First-Generation Students' Voices in Chilean Higher Education

• In Event: Sheraton Roundtable Session Sixteen
  In Roundtable Session: First-Generation Student Experiences (Table 1)

Abstract

This work seeks to critically analyze the results of a research and intervention project to promote the inclusion and persistence of first-generation university students of Indigenous peoples (hence FGIS) belonging to Chilean territory. In Latin America, and especially in central Chile, research on how FGSs, who identify themselves with Indigenous peoples, is very scarce.
A qualitative methodology was used, including semi-structured interviews with 27 participants (15 FGIS and 12 instructors). Observations and field notes were also used to comprehend the challenges of programs aimed to promote equity and inclusion in higher education. Findings show how university constitutes a space of colonization and domination and replicates the structure of domination and social hierarchy of society.

Author

• Andrea Flanagan-Borquez, Universidad de Valparaiso
  Presenting Author