Bridging Academia and Civil Society for Access and Inclusion: Insights from Action-Research Experiences

Over the years, academia has had the role of leading the processes of research and development, generating evidence to inform social change. However, this same evidence does not always seem to make these processes effective, based on the premise that there is a gap between higher education institutions and the various civil society organizations. The present work aims to systematize a set of insights, originated through Participatory Action Research (PAR) experiences, developed between academia and civil society organizations. These are characterized by a multistakeholder vision of this connection, which includes professors, researchers, students, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), and cultural institutions. In addition, these experiences have a specific focus on increasing access and accessibility of distinct cultural forms through interaction and playfulness. In this context, four case studies are presented, as a strategy to bridge this gap, through the operationalization of the notions of social value, tangibility and/or playfulness, and pedagogical value. These projects were developed from 2015 to 2022 and emerged from concrete problems experienced in the field by the different organizations. Through participatory observation and critical analysis, it is possible to emphasize these practices as alternatives to bridge the above-discussed gap, by producing a reciprocal relationship between inclusion-driven and social change outcomes and the pedagogical value, as a central part in the learning process of higher education students. The results from these experiences also highlight how media research can simultaneously study the users' needs and produce innovation and change. In the present work, the limitations imposed by the current pedagogical and institutional models in higher education are also explored, as well as the drivers and barriers experienced in the field, while addressing the specific sociocultural context where these case studies were developed.