Pedagogy of community-engaged research

Pedagogy refers to the approach to teaching and learning that encompasses the theory and practice of how educators instruct, guide, and facilitate learning to achieve specific educational goals. It encompasses not only the “what” (content) of curriculum but also the “why” (values and purposes), the “how” (methods of delivery and learning), the “with whom” (multi-faceted relationships that shape teaching), the “where” (contexts and institutional settings), and the “to what effect” (assessment and impact) [1]. Essentially, pedagogy describes the entire approach to teaching and learning, covering the aspects from initial planning and curriculum design to the actual delivery of lessons and assessment of learner progress (Table 1). A central concept in contemporary scholarship is learner-centered pedagogy, which places the learner at the heart of the educational process, emphasising active participation, coconstruction of knowledge, and responsive-ness to individual needs [2, 3]. It is not simply about transferring knowledge but about shaping the ways educators and learners think, act, and relate to others in the teaching-learning processes [4]. Rather than considering students as a “blank slate”, this approach takes into account the previous knowledge, skills, and experience that everyone involved brings to the learning process.

Table 1 Aspects of pedagogy

Community-Engaged Research (CEnR) or Community Based Research (CBR) has emerged as a cornerstone of equitable and impactful scholarship, fundamentally challenging traditional academic hierarchies and knowledge production practices when conducted in community settings [5]. Much of the discourse emphasises “how to conduct CEnR”; methodological approaches for co-designing studies, ensuring ethical, equitable, and empowering engagement, co-creation of knowledge products, and sustaining community partnerships [6, 7]. Yet far less attention has been given to “how we teach and learn CEnR”. If CEnR is to fulfill its promise of transforming research into a collaborative and justice-oriented endeavor, then dedicated scholarly attention needs to be devoted to its pedagogy.

Pedagogy of CEnR

Conventional research training focuses heavily on technical skills, such as research design, ethics approval processes, data collection, analysis, and interpretation [8]. While essential, these skills are insufficient for authentic CEnR [8]. CEnR represents a transformative model of knowledge co-creation that emphasises collaboration between academic researchers and community members [9, 10]. While much attention has been given to the methodologies and ethical considerations of CEnR, there is growing recognition of the need for a pedagogy that prepares university students and other learners to engage meaningfully with communities to conduct research in the local settings. This requires moving beyond transmissive models, where educators deliver information to passive learners, toward trans-formative pedagogy that cultivates critical consciousness, agency, and reflective practice [11]. Alongside this, inclusive pedagogy emphasises equity, inclusion, and responsiveness to diversity, ensuring that all learners are recognised as capable contributors in the learning process [12]. Building on this, open pedagogy further invites learners to co-create knowledge, engage collaboratively in the learning process, and participate in shaping both content and methods, thereby deepening engagement and ownership of learning outcomes [13].

To achieve this, a CEnR pedagogy needs a structured yet flexible framework that equips learners not only with technical competencies but also with the reflexivity, relational accountability, and critical consciousness necessary for meaningful engagement with communities [14, 15]. Explicit recognition of learner-centered and context-respon-sive approaches is essential, as both the needs of learners and the cultures of partner communities must inevitably shape teaching and research practices. This manuscript focuses on concept-tualising such a pedagogy; specific examples of tested models or measurable learning outcomes are planned for future empirical work. Operationalising CEnR pedagogy calls for attention to three interconnected components: Foundational Principles, Design Strategies, and Teaching–Learning Practices (Figure 1). These components not only structure the teaching-learning experience but also correspond to core pedagogical questions: Foundational Principles address the 'why' of teaching, articulating the values and purposes that guide CEnR; Design Strategies outline the 'what’, translating principles into actionable curricula and learning experiences; and Teaching–Learning Practices encompass the 'how', 'with whom', 'where’, and 'assessment', detailing interactive methods, collaborative engagement, evaluation approaches, and contextual considerations. Framing the pedagogy in this way helps educators and learners plan and arrange learning that is both theoretically grounded and pragmatic.

Figure 1 The pedagogy of community engaged research 

Foundational principles (the Why)

Foundational principles provide the philosophical and ethical grounding for CEnR pedagogy, answering the question of why educators and learners engage in CEnR

Epistemic humility and critical consciousness

Emphasising the value of situated knowledge, challen-ging academic dominance, and fostering reflexivity about power, positionality, privilege, and structural dynamics that shape research relationships [11]. Learners reflect critically on their own social location and biases to engage ethically with communities.

Relational competencies and ethical accountability

Prioritising skills for building and sustaining respect-ful, reciprocal partnerships. Trust, transparency, and long-term commitment underpin the ethical conduct of CEnR [8].

Praxis-oriented collaboration

Supporting learners to engage in genuine co-learning and co-creation, ensuring community partners participate as equitable agents throughout question formulation, methodology, data collection, interpretation, and mobilisation.

Teaching–Learning Practices encompass the practical methods through which learners experience CEnR, covering how, with whom, where, and to what effect learning occurs:

Participatory and interactive teaching

Interactive workshops, case-based discussions, and hands-on sessions foster bidirectional knowledge exchange, modeling reflexivity, relational account-ability, and equitable collaboration. This includes content or modules co-designed and co-taught with community partners.

Scaffolded community-based engagement

Structured experiential placements allow learners to progressively engage with communities, building skills and responsibility in real-world contexts.

Applied project activities

Hands-on assignments and exercises, such as joint dissemination efforts or participatory action research projects, operationalise principles and design strategies. Facilitating opportunities for community members to identify research priorities and to name research questions can be excellent learning opportunities for university students, especially those who are not used to listening and learning from community partners.

Reflexive and evaluative practices

Critical incident analyses, positionality reflections, and structured feedback loops encourage ongoing assessment of both process and outcomes.

Community-engaged dissemination

Joint authorship, community forums, and co-facilita-ted presentations ensure findings are shared ethically and inclusively.

Formative co-assessment

Continuous, participatory evaluation—reflexive jour-nals, peer and community feed-back, and codesigned rubrics—captures both technical competencies and relational skills. Engaging community partners in co-designing contents and co-evaluating student lear-ning also makes it clear to students that community members bring valuable knowledge and expertise to these endeavors.

Contextual placement

Learning occurs in authentic community settings, bri-dging classroom knowledge with real-world research practice and enabling meaningful engagement.

Circumstantial realities and challenges

Implementing a multilevel CEnR pedagogy is not without challenges. Foundational research skills remain essential; learners must master study design, data collection, and analysis. Institutional constraints, including accreditation requirements and curricular restrictions, also shape research curriculum and program design [16]. A progressive developmental approach, starting with methodological fundamentals and gradually integrating transformative community-engaged practices, may be the most feasible solution. However, care must be taken to avoid “lite peda-gogy,” where engagement with CEnR principles is superficial, failing to disrupt entrenched hierar-chies or support true transformation. Indeed, teaching students that CEnR is simply a collection of items on a checklist, is not only a lost opportunity, but a way of co-opting research practices that are meant to be grounded in transformative justice. Deliberately designed and critically evaluated pedagogy that centers critical consciousness, reflexivity, relational accountability, and ethical engagement is essential to avoid such reductionism [11].

A structured, multilevel approach to CEnR pedagogy is critical for developing learners who embody core values, not just technical methods. By integrating foundational principles, design strategies, and teaching–learning practices, this pedagogy equips learners to engage ethically, equitably, and effectively with communities.

This paper serves as a conceptual and methodo-logical foundation. Future work needs to focus on piloting the framework, empirically evaluating learning outcomes, and refining implementation across disciplines, institutions, and cultural contexts. Documenting these applications will contribute to evidence-based refinement of the framework and enhance its adaptability.

Institutions and educators have a responsibility to design, implement, and iteratively refine pedagogical models that balance technical competencies with transformative, community-engaged learning. Such models improve research outcomes and support broader social justice by preparing learners to navigate complex social, cultural, and structural dynamics.

As CEnR continues to evolve, ongoing reflection and adaptation of pedagogy is vital to ensure research remains equitable, impactful, and responsive to diverse community needs. By embracing a structured, multilevel pedagogy, educators and learners together can strengthen both the integrity and societal rele-vance of CEnR.