Turning Collective Digital Stories of the First-year Transition to College into a Web of Belonging<br /> <br /> &nbsp;

Abstract

In this article, we present lessons learned from "Our Stories," a digital writing project designed to assist students in the transition from high school to college. From the collective digital narratives of first-year and first-generation students at an urban public college, who are primarily Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), low-income, and immigrant, and who participated in a First-year Learning Communities course, we examine the challenges of becoming a college student at a public college. Further, we explore how digital writing supports community-building and influences students' transition experience, in particular, making sense of shared challenges. For these BIPOC students, the act of reflecting and writing about their college transition fostered individual and collective awareness and a sense of belonging as they began to negotiate college life. Their narratives also highlight the need for social justice pedagogies that are responsive to student experiences, use asset-based approaches, build community, and promote the active role of students in shaping their educational experiences.

Best Practices to Address Inequities in Academic Support in the University Access Program

“…Therefore, the kind of support students are awarded plays significant role in completing a HE qualification. This confirms that institutions need to be aware of and understand the challenges students are facing, for instance, in this case the nature of the academic support available, if any (Diaz et. al., 2021).…”

“We Support You … to an Extent”: Identities, Intersections, and Family Support Among First-Generation Students in a School of Social Work

“…Instead, presenting social mobility as a form of aspirational or familial capital (Yosso, 2005) recognizes students' perseverance while honoring family contributions. Educators and administrators can replace deficit models of students and family by seeking student voices and focusing on assets and strengths (Diaz et al, 2021). The First in Our Families digital storytelling project offers an example of counternarratives which center FGS voices (Van Galen, 2021).…”

Insights on Narrative Analysis from a Study of Racial Microaggressions and Microaffirmations

“…By centering participant knowledge and agency, narrative analysis also challenges the dominant narrative in academia about who has the authority to create knowledge (i.e., higher education faculty) and who does not (i.e., research participants or community members) (Beals et al, 2020;Delgado Bernal, 2002;Huber et al, 2013;Lessard et al, 2018;Mueller, 2019;Pazey, 2020;Solórzano & Yosso, 2002;Wagaman et al, 2018). This is largely why many studies with critical frameworks, including our example study, employ this type of analysis (see, Diaz et al, 2021;Langa et al, 2021;Pazey, 2020;Rodriguez, 2011;Wagaman et al, 2018). Narrative analysis inherently emphasizes and values participant knowledge because participants are often more familiar with the topic of inquiry than researchers (Wilinsky & McCabe, 2021).…”

“…Coulter and Smith (2009), for example, argue that the power dynamics underlying the researcherparticipant relationship influence how the participant tells their narrative. Narratives do not exist in a vacuum, but rather, in relation to the teller and the listener, as well as in wider social, cultural, and historical contexts (Diaz et al, 2021;James, 2018;Lessard et al, 2018;Mello, 2002). Therefore, researchers must constantly negotiate their own position relative to that of their participants.…”