What is it about?
Since 2018, I have been pursuing my second Ph.D. in the United States. I often feel like I don’t belong here. To cope, I reflected on my past experiences of feeling different due to my gender, birthplace, clothing, language, low income, family background, or living far away in the woods using autoethnography as my research method. As a first-generation high school graduate and Brazilian cisgender woman, I explored five themes in my story: (a) adjusting to large environments, (b) finding my fit in unwelcoming places, (c) messages about being rural, and poor, and a woman, (d) the value of theory and mentorship in healing, and (e) living on the border. I have navigated between two worlds and strive to develop my identity by blending the cultural influences of Brazil and the United States.
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Photo by Ginger Jordan on Unsplash
Why is it important?
This critical autoethnography is important because it can help other students, especially Latin American rural women, talk about their challenges in schools and universities. My personal story can help urban teachers and higher education administrators recognize the need to create safer and more welcoming spaces for students from rural communities or other countries. I highlight an important issue that needs more attention from educators and researchers. This research also adds to the literature in educational studies and enhances the qualitative research field by using autoethnography as a unique research method.
Perspectives
Working on this project was hard because I had to think about painful memories. But it also helped me understand how my experiences are connected to larger stories in the world. By sharing my story, I learned to be open and vulnerable. Looking back at these memories was tough, but it felt good to see how they shaped me. I realized that I needed to push back against some of the ideas around me to be my true self. Finding support in academic and non-academic writing made me feel less alone and gave me hope for a better world. Every day, I embrace my history and work to make things better while remembering my small rural community.
Miriam Furlan Brighente
Eastern Michigan University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Moving between Two Worlds, December 2024, Brill,
DOI: 10.1163/9789004720336_006.
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