academic achievement linked to parental involvement

The School and Demographic Data
Alonzo & Tracy Mourning Senior High, Biscayne Bay Campus is part of the Miami-Dade County Public School system and has a total of over 1500 students enrolled in grades 9 through 12. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (2018), the demographic breakdown of the Alonzo & Tracy Mourning Senior High School student body is 831 Hispanic, 415 White, 292 Black, 20 Asian, and 7 identifying as “two or more races.” The school serves a suburban region of Miami-Dade County. Of the 1565 students, 862 are eligible for free lunches and 105 for reduced-price lunches, indicating that more than half the students come from families requiring some financial assistance. Since it opened in 2009, Alonzo & Tracey Mourning Senior High has performed consistently well on national achievement measures, receiving an “A” school ranking from 2012-2016, an honor by The Washington Post for being “America’s Most Challenging High School,” and being cited as one of the nation’s best high schools by U.S. News & World Report (Alonzo & Tracey Mourning Senior High Biscayne Bay Campus, 2018). Graduation rates are also high at 92%.
The Issue: Parental Involvement
Official School Policies and Programs
The website of the high school has a special menu for parents, with a parent portal connected with the Miami-Dade County Public School system. This indicates that Alonzo & Tracey Mourning administration is dedicated to actively facilitating and retaining parental involvement. There are also ample opportunities for parents to volunteer for school events or to help the school, to subscribe to school newsletters and other information, or to become active in the parent-teacher associations.
Interviews
Interviews with one parent, one teacher, and one student reveal how well the school is living up to its promise of promoting parental involvement in their children’s education. Also, interviews provide insight into perceptions of how effective parental involvement is in general, and which types of parental involvement work best on specific students depending on other variables like prior academic achievement and demographics. Interview questions encompassed a wide range of topics include how much the individual values parental involvement in the academic environment, what types of parental involvement are viewed as more or less effective for promoting both academic and psychological outcomes, and what the school can do better in terms of improving its interface with parents and students.
1. How much do you value parental involvement in a child’s education?
2. What role does parental involvement play in a child’s academic achievement?
3. Why do you believe parental involvement is important, if at all?
4. What types of parental involvement do you believe are the most important or effective in promoting academic achievement outcomes? What about for psychological or social outcomes?
5. What can the school do better to improve parental involvement?
Interview with Student
The student claimed to appreciate almost all forms of parental involvement in her education, from reminders about homework and important exams to parental participation in school activities. When asked about whether parental involvement had been integral to the child’s academic success, the student immediately responded yes, that they needed the discipline. The student said that they are used to parental pressures to achieve since from a young age, they have been heavily involved in their children’s education. Also, the student said that her peers’ parents tended to also be involved. Normative parental involvement made it so that the child did not feel embarrassed or annoyed, but came to expect such behavior. Another thing the student pointed out was the parents also strongly encouraged participation in several extracurricular activities that she would not have done otherwise. She said that these extracurricular activities were not enjoyable at first and she would have quit if the parents did not pressure her to stay, but that staying in those groups was instrumental for her getting into good colleges. In terms of being involved directly with the school, the student said she believed her parent had been a member of the PTA a few years ago but this year has been working too hard and does not come to school as often as before.
Interview with Parent
Being involved with the child’s academic environment is something that is the parent’s responsibility, according to the person interviewed for this report. Even parents who are busy can take the time to meet with a teacher once a month or whenever possible, and to ask about their children’s work, their interests, and what they need to succeed. With three children enrolled in Alonzo & Tracey Mourning, this parent is involved in several different ways with the school. One of the children plays sports, and the parent shows up for as many games as possible and volunteers time when the team needs extra support. Also, the parent has participated in school fundraisers. She said that fundraisers are important for the money but even more for the community building, as during the fundraising events they network with other parents and small business owners. The parent also said that she plays an active role in terms of monitoring her children’s grades and academic performance, and making sure that they are receiving additional support for classes they struggle with. When asked if their involvement promotes child academic achievement, the parent said absolutely yes, but that ultimately it is up to the child to work hard and cultivate their strengths in different subjects. However, the parent said that children can get really distracted if they are not coached and supervised, and that it is rare to find kids that are so self-motivated that they do not need parental support. The parent also said that involvement works best when other parents are also supportive. She said that most teachers have been open and receptive to frequent meetings and emails, but that she has encountered a few that seem annoyed with “activist” parents.
Interview with Teacher
The teacher strongly urged parental involvement, and said that she is surprised how few parents take an active role in their child’s education. She said that some parents can be a little overbearing at times, but generally parents just want to stay on top of their children’s education and make sure that they have everything they need to succeed in their courses. Some parents feel their children are entitled to grades and complain when their grades are not perfect, but that is rare. She said that she would rather have a parent who is worried about a B than a parent who is not worried about a D. The teacher also said that there are missed opportunities for parents, such as attending meetings with teachers, going to open houses, using the online parent portal, and joining the PTA. Being involved in fundraising and sporting events or in extracurricular clubs is another way parents can get involved. Some parents become regular guest speakers at the school or arrange to take the children on field trips to their place of employment. Similarly, many parents are registered with the school’s internship program, whereby the teenagers can get work experience for course credit. The teacher said that the previous school she worked for did not have as many opportunities for parental involvement, and that this school was doing a great job in terms of welcoming parental communications and input.
Suggestions for Assisting the School Community
Alonzo & Tracey Mourning Senior High is in some ways an exemplar of promoting parental involvement. Research unequivocally shows that parental involvement promotes academic success among adolescents (Benner, Boyle & Sadler, 2016). Therefore, schools can and should do what they can to encourage parents to play an active role in their children’s education.
Having said that, there are important sociological variables to take into account when constructing pathways for parental involvement. Research has shown that ironically, parental involvement and strong school support services were correlated with lower achievement and more social and emotional “concerns” among English Language Learners (Neihaus, Adelson, Niehaus, et al., 2014, p. 810). Similarly, Benner, Boyle & Sadler (2016) found that parental involvement is correlated with student academic success among higher socioeconomic groups but not among disadvantaged groups. If the communities of students that most need support for academic achievement are not receiving it in ways that are meaningful or accessible to them, then schools may need to do more to reach out to these underserved or underachieving populations. For example, schools could form strategic partnerships with community organizations that are relevant such as faith-based organizations, immigrant support service groups, or local businesses.
The success of Alonzo & Tracey Mourning as a whole does seem to suggest that whatever the school is doing is working for the vast majority of its student body. With a 92% graduation rate and high average performance, the school has done well to create a culture of success for all students. However, there are always going to be outliers and those who are left behind. A needs assessment would help Alonzo & Tracey Mourning administrators better understand which students are in need of greater parental involvement—and what those parents may need to do specifically in order to help their children succeed.







References
Alonzo & Tracey Mourning Senior High Biscayne Bay Campus (2018). http://atmourningsharks.org/
Benner, A.D., Boyle, A.E. & Sadler, S. (2016). Parental involvement and adolescents’ educational success. Journal of Youth and Adolescence 45(6): 1053-1064.
Garcia, L.E. & Thornton, O. (2014). The enduring importance of parental involvement. NEA Today. Nov 18, 2014. http://neatoday.org/2014/11/18/the-enduring-importance-of-parental-involvement-2/
National Center for Education Statistics (2018). Search for public schools. https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_detail.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=1200390&ID=120039007635
Neihaus, K., Adelson, J.L. Neihaus, K., et al. (2014). School support, parental involvement, and academic and social-emotional outcomes for English language learners. American Educational Research Journal 51(4): 810-844.