perspectives as the default or standard. This experience left me with a sense of inferiority about my own people and culture. I want to change that. I want an education system where youth see themselves reflected, one that integrates diverse epistemologies and one where culture is centered. So hoepefully, I can work with organizations where I can advocate, develop, design, and implement a culturally relevant curriculum.