Passing through the sphynx gates: Community college faculty as equity leaders in gateway math

Student success inequities in online gateway math courses exacerbate the problematic trend that too few marginalized, community college students complete a degree, especially during the time of COVID-19 in which this study was situated. This critical participatory action research study examined the experiences and perspectives of the on-the-ground change agents, faculty self-identified as vested in improving equity in gateway math across a community college. In order to contribute to the research and practices improving degree attainment for marginalized students, the study follows math faculty at a Texas community college who designed and implemented an equity initiative that they felt would positively impact equitable student outcomes. Through the primary data collection of focus groups, 10 online gateway math faculty member’s experiences and perspectives were examined: a fall/spring 2020-2021 faculty cohort of 4 and a spring 2021 cohort of 6. The study explored a) how the design of online gateway math courses in the equity initiative intended to improve equity in student learning outcomes and b) how faculty approached the collaborative redesign, equity initiative. Focusing on the faculty through a critical participatory action research study explored the space for change between authoritarian and grassroots approaches which, in isolation, can each inhibit an initiative going to scale. The research revealed that participating faculty readily recognized the socioeconomic inequities faced by students as well as the impacts of math anxiety or “math identity” on student learning outcomes. Participants believed that students having meaningful relationships with their faculty, tutor, and advisor team was key to mediating the inequities students faced and, therefore, that allocating additional resources to provide this trio team in online gateway math courses was uniquely essential to marginalized students’ success beyond the course. However, a significant finding also identified their concern that a subset of faculty would not be willing or able to adopt the necessary practices thereby discounting the potential for full-scale adoption. Recommendations are offered for research and for practitioners to support improved equitable student outcomes, including institutional adoption of equity-minded practices to transform online gateway math.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ed.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Educ Policy, Orgzn & Leadrshp

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2022

Author dc:creator

• Jones, Valerie A.

Contributors dc:contributor

• Pak, Yoon
• Hood, Denice
• Zamani-Gallaher, Eboni
• Mason, Curtis

• equity
• gateway math
• online
• community college
• marginalized

Statement dc:rights

• © 2021 Valerie A. Jones

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/112973

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/112973