Preface 1. Revolution and Counter-revolution: The Introduction 2. The American Ideology 3. The Canandian Identity 4. Literature and Myths: Canadian Perspectives 5. The Impact of Religion 6. Law and Deviance 7. Economic Behaviour and Culture 8. Government, Welfare, and Philanthropy 9. Social Stratification, Trade Unions, and Politics 10. Mosaic and Melting Pot 11. Center Periphery 12. Still Whig, Still Tory Notes Bibliography Index

Continental Divide: The Values and Institutions of the United States and Canada.

Considering the current structural challenges that exist for students of color (SOC) in accessing a higher education, an epistemology is needed that better represents the complex process SOC endure in this pursuit. College access literature either proposes stages (Hossler and Gallagher in Coll Univ 62(3):207–221, 1987), contextual layers (Perna in Higher education: handbook of theory and research. Springer, Amsterdam, 2006) or a pipeline approach (Horn in Confronting the odds: students at risk and the pipeline to higher education. National Center for Education Statistics, Washington, D.C., 1997; Cabrera and LaNasa in Understanding the colleges choice of disadvantaged. Jossey-Bass Inc, San Francisco, 2000a) that do not consider the additional resources and skills SOC must possess in navigating their educational pathways. This paper presents findings from two larger studies to propose an approach that colors outside the standard college access and readiness frameworks and uses a more culturally responsive approach to consider the complex and auspicious ways in which SOC navigate their college pathways. Culturally responsive recommendations for increasing college readiness and access for SOC in secondary schools will be provided based on the perspectives of SOC themselves.

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Coloring the College Pathway: A More Culturally Responsive Approach to College Readiness and Access for Students of Color in Secondary Schools.

The study of students’ sense of validation holds promise for understanding college student retention and success, but more research is needed regarding the generalizability and use of the concept. The development of quantitative measures can help facilitate use across student populations in multiple types of institutions of higher education. The present study empirically examines two validation constructs, student perceptions of academic validation in the classroom and general interpersonal validation, in a new nationally available instrument, the Diverse Learning Environments (DLE) survey. Construct validity and cross-validation tests indicate that survey items tap into these latent factors for students of color and White students, and that students of color perceive lower levels of both forms of validation compared to White students. These factors and survey items may be used in future research to examine the relationship between validation, student experiences, and educational outcomes.

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Quantitative Measures of Students' Sense of Validation: Advancing the Study of Diverse Learning Environments

In this article, we review research that has examined the association between race, ethnicity, culture, and student motivation. We begin by describing potential problems regarding how race, ethnici...

Examining the Academic Motivation of a Diverse Student Population: A Consideration of Methodology

Context/BackgroundCurrently, chances for English learners (ELs) to reach higher education in the United States are slim. Almost half of ELs do not attend postsecondary education (PSE), and access t...

High-Performing English Learners’ Limited Access to Four-Year College:

The purpose of this case study is to investigate the decision-making processes of 12 high-achieving rural Mexican immigrant high school students. Ethnographic data are collected over 18 months, and the investigation is guided by structuration theory. The strength of using structuration theory is that it opens up the possibility for exploring how students form decisions while taking into consideration how the students’ social and cultural contexts influence their choices. The study shows that students do not follow a conventional path to college, a path that often conflicts with their own cultural values. Implications for this study indicate that educational institutions must learn more about the culture and worldviews of Mexican immigrants to create more effective paths to higher education.

James R. Valadez

Papers

Shaping the Educational Decisions of Mexican Immigrant High School Students