Tener Éxito: Stories of Self-Efficacy From Undocumented Latinos in the Pursuit of Higher Education

• In Event: 14.044 - Roundtable Session 2
  In Roundtable Session: 14.044-11 - Locating the Self: College Students and Youth in Unsettling Locations

Abstract

This study examined the lived experiences of five undocumented Latinos, who self-identified as childhood or adolescent immigrants and English learners, as they reflected on their past, present and future within the backdrop of their first semester in higher education. Using Polkinghorne’s (1995; 1988) framework as the vehicle for the narrative nonfiction methodology, this study provided a platform for the voices of undocumented students to be heard, creating an authentic experience to gain insight to this population and the impact of language proficiency and legal status on the participants’ self-efficacy in higher education. Emergent themes of pride, apprehension, the future, support, self-reliance and systemic challenges highlight the multiple barriers to inform improved practices in the K-16 settings.

Author

• Jennifer Lynn Bailey, Kilgore ISD