The Effects of First-Generation Status on Student Engagement and Outcomes at Liberal Arts Colleges

Liberal education has always had its share of theorists, believers, and detractors, both inside and outside the academy. The best of these have been responsible for the development of the concept, and of its changing tradition. Drawn from a symposium jointly sponsored by the Educational Leadership program and the American Council of Learned Societies, this work looks at the requirements of liberal education for the next century and the strategies for getting there. With contributions from Leon Botstein, Ernest Boyer, Howard Gardner, Stanley Katz, Bruce Kimball, Peter Lyman, Susan Resneck Pierce, Adam Yarmolinsky and Frank Wong, Rethinking Liberal Education proposes better ways of connecting the curriculum and organization of liberal arts colleges with today's challenging economic and social realities. The authors push for greater flexibility in the organizational structure of academic departments, and argue that faculty should play a greater role in the hard discussions that shape their institutions. Through the implementation of interdisciplinary and collaborative approaches to learning, along with better integration of the curriculum with the professional and vocational aspects of the institution, this work proposes to restore vitality to the curriculum. The concept of rethinking liberal education does not mean the same thing to every educator. To one, it may mean a strategic shift in requirements, to another the reformulation of the underlying philosophy to meet changing times. Any significant reform in education needs careful thought and discussion. Rethinking Liberal Education makes a substantial contribution to such debates. It will be of interest to scholars and students, administrators, and anyone concerned with the issues of modern education.

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Resistance Capital: Cultural Activism as a Gateway to College Persistence for Minority and First-Generation Students

Journal of Adolescent Research ◽

10.1177/07435584211006920 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 074355842110069

Author(s):

Mariah Kornbluh ◽

Sherry Bell ◽

Kristin Vierra ◽

Zachary Herrnstadt

Keyword(s):

Student Engagement ◽

Identity Development ◽

School Engagement ◽

First Generation ◽

Development Theory ◽

Late Adolescent ◽

Black African ◽

Qualitative Focus Groups ◽

Multicultural Center ◽

Adolescent Identity Development

This study provides a novel contribution by connecting two sets of literature, school engagement and multicultural university centers, in relation to late adolescent development. The aims of this mixed-method study were to: (a) quantitatively explore the relationship between student perceived cultural leadership experience and support within a multicultural center in relation to school engagement and (b) qualitatively address additional facilitators and barriers. Participants consisted of 134 college students, predominantly identifying as Latino/Hispanic (35.1%), Black/African American (34.3%), or Asian-Pacific Islander (23.9%), and first-generation (60.4%). Qualitative focus groups and a photovoice project engaged a subset of participants ( n = 57, n = 7, respectively). Regression analysis indicated youth voice, supportive staff relationships, and peer support were significant positive predictors of students’ perceived engagement within the multicultural center, however, some but not all of these predictors transferred toward sentiments of school engagement. Qualitative sources elucidated additional factors bolstering student engagement. Social, cultural, and resistance capitals were identified as key protective factors in relation to student perseverance. Findings also indicated institutional barriers against student engagement including a lack of cultural and ethnic representation throughout multiple levels of the university. Implications for expanding conceptions of social capital within late adolescent identity development theory are discussed.

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On ‘being first’: the case for first-generation status in Australian higher education equity policy

The Australian Educational Researcher ◽

10.1007/s13384-020-00428-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sally Patfield ◽

Jennifer Gore ◽

Natasha Weaver

Keyword(s):

Higher Education ◽

Low Socioeconomic Status ◽

Higher Education Policy ◽

First Generation ◽

Policy Framework ◽

Indigenous Australians ◽

Government Schools ◽

Generation Status ◽

Educational Disadvantage ◽

Equity Policy

AbstractFor more than three decades, Australian higher education policy has been guided by a national equity framework focussed on six underrepresented target groups: Indigenous Australians, people from low socioeconomic status backgrounds, people from regional and remote areas, people with disabilities, people from non-English speaking backgrounds, and women in non-traditional areas of study. Despite bringing equitable access to the forefront of university agendas, this policy framework has fostered a somewhat narrow conceptualisation of how educational disadvantage should be addressed. Responding to calls for reform, this paper draws on survey data from 6492 students in NSW government schools to examine the extent to which a new category warrants inclusion in the national framework: first-generation status. We illustrate how being the first in a family to attend university brings distinct equity status and argue for a revision of the national equity framework to recognise and support students who are ‘first’.

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