Educación in Our Own Terms: Survivance Amongst Latinx Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers in K-12 Schools and Beyond

ABSTRACT

The author examines how Latinx migrant and seasonal farmworkers (MSFW) engaged in survivance, active presence and resistance, in transition from K-12 schools to a High School Equivalency Program (HEP). Ethnographic methods were used to understand the educational experiences of Latinx students from MSFW backgrounds while pursuing a General Educational Development degree (GED) in a Midwest HEP program. Findings illustrate how K-12 schools produced inequities for MSFW students to pursue a GED as a form of survivance. This study reframes the deficit discourse surrounding MSFW’s departure from K-12 schools to one focused on agency and collective survivance.

KEYWORDS:

• Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers
• Latinx students
• K-12 schools
• General Educational Development Degree (GED)
• High School Equivalency Program (HEP)
• Survivance

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).