Academic integration into the study: the first-generation view of university teachers
Vol.32,No.3(2022)
In the Czech environment, the most frequently represented group of newly entering university students are graduates of secondary schools who are continuing their education path. For these students, the beginning of their studies represents a new life stage and a significant change. They come from the controlled secondary education system to the tertiary system, where education becomes their responsibility. Students deal with this responsibility depending on individual attributes, prior schooling, and their family background. The family background may prove problematic in the case of first-generation students. These are students whose parents or siblings have no experience in tertiary education and cannot advise a newly entering student on how a university works. For this reason, they seek the necessary information elsewhere, e.g. from their teachers. This study aims to describe and explain how first-generation novice students perceived the role of university teachers during their academic integration into the university system. Moreover, the closure of universities in the 2020/2021 academic year presents a unique opportunity to look at the role of Higher education institutions in two very different settings, both during online teaching and after the transition to contact teaching. In order to fulfil the aim, a qualitative research investigation was conducted in the form of repeated interviews with first-generation students who started their first university studies in the academic year 2020/2021. The study results show that university teachers can, in the eyes of first-generation novice students, find themselves in the role of the so-called guide to academic integration, which is the case when they choose effective forms of communication.
integration into study period, academic integration, first-generation university students, university teachers
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