Factors affecting the success of first generation university students at a South African University

Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Date
2018-02-22
Authors
Kelly-Laubscher, Roisin
Paxton, Moragh
Majombozi, Ziyanda
Mashele, Samukele Sally
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Bloomsbury Academic
Published Version
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Abstract
In South Africa, despite increased entry into tertiary education for students from poorer townships and rural areas, failure and drop out rates are still high which means that many are gaining admission without gaining real access to higher education. Although much research has already focused on the broader population of students disadvantaged by the legacy of apartheid, very little has focused on factors affecting the success of students who are the first generation to go to university. We used a Participatory Learning and Action approach to ask students to draw their experiences of the journey to, into and through the university. Using these drawings, students explained their journeys to the researchers and these were video recorded. In this chapter, we will present the journeys of two first generation students at a previously White institution in South Africa.
Description
Keywords
First generation , South Africa , Participatory Learning and Action , Transformative research methodologies , Identity
Citation
Kelly-Laubscher, R., Paxton, M., Majombozi, Z. and Mashele, S. S. (2018) 'Factors affecting the success of first generation university students at a South African University', in Bell, A. and Santamaría, L. J. (eds.) Understanding Experiences of First-Generation University Students: Culturally Responsive and Sustaining Methodologies. London: Bloomsbury Academic, pp. 97-120.
Copyright
© 2018, the Authors. Reproduced by permission of the publisher. All rights reserved.