How do elementary school principles explain the gap in test performance between African American boys and Caucasian boys?

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Acknowledgement

I would take this opportunity to thank my research supervisor, family and friends for their support and guidance without which this research would not have been possible.

How do elementary school principles explain the gap in test performance between African American boys and Caucasian boys?

1. Title of Proposed Study

This study assessed the role of the family on academic performance among African American and Caucasian elementary school students. Family functioning, family status, and demographic variables were examined in a questionnaire. Results suggested that although the family continues to be important at the elementary school level, the effect is small. Future research should examine the impact of the family in the context of peer and institutional variables for African Americans and Caucasians separately.

2. Research Problem

It has been well documented that the family plays a meaningful role in a child's academic performance and development (Cornell & Grossberg, 1987; Thompson, Alexander, Entwisle, 1988; Tucker, Harris, Brady and Herman, 1996). Although the link between family and academic performance has been well established for school-age children and teenagers, the literature on elementary school students is limited (Cutrona, Cole, Colangelo, Assouline, Russell, 1994).

3. Significance of the Problem

The majority of research on parenting with elementary school populations examines academic adjustment as an outcome, not academic performance (Hickman, Bartholomae, & McKenry, 2000; Lopez, 1991; Wintre & Yaffe, 2000). For the studies that have examined academic performance as an outcome, many have only focused on family status variables or parental expectations for grades. This study examines the relationship between academic performance and family functioning, family status, and demographic variables for African American and Caucasian elementary school students.

4. Research Question

1)African American students will perform in the average range, yet slightly below Caucasian students.

2)Demographic and family status variables will demonstrate a nonsignificant relationship with academic performance.

3)Higher levels of parental support, parental/self expectations, and family cohesion will be correlated with higher levels of academic achievement.

5. Definitions of the Terms used in the Question

Family variables

Parental support, parental expectations, and family cohesion are of particular interest in this study. Parental support is defined as the encouragement and assistance given to facilitate students' academic development. The literature reports inconsistent findings relative to parental support and elementary school academic performance. In one study, parental support was a significant predictor of GPA in two independent samples of elementary school students on a predominantly White campus, however, the variable explained only 2.3% and 5% of the variance in GPA (Cutrona et al, 1994). Thus, students of parents who expressed beliefs in their competence and shared their interests and concerns had higher GPA's. Contrary to Cutrona and colleagues, other researchers have reported that parental support was not strongly related to elementary school students' academic performance (Jay & D'Augelli, 1991), especially elementary school GPA (Maton, Douglas, Coms, VieraBaker, Lavine, Gouze & Keating, 1996). It was, however, moderately related to psychological adjustment (Jay & D'Augelli, 1991), adjustment (Gloria, Kurpius, & Willson, 1999), and academic persistence and commitment ...