Peer mentorship and cultural capital among high school students

Author

Crescentia Fatima Thomas, University of the Pacific

Date of Award

2015

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

Department

Educational Administration and Leadership

First Advisor

Ronald Hallett

First Committee Member

Lynn Beck

Second Committee Member

Joanna Royce-Davis

Abstract

Peer mentorship and school connectedness was reviewed here through social capital and cultural capital lenses. The relationship has been interwoven to create an idea of how to shape an environment which can foster cohesiveness among students. Peer mentorship has been indicated as a significant contribution to cross-aged grade levels with the improvement in attendance, behavior, social activities, and school awareness—which are encompassed in the term, school connectedness. In regards to college access and college knowledge, peer mentorship here, assists with the transfer of social capital and cultural capital. Students were able to develop relationships and gain knowledge passed on from mentors regarding how to better their chances of attending a higher education institution. Social capital, the number of people and networks a certain individual maintains, can affect the information a person receives and amount of social status a student brings into the classroom. Cultural capital, the wealth of information and knowledge of the arts and experiences, can be obtained through connections. Social capital and cultural capital are instrumental and interrelated factors of social status, as referenced by many sociologists and educational researchers. In this study, peer mentorship was used to foster social capital and cultural capital to create interrelationships among participants of a college-preparatory program. It is imperative to utilize this program and develop an environment which imparts information regarding college. Employment of cross-age mentorship to increase communication between peers and mentors assisted in relationship development while building a desire for the mentees to learn more about higher education. Keywords: peer mentorship, social capital, cultural capital, collaboration, college knowledge, college access

Pages

143

ISBN

9781321988246

Recommended Citation

Thomas, Crescentia Fatima. (2015). Peer mentorship and cultural capital among high school students. University of the Pacific, Dissertation. https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/uop_etds/55