STUDY ON AFRICAN AMERICAN MALE STUDENTS

PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY ON AFRICAN AMERICAN MALE STUDENTS: EXAMINING THE EFFECTS OF THE FIRST THINGS FIRST PROGRAM



ABSTRACT

In high schools today, African American male students meet many challenges. They come to school with a wide variety of experiences and different social issues. They come with varying needs and abilities. One of the many goals of high school students is to graduate and continue on to a successful lifestyle. The African American male students have reached many obstacles in which their academics are not at the rate where it should be. The research question addressed in this qualitative phenomenological dissertation was: What are the different ways the educational community can help enable African American male students succeed academically in the classroom, at the high school setting? First Things First reform model was evaluated during this study. According to U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences (2008), three main components of First Things First are: (1) “small learning communities” of students and teachers, (2) a family and student advocate system that pairs staff members and students to monitor and support progress and that serves as a bridge between the school and family, and (3) instructional improvements to make classroom teaching more rigorous and engaging and more closely aligned with the state standards and assessments. The purpose of this qualitative study is to inform the educational community on how to enable African American male students to succeed academically in the classroom. Within this study, the educational community will also learn different strategies for improving school structure, instruction, and professional development to help improve the overall achievement and success of African American male students.

In this study, African American male students, teachers, and community members that worked at the Boys and Girls club, who were involved at high schools that participated in the First Things First reform program were interviewed with pilot study questions and observed at their prospective high schools. All information from the interviews and observations were clustered into different themes that were gathered from the participants. All of the data was subjected to phenomenological analysis using a methodology developed by Van Kaam and modified by Moustakas (1994). The methodology involved reading all of the transcripts to acquire a feeling for them, and using statements from each description, phrase, and sentence that pertained to the phenomenon under investigation. From the data analyzed, the themes that came from the participants led to the conclusion that teachers must be willing to learn how to adapt to different cultures, lifestyles, and attitudes of African American male students, in order for them to graduate at a higher percentage rate and be more successful.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Nothing I do or say will ever show how much appreciation I have toward the Lord Jesus Christ. I have achieved many obstacles and hardships in my lifetime, but I have overcome them all by keeping my faith strong with the Lord. I have been blessed with extraordinary people to guide me through my life ...