Hurtado and Carter find that despite Tinto's revisions in 1993, mostly done to add updated information to his early conclusion, his failure to provide descriptions of the distinction between systems (academic and social) and institutional integration. Hypothesizing that "Latino students' perceptions of a hostile climate directly influence students' sense of belonging in their high schools," Hurtado and Carter constructed a model that took into account student self-concept, institutional selectivity, and student perceptions of racial climate. of the institution they attended. Hurtado and Carter found how students' perceptions of the campus climate affected their sense of belonging, but Hurtado and Carter also noted that there were still gaps in Tinto's theory that their research did not reach, and said: “…the outcomes of a subjective sense of integration or the student's sense of belonging have not been the focus of systematic investigation” (341).
Bean and Eaton's model closed some of the gaps that Hurtado and Carter had addressed by offering a “more psychological approach to understanding retention” (173). Rodgers and Summers build on the foundation of Bean and Eaton's concept by “emphasizing aspects of the authorial model in relation to African-. The similarities between Rodgers and Summers and Hurtado and Carter's models are striking as both examine the elements of a student's racial background and explore its inevitable effects on a student's psychological perception of the institution.
The hypothesized effect of the intervention on sense of belonging was only observed among white students. Such studies should specifically address; (1) students' motivations for attending college in general and their current university in particular; (2) students' perception of.
Purpose of the Study
While the aforementioned theories illuminate the relationship between students of color and the institutions they attend, several elements are currently missing. Both Rodgers and Summers (2008) and Hausmann, Ye, Schofield, and Woods (2008) discuss the need for further research to explore areas that their work did not address. Additional qualitative research should also focus on the experiences of African American students at predominantly white institutions.
In the next section, I will explain how I address some of the concerns raised by Rodgers and Summers and add depth to the work of Hurtado, Tinto, and Hausmann. Despite the high achievements of black women, particularly black women, research has yet to explore many of their experiences. Third, following Rodgers' suggestions, I provide visual evidence of African American women's experiences at southern PWIs using the documentary mode.
Christian Heath, author of Video in Qualitative Research notes that using film to capture sociological data has advantages that do not exist in other forms of qualitative data collection. These records can be analyzed repeatedly and this allows access to the fine details of behavior and interaction that are not available to more traditional social science methods” (2). Nevertheless, there is a distinction between the type of work Heath discusses in the previous quote and what I have done.
I conducted videotaped interviews and did not observe subjects in their natural environment per se. Still, opportunities in video-captured qualitative data that Heath discusses are applicable to my project, especially the ability to observe and decode body behaviors and messages during a videotaped interview.3.
Explanation of Research Environment
Assumptions
For the 2013-2014 school year, there are currently 14,615 full-time students enrolled in undergraduate studies at the University of Mississippi's main campus. Interviews had to take place between 8am and 6pm and they had to take place at a location on campus. These parameters were introduced to create a sense of consistency in which the interviews could exist and to limit extraneous variables from interfering with the interview process.
I contacted each participant via email, text or Facebook with my schedule and we worked out what times would work best. In the first interview, I set aside 15 minutes to explain the project and provide the participant with the relevant consent forms as required by the University of Mississippi Institutional Research Board. During subsequent in-depth interviews, each respondent provided her perspective on their time at the University of Mississippi and her unique experiences.
Interviews were recorded using a Rebel T-3I camera on loan from the University of Mississippi Theater Department, as well as a Media and. In the lines, I wrote a summary of the participants' answers to the questions that corresponded to the defined topics. My questions6 were formulated in an effort to address some of the aforementioned themes suggested by Rodgers and Summers (2008).7.
Results
All of the women had interacted with the University of Mississippi institution in some way prior to attending, either through visits to campus, a UM recruiter visiting their school, or researching the University of Mississippi online. I've talked to them a lot and they've talked to me a lot…” Three in five explicitly stated that they were interested in an area of study before enrolling at university. Two of these three attended the university specifically to learn more about that area of study or to start an early placement program for that area of study, i.e.
I was able to learn from the places, like the Turner Center and the Grove and uh, I get to meet new people...". 9 The MOST conference that targets minority students and aims to serve as an extra step to help them to acclimate to the university Regarding campus involvement, four out of five said that they were at least sometimes involved in an organization on campus, while the participant who was not involved in a group on campus, K, said that she considered being part of an organization, but was advised against it because of the financial obligation.
She explains, "In my freshman year, I was determined to be a part of the UM Gospel Choir because I love to sing...but you know I was broke for every student...and they had fees." When asked if it had a negative effect on her, she said, "Yes. When asked about her involvement in organizations and whether it would enhance her experience at the University of Mississippi, K said, "Definitely." Three of the five reported an interest or current involvement in a Greek organization, whether honorary, varsity, or non-Hellenic.
S spoke positively about her involvement in a non-Pan-Hellenic organization, saying, "There are people [in the choir] that I've struggled with and been through, who are there for me and listen to me." Additionally, three out of five women discussed interactions with members of Pan-Hellenic sororities and fraternities. Two out of those four were negative as mentioned above in the discussion of life situations. S notes, "I came into Ole Miss and honestly thought about how I was going to spice this place up academically..." Additionally, B decided on her major before entering the University of Mississippi and actively sought attendance at the University of Mississippi . because of its high standing in her field of study.
Regarding the racial climate, three out of five do not claim to have had an overall negative experience at the University of Mississippi with K, only explicitly stating:
Discussion
In relation to students' subjective sense of their relevance and experience at the University of Mississippi, most participants did not seem to have let their racial experiences and/or their perception of the campus racial climate affect their sense of belonging. on campus. University of Mississippi. She says, “I've always felt like if I want to go do something, then I'm going to go do it. I don't think I've ever felt like I wasn't included in something.” Overall, while some parts of the research hold true for these women, ie.
Because of my assumption that the connection between a student's positive or negative experiences and their decision to leave college was obvious, I failed to ask additional probing questions that might have better uncovered factors in these women's resilience.
Limitations and Weaknesses
Second, by choosing to use a snowball method to recruit participants, I acknowledge the possibility that my results may be biased by a particular perspective or type of experience. Because of my small sample size, I could not draw sweeping conclusions about the experiences of all African American women at the University of Mississippi or other Southern universities. Overall, I believe that my lack of background in sociological research strategies may have prevented me from exploring my topic as deeply as possible and that it might work better as an exclusively visual project.
Conclusion
In this time period, media are increasingly being used to educate, and by having a visual, easily digestible format for this work, those who benefit most from the research—minority students, educators, and administrators—. It is my hope that through this research and subsequent documentary project I will etch a space for visual research methods within this field of study. Additionally, this may prove useful to the University of Mississippi for further evaluation of retention.
APPENDIX
Questions for Thesis
BIBLIOGRAPHY
34;The Color of Success: African American College Student Outcomes at Predominantly White and Historically Black Public Colleges and Universities." Harvard Educational Review. 34;The Influence of Active Learning on the College Student Exit Process: Toward a Revision of Tinto's Theory." Journal of Higher Education: 569-590. 34; College Aspirations Among Low-Income African American High School Students: Gendered Strategies for Success." Anthropology and Education Quarterly.
34;Effects of College Transition and Perceptions of the Campus Racial Climate on Latino College Students' Sense of Belonging." Sociology of Education: 324-345. 34;African American Students at Predominantly White Institutions: A Motivational and Self-System Approach to Understanding Retention. " Educational Psychology Review. 34; Critical Race Theory, Racial Microaggressions, and Campus Racial Climate: The Experiences of African American College Students.” Journal of Negro Education: 60-73.
