The 'RENYO – Re-engaging young offenders with education and learning' project, in which Fundación Diagrama is as partner, is coming to an end. The project seeks to enhance educators' abilities to re-engage young people in conflict with the law with education and learning while serving custodial sentences in detention centres in four European countries (the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, and Spain).

 

Based on the analysis of pilot projects that have been carried out with young people in these countries, the partners will soon publish a research article examining the potential of the Authentic Inquiry (IA) as a means to encourage young people in conflict with the law and at risk of social exclusion to engage in their education.

 

The Authentic Inquiry methodology is designed to help build knowledge that is relevant to the learner. To this end, the learner first selects a topic of relevance to them, thereby creating the opportunity to engage with the learning process through the Authentic Inquiry's 8 steps.

 

Qualitative and quantitative analysis of the Authentic Inquiry process

 

Much of the quantitative data used for this analysis was collected via the Learning Power Platform. While experimenting with the Authentic Inquiry methodology, participants used this online platform created by our partner organization JEARNI to document their progress. By answering the same questionnaire before and after completing the 8 steps of the Authentic Inquiry, participants were able to observe the changes in their way of learning regarding the Learning Power's eight dimensions: orientation to learning, mindful agency, sense-making, creativity, curiosity, belonging, collaboration, and hope and optimism.

 

 

In general, the first results show that the impact of Authentic Inquiry on participants is greater with regard to their sense of collaboration, belonging, mindful agency, creativity, and optimism. Individual experiences, however, vary greatly and no strong trends emerge regarding the development of these different dimensions.

 

The University of Gloucestershire is also finalising the research article on these pilot projects. A summary of the final research document and a complete report on the quantitative section, based on analysis of Learning Power Platform data, will soon be available on the RENYO website at the following link.

 

Updates from each national context

 

In Spain

Fundación Diagrama presented the initial results of the data analysis of the pilot project with young people in conflict with the law during a virtual seminar which took place on the 26th October at a national level. This event also served to inform professionals in the juvenile justice system and other stakeholders of the many project resources at their disposal.

 

 

In Germany

Our German partner presented the Authentic Inquiry in a workshop at the European Conference on Social Work 2021 in Croatia. At the invitation of the International Federation of Social Work (ISFW), Prof. Dr. Yvonne Knospe and Prof. Dr. Karsten König held a 90-minute workshop in which conference participants were able to get to know RENYO and try out the first steps of the IA method. In small working groups the participants dared to start their own Authentic Inquiry projects: http://ifsw2021.eu

 

In the UK

On 6th October, the University of Gloucestershire held a Renyo Multiplier Event titled ‘Sharing Experiences, Joining the Dots, Making a Difference’. As well as welcoming two speakers from the world of Education and Justice, they shared the UK results from the project with stakeholders and students from the University. The section focused on RENYO can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/hXHCQKfFs-4

 

In Italy

CESIE organised a RENYO multiplier event which was held on the 25th of October in Palermo. This insightful and formative event was aimed at introducing more educators and staff to the Authentic Inquiry Metodology. The event included guests from the EPEA – European Prison Education Association – and the local Office for Social Services for Minors. https://fb.me/e/2zpJlulKM

 

More information

 

Visit RENYO’s Website or Facebook page to find out more.