STRUCTURAL INEQUALITIES AND ACADEMIC LITERACY:

CHALLENGES IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS ON THE COLOMBIAN CARIBBEAN COAST

Abstract

The objective of this research is to characterize the academic literacy practices of students of a Higher Education Institution (HEI) of the Colombian Caribbean coast, contrasting them with the institutional hegemonic discourses on academic performance, for the promotion of an inclusive and constructive approach in education. The methodology is quantitative, descriptive and correlational; an adapted survey was applied to 307 first-year students, divided into three sections: socio-educational information, perceptions of literacy and reading and writing practices at the university. The results reveal the correlation between socioeconomic conditions and literacy: most of the students come from strata 1 and 2 (90.9%), from public education, with a high incidence of rural schools (68.4%) and a substantial lack of support in reading formation during the stages prior to university. The combination of these factors and the low frequency of reading for pleasure (40.1% do not read daily) is manifested in specific difficulties when facing university texts, particularly in following the storyline and understanding the technical vocabulary, problems that are accentuated in those who read less for pleasure. It is concluded that structural inequalities, originating in the low socioeconomic status and predominantly rural and public education of students, translate into limited cultural capital (Bourdieu, 1986). It is therefore imperative that universities and educational policies adopt inclusive and transformative approaches, which value the diversity of student capitals, foster critical awareness and address socioeconomic barriers to build a more just and accessible educational environment.