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...

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…