African American male students' perceptions of social, emotional, physical, and academic variables in their transition from elementary school to middle school

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine four variables that impact African American male students?????? perceptions of their transition from elementary school to middle school. This study determined what role social, emotional, physical, and academic variables have in the transition process from elementary school to middle school for African American males. The two guiding questions for this mixed methods study were: 1. What are African American male students?????? perceptions of personal development variables on their transition from elementary school to middle school? 2. How do African American male students describe their transitional experience from elementary school to middle school? Participants in this study were 149 African American male students from five middle schools in southeast Texas. Findings of the study were derived from the use of a self-developed 52-item questionnaire (Student Transition Perception Survey) with one free-response question and interviews of ten students (two from each school). The major findings in this study were: 1. Social variable ??????African American male students felt that schools did not provide a positive school climate, teachers did not treat them with respect, and their parents were supportive of their education. 2. Emotional variable ??????African American male students felt that schools did not make them feel successful, and they did not feel equal to their peers. 3. Physical variable ??????African American male students were equally divided in the acceptance of their physical appearance and when they compared themselves to others. 4. Academic variable ??????African American male students felt that teachers did not give them valuable attention in class. 5. When looking at the trend of student responses among the five schools, African American male students shared similar feelings about the social, emotional, physical, and academic variables. 6. African American male students expressed their feelings about being unsafe, experiencing differentiated teacher treatment, declining grades, and difficulty in their middle school transition.