Learning to ‘be’ an activist: Exploring the relationship between activism and informal education in a youth activism group case study

Abstract Young people in the United States (and beyond) access spaces for activism in varied ways, including the out‐of‐school time sector, where youth activism (YA) groups draw on informal learning pedagogies to engage young people in collective action. Existing research has highlighted tensions between education and activism in these spaces and offered models for understanding the multifaceted aims such settings hold, yet knowledge of the relationship between education and activism in out‐of‐school informal learning settings remains underdeveloped. Drawing on empirical evidence from a case study with an urban American YA group, this article analyses data gathered through ethnographic and participatory methods to explore the relationship between informal learning experiences and activism. Findings show that young people's learning experiences within the YA group included reflection, discussion and skills development that enhanced understanding. Additionally, practitioners shared that the young participants became leaders in their schools and local communities as a result of the YA group's informal education. The empirical evidence critiqued the developmental emphasis in education on adult intervention; rather, practitioners shared the necessity to understand young activists as bringing crucial knowledge and values into the space. However, this acknowledgement was varied in practice. Accordingly, this article offers further conceptualisation to the relationship between activism and education in informal learning spaces.