Navigating Transitions

Candace P. Lewko

LESLLA 2011

Project Funding

an applied research project internally funded

by Applied Research and Innovation

Navigating Landscapes: A Labyrinth

Migrating Voices: Intricate Passages

• “Language equals access to work.”

• “Everything is time-consuming.”

• “I’m not lazy. I’m diligent. I don’t want to

show that I have difficulties.”

• “I lost confidence in myself.”

Migrating Voices: Intricate Passages

• “I needed to be cared for.”

• “You have to learn on your own.”

• “[They] don’t understand my thinking.”

• “There is pressure to go into school right

away.”

• “We need to speak a common language.”

Honouring the Stories

• by acknowledging the personal

experiences of each student.

• by understanding the uniqueness of each

student’s needs.

• by comprehending the desire to pursue an

education.

Navigating Landscapes: Movement

Project Impetus

• Internationalizing Campus (expand and maintain access)

• Increased enrollment of students of different cultural and educational backgrounds

– Barriers along educational journeys

– Barriers are compounded by others which cannot be easily seen or remedied:

• Adapting to a new host culture and learning environment

• Meeting academic requirements and expectations that grant them the Canadian education they are pursuing

The Project Goals

Primary Goal:

This present study seeks to investigate levels

of support for LESLLA transitioning into

post-secondary studies

Tertiary aims are twofold:

– Identify gaps, barriers or struggles students face

in transition

– Explore strategies to enable a better transition

experience and promote success during transition

Primary Research Question

• What factors or barriers influence the

adjustment of adult learners’ transitions

into post-secondary studies?

– implications for understanding these

barriers

Navigating Landscapes: Definition

The Distinctness of the Project

• This study focuses on one learner demographic

(LESLLA) a significant portion of the student

population

– involved in complex processes of navigating

around and adjusting to a new learning

culture

– in constant states of negotiating between the

complexities of a new culture and education

system, and adjusting to a new life

The Details

• stages of acculturation which can

compound the educational experience

• Face barriers that limit them from

succeeding with their educational agendas

(institutional policies may marginalize,

underrepresent, or generalize)

The Literature

• much value in the research that looks at

how socioeconomic and literacy

barriers impact the attainment of a

post-secondary education

– adjustment challenges host learners face

such as learning a new language, integrating

into a new campus culture, and making new

friends (Constatine, Anderson, Berkel &

Utsey, 2005; Surdam & Collins, 1984).

The Literature

• Current research on academic success and

language and literacy development

specifically English Language Learners

(Vinogradov and Liden 2009; Schönwetter,

Clifton, & Perry, 2002; Harklau, 1999) has

identified barriers that impact the academic

success of English Language Learners

transitioning into college.

The Literature

• additional language acquisition and

acculturation processes (Brilliant,

Lvovich, and Markson, 1995)

• language and learning barriers students

face while in college level courses

(Cazden, 1988; Chaudron, 1988; Ellis,

1990; Zamel & Spack, 2004)

Navigating Landscapes: Roots/Routes

The Project

• Qualitative study that targeted adult learners enrolled in college programs

• Eight face-to-face interviews

– participants ranged from ESL to (former) LESLLA

– More are coming forward!

• The conversation: transition experience; academic and social life; family and community life

Following One Path

• Approaching transitions

– “I used to do this and it worked. So I tried it here.”

• Learner enters with some prior experience; inlays one experience onto another; processes do not translate

– each transition brings on a new way of navigating

– difficulty navigating the differences

Following One Path

• diverse educational landscapes –negotiating processes that form pathways

– had few educational opportunities in home country

– attended high school in Canada (graduated)

– attended an ESL Literacy program

– went from a part-time to a full-time Business Admin student in college

Following One Path

• Translating processes (more complex educational system)

– Come with educational goals (how to translate those goals)

• time (reality and expectations=misconceptions)

• social success: developing peer relations

• initiative to seek out help

• accommodating learners to expand educational opportunities

Navigating Transitions

• The project provided insights into understanding the multiple transitions traveled between of home, school, and community.

– How are students navigating new educational environments?

• transitions laden with prerequisites, grades, course expectations, policies or general program expectations

– Look at the intricate nature of student’s actions, decision-making processes

Navigating Landscapes: Peaks

Helping Students to Reach the Highest Points

• Entrance into-newness of the environment; socializing; connecting; seeking help

• Within transition-prioritizing; becoming; adapting; adjusting to the academic rigor; production-orientated; execution of skills; clarifying, relearning; self-styled strategies become more intentional; assessing what exists

• Departure-transitioning into yet new (work) communities

Preliminary Summary

• Capture the experience inlayed in the social and personal

• Desires “a common language” to be used

• insight into the tension between the personal and the social and the experiences that surround their transitions – College success

– Educational attainment

• Negotiating these complex tensions: never out of the process

Preliminary Summary

• Student reflections on their transitions and

adjustments to college life revealed

varying levels of satisfaction and

dissatisfaction while in transitions.

– Self-perceived barriers to the point of drop out

Preliminary Summary

• Constraints (financial) forces student to

enter into self-sustaining and coping (crisis)

processes rather than ones which are

logistically created to sustain all levels of

support throughout the students’ education

• Entering into the system with a level of

preparedness only to be confronted with

new challenges that cannot be anticipated

Preliminary Summary

• valuable commentary emerging from the data suggesting that ESL Literacy learners enrolled in college are facing more significant challenges such as learning in an academic way

– ineffective strategies used to negotiate processes

– frustration with being unable to navigate effectively and successfully in order to access college programs

Preliminary Summary

• What shapes successful academic journeys?

– Capacity to support linguistic and academic

transitions

– Social networks are critical to success in school

– improve access and ease to undergraduate

studies by bridging those gaps students are

unable to navigate independently.

– Perceptions that some systems are less

advantageous

Preliminary Summary

Working with adult learners

– needed to regain what was lost

– adopt strategies (innovations) to

maintain first careers from home

countries

– enhance the skills they already have

Preliminary Summary

• the importance of collaboration amongst

college program developers and post-

secondary sectors that would motivate

students to go to college.

– What motivates students to go to

college?

• Bridging a gap: continuing an

education left behind in home country

Navigating Landscapes: Emerging

Terrains

Bringing the Stories to Light: The

Implications

• Prioritizing the students’ adjustment experiences minimizes the chances of barriers emerging while in transition

• Social support provisions encourages successful integration into new academic communities

• different forms of transitions and adaptations to them influenced the larger transition into college

• Rangel (2001) “academic invulnerability”

Connecting Closely: Better Navigating the

Future

• Even though this project did not focus on

program and policy development, the data from

it may impact future institutional vision

statements surrounding the education of

adult learners from all cultural and educational

backgrounds.

• May call for revision of institutional

responsibilities surrounding the delivery of a

post-secondary education to LESLLA learners.

A Sense of Agency: Defamiliarizing the

Familiar

• “You gotta believe that you are worth it.”