Abstracts
Abstract
This article examines the role of schools in preventing youth homelessness through a qualitative autoethnographic study conducted in Quebec from 2022 to 2025. Drawing on over 150 pages of field notes and constructed vignettes, the research integrates the author’s lived experience of homelessness with professional practice as an educator in underfunded, multilingual school settings in Kanien’kehá:ka /Montreal. Using thematic analysis, the study reveals how systemic exclusion, invisibility, and trauma shape the educational experiences of precariously housed youth. Schools are shown to be both sites of harm and potential, where individual care often collides with institutional constraint. By mobilizing cultural and critical pedagogies, the study argues that schools, if properly equipped, can act as upstream prevention spaces. Methodologically, the article demonstrates the value of autoethnography for uncovering insights into youth homelessness often missed by detached, statistical research. This work offers actionable recommendations for teacher training, education policy, and community-engaged research, advancing a relational, justice-centered approach to homelessness prevention in Quebec and beyond.
Keywords:
- Youth homelessness prevention,
- autoethnography,
- trauma-informed education,
- cultural and critical pedagogy,
- lived experience,
- Upstream prevention and intervention,
- Quebec schools
Appendices
Bibliography
- Achilleos, J., Douglas, H., & Washbrook, Y. (2021). Educating informal educators on issues of race and inequality: Raising critical consciousness, identifying challenges, and implementing change in a youth and community work programme. Education Sciences, 11(8), 410. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11080410
- A new direction for Success: A School for the Future: Policy Statement on Educational Integration and Intercultural Education. (1998). The Ministère. https://www.education.gouv.qc.ca/fileadmin/site_web/documents/dpse/adaptation_serv_compl/PolitiqueMatiereIntegrationScolEducInterculturelle_UneEcoleAvenir_a.pdf
- Battista, A. (2025). A Freirean Teachers Transformative Youth Homelessness Prevention Toolkit. Kindle Direct Publishing.
- Battiste, M. (2013). Decolonizing education: Nourishing the learning spirit. Purich Publishing.
- Brzeska, M. (2025). Insider perspectives and ethical dilemmas: An ethnographic study of Polish homelessness in the East Midlands. Qualitative Research Journal, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1108/qrj-02-2025-0070
- Buchnea, A., Gaetz, S., & McCagherty, T. (2025, October 20). Preventing youth homelessness before it starts: Introducing the Reconnect program model guide and operations manual. Homeless Hub. https://homelesshub.ca/blog/2025/introducing-reconnect/
- Cahnmann-Taylor, M. (2008). Arts-based research: Histories and new directions. Handbook of the arts in qualitative research, 3-18.
- Cooper, R., & Lilyea, B. V. (2022). I’m interested in autoethnography, but how do I do it? The Qualitative Report, 27(2), 445-459. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2022.5084
- Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2017). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
- Dej E, Gaetz S, Schwan K. (2022) Turning Off the Tap: A Typology for Homelessness Prevention. Journal of Primary Prevention, 41(5), 397-412. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10935-020-00607-y
- Eisner, E. W. (2008). Persistent tensions in arts-based research. In M. Cahnmann-Taylor & R. Siegesmund (Eds.), Handbook of the arts in qualitative research: Perspectives, methodologies, examples, and issues (pp. 3–10). SAGE Publications.
- Ellis, C. (2009). Fighting back or moving on: An autoethnographic response to critics. Qualitative Inquiry, 15(3), 371-378. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077800408325486
- Emerson, R. M., Fretz, R. I., & Shaw, L. L. (2011). Writing ethnographic field notes (2nd ed.). University of Chicago Press.
- Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. Seabury Press.
- Fitzpatrick, S., Mackie, P., & Wood, J. (2021). Advancing a five-level typology of homelessness prevention. International Journal on Homelessness, 1(1), 79-97. https://doi.org/10.5206/ijoh.2021.1.13341
- Fowler, P. J., Toro, P. A., & Miles, B. W. (2009). Pathways to and from homelessness and associated psychosocial outcomes among adolescents leaving the foster care system. American Journal of Public Health, 99(8), 1453-1458. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2008.142547
- Gaetz, S. (2014). Coming of age: Reimagining the response to youth homelessness in Canada. Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press.
- Gaetz, S., Dej, E., Richter, T., & Redman, M. (2024). Towards the prevention of youth homelessness: A structural approach. International Journal on Homelessness, 4(4), Article 108. https://doi.org/10.3390/2673-995X4040108
- Gaetz, S., Schwan, K., Redman, M., French, D., & Dej, E. (2018). Report 1: Structural Prevention of Youth Homelessness. A. Buchnea (Ed.). Toronto, ON: Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press. https://www.homelesshub.ca/sites/default/files/Structural_Prevention.pdf
- Gaetz, S., Morton, E., Borato, M., & Story, C. (2020). Youth Reconnect program guide: An early intervention approach to preventing youth homelessness. Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press and A Way Home Canada. https://www.homelesshub.ca/sites/default/files/attachments/YouthReconnectGuide_05252021.pdf
- Giroux, H. A. (2020). On critical pedagogy (2nd ed.). Bloomsbury Academic.
- Grattan, R. E., Tryon, V. L., Lara, N., Gabrielian, S. E., Melnikow, J., & Niendam, T. A. (2022). Risk and Resilience Factors for Youth Homelessness in Western Countries: A Systematic Review. Psychiatric Services (Washington, D.C.), 73(4), 425-438. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.202000133
- Hallett, R. E., & Skrla, L. (2017). Supporting students who are homelessness: A resource guide for schools, districts, and educational leaders. Teachers College Press. https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=yOGqDQAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=Hallett,+R.+E.,+%26+Skrla,+L.+(2017).+Supporting+students+experiencing+homelessness:+A+resource+guide+for+schools,+districts,+and+educational+leaders.+Teachers+College+Press.&ots=cRShyeXxkp&sig=LK2ntw2tzQGdlJSjQH9DnkIdOaA#v=onepage&q=Hallett%2C%20R.%20E.%2C%20%26%20Skrla%2C%20L.%20(2017).%20Supporting%20students%20experiencing%20homelessness%3A%20A%20resource%20guide%20for%20schools%2C%20districts%2C%20and%20educational%20leaders.%20Teachers%20College%20Press.&f=false
- Hankivsky, O., Grace, D., Hunting, G., et al. (2014). An intersectionality-based policy analysis framework: Critical reflections on a methodology for advancing equity. International Journal for Equity in Health, 13, Article 119. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-014-0119-x
- Heerde, J. A., Bailey, J. A., Merrin, G. J., Raniti, M., Patton, G. C., Toumbourou, J. W., & Sawyer, S. M. (2025). School suspension as a predictor of young adult homelessness: The international youth development study. Journal of Prevention (2022), 46(4), 467-485. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10935-025-00829-y
- Jasinski, W. M., Prins, F., Meijer, P. C., Mainhard, T., & Wubbels, T. (2021). Reflecting on the value of vignettes in higher education research. European Journal of Higher Education, 11(sup1), 522-536. https://doi.org/10.1080/21568235.2021.1999841
- Kidd, S. A., Gaetz, S., & O'Grady, B. (2017). The 2015 National Canadian homeless youth survey: Mental health and addiction findings. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 62(7), 493-500. https://doi.org/10.1177/0706743717702076
- Kidd, S. A., Gaetz, S., O'Grady, B., Schwan, K., Zhao, H., Lopes, K., & Wang, W. (2021). The second National Canadian homeless youth survey: Mental health and addiction findings: Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 66(10), 897-905. https://doi.org/10.1177/0706743721990310
- Kopec, A., & Smith, A. (2024). Lived expertise in homelessness policy and governance. Social Sciences, 13(5), 271. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13050271.
- Kull, M. A., Frankel, S., & Gills, S. (2024). Characteristics of youth and young adults at risk of homelessness in the U.S. Youth, 4(3), 1134-1151. https://doi.org/10.3390/youth4030070
- MacKenzie, D., Hand, T., & Gill, P. (2024). The ‘Community of Schools and Services’(COSS) Model of Early Intervention: A System-Changing Innovation for the Prevention of Youth Homelessness. Youth, 4(3), 1305-1321. https://doi.org/10.3390/youth4030082
- Mackenzie, D., & Thielking, M. (2014). The Geelong Project: A community of schools and youth services model for early intervention. Swinburne University of Technology.
- Mackie, P., Fitzpatrick, S., & Morris, N. (2024). Prevention into action: Gaps and opportunities for locally-led homelessness prevention in England. Homeless Link. https://homelesslink-1b54.kxcdn.com/media/documents/Prevention_Into_Action_research_report.pdf
- Malenfant, J., Annan, J., Pin, L., Levac, L., & Buchnea, A. (2024). Toward the right to housing in Canada: Lived experience, research and promising practices for deep engagement. Engaged Scholar Journal, 10(2), 215–239. https://doi.org/10.15402/esj.v10i2.70850
- Malenfant, J., Nichols, N., & Schwan, K. (2019). Chasing funding to our own: The invisible emotional work of making social change. Canadian Journal of Nonprofit and Social Economy Research, 10(2), 40-54. https://doi.org/10.29173/anserj.2019v10n2a307
- Malenfant, J., Nichols, N. (2025). Schools as sites of homelessness prevention: Points of possibilities and learning from youth experiences in a Canadian context. (2025). Engaged Scholar Journal: Community-Engaged Research, Teaching, and Learning, 11(1), 36-52. https://doi.org/10.15402/esj.v11i1.70872
- Malenfant, J., Watchorn, M., & Nichols, N. (2024). Homeless youth-led activism and direct action: Lessons from a participatory research project in Tio’tiá:ke/Montréal. Children and Society, 38(3), 759-773. https://doi.org/10.1111/chso.12734.
- Mirza, S. (2023). Mental health educational attainment: Learning from the insights of unhoused Indigenous youth. International Indigenous Policy Journal, 18(3), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.18584/iipj.2023.14.3.2
- Morton, M. H., Kugley, S., Epstein, R., & Farrell, A. (2020). Interventions for youth homelessness: A systematic review of Effectiveness Studies. Children and Youth Services Review, 116, 105096. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105096
- Murphy, J., Hughes, J., Read, S., & Ashby, S. (2021). Evidence and practice: A review of vignettes in qualitative research. Nurse Researcher, 28(3), 8-14. https://doi.org/10.7748/nr.2021.e1787
- Nelson, A. (2020). Nothing about us without us: Centering lived experience and revolutionary care in efforts to end and prevent homelessness in Canada. Radical Housing Journal, 2(2), 83-100. https://radicalhousingjournal.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/RHJ_Issue-2.2_05_Long-Read_Nelson_83-100-1.pdf
- Nichols, N. (2016a). Preventing youth homelessness: The need for a coordinated cross-sectoral approach. In N. Nichols & C. Doberstein (Eds.), Exploring effective systems responses to homelessness. Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press.
- Nichols, N. (2016b). Development in context: Housing instability, homelessness, and youth work. In R. Mizzi et al. (Eds.), Disrupting adult and community education (pp. 35-50). SUNY Press.
- Nichols, N., Malenfant, J., & Youth Action Research Revolution. (2023). Youth as truth-tellers and rights-holders: Legal and institutional reforms to enable youth housing security. International Journal of Child, Youth and Family Studies, 14(1), 110-130. https://doi.org/10.18357/ijcyfs141202321288
- Pacheco-Vega, R. (2019). Writing field notes and using them to prompt scholarly writing. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 18. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406919840093
- Partridge, K., & Kennelly, J. (2024). Talking about homelessness and school: Recommendations from Canadian young people who have experienced homelessness. Youth, 4(2), 820-834. https://doi.org/10.3390/youth4020054
- Schwan, K., Gaetz, S., French, D., Redman, M., Thistle, J. A., & Dej, E. (2018). What would it take? Youth across Canada speak out on youth homelessness prevention. Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press. https://yorkspace.library.yorku.ca/server/api/core/bitstreams/6fc89808-cbf7-4ba6-96cc-24948e1de3ca/content
- Skilling, K., & Stylianides, G. J. (2020). Using vignettes in educational research. International Journal of Research and Method in Education, 43(5), 541-556. https://doi.org/10.1080/1743727X.2019.1704243
- Sohn, J., & Gaetz, S. (2020). The Upstream Project Canada. Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press. https://yorkspace.library.yorku.ca/items/b3300afd-991d-4b96-b710-6626401422b1
- Sohn, J., & McKitterick, M.-J. (2019). Working upstream: Preventing youth homelessness through school-based intervention. Parity, 32(8), 30-32. https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/informit.873612561791632
- Sparkes, A. C. (2000). Autoethnography and narratives of self: Reflections on Criteria in Action. Sociology of Sport Journal, 17(1), 21-43. https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.17.1.21
- Tilley-Lubbs, G. (2020). An introduction to critical autoethnography and education: The vulnerable researcher. Myers Education Press.
- Toombs, E., Mushquash, C. J., Lund, J. I., et al. (2021). Preventing Indigenous youth homelessness in Canada. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 91(1), 96-108. https://doi.org/10.1037/ort0000527
- Vasconcelos, E. F. de S. (2011). “I can see you”: An autoethnography of my teacher-student self [Unpublished manuscript]. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/289221337
- Villegas, A. M., & Lucas, T. (2002). Preparing culturally responsive teachers. Journal of Teacher Education, 53(1), 20-32. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487102053001003
- Wilkins, N. J., Krause, K. H., Verlenden, J., & Ethier, K. A. (2023). Racism, school connectedness, and psychosocial stressors among adolescents: Evidence from the 2018 British Columbia Adolescent Health Survey. Youth and Society, 55(6), 2036-2055. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X221140541
- Williams, M. (2019). The art of coding and thematic exploration in qualitative research. IMR Journal, 15(1). http://www.imrjournal.org/uploads/1/4/2/8/14286482/imr-v15n1art4.pdf
- Woodhall-Melnik, J., Monette, C., Reiser, C., & LeBlanc Haley, T. (2025). Housing First for Youth Who Experience Homelessness: A Systematic Review. Urban affairs review (Thousand Oaks, Calif.), 61(5), 1381-1415. https://doi.org/10.1177/10780874251314838