PHOTOVOICE PROJECT SPRING 2025
Students will complete a project addressing Social Problems related to Poverty in Society using the your “sociological imagination.”
Project name:
Student Perceptions of “The Impact of Poverty on individuals and Families.”
Students will take two photo images that highlight a social problem. This semester we are addressing:
“The Impact of Poverty on individuals and Families.”
One photo will be a visual representation of the student perception of the social problem.
The other photo will be a visual representation of a potential solution to address the social problem highlighted through the first photo.
Students will prepare short narratives describing their photos and submit both photos and narratives in the assignment module. Narratives should not exceed 4-5 sentences.
Students will recruit participants from the SAC campus to engage in a focus group that will
take place during class time. We will view each photo and discuss perceptions of the photos. Students
will also take notes and collect focus group data. We will engage in focus group and note
taking training prior to conducting the focus group. Student participants will be required to
sign a consent form prior to participation. Since this is an open forum, we will ensure a safe,
non-judgmental, and respectful environment!
Project Paper (5-7 pages):
Each student will submit a paper that describes the impact of the pandemic on their social problem
and report findings from the photovoice focus group. Each student will also reflect on the photovoice
and focus group process and method.
Your paper should include the following:
1 - A title page with your paper title
2- The social problem and pandemic impact: (Part 1)
A) - Introduce your topic area.
What social problem are you highlighting? What were trends prior to the
pandemic (use data sources here)? How has the pandemic exacerbated the
social problem? How has the social problem become a larger issue? How has
the social problem changed? What new social problems have developed?
B) What do you see as possible solutions to address the social problem? What
policies or programs might help alleviate the social problem? What lessons
did we learn through the pandemic? How did the pandemic change society?
C) How can the sociological imagination help us understand social problems during the
pandemic?
**You will need academic journal articles and research here as well as popular sources (4 minimum). Include in-text citations and provide a reference page using APA format.3-
Photovoice focus group findings. (Part 2)
A) Report your focus group findings. Provide a short introduction by describing each theme you found significant.
Under each theme, you will provide direct quotes, paraphrased quotes, any
significant notes that support the theme.
B) Where you were surprised at any of the responses overall? Where you
surprised at any responses to your photos specifically?
4- Reflect on the photovoice and focus group process. (Part 3)
(Answer all questions in this section)
A) Describe the experience of taking photos. What were your thoughts going into
the process? Did you encounter any challenges? Please describe any. How did
you navigate the challenges?
B) Describe your thoughts on photovoice as a method to bring about awareness of
social problems. How effective is it? What impact did photovoice have on the
issue itself? What are ways to use this method in reaching the larger
community?
C) Describe your thoughts on the focus group process. How effective was it for
addressing the photos and perceptions through discussion? What kind of
“space” was created for the focus group? Were there any challenges to
gathering data?
D) Summarize your general thoughts and provide recommendations.
1) What did you learn through the photovoice process? What did you learn
about focus groups?
2) Describe advantages and disadvantages of the project.
3) Describe suggestions for improvement. What would you change if given the
opportunity to do another PV project? What topic would you
address?
Historical (primary source) documents, reference articles, and journals covering periods in U.S. history from precolonial times to the present. Includes citations for history journals from the Arts and Humanities.
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Important scholarly journals delivered as high quality page images and articles downloads are in PDF format. Coverage usually stops from 2 to 5 years prior to current year depending on each journal's publisher. Subjects include: African American Studies, Anthropology, Asian Studies, Ecology, Economics, Education, Finance, History, Language & Literature, Mathematics, Philosophy, Political Science, Population Studies, Sociology, & Statistics.
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