ABSTRACT
Current research on learning in digital media arts programmes has documented the literacies young people practice and the forms of apprenticeship learning they experience inside high-quality programmes. What has received less attention, however, is the role that programmes can play to support young people to secure work or opportunity beyond the programme itself. This issue of transitions is especially salient in the digital media domain because it is less dependent on school credentials and more reliant on networks. This calls for a shift in how programmes envision their relationship to youth—from a focus on their experience within the time and space of the structured programme to a more extended relationship that supports post-programme transitions. Research about how young people construct pathways is especially needed because emerging research suggests that the new media arts domain has both a high level of openness and precarity that is distinct from other occupations, particularly those that are gated by credentials or higher education degrees. In this chapter, we argue for an expanded horizon that attends to the ways that programmes might support young people in building pathways from positive youth development participation to sustainable employment. This chapter draws on data collected from a participatory research project called Pathways, carried out with youth research teams from two programmes in the Northeast US: one with a New Media Arts (NMA) focus, the other with a STEM focus. Youth researchers interviewed peers and programme staff about their experiences in the programme and their understanding of pathways to future work in desired fields. Although both sites showed similar evidence of programme quality, cross-case analysis showed divergence in the availability and visibility of NMA and STEM pathways to young people. This difference was not due to differences in programme quality or youth development but instead variations in the fields. Whereas young people’s narratives about STEM pursuits reflected gated, brokered, and institutionally supported pathways, stories about new media arts reflected greater openness and opacity. We share examples of distinct strategies developed by both programmes to support young people in their pursuit of young creatives and STEM futures given these features of the ecosystem. The chapter discusses implications for work that youth initiatives must do to organise for young people’s learning not only within the setting but also in their movement into sustainable livelihoods.
