The reason for writing this blog was to share my experience as a first-generation student, as well as, research statistics on the achievement gap, first-generation students, and standardized testing. It is clear there is a gap in test scores when it comes to comparing white students to black or hispanic students. My research wanted to find out about the problems that currently exist in the education system pertaining to these topics and discovering areas for improvement and future research.
Source: http://www.post-gazette.com/image/2015/02/01/ca0,0,4346,2897/Standardized-Test-0201.jpg
The Achievement Gap Paper:
What is most interesting about education from a personal perspective is following the path of first-generation Latino college students. Specifically, how these students succeed through limited resources. The reason that this issue is of importance is that the United States is currently on track to move from a population that is currently a majority white, to a population that is heavily filled with minority citizens. Even though this is the case, there is a lack of representation amongst minority students in U.S. education (Williams et al., 2015). When thinking of this lack in representation, people usually refer to the term of the “achievement gap.” A basic definition of the achievement gap is the great difference in academics seen between groups of students and the factors that influence this difference with socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, and gender being the main ones. The purpose of this paper will be to address the topic of the achievement gap pertaining to first-generation college students and review the research on the struggles these students face on their road to success.
As a first-generation Latino student, this is a struggle I am all too familiar with. Coming from a low-income, Puerto Rican family, I knew that if I wanted a good education, the weight would have to be on my shoulders to get good grades in order to accumulate scholarships. While I was able to handle the financial pressure of high school, the real financial burden would come in attending college. Many minority students, unless they receive scholarships, do not have the same opportunities to attend college when compared to white students solely based off socioeconomic status. But why is being a first-generation college student of significance? Well, previous research has suggested that the risk to dropout of college is higher amongst first-generation students when compared to non-first generation students (Woosley et al., 2011). The struggles faced by Latino students are usually categorized into three categories: “(1) differences between the pre-entry characteristics of first-generation and those of other students, (2) academic issues, and (3) social or involvement issues” (Woosley et al., 2011). These categories are key in identifying the problems first-generation go through, why these problems occur, and directions for future improvement.
The first category of struggles faced by first-generation students is their pre-entry characteristics. This refers to the factors that lead students to consider attending college such as familial support, high support, educational goals, and financial possibilities (Woosley et al., 2011). However, previous research has shown that when compared to non-first generation students, first-generation students do not find the same levels of support to attend college. Many of these students have parents who do not understand the process of applying or attending college, since they were unable to do so themselves (Woosley et al., 2011). The second category addresses academic issues. Previous research has shown that first-generation students are often faced with academic difficulties in college due to lack of challenging curriculum in high school, and this leads to lower grades and lower academic aspirations (Woosley et al., 2011). The final category concerns social issues faced by first-generation students, as many report not feeling completely comfortable on their college campuses. According to Woosley et al. (2011), many first-generation are overwhelmed with the amount of work that they have, which leads to decreased participation in activities or clubs. Also, students often report being trapped in a “middle” between their two identities as college students and ethnic minorities and this leads to social displacement (Woosley et al., 2011). While these struggles may not be faced by all first-generation students, it is clear that there is a trend and a problem to be addressed.
A true problem for first-generation students exists in the form of standardized testing. Specifically, how test scores can be affected due to stereotype threat. Stereotype threat refers to “a predicament that prevents members of negatively stereotyped groups to perform to their full potential” (Appel et al., 2012). Data from previous research has shown that essentially in every area of education, no matter subject or grade, Latino and Black students score significantly lower when compared to White students (Mendoza-Denton, 2014). Even more disturbing, minority student usually score around 100 points lower on the SAT than White students (Mendoza-Denton, 2014). These lower test scores contribute to minority students not being able to attend certain colleges and places these students as academically inferior. This lack of performance is also seen in Appel et al. (2012), which shows that minority students in test-taking situations do not perform well due to the pressure to succeed brought on by stereotype threat. Students who are faced with stereotype threats tend to learn less effectively and underperform on standardized tests, which places students thinking about attending college, at an early disadvantage. It is also important to take into account that lower test scores amongst minority students means lower minority students at certain colleges. Previous research has shown that colleges that have a few number of minority students who are struggling academically leads to an increased hostile learning environment (Hanselman). Thus, research on stereotype threat and standardized testing amongst minority and first-generation students suggests that the current education system places these students at an early disadvantage, that will also follow them into college, making it even more difficult to succeed academically.
What makes this issue even more discouraging is that many of these minority students are extremely motivated to succeed. But what contributes to this motivation? By conducting interviews with first-generation students, Blackwell et al. (2014) was able to shed some light on this question. The study found that many students feel like the decision to attend college is out of their hands, as those are the expectations placed on them by their parents. Also, many students see graduating college as a possible escape from the current situation faced by their families (Blackwell et al., 2014). However, student motivation is once again complicated from many students feeling as if they are a part of two separate cultures: the one from back home and the one of higher education (Petty, 2014). Also, many students want to become part of the social culture at their institutions. However, institutional lack of bridging programs that can incorporate students into the college life and help fully prepare them for their academic life continues to add to the problem (Petty, 2014). However, parents may be the key to student motivation. Previous research has found that when recalling positive messages from parents, first-generation students tend to perform better academically, be more comfortable, and report an easier college life (Wang, 2014). Through this research, it is clear that first-generation students can perform well in college when provided with that proper motivational cues.
Research on first-generation college students and the achievement gap has gained popularity as of late. While schools may say that they are trying to fix the problem, the data shows otherwise. The gap between minority students and white students continues to be a trend in our educational system and shows a lack of interest in minority students succeeding. First-generation students, although having motivation, are not fully prepared in their secondary schools for the rigorous academics of college life. It is important for colleges and universities to create programs that specifically target first-generation students and pair them with professors and students who can help make this environment a little more enjoyable. The path to success for first-generation minority students is a hard one, and as someone who has been on that path before, I can only hope that it gets a little easier.
Source: http://www.hispanicecsfund.org/HECSF%201-1.jpg
Want to learn more about the achievement gap, click here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achievement_gap_in_the_United_States
Want to learn more about standardized testing, click here:
http://standardizedtests.procon.org/
If you're interested in learning about first-generation students, go here:
http://www.firstgenerationstudent.com/
For a scholarly article about first-generation students, go here:
http://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ499539
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