Our Journeys: A Narrative Inquiry into the Experiences of Students from Working Class Backgrounds as They Pursue Higher Education

Simple item page
dc.contributor.advisorSelden, Stevenen_US
dc.contributor.authorKlose, E. Kathrynen_US
dc.contributor.departmentEducation Policy, and Leadershipen_US
dc.contributor.publisherDigital Repository at the University of Marylanden_US
dc.contributor.publisherUniversity of Maryland (College Park, Md.)en_US
dc.date.accessioned2012-02-17T06:50:17Z
dc.date.available2012-02-17T06:50:17Z
dc.date.issued2011en_US
dc.description.abstract<bold>Abstract<bold> Students from working class backgrounds are less likely to graduate from college than their middle class peers. This narrative inquiry explores the personal stories of four graduate students from working class backgrounds who recently earned masters' degrees at a large public online university in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. By considering themes in the participants' narratives in juxtaposition to those found in the grand narrative of working class students found in the literature, the author reveals elements in the participants' experiences that conform to, challenge, and stand outside of the grand narrative the informs current understanding of the inhibiting and facilitating factors that influence the success of working class students in higher education. Themes related to economic disadvantage, poor academic preparation, lack of moral support and financial stressors illustrate concepts of the grand narrative. Themes related to family structure, self-regulation, and deference to authority challenge the dominant discourse of the grand narrative. Emergent themes of individualism, individualization, self-determination and perseverance stand outside the grand narrative, countering its story of deficit, and illustrating the power of narratives in providing insights into the multiple realities of working class students.en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/12282
dc.subject.pqcontrolledEducationen_US
dc.subject.pqcontrolledHigher educationen_US
dc.subject.pqcontrolledSociology of educationen_US
dc.subject.pquncontrolledclass in higher educationen_US
dc.subject.pquncontrolledsocial classen_US
dc.subject.pquncontrolledworking classen_US
dc.subject.pquncontrolledworking class studentsen_US
dc.titleOur Journeys: A Narrative Inquiry into the Experiences of Students from Working Class Backgrounds as They Pursue Higher Educationen_US
dc.typeDissertationen_US

Files

Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Klose_umd_0117E_12726.pdf
Size:
1.31 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Download
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Figure_1.jpg
Size:
96.57 KB
Format:
Joint Photographic Experts Group/JPEG File Interchange Format (JFIF)
Download
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Figure_2.jpg
Size:
142.88 KB
Format:
Joint Photographic Experts Group/JPEG File Interchange Format (JFIF)
Download

Collections

UMD Theses and Dissertations
Teaching, Learning, Policy & Leadership Theses and Dissertations