Dr. William Kritsonis, Dissertation Chair for Grace Thomas-Nickerson

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September 17, 2008 Grace Thomas Nickerson 1

FACTORS THAT IMPACT THE ACADEMICACHIEVEMENT OF MINORITY STUDENTS:

A COMPARISON AMONG ASIAN-AMERICAN,

AFRICAN-AMERICAN, AND HISPANIC

STUDENTS IN LARGE URBAN SCHOOL DISTRICTS

A Dissertation DefenseBy

Grace Thomas Nickerson




Committee Members

William Allan Kritsonis, Ph.D.

(Dissertation Chair)

Douglas Hermond, Ph. D.(Member)

David Herrington, Ph.D.

(Member)Camille Gibson, Ph.D.

(Outside Member)




Dissertation Defense Format

I. TheoreticalFramework

II. Purpose of the Study

III. Research Question

IV. Null Hypothesis

V.

Methods: Subjects

VI. Methods:Instrumentation

VII. Methods: Quantitative

VIII. Quantitative PilotStudy

IX. Major Findings

X. Review of Literature

XI.

PracticalRecommendations

XII. Recommendations forFurther Study




Theoretical Framework

FACTORS THAT IMPACT THE ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF

MINORITY STUDENTS:

A COMPARISON AMONG ASIAN-AMERICAN, AFRICAN-AMERICAN, AND HISPANIC STUDENTS IN LARGE URBAN

SCHOOL DISTRICTS

FREQUENCY OF STUDY MODESPRACTICED

(Group and individual)PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT

TIME SPENT ON HOMEWORK

ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF MINORITY STUDENTS(Asian American, African American, and Hispanic Students)




Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the study is to determine

the differences among Asian American,

Hispanic, and African American students

with respect to parental involvement,

time spent on homework, frequency of

individual study modes, and frequency

group study modes.




Research Questions

1. How do Asian American, Hispanic, and African Americanstudents at selected high schools compare with respectto parental involvement, time spent homework,frequency of individual study modes, and frequency of group study modes?

2. What are the differences when studying English,Mathematics, Science and Social Studies among AsianAmerican, Hispanic, and African students with respectto parental involvement, time spent on homework,

frequency of individual study modes, and frequency of group study modes?




Null Hypothesis

Ho1 : There are no statistically significant

difference among Asian American,

Hispanic, and African American

students with respect to parental

involvement, time spent on English

homework, frequency of individual

study modes, and frequency of groupstudy modes.




Null Hypothesis





involvement, time spent on

Mathematics homework, frequency of

individual study modes, andfrequency of group study modes.




Null Hypothesis





involvement, time spent on Science

homework, frequency of individual

study modes, and frequency of groupstudy modes.




Null Hypothesis





involvement, time spent on Social

Studies homework, frequency of

individual study modes, andfrequency of group study modes.




METHODS




Methods

Subjects of the Study

713 High School Seniors, 18 years old

from 5 urban school districts in

Southeast Texas




Method: Instrumentation

Six-Point,

Likert-typeInstrument

What Influenced Your Academic Achievement Questionnaire

Five Sections with atotal of 26 questions

Instrumentmeasured theamount of Influencefrom1. Parental Involvement

2. Time Spent onHomework

3. Frequency of GroupStudy Modes

4. Frequency of Individual Study Modes




Method: Instrumentation

Questionnaire Components

Demographics (4 questions)

Parental Involvement

(8 questions) Range : 0 ² 48

Time Spent on Homework

(6 questions)

Range: 0 ² 36

Frequency of Individual Study

Modes (4 questions) Range: 0 ² 24

Frequency of Group Study Modes (4 questions)

Range: 0 - 24

Weights of Responses 1:Never/0-5 Hours,

2: Rarely/5-10 Hours,

3: Sometimes/10-25Hours,

4: Often/15²20 Hours,

5: Very Often/ 20²25Hours,

6: Always/25+ Hours




Methods: Quantitative

Descriptive Statistics

One ² Way ANOVA






Methods: Quantitative Pilot

The questionnaire was piloted tostudents that are high school seniors toensure that the meanings of the

questions on the questionnaire are clearand pertinent to the study, and theanswers given by the respondents arethe answers needed by the investigator.

The students that participated in the study were Asian American, African American andHispanic high school seniors.




Major Findings2006 ² 2007 Campus Demographics Percentages for the

Campuses involved in the Study.(TEA 2006 ² 2007 AEIS Report)

CAMPUS ASIAN

AMERICAN

AFRICAN

AMERICAN

HISPANIC

Campus 1 0.2% 82.7% 14.5%

Campus 2 6.0% 35.8% 11.5%

Campus 3 1.5% 90.8% 5.5%

Campus 4 2.1% 32.2% 54.1%

Campus 5 0.2% 7.3% 87.1%




Major Findings2006 ² 2007 Campus TAKS Passing Percentages for the Campuses

involved in the Study. (TEA 2006 ² 2007 AEIS Report)

CAMPUS CAMPUS

SCORE

ASIAN

AMERICAN

HISPANIC AFRICAN

AMERICAN

Campus 1 44% * 34% 46%

Campus 2 73% 90% 63% 57%

Campus 3 56% * 22% 57%

Campus 4 62% 84% 59% 59%

Campus 5 57% * 59% 35%

*Indicates results are masked due to small numbers to protect student confidentiality




Major Findings :

Research Question 11. How do Asian American, Hispanic, and

African American students at selected

high schools compare with respect to

parental involvement, time spenthomework, frequency of individual

study modes, and frequency of group

study modes?




Major Findings :

Research Question 1FACTORS ASIAN

AMERICAN

HISPANIC AFRICAN

AMERICAN

PARENTAL

INVOLVMENT

25.70 23.82 26.08

TIME SPENT ONHOMEWORK

9.90 9.18 9.86

INDIVIDUAL

STUDY MODES

12.30 10.76 11.36

GROUP STUDY

MODES

10.20 8.35 8.12

Descriptive Statistics (Compare Means) on Parental involvement, TimeSpent on Homework, Individual Study Modes, and Group Study Modesbased on Ethnicity (N=713)




Major Findings:

Research Question 1(Parental Involvement)




Major Findings:

Research Question 1(Time Spent on Homework)




Major Findings:

Research Question 1

(Frequency of Individual Study Modes)




Major Findings:

Research Question 1

(Frequency of Group Study Modes)




Major Findings :

Research Question 1 and 2FACTOR ETHNICITY MEAN SIG.

PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT

Asian American

Hispanic

African American

.54

-1.71

.99

.93

Hispanic

Asian American

African American

-.54

-2.26*

.99

.03

African American

Asian American

Hispanic

1.71

2.26*

.93

.03

One-Way ANOVA (Compare Means)

Parental involvement based on Ethnicity (N=713) Sig.: p0.05




Major Findings:

Research Questions 1 and 2FACTOR ETHNICITY MEAN SIG.

TIME SPENT ON

HOMEW

ORK(English, Math,

Science, and SocialStudies)

Asian American

Hispanic

African American

.71

.04

.90

1.00

Hispanic

Asian American

African American

-.71

-.67

.90

.26

African American

Asian American

Hispanic

-.04

.67

1.00

.16


Time Spent on Homework (English, Math, Science, and Social Studies)based on Ethnicity (N=713) Sig.: p0.05




Major Findings:


FREQUENCY OF

INDIVIDUAL STUDYMODES

(English, Math,Science, and Social

Studies)

Asian American

Hispanic

African American

1.53

.94

.87

.97

Hispanic

Asian American

African American

-1.53

-.59

.87

.85

African American

Asian American

Hispanic

-.94

.59

.97

.85


Frequency of Individual Study Modes (English, Math, Science, and SocialStudies) based on Ethnicity (N=713) Sig.: p0.05




Major Findings:


FREQUENCY OF

GROUPS STUDYMODES

(English, Math,Science, and Social

Studies)

Asian American

Hispanic

African American

1.84

2.07

.47

.33

Hispanic

Asian American

African American

-1.84

.23

.47

.98

African American

Asian American

Hispanic

-2.07

-.23

.33

.98


Frequency of Group Study Modes (English, Math, Science, and SocialStudies) based on Ethnicity (N=713) Sig.: p0.05




Major Findings:

One-Way ANOVA

(Research Questions 1 & 2) Parental Involvement

Statistically Significant difference between Hispanic and African Americanstudents

(Reject the Null Hypothesis)

Time Spent on Homework

(English, Math, Science, And Social Studies) No statistically significant differences among the minority groups

(Accept the Null Hypothesis)

Frequency of Individual Study Modes

(English, Math, Science, And Social Studies)

No statistically significant differences among the minority groups(Accept the Null Hypothesis)

Frequency of Group Study Modes

(English, Math, Science, And Social Studies) No statistically significant differences among the minority groups

(Accept the Null Hypothesis)




Conclusions

There are no statistically significantdifferences among Asian American, Hispanicand African American students with respect

to parental involvement, time spent onhomework, frequency of individual studymodes and frequency of group study modes.

There is, however, a statistically significant

difference among Hispanics and African Americans with regard to parentalinvolvement.




Review of Literature




Review of Literature: The Model Minority

Ellington (2005) - Not only are the academic achievement levels higherthan other minorities, but Asians out-perform their peers inalmost every arena« Recent statistics indicate that well over95% of Japanese are literate. Currently, over 95% of Japanesehigh school students graduate compared to the 89% of Americanstudents.

Doan (2006) - The stereotype of being the model minority hurts at-riskAsian American students. At-risk Asian American studentscontinue to be ignored or undeserved because of the success of the entire group. When success of the Asian American group ishighlighted, educators and the general public direct their attentionto at-risk students of other ethnicities, forgetting that Asian

American students can also be at-risk.

Shimahara(2001) - Asian Americans, see the United States as a land of opportunity compared to their situation back home. They aregenerally optimistic and trusting of U.S. society, and work hard inschool and in their jobs to succeed.




Review of Literature:Social Factors that Impact the Academic Achievement of African

American Students

Lew (2006) - Involuntary minorities who were forcefully incorporatedinto the U. S. tend to attribute academic success with ´whitenessµand thus reject school success with their own ethnic and racialidentities.

Chubb (2002) - Social scientists confidently predicted that after theSupreme Court decision, B rown v. B oard of Education, 1954 , thatthe academic gap among minorities would soon be eliminated.However, this did not occur. Academic success of African

Americans went from abysmal to merely terrible

Bennett (2004) - African American students in particular are likely toexperience doubts about their acceptance in educationalinstitutions and such concerns are likely to be accentuated inacademic environments that high achieving minority students strivefor .




Review of Literature:Social Factors that Impact the Academic Achievement of

Hispanic Students

Ramirez (2005) - Hispanic students tend to be poorer,attend more segregated schools and live in urban areas.However, current guidelines and educational practicesmandated for Hispanic students are built on suchassumptions and have had the unintended consequence of damaging the students· futures, education and otherwise.

Cammarota (2006) - According to some Hispanic youth, theassumption of their intellectual inferiority is the mostsignificant obstacle in their academic pursuits

Sparks (2002) - studies have shown lower academic attainmentfor second- and third- generation Latino students, so recentimmigration or limited English language proficiency cannotbe responsible for the entire gap




Review of Literature:Parental Involvement (Research Question 1 & 2)

Stewart (2007) - Parents can promote children·s cognitivedevelopment and academic achievement directly by becoming involved in their children·s educational activities.

Gregory (2000) - The more involved parents are in theirchildren·s education, at home and at school, the moresuccessful children will be academically and socially. Teachers report more positive feelings about their teachingand schools when there is a greater degree of parent

involvement.

Epstein (2002) ² Strong academic outcomes among middle leveland high school students were associated withcommunication between parents and school personnelabout the child·s schooling and future plans.




Review of Literature: Time Spent on Homework

(Research Question 1 & 2) Wong (1986) - An interesting, and for some a discouraging feature of

contemporary high school education, is the finding that moreHispanic and African American students and between 1 to 8 % of the Asian students report not doing any homework or spendingless than one hour per week on it.

Freeman (1995) - The amount of school hours is different between theUnited States and Asian nations. Japanese students, for example,spend more days in school and study more hours studying afterschool. Thus, having more hours of instruction and practice in agiven subject than American students of the same age, the Japanese students naturally tend to score higher.

Xu (2004) - Doing homework often can create a foundation fordeveloping desirable work habits since ´regardless of thehomework·s intellectual content, there is a need to deal withdistractions, and a role for emotional coping, task force, andpersistence.µ




Review of Literature:Frequency of Group and Individual Study Modes

(Research Question 1 & 2)

Lambert (2006) - The way a student studies determines whatknowledge is retained and learned, what concepts areunderstood and how a student can apply what is learned.

Although secondary level teachers often assume that allstudents have acquired sufficient study skills by the timethey reach high school, many have not

Slavin (1980) - Learning team techniques have generally hadpositive effects on such student outcomes as academicachievement and mutual attraction among students. Group

forms of study habits increase academic achievement.

Decoker (2002) - Rapid learners can help those who are slower,and students who do not understand the lesson can askquestions of the fast learners




RECOMMENDATIONS




Practical Recommendations

1. Teachers may need to implement the use of effective study habits in order for students tolearn content at their optimal level.

2. Parents need to take an active, participatory rolein the education of their child. When schoolsattempt to reach out to parents, parents need tobe willing to meet schools half way.

3.

Policies and standards that are created andimplemented on the state and district levels needto accommodate the students and not theinterest or agendas of lobbyists, bureaucrats, orunions.




Practical Recommendations

4. Also when creating state test, theunderstanding that not all students comefrom like backgrounds or experiences need tobe taken into account.

5. When donating money, educationalfoundations that award grants need to ensurethat the programs that they fund enhance theeducation of all students.

6. The standardized tests that are used ineducation need to be modified to adequately test all students of every race andbackground.




Recommendations for Further Study

A study should be conducted to investigateindividual test scores to be compared to theimpact of parental involvement, time spent onhomework, frequency of individual study

modes and frequency of group study modeson individual students.

The study should also include a qualitative

component such as interviews to introducethe importance of cultural and social beliefsand values on minority students· education.




Recommendations for Further Study

A study could be conducted to investigate a difference amongminority groups in urban and rural school districts withrespect to parental involvement, time spent on homework,frequency of individual study modes and frequency of groupstudy modes with a comparison of cultural and social beliefsand values between the students enrolled in the urban and

suburban school districts.

A study could also be conducted to include a qualitativecomponent of parents and their children and their insight onwhat impacts the academic achievement of their child based onparental involvement, time spent on homework, frequency of individual study modes, frequency of group study modes,

cultural and social beliefs and values.




FACTORS THAT IMPACT THE ACADEMICACHIEVEMENT OF MINORITY STUDENTS:

A COMPARISON AMONG ASIAN-

AMERICAN, AFRICAN-AMERICAN, AND

HISPANIC STUDENTS IN LARGE URBANSCHOOL DISTRICTS

A Dissertation Defense

By

Grace Thomas Nickerson

Dr. William Kritsonis, Dissertation Chair for Grace Thomas-Nickerson

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