Abstract
High cost is a major barrier to the attainment of educational goals of many learners, especially those from economically-disadvantaged backgrounds. In Australia, this cohort includes Pacific Islander (PI) learners for whom low family income and ineligibility to access Government assistance for tertiary education costs may prohibit some learners from pursuing Higher Education (HE) studies. Whilst cultural barriers such as unfamiliarity with the education system, low language competence, and poor institutional support for non-traditional learners have consistently dominated the discourse on Pacific Islander learner’s low levels of achievement in education, less attention has focused on the effects of migration background, economic, and social adjustment patterns on their schooling outcomes. This article proposes that migration history, socio-economic background, and financial challenges affect PI migrant learners in two distinct ways: for those who have motivation and capability to enroll in tertiary level study, their aspirations are constrained by the high cost of tuition fees; while those learners who have the financial means and support to enroll in HE study are sometimes constrained by long-term poverty, which affects their motivations to study at the tertiary education level. This qualitative study involved working with a small group of PI learners from Melbourne’s western region from 2012 to 2015. Information was gathered from semi-structured interviews conducted with learner participants, and their parents and teachers. Learners were interviewed three or four times, while their parents and teachers were interviewed either once or twice over a four-year period. The collected data was sorted and categorized using NVivo software, and later categorized into broad themes, which were then cross matched with individual learner case stories to refine emerging finding and themes. The study revealed that migration background has an important influence on the social and economic settlement patterns of PI learners and their families and these in turn significantly affect learners’ schooling and post school outcomes.
Highlights
The relationship between cost and education has dominated the discourse on educational participation and achievement for many decades (Connell, 2003; Marginson,1999)
This paper looks at the intersections between migration history, socio-economic background, and financial unaffordability amongst Pacific Islander1 (PI) families, and the consequences of these factors on the educational experiences and transitions of a group of second-generation PI migrant learners living and studying in Melbourne’s western region from 2012 to 2015
Financial incapability to meet tuition costs, and to meet these costs upfront, were especially challenging factors to learners like a permanent resident visa (Ama) and Timo, both of whom had the academic capacity to study at university but lacked the financial means to pay for the fees
Summary
How have you been in the last six months? Is there an event that occurred at home that stood out for you in the last six months? How did you feel before or after it? How could it be changed or improved for the future? Is there an incident in school that stood out for you in the last six months? Why was it important for you? How did you feel before or after the incident took place? How could you have changed the situation if it occurred again in the future? Who has been the most important person at school for you in the last six months? Why and how? What are your expectations from school, from teachers? Are these being fulfilled? Do you think school is helping you achieve your goals? School staff How do teachers normally treat you? Is this the same kind of treatment they would give to other islanders/ migrants/ groups? What qualities do you like in a teacher? Do teachers interact with your parents at any time? What other staff in the school do you work with? How do you find their attitudes towards you? Are they kind, helpful and friendly? What do you think about other students at the school? Home/family How do you identify yourself with other people eg friends, teachers, school, community members? How do others in the community view PI? Why? How do PI want to be viewed/ Would you identify yourself as PI or Tongan or Samoan etc? How would you rate the support that family members have provided to you in general? What do you do for money eg pocket money, educational resources ie books, stationery, camps, uniforms? Do you pay for these yourself or does a parent buy these for you? Is there anyone else within your family that provides you with support? What sort of support would you like your mum/dad/parents/other family members to give you more of? Connection to home/country How do you keep in touch with family members?. Is there an incident in school that stood out for you in the last six months? Who has been the most important person at school for you in the last six months? Do you think school is helping you achieve your goals? Home/family How do you identify yourself with other people eg friends, teachers, school, community members? What sort of support would you like your mum/dad/parents/other family members to give you more of? What support /assistance /challenges (whether at home, school or other) have contributed to these shifts in thinking/attitude? Has it improved anything ie personal development, study skills, attitudes to school, parental resourcing? What do you hope to do in the few years? How has being involved in this research impacted on your schooling? Has it improved anything ie personal development, study skills, attitudes to school, parental resourcing?
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