The new Occasional Paper Series #53, “Speculative Youth Action: Imagining Educational Futures Through Participatory Social Dreaming,” launched today to explore how Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) can be a tool not just for critique, but for possibility. In this issue, youth are positioned as visionaries—researchers, storytellers, and changemakers—who imagine beyond existing educational structures to create futures rooted in justice, equity, and collective dreaming.
In the Q&A below, guest editors Ricardo Martinez,assistant professor at Pennsylvania State University, and Ezequiel Aleman, director at Universidad Tecnológica in Uruguay and an assistant professor in the Department of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, share the thinking behind this issue’s theme of “productive ruptures,” reflect on how speculative approaches can expand traditional youth research, and highlight the powerful role of youth voice in reshaping educational practice. Grounded in both personal experience and community-based examples, their insights remind us that dreaming is not a luxury, but a necessary act of resistance, creation, and transformation.
Q: What drew you to the theme of “productive ruptures,” and how do these moments shape the Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) process?
The idea of “productive ruptures” emerged as we began reflecting on the commitment behind YPAR and how it can be daunting when YPAR is discussed only as a rigorous method. In truth, YPAR often invites youth to deviate from what is expected of them or what adults traditionally expect from youth. When they break away from those expectations and engage in something unique, creative, and original, ruptures start becoming productive.
In working with youth, a rupture can be perceived as them not meeting adult expectations or not adhering to predefined norms. The notion of rupture often carries negative connotations, such as something broken or something that disrupts the established order. However, what we find powerful about YPAR is that it acknowledges these moments of disagreement or perceived failures as opportunities for growth and transformation. In a way, YPAR responds to ruptures and sometimes actively encourages them as a necessary part of the process. “Productive ruptures” are sparks of speculation and catalysts for change, where young people reshape their own learning experiences, challenging dominant narratives and creating new, more empowering ones.
We want ruptures because we want productive change. So, even if we think YPAR has grown stagnant or a little too neo-liberal, we must see it as a rupture. This special issue is intended to be a productive rupture that centers youth and speculation in critical youth engagements.
Q: How does Speculative YPAR push the boundaries of traditional youth research, and why is this approach important for reimagining educational futures?
Speculative YPAR challenges traditional youth research by centering imagination as a key part of critical inquiry. Often, youth who have been marginalized and oppressed bring with them a remarkable capacity for criticality and imagination about the world. Their dreams of alternative futures are not mere fantasies but foundational to how they envision solutions to injustice and actively work toward transformation. By encouraging youth to imagine and create alternative worlds, this approach makes it easier for them to identify and test solutions that can be mapped onto real-world contexts. Rather than feeling paralyzed by the weight of systemic challenges, youth are empowered to engage in an iterative process of problem-solving that begins with speculative imagination and leads to tangible action.
For example, this approach is particularly powerful in contexts where youth navigate digital literacy. When we tell young people to be critical of platforms like TikTok or Snapchat, we are asking them to critique systems that simultaneously provide them with positive feelings of connection and belonging. A speculative approach to YPAR would start by encouraging youth to reimagine these systems—to question how they might function differently, how data practices could be more just, and how their interactions with technology could be transformed to serve their communities better. The value of Speculative YPAR lies in its openness to what is possible. It creates gaps for imagination and offers young people the space to think beyond established structures, envisioning and testing new ways of being and relating that challenge the status quo.
Q: What role do youth voices play in shaping the narratives shared in this issue, particularly in pieces co-written by young people themselves?
Youth voices are at the center of this issue—not just as subjects of the research, but as authors, co-creators, and critical thinkers shaping the narratives themselves. As editors, one of the guiding questions was: Are we writing about youth, for youth, or are we writing with youth? That distinction matters. Writing about youth tends to turn them into objects of a discussion versus writing for youth with youth. The ideal is writing with youth, and the challenge comes when writing for youth without them, because, at times, youth do not care about academic publications, but they care about you. This is a rupture in critical youth literature.
Throughout the editorial process, we encouraged contributors to reflect on who was being centered in their work. In several cases, we asked authors to revisit their pieces and consider bringing youth or community members in as co-authors. And every time we posed that challenge, they responded precisely by reaching back out, listening more closely, and opening space for youth voices to come through in the writing.
The result was stronger, more complete pieces that didn’t just describe change—they embodied it. Including youth in authorship created space for perspectives that often go unheard in academic work. It aligned with our focus on productive ruptures—those moments where the process of making space for youth voice disrupts the usual hierarchies of knowledge and authority.
Q: Can you share an example of how participatory social dreaming has influenced meaningful change in a school or community setting?
When I (Ricardo) think of participatory social dreaming influencing a school or community, I think of the Trans Student Educational Resources (TSER). TSER provides public resources to support transgender students, including training for educators, online infographics, and workshops at conferences. I have been using their resources for over five years in my methods course that I teach. What most people forget is that this organization was started by two 16-year-old transgender women who were fed up that resources did not exist, so they went out there and created it. By doing so, they’ve impacted multiple classrooms across the country, if not the world, because we started seeing those resources translated into other languages.
This example captures what participatory social dreaming is all about. It’s not just about imagining alternative futures in a vacuum, but about making those dreams real and impactful—something others can interact with and learn from. In this case, the speculative act of imagining better resources for trans youth led to real-world change that has influenced countless educational settings.
Sometimes, youth even choose not to add their names to what they create, as if the message itself is more important than individual recognition. That choice highlights the power of their voices and the depth of their commitment to making an impact. It shows that participatory social dreaming isn’t just about fantasy or abstraction; it’s about creating new realities that challenge existing norms and open new possibilities for transformation.
Q: What do you hope educators and researchers will take away from this issue to better support youth-led efforts for social justice and equity?
What we hope people take away from this issue is twofold. First, Speculative YPAR is not hard; it just takes time, and the investment is worth it. I (Ezequiel) remember that during my PhD studies, a professor said YPAR is a hard, dense, heavy process that would be difficult for an educator. Second is the idea that research should never be placed ahead of the lives and dreams of young people. It’s about recognizing that dreaming and speculation are fundamental to who we are as human beings.
We do not think any authors would describe their work solely as “hard.” The work has a genuine sense of fun and a relational sense of community. And that joy matters. It’s easy to overlook the power of joy and communal experiences if you do not interpret youth-led research as a creative endeavor to dream and imagine. So, we hope educators and researchers come away from this issue asking themselves: Am I: enjoying the work I’m doing? Building meaningful relationships with young people through the process? Allowing myself and youth to dream beyond probable futures? Those moments of joy, connection, and imagination are just as important as the critical inquiry itself. If we can hold onto that sense of joy and dreaming, we are more likely to build lasting relationships and a more just, equitable world.