The Nation's Colleges Show a Modest Improvement in African-American Graduation Rates, but a Huge Racial Gap Remains

2012 ◽  
Vol 114 (7) ◽  
pp. 1-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tina Wildhagen

Background/Context The fulfillment of academic potential is an underdeveloped area of inquiry as it relates to explaining racial differences in academic outcomes. Examining this issue is important for addressing not only differences in the typical outcomes for African American and White students but also the severe underrepresentation of African American students among the highest achieving students. Whereas other studies have operationalized lost academic potential as unfulfilled expectations for educational attainment, this study takes a different approach, measuring whether students earn higher or lower grades than the grades predicted by earlier tests of academic skills. Students whose grades are equal to or exceed those predicted by their earlier test scores are said to have fulfilled their academic potential, whereas those whose grades are lower than predicted have not realized their potential. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study This study finds that African American high school students are less likely than their White peers to realize their academic potential. The analyses test several explanations for the racial gap in the realization of academic potential, focusing on the students themselves, their teachers, and their schools. Research Design This study uses hierarchical linear modeling to analyze data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002. Conclusions/Recommendations The results suggest that teachers perceive African American students as exerting less classroom effort than White students, which accounts for a substantial proportion of the racial gap in unrealized academic potential, even with several student characteristics held constant. At the school level, there are larger racial gaps in unrealized academic potential in segregated schools and schools with strict disciplinary climates. Strikingly, the negative effect of strict disciplinary climate exists net of students’ own receipt of disciplinary actions. That is, the negative association between strict disciplinary climate and the realization of academic potential for African American students applies to African American students regardless of whether they themselves have been in trouble at school. This study reveals that characteristics of schools that lack immediately obvious racial implications, such as a school's approach to student discipline, may be just as harmful as overtly racialized inequality within and between schools.


2009 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 232-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Bowens McCarthy ◽  
Elsa-Sofia Morote

This article reports the investigation of the extent to which US preschool federal funding (Head Start) and the preschool enrollment of African American males (aged three to five) affected the high school graduation rates of this population (aged 14 to 19). The authors found that a link exists between preschool enrollment and the high school graduation rate of this population. They also found a link between Head Start funding and the high school graduation rate for this group.


2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 323-337
Author(s):  
John Robert Gallagher ◽  
Anne Nordberg ◽  
Michael S. Deranek ◽  
Raychel M. Minasian

Author(s):  
John E. Queener ◽  
Bridgie A. Ford

Postsecondary education and training are deemed essential in today's and future job markets. Thus, the lower entry rates into and lower graduation rates from higher education by African American males place them in a long-term crisis economically and socially. Mentoring is strongly recommended as a significant component of comprehensive strategies to improve the retention and graduation rates of African American males. Research reveals that successful retention programs go beyond a one model fits all and are based on the unique characteristics and needs of students. The authors of this chapter assert that mentoring programs designed to improve retention and graduation rates of African American males must be scholarly based and authentically address the cultural needs of those students; therefore, the mentoring program must include culturally relevant constructs. This chapter discusses the design, implementation, and results of the pilot phase of a research-based culturally responsive mentoring program based on optimal psychology for African American males enrolled at a midwestern Predominately White Institution of higher education.


Author(s):  
York Williams

African American male (AAM) college students with learning disabilities confront a number of obstacles while matriculating. Data indicates that a growing percentage of college students of color are enrolling in post-secondary institutions to pursue a higher education, but there still remains a graduation gap and retention issues between Black and White students, with the graduation rates of Black males still looming behind those of other groups. Of this student population, AAM's with learning disabilities encounter obstacles, both culturally, emotionally, financially, and psychologically that tend to exacerbate their learning needs and overall college experience, thus resulting in them dropping out midway through or at the end of the semester. Colleges and universities must address this gap and provide opportunities for culturally responsive mentoring, teaching, and specialized supports for AAM's with learning-diverse needs used to increase college graduation rates.


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