Intergenerational family predictors of the Black–White achievement gap.

Abstract

The authors examined intergenerational family predictors of the Black-White achievement gap among 4,406 adolescents from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. An intergenerational model of the process by which family factors contribute to the achievement gap was also tested. The results showed that the ethnic gaps in socioeconomic status (SES) and achievement had significantly reduced over the past few generations. Moreover, measures of grandparent SES, mothers' achievement, parent SES, and a comprehensive set of reliable parenting practices explained all of the ethnic differences in achievement scores. Parenting practices such as creating a school-oriented home environment, allowing adolescents to make decisions, and not burdening them with too many chores had particularly important effects on the achievement gap. The authors conclude that adjusting for these differences would eliminate the ethnic achievement gap.

One foot out the school door? Interpreting the risk for dropout upon the transition to post-secondary vocational education

“…Students' academic achievement is stimulated if parents express high expectations of their children (Astone and McLanahan 1991;BattinPearson et al 2000). It is crucial that parents also transform those expectations into actual emotional and practical support (Garas-York 2010), by talking with their children about their educational experiences, choices, and strategies, and by monitoring their child's progress (Astone and McLanahan 1991;Babeliowsky, Derriks, and Voncken 1990;Ekstrom et al 1986;Finn 1993;Jimerson et al 2000;Legault, Green-Demers, and Pelletier 2006;Mandara et al 2009;Nettles, Caughy, and O'Campo 2008;Stanton-Salazar and Dornbusch 1995). We can conceptualise the resources that support students in their school careers as a school-related dimension of social capital, given that students acquire those supportive resources through their social relationships with others (Bourdieu 1986;Dika and Singh 2002;Portes 1998;Stevens et al 2007).…”

“…We can conceptualise the resources that support students in their school careers as a school-related dimension of social capital, given that students acquire those supportive resources through their social relationships with others (Bourdieu 1986;Dika and Singh 2002;Portes 1998;Stevens et al 2007). While a school-oriented home environment is crucial for every student (Mandara et al 2009;Rumberger et al 1990), for many working-class and minority youth the supportive ties that are particularly useful for their school career are mainly found outside the family (Stanton-Salazar and Dornbusch 1995; Stevens et al 2009). Students thus build their school-related social capital with ties from the various networks that they participate in.…”

Do Socialization Goals Explain Differences in Parental Control Between Black and White Parents?

“…As adolescents spend time outside of the home and away from parental supervision, parents must establish a new balance of how much decision-making opportunities they grant to their adolescents and the extent to which they should control what their adolescents are allowed to do. Parents' ability to establish appropriate levels of parental control to meet their adolescents' needs can influence a variety of social, behavioral, and academic developmental outcomes (Dixon, Graber, & Brooks-Gunn, 2008;Goldstein, Davis-Kean, & Eccles, 2005;Mandara, Varner, Greene, & Richman, 2009;Steinberg & Morris, 2001).…”

Sport Involvement and Educational Outcomes of High School Students

“…Similarly, parents who emphasized academics and were involved in their children's academic lives had positive impacts on youths' formation of an academic identity and later educational expectation (Fredricks, Blumenfeld, & Paris, 2004). These findings echo support for the importance of parental involvement for youths' academic outcomes (Mandara, Varner, Greene, & Richman, 2009).…”