A Phenomenological Investigation into Cultural Factors Which May or May Not Contribute to Degree Completion Among American Indian Students in One Community College

Authors

  • Michael Wright Tarleton State University Stephenville, Texas
  • Twyla Miranda Texas Wesleyan University
  • Celia Wilson Texas Wesleyan University
  • Lisa Dryden Texas Wesleyan University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14297/jpaap.v4i1.142

Keywords:

American Indian, community college, culture

Abstract

This study investigated cultural factors’ contribution to degree completion among American Indian college students. Surveys were sent to 238 currently enrolled and 87 formerly enrolled American Indian students during March 2013. From the survey respondents, a group of ten, all currently enrolled American Indian students, agreed to one-on-one interview sessions with the researcher. Dialoguing sessions were recorded and transcribed; answers were analysed and subjected to close examination through metasynthesis leading to the discovery of themes. Verification of dialogue and transcriptions through triangulation was obtained.

The results indicated there were no reported cultural factors that contributed to the retention or attrition of the American Indian college student. For administrators, faculty and staff, the findings affirm practices used to welcome students of various cultures may be effective in preventing attrition of the American Indian student and that cultural factors may not play a role in retention or attrition.

Author Biographies

  • Michael Wright, Tarleton State University Stephenville, Texas

    Dr. Michael Wright is the Director of Field Experiences at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. His research interests include American Indian cultural phenomena, teacher effectiveness in multicultural settings, fair assessment practices and critical thinking. Dr. Wright has presented his work locally and nationally.

    You may reach Dr. Wright at mjwright@tarleton.edu

     

  • Twyla Miranda, Texas Wesleyan University

    Dr. Twyla Miranda is Director of the Ed.D. program at Texas Wesleyan University. Her research interests include teacher formation, literacy development and cultural understandings.

    You may reach Dr. Miranda at tmiranda@txwes.edu or visit her website: www.twylatmiranda.com

  • Celia Wilson, Texas Wesleyan University

    Dr. Celia Wilson is Associate Professor of Education at Texas Wesleyan University. Her research interests include issues of measurement in education, as well as best practices in educational research instruction. Recent publications include investigations of construct validity in reading assessments and best practices in publications utilising exploratory factor analysis.

    You may reach Dr. Wilson at cewilson@txwes.edu

  • Lisa Dryden, Texas Wesleyan University

    Dr. Lisa Dryden is the Director of the Master’s of Education Program at Texas Wesleyan University. Her research interests include teacher efficacy, writing instruction, literature use in curriculums and literacy development of young children. Dr. Dryden has presented her work locally, nationally and internationally. You may reach Dr. Dryden at ldryden@txwes.edu

References

American Association of Community Colleges (2012). Retrieved February 2014 from http://www.aacc.nche.edu/AboutCC/Pages/fastfactsfactsheet.aspx

Aragon, S. R. (2004). Learning and study practices of postsecondary American Indian/Alaska Native students. Journal of American Indian Education, 43(2), 1-18.

Banks, J. A., Cookson, P., Gay, G., Hawley, W. D., Irvine, J. J., Nieto, S., Schofield, J. W., & Stephan, W. G. (2001). Diversity within unity: Essential principles for teaching and learning in a multicultural society. Phi Delta Kappan, 83(3), 196-203.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/003172170108300309

Baxter, P. J. (2009). Identifying strategies for Native American student success in community colleges: A qualitative study (Doctoral Dissertation). Retrieved from ProQuest (3383039).

Brady, P. (1996). Native dropouts and non-Native dropouts in Canada: Two solitudes or a solitude shared? Journal of American Indian Studies, 35(2), 10-20.

Brayboy, B. M. J. (2005). Toward a tribal critical race theory in education. The Urban Review, 37(5), 425-446.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11256-005-0018-y

Burk, N. M. (2007). Conceptualizing American Indian/Alaska Native college students’ classroom experiences: Negotiating cultural identity between faculty and students. Journal of American Indian Education, 46(2), 1-18.

Cajete, G. A. (2005). American Indian epistemologies. New Directions for Student Services, 109, 69-78.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ss.155

Cholewa, B., & West-Olatunji, C. (2008). Exploring the relationship among cultural discontinuity, psychological distress, and academic outcomes with low-income, culturally diverse students. Professional School Counseling, 12(1), 54-61.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.5330/PSC.n.2010-12.54

Cole, J. S., & Denzine, G. M. (2002). Comparing the academic engagement of American Indian and White college students. Journal of American Indian Education, 41(1), 19-34.

Corbin, J., & Strauss, A. (2008). Basics of qualitative research (3rd ed.). Los Angeles, California: Sage Publishing.

DuBray, W. H. (1985). American Indian values: Critical factor in case work. Social Casework, 66, 30-37.

Executive Order 13592. (2011). Federal Register, 76(236).

Garrett, M. (1995). Between two worlds: Cultural discontinuity in the dropout of Native American youth. School Counselor, 42(3), 186-195.

Glesne, C. (2006). Becoming qualitative researchers: An introduction (3rd ed.). New York, New York: Pearson.

Guillory, R. M. (2009). American Indian/Alaska Native college student retention strategies. Journal of Developmental Education, 33(2), 12-38.

Guillory, R. M., & Wolverton, M. (2008). It’s about family: Native American student persistence in higher education. The Journal of Higher Education, 79(1), 58-87.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1353/jhe.2008.0001

Halldόrsdόttir, S. (2000). The Vancouver school of doing phenomenology. In B. Fridlund & C. Haldingh (Eds), Qualitative research methods in the service of health, 46-81. Lund: Student Literature.

Horse, P. G. (2005). Native American identity. New Directions for Student Services, 109, 61-68.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ss.154

Huffman, T. (2003). A comparison of personal assessments of the college experience among reservation and nonreservation American Indian students. Journal of American Indian Education, 42(2), 1-16.

Huffman, T., & Ferguson, R. (2007). Evaluation of the college experience among American Indian upperclassmen. Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences. 17, 61-71.

Ingalls, L., Hammond, H., Dupoux, E., & Baeza, R. (2006). Teachers’ cultural knowledge and understanding of American Indian students and their families: Impact of culture on a child’s learning. Rural Special Education Quarterly, 25(1), 16-24.

Jones, W. A. (2013). The relationship between student body racial composition and the normative environment toward diversity at community colleges. Community College Review, 41(3), 249-265.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0091552113497090

Juneau, S. (2001). A history and foundation of American Indian education policy. Retrieved from http://www.opi.mt.gov

Kinney, A. F. (2007). The tribe, the empire, and the Nation: Enforceability of pre-revolutionary treaties with Native American tribes. Western Reserve Journal of International Law, 39.

LaFromboise, T.D., Hoyt, D.R., OIiver, L., & Whitbeck, L.B. (2006). Family, community, and school influences on resilience among American Indian adolescents in the upper Midwest. Journal of Community Psychology, 34(2), 193-209.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jcop.20090

Lee, T. S., & Cerecer, P. D. Q. (2010). (Re) Claiming Native youth knowledge: Engage in socio-culturally responsive teaching and relationships. Multicultural Perspectives, 12(4), 199-205.

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15210960.2010.527586

Powers, K., Potthoff, S. J., Bearinger, L. H., & Resnick, M. D. (2003). Does cultural programming improve educational outcomes for American Indian youth? Journal of American Indian Education, 42(2), 17-49.

Reyhner, J. (2006). American Indian/Alaska Native Education: an overview [Fastback, American Indian/Alaska Native Education]. Phi Delta Kappa.

Spirling, A. (2011). US Treaty-making with American Indians: Institutional change and relative power, 1784-1911. American Journal of Political Science, 56(1), 84-97. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-5907.2011.00558x.

Thornton, B., & Sanchez, J. E. (2010). Promoting resiliency among Native American students to prevent dropouts. Education, 131(2), 455-464.

Tierney, W.G., Sallee, M. W., & Venegas, K. M. (2007). Access and financial aid: How American-Indian students pay for college. Journal of College Admission, 197, 15-23.

United States Department of Education, (1991). Final report of the Indian nations at risk task force.

United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (2011). NCES common core of data state dropout and completion data file: School year 2008-09. NCES 2011-313.

United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (2012). National Indian Education Study 2011. The educational experiences of American Indian and Alaska Native students at grades 4 and 8. NCES 2012-466.

Downloads

Published

2015-06-15

Issue

Vol. 4 No. 1 (2016)

Section

Case Studies

License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).

Journal of Perspectives in Applied Academic Practice has made best effort to ensure accuracy of the contents of this journal, however makes no claims to the authenticity and completeness of the articles published. Authors are responsible for ensuring copyright clearance for any images, tables etc which are supplied from an outside source.

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.