Participation and persistence of basic adult education participants at a small college satellite campus on Manitoulin Island

Abstract

Research related to the participation and persistence of adult basic education students in Northern and rural Canada was virtually non-existent in the available literature. Furthermore, research pertaining to the participation and persistence of adult basic education students in rural Northern Ontario was absent from the available literature. Consequently, an explanatory sequential mixed methods study of the participation and persistence of Academic Upgrading students at Cambrian College’s satellite campus on Manitoulin Island was conducted. The study occurred in two phases. In the first phase, past and current students were recruited to complete questionnaires. In the second phase, individual interviews were conducted with past and current students who completed questionnaires, and individual interviews were conducted with past and current employees of the campus. Using thematic analysis and triangulation, six themes were elucidated from the participants’ responses: a) a positive and supportive environment, b) support of the professor, c) situational hardship, d) friends, friendliness and community, e) Indigenous and f) the Upgrading Program. Situational hardships were shown to directly affect the participation and persistence of students. Furthermore, a positive, supportive environment and professor support were inferred to affect the participation and persistence of students while friends, community and program flexibility were inferred to affect student persistence in the Upgrading program.