Abstract:
Over the years Samoan students have struggled to navigate their way through university, trying to cope simultaneously with the expectations from their fa’asamoa (Samoan) culture and the expectations from their studies at university. This research study investigated how Samoan students identified themselves in society and at university; aspects of their fa’asamoa (Samoan) culture that helped or hindered Samoan students’ achievement at university; how Samoan students cope with the expectations from their families and communities and the expectations at university; the relevance of pedagogical content at university to their lives as Samoans’.
This research study used a qualitative approach that involved a series of Talanoa (talks/discussion) with nine individual Samoan participants. Data was gathered from each talanoa session with each of the nine participants, which were transcribed and analysed thematically. The findings showed the mismatch between the two cultures and identified the conflicts that participants faced with both cultural contexts.
The purpose of the current study was to identify the barriers that impede Samoan students’ achievement at university and to use findings from the study. These barriers were ascertained from the findings, through the qualitative narratives of each participant. The data analysis indicated that to raise the achievement of Samoan students’ at university, the culture at university needs to include the values, attitudes and behaviours of all multi ethnic cultures. An important implication of this study is the urgent need for a change of the policies, processes, pedagogies, at university to reflect the cultural values of students’ diverse ethnicities.
