<p>This four-year study centers on identity research, exploring
a two-year student success program in a midwestern school. The program follows a
“school-within-a-school” model (Indiana Department of Education website, 2020)
as it is housed on the same grounds as the main school but in a different
building. The student-to-teacher ratio is lower than traditional schools and
the English class covers less material, but in more depth, than parallel 9th
and 10<sup>th</sup> grade classes. The study follows two students as they
progress through the two-year program and integrate into the main student body
for 11<sup>th</sup> and 12<sup>th</sup> grade, to understand how they narrate
their journey through high school. The
9th and 10th grade teachers provide a sense of the impact of teacher identity
on the student participants. A narrative approach (Connelly
& Clandinin, 1990) is used to examine individual’s perspectives-
rooted in their experiences- to dig into my participants’ stories, framing them
within an equity literacy context (Gorski, 2014). Using equity literacy allows
for the exploration of biases and inequities that student participants may face
in our education system. The findings of this dissertation study have three
major implications: 1. Home identity has a significant effect on student
identity. As such, an awareness of what high school students bring to the
classroom and how this affects their thinking and motivation to participate in
class is critical; 2. The importance of not only making lessons relevant to
student lives, but also helpful. Both student participants appreciate being
given space to write what they <i>want</i> to write, rather than being <i>told</i>
what to write. As a result, writing becomes a means of processing events
happening in their lives, and has a positive effect on self-efficacy; 3. Given
the second implication, teacher educators need to provide space for preservice
teachers to explore ways to make lessons helpful to their students by encouraging
them to tell their own stories through discussions in a safe space, while
modeling behaviors such as showing vulnerability in the classroom.</p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:purdue.edu/oai:figshare.com:article/14445585 |
| Date | 07 May 2021 |
| Creators | Helen C Bentley (10665573) |
| Source Sets | Purdue University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, Thesis |
| Rights | CC BY 4.0 |
| Relation | https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/_I_VE_COME_SO_FAR_IT_S_HARD_TO_SAY_IT_ALL_A_NARRATIVE_APPROACH_TO_CHANGES_IN_PERCEPTIONS_OF_STUDENT_IDENTITY_IN_A_STUDENT_SUCCESS_PROGRAM/14445585 |
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