Reaffirming the Public Purposes of Higher Education: First-Generation and Continuing Generation Students’ Perspectives
Marcela G. Cuellar,
Alicia Bencomo Garcia and
Kem Saichaie
The Journal of Higher Education, 2022, vol. 93, issue 2, 273-296
Abstract:
For more than a century, scholars and policymakers have commented and debated on the purposes of higher education. These conversations reflect a combination of public and private goals, with an increasing emphasis on social mobility. The perspective of students, especially those currently enrolled and first-generation college goers for whom social mobility is likely salient, are often not part of these conversations. This study examines how first-generation and continuing generation students describe the purposes of higher education during college. Students note a strong emphasis on the private goals of higher education from society and parents. However, students’ narratives reflect how they grapple with multiple purposes with some also recognizing a change in their views. Differences by generational status also emerged, emphasizing a continued need to balance public and private goals.
Date: 2022
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:uhejxx:v:93:y:2022:i:2:p:273-296
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DOI: 10.1080/00221546.2021.1979849
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