Help! I Need Somebody: Impacts of a Peer-Mentoring Program on Minority-Language Students’ Academic Success

• In Event: Experiences of Language Minority Students in Postsecondary Education

Abstract

Knowing that sociolinguistic and geographic realities of extreme-minority Francophone regions adversely affect Francophones’ access to postsecondary education is not enough. Critical enquiry in higher education seeks to empower participants to influence policy and procedures, removing barriers to access and success. Our paper reports on a pilot project at the University of Ottawa, aimed at increasing Francophone undergraduate students’ success by empowering Freshman Francophone students from extreme-minority regions of Canada through peer-to-peer mentoring with upper year Francophone students from similar regions. Beyond facilitating networking and access to essential university resources, the mentors represent models of success and an invaluable source of insider information. This paper reports on the first two phases of the study.

Authors

• Sylvie Anna Lamoureux, University of Ottawa

• Megan Cotnam, University of Ottawa