Building belonging at university: cultural background,social interaction,science identity and linguistic support / Creando pertenencia en la universidad: acervo cultural,interacción social y apoyo lingüístico

Abstract

Colonization caused historic imbalance where societies were strategized to be, and remain, marginalized: education was used as a primary vehicle to establish domination. This case study illustrates that when the social and cultural environment and language use at university support a sense of belonging and the development of identity within science, students from less resourced environments gain a deeper understanding of the nuances for undergraduate academic success. In-depth interviews were conducted to follow the mechanisms that enabled a poorly performing first year from a rural setting to succeed during the undergraduate years. Evidence is provided from the student’s perspective of the need for collaborative peer-mentoring relationships where language plays a key role during undergraduate studies to facilitate a sense of belonging and ensure academic success when peers of similar cultural backgrounds study together.