An Exploration of the Alienation Experienced by African American Parents From Their Children’s Educational Environment

Abstract

Current research suggests that parents are a key component to the school success of their children. However, in today’s world, parents often work long hours, have more than one job, and participate in multiple responsibilities that may limit their participation. Because of the variety of factors that impinge on parents, educators often criticize them for their nonparticipation or limited participation in the school environment. The purpose of this study was to determine the degree of alienation, if any, that African American parents feel toward public education. A modified version of the Barriers to School Involvement Survey was administered to 421 African American parents. The questionnaire was factored into five problem categories for analysis (e.g., personal concerns, work, lack of interest, logistics, teacher/parent relationships). Although significance was found among the five problem categories and across the six research questions (e.g., problem categories, employment status, economics, special education vs. general education, family composition, and parent education levels), the findings indicate that parents did not view the five problem categories as a concern impacting their school involvement.

Determinants and Long‐Term Effects of Attendance Levels in a Marital Enrichment Program for African American Couples

“…Previous studies have noted the need for home‐based couple and relationship education services (Halford et al., ), particularly for demographics less likely to attend group‐based “classes” (Wilde & Doherty, ). Further, reports from other successful evidence‐based programs (Dishion, Kavanagh, Schneiger, Nelson, & Kaufman, ; Spoth, Redmond, & Shin, ) indicated that African American men were reluctant to attend family‐centered programs in community settings, particularly those offered at schools (Brandon, Higgins, Pierce, Tandy, & Sileo, ). Based on findings from focus groups with African American men (Hurt et al., ) and previous prevention studies with diverse populations (Nix, Pinderhughes, Bierman, Maples, & CPPRG, ), we refined our engagement protocols and developed a home‐based model for implementing ProSAAF.…”

Exploring Involvement Expectations for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Parents: What We Need to Know in Teacher Education

“…A teacher's deficit view of parents can create barriers to parental involvement (Chu & Garcia, 2014;Kozleski et al, 2008;Lai & Vadeboncoeur, 2012;Lightfoot, 2004;Pollack, 2012;Ravindran & Myers, 2012;Zhang & Bennett, 2003). Negative attitudes exhibited by school staff can also leave CLD parents feeling alienated from school due to mistrust of the system (Brandon et al, 2010;DeGaetano, 2007;Dunst, 2002;Kozleski et al, 2008;Lightfoot, 2004).…”

The Effect of Communication Change on Long‐term Reductions in Child Exposure to Conflict: Impact of the Promoting Strong African American Families (ProSAAF) Program

“…Typically this has led to recruiting primary caregivers of youth-most often mothers (Cohen & Linton, 1995;Dishion, Kavanagh, Schneiger, Nelson, & Kaufman, 2002)-with fathers left out of the equation. The challenge is significant, as men in general and African American men in particular are often reluctant to participate in family centered programs offered in the community or at school (Brandon, Higgins, Pierce, Tandy, & Sileo, 2009;Hurt et al, 2012;Pruett, Cowan, Cowan, & Pruett, 2009;Roy & Dyson, 2010;Spoth, Redmond, & Shin, 1998). The dilemma becomes self-fulfilling as group meeting without fathers may reinforce the message that the meetings are not for fathers.…”