Exploring Academic Resiliency in African American Males

• In Event: Pushing Black Males Through the Pipeline: Research to Practice

Abstract

African American males continue to lag behind their White and Asian counterparts in academic achievement. This reality can lead to poor attendance, discipline-related problems, lower achievement levels and dropout. One area that has been well documented to address these issues for African American males is the development of academic resiliency. Classic resilience research has focused on the development of competence, confidence, and caring in the face of risk and adversity. However, emerging research is treating resiliency as a dynamic developmental process that focuses on the conditions under which resilience is best fostered. This study is an attempt to identify conditions in the urban schooling context that supports and fosters the development of academic resiliency in African American males.

Authors

• Robert Cooper, University of California - Los Angeles

• Justyn Korey Patterson, University of California - Los Angeles