Breaking Through the Access Barrier

Breaking Through the Access Barrier argues that the policies designed to address inequalities in college access are failing to address underlying issues of inequality. This book introduces academic capital formation (ACF), a groundbreaking new theory defined by family knowledge of educational options and the opportunities for pursuing them. The authors suggest focusing on intervention programs and public policy to promote improvement in academic preparation, college information, and student aid.

This textbook offers:

• a new construct¿academic capital¿that integrates and draws upon existing literature on influencing access to college
• practical advice for better preparation and intervention
• real student outcomes, databases, and interviews taken from exemplary intervention programs
• empirical research illuminating the role of class reproduction in education and how interventions (financial, academic, and networkin