The Fourth Wall of Dialogue: A Co-Constructive Collaboration on BIPOC Student Sense of Belonging in Higher Education
Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) students’ sense of belonging (SOB) at higher education institutions has decreased over the last 30 years despite numerous initiatives aimed at increasing a sense of belonging for this group of students and addressing the challenges they face from various intersectionalities including cultural biases, gender marginalization, and racial subjectivities. Sense of belonging is often subjective in nature because it refers to an individual's lived experience, it is important for higher education institutions to tailor their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusive (DEI) initiatives to meet the needs of the students on their campus. This initiative should include focusing on the current components of institutional supports for SOB and aligning those proposals with the needs and experiences of BIPOC students in a way that will increase their ability to feel like valued members of the college community and contribute to their personal and academic success. The goal of this qualitative phenomenological study was to investigate BIPOC student experiences with institutional supports for SOB and to conceptualize what they believe would be ideal supports for increasing SOB at a diverse community with a commitment to “break the fourth wall”, a reference to Diderot’s theatrical metaphor describing invisible borders and perceived barriers that exist between BIPOC students and their institutions of higher education. Results revealed that a co-constructed environment allowed student participants to collaboratively share their individual experiences while also proposing ideal supports that educators and administrators can utilize to build resources creating a more inclusive and welcoming environment for BIPOC students. Results also provided affirmative learning practices that are not only relevant but build connections between BIPOC students and the institution in the hopes of continued spaces for further collaboration to improve the overall student experience of belonging.
Sense of belonging, Phenomenological Study, BIPOC, Co-Constructive Collaborations, Student Experiences, Educational Administration and Supervision, Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research, Educational Leadership, Higher Education, Higher Education Administration
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