Equity buddies : building communities of practice to support the transition and retention of students through their first year at university

While in the past, students entering universities tended to come from privileged backgrounds, the expansion of opportunities to enter higher education over the past two decades has led to the inclusion of increasing proportions of students from diverse socio-cultural backgrounds. Students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds or who are first in family to attend university often require additional support as they transition into university to build their academic and institutional knowledge. Peer mentoring programs are one initiative introduced in universities to support the transition and retention of first year students, including those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds or first in family. This chapter discusses the peer mentoring program Equity Buddies Support Network developed at the University of Western Sydney, School of Education as a community of practice designed to support the transition and retention of first year students. It begins with a brief description of the Equity Buddies Support Network, followed by a discussion of how its design incorporated the features of a community of practice. It presents both the formal and informal learning that took place within the Equity Buddies communities of practice finishing with a reflection on Equity Buddies as a community of practice. It also makes connections between the practices of this networked community and the development of students’ cultural capital, in particular institutional capital.