Individual and Social Factors Related to Urban African American Adolescents' School Performance

Somers, Cheryl L.; Owens, Delila; Piliawsky, Monte

doi:10.1353/hsj.2008.0004

Cited by 48 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Counselors can help students to instill and build resilience through encouraging parental involvement, positive peer relationships, school or team involvement, and help students to set goals towards achieving a lucrative future. Somers, Owens & Piliawsky (2008) investigated the individual and social factors related to African American students' school performance, and determined that parental, teacher, and peer relationships played vital roles in accomplishing academic progress (Somers, et.al, 2008). Additionally, as students transitioned to a high school setting, parent, teacher, and peer support were found to be most valuable when completing school and pursuing further post-secondary schooling, educational commitment, and the work force were concerned.…”

Section: Best Practices: Helping African American Students To Be Carementioning

confidence: 99%

School Counselors: Key Stakeholders Helping Underserved Students to be Career Ready

Paolini

2015

JCT

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This paper addresses the role that school counselors play in assisting underserved students to be prepared for post-secondary enrollment and/or career entry upon high school graduation. Counselors' responsibilities are outlined, including assisting students in identifying their strengths and inner resources, in order to achieve their goals. Challenges that underserved students face and best counseling practices are addressed, in order to ensure that all students reach their potential and accomplish their career objectives.Keywords: underserved students; career readiness; best counseling practices; schools National Statistics Regarding Drop-Out Rates and RetentionResearch has shown that minority students are more likely than white students to be labeled as 'at-risk' and the number of college bound African-American students has decreased significantly over the past several years (NCES, 2013). While 70% of white high school graduates entered college immediately upon graduation in 2010, only 66% of African American students and 60% Hispanic graduates, respectively, did the same (Aud, Johnson, Kena, Roth, Manning, Wang, & Zhang, 2012). Moreover, the national dropout rate for students of different ethnicities in the United States is as follows: Hispanic (18.3%), African-American (9.9%), Caucasian (4.8%), and American Indian/Alaskan Natives (14.6%). Further, males are more likely than females to drop out of high school (Aud et al., 2012).Another factor that impedes the college retention rate is that many new and underprepared college students must also enroll in remedial classes. Twenty percent of incoming freshmen at four-year institutions and fifty-two percent of students at two-year colleges are scheduled for some type of remedial coursework. Additionally, minority students such as African-American, Hispanic, and students from low-income families enroll at the highest percentages (Complete College America, 2012) in two-year colleges rather than four-year institutions. 82% of the nation's high-achieving students from low-income households do not apply to a single school that meets their academic qualifications (The College Board, 2014). According to the Bidwell (2015) graduation rates amongst all students are higher than before and the achievement gap is slowly closing. The graduation rates for African American and Hispanic students increased by 4.2% point, where as the graduation rate for Caucasian students has only increased by 2.6% points (Bidwell, 2015). American Indian students, students from low socio-economic statuses, limited English language proficiency students, and students with disabilities also experienced enhanced graduation rates. The achievement gap between Hispanic and Caucasian students decreased by 1.6% points and the achievement gap between African American and Caucasian students decreased by 1.1% points (Bidwell, 2015). However, even though the nation's overall graduation rate was 81% during the 2012-2013 school year and the achievement gap is decreasing, Caucasian students are still g...

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Section: Best Practices: Helping African American Students To Be Carementioning

confidence: 99%

School Counselors: Key Stakeholders Helping Underserved Students to be Career Ready

Paolini

2015

JCT

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“…In contrast, Fries-Britt (1998) found that Black students who were in a minority focused STEM program, and who were isolated from minorities outside of this program, were pushed by their high achieving peers to excel. Somers (2008) stated that peers can have a great impact on each other's academic achievement, because they spend a significant amount of time with each other.…”

Section: Peer Supportmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multicultural Science Education

2014

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“…T he issue of why a disproportionate number of students of color 1 and students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds continue to be underachievers in school settings at a staggering and increasing rate has troubled and perplexed educators and educational researchers for decades (Bailey & Paisley, 2004;Jackson & Moore, 2008;Moore & Herndon, 2003;Ogbu, 1992Ogbu, , 1994Ogbu & Wilson, 1990;Somers, Owens, & Piliawsky, 2008;Varlas, 2005). This cycle of underachievement is especially true in high poverty and urban contexts.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%