English Language Community College Students in the Nursing Classroom: Exploring What Matters

Abstract

This qualitative study explored the lived experiences of students as English language learners in the nursing classroom. Employing interpretive phenomenological methodology, participants at an urban community college in the Northeast engaged in open-ended interviews that yielded new understandings of everyday concerns that impacted their academic success. Four themes emerged and included the ways students made adjustments, overcame doubts, demonstrated determination, and co-created community in the college classroom. A critical theoretical framework applied during data analysis revealed student perceptions and experiences in the classroom environment as uneven and unequal. Students shared that some faculty fostered student learning while others did not. Traditional and monocultural practices, representing acts of power and dominance, thwarted learning and possibly contributed to lack of academic progress. Despite these challenges, participants also articulated examples of gains in learning. This study concludes with recommendations for faculty, administrators, students, and researchers for creating inclusive classrooms.