Abstract
This study addresses college students in a Southwestern, economically depressed, rural area, with their state of residence having a high number, per capita, of service-members and veterans of recent wars. Additionally, some students identified as Native American. The study’s purpose was to investigate within this sociocultural dynamic to what extent students with a military identity, a military family history, and/or no military-related affiliation associate with this background and also enjoy reading and writing about military topics, especially within the composition classroom. The students sampled enrolled in a first-year-composition class based upon an experimental course model formulated to be military-friendly and military-theme focused, which assisted them in reading about military topics connected to their personal family background and writing about their military-related identity. The article discusses a three-year, mixed-methods study and involves the following student types: seven service-members/veterans and 57 nonveterans, with 15 being the child of a parent(s) with military service. As instruments, the author utilized surveys, interviews, and course papers. The study resulted in several findings. A majority of students reported having strong connections to their personal and/or family military history as factors correlating with their enjoyment of reading about military topics and writing about their military-related backgrounds, including those who served as role models. The study’s results have implications for teaching students who are service-members/veterans, have a military-affiliated identity, and/or possess a recent military family history within a first-year-writing classroom featuring military-themed readings and writings. Furthermore, in addressing the call to identify and accommodate student groups and their academic needs, this article has implications for instructing Native American students of the geographical area.
Highlights
Recently, writing researchers have discussed the topic of what college students should read in first-year composition (FYC)
Specific to additional racial/ethnicity factors, in the state of Oklahoma, tribal populations value a military culture within their larger backgrounds, with Oklahoma boasting the second highest number of tribal residents (National Congress of American Indians, 2019)
For the study’s aims, I investigated whether service-members/veterans desired military-friendly courses, one another’s companionship, and military-oriented reading and writing options, as well as whether nonveteran students with an interest in or connection to military-oriented matters would benefit from this course format
Summary
This study addresses college students in a Southwestern, economically depressed, rural area, with their state of residence having a high number, per capita, of service-members and veterans of recent wars. The study’s purpose was to investigate within this sociocultural dynamic to what extent students with a military identity, a military family history, and/or no military-related affiliation associate with this background and enjoy reading and writing about military topics, especially within the composition classroom. The students sampled enrolled in a first-year-composition class based upon an experimental course model formulated to be military-friendly and military-theme focused, which assisted them in reading about military topics connected to their personal family background and writing about their military-related identity. The study’s results have implications for teaching students who are service-members/veterans, have a military-affiliated identity, and/or possess a recent military family history within a first-year-writing classroom featuring military-themed readings and writings.
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