How cyberbonding play informs African American collegians’ educational journey map(s) navigation of a southern HBCU.

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Sunday 11:45 am - Gold 4
  In Roundtable Session: Online/Technology

Abstract

This qualitative study used cyberbonding play and educational journey maps (EJMs) to elucidate ontological and axiological perspectives of five African American collegians who navigate the campus climate of a southern HBCU. Participants created communal digital spaces and physical places via applied videogame knowledge. Two themes emerged: 1) IRL Friends; and 2) Academic Uplift. IRL Friends unpacks how enhanced decision-making in videogame environments contributed to essential networking that facilitated institutional fit with faculty and administrators. Academic Uplift explained participants’ ability to purposefully enact in videogame learned problem-solving skills and resolve to intellectually challenging course work situations. Participant narratives explained how cyberbonding play informed decisions facilitated collective navigations of a HBCU campus climate that overwhelmingly expected Black excellence personified to be performed.

Author

• Bryan Hotchkins, Texas Tech University