First Advisor

Keenan, Susan M.

First Committee Member

Holt, Emily

Second Committee Member

Murza, Kimberly

Third Committee Member

Bergstrom, Cassendra M.

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Document Type

Dissertation

Date Created

8-2025

Department

College of Natural and Health Sciences, Biological Sciences, Biological Sciences Student Work

Abstract

Undergraduate biology students must navigate complex academic environments that require more than content mastery alone. Increasing evidence shows that students’ attitudes, beliefs, and values—such as motivation, confidence, and a sense of belonging—are critical to student engagement, persistence, and success, especially among first-generation college students and those from historically marginalized backgrounds. Therefore, the purpose of this dissertation is to use cultural capital theory to explore how instructor practices in college biology classrooms support these non-content resources, framed as three forms of cultural capital: aspirational, navigational, and emotional capital for college biology.

To investigate this phenomenon, the dissertation integrates three complementary studies. Chapter II used primarily quantitative methods to identify specific instructor behaviors perceived as supportive across ten undergraduate biology courses. Student surveys and interviews were used to generate the Supportive Instructor Practices (SIP) codebook and to examine how perceptions of support varied across student identities and aligned with different forms of capital. Chapter III employed a case study approach with ethnographic elements to explore how instructor practices and classroom culture shaped capital transmission in a single course. Drawing on classroom observations, instructor interviews, and students’ open-ended survey responses, the analysis identified key cultural messages and instructional strategies that supported students’ capital. Chapter IV used quantitative survey data from over 300 students to integrate perceptions of capital support into structural models representing relationships among teaching practices, affective resources, and student outcomes.

Findings across the three studies demonstrate that biology instructors can play a pivotal role in supporting students’ cultural capital through consistent, relational, and capital-aligned practices. These practices include demystifying pathways to success, validating students' experiences and contributions, fostering supportive relationships, and designing course structures that scaffold learning and reduce barriers. Importantly, the studies reveal that perceptions of capital support vary substantially across course contexts, underscoring the need for intentional, equity-focused instruction.

Together, these findings offer a field-specific extension of cultural capital theory and provide practical insights into how biology instructors can promote student success by fostering affective resources. This work contributes to broader efforts in inclusive STEM education and affirms the classroom as a powerful site of cultural capital development.

Abstract Format

html

Places

Greeley, Colorado

Extent

250 pages

Local Identifiers

Mayo_unco_0161D_11376.pdf

Rights Statement

Copyright is held by the author.

Digital Origin

Born digital

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