Parent Involvement in an Alternative School for Students at Risk of Educational Failure

This case study contributes to a small but growing literature on alternative schools for at-risk students. Previous studies have been strong on participant narrative and advice for stakeholders, but have lacked theoretical and historical contextualization and are unlikely to have much impact on scho...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Education and urban society 2007-08, Vol.39 (4), p.498-523
Main Authors: Brown, Lionel H., Beckett, Kelvin S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic achievement
Academic Failure
African American Teachers
African Americans
Alternative approaches
Alternative education
Alternatives
Appalachia
At risk populations
At risk students
Case Studies
Class differentiation
Education policy
Elementary School Students
Elementary schools
Ethnicity
High Risk Students
Learning
Middle class
Middle School Students
Nontraditional Education
Ohio
Parent Participation
Parent School Relationship
Parent-Child relationships
Parent-teacher relations
Parents & parenting
Remedial education
Remedial Programs
Rural Schools
School districts
School Policy
Schools
Social Class
Socioeconomic Status
Students
Teachers
U.S.A
Urban areas
Urban Schools
Whites
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Summary:This case study contributes to a small but growing literature on alternative schools for at-risk students. Previous studies have been strong on participant narrative and advice for stakeholders, but have lacked theoretical and historical contextualization and are unlikely to have much impact on school policy. The present study focuses on the efforts of teachers and parents to build and sustain a successful remedial school for elementary and middle school students. It is argued that school districts should establish remedial schools, as they have other alternative schools, on a permanent basis. The case study also contributes to the much larger body of literature on parent involvement in schools. The study shows how middle-class White teachers and African American and urban Appalachian parents overcame barriers associated with socioeconomic class and ethnicity and became partners in building a home-school learning community that helped at-risk students prepare themselves for a more promising future.
ISSN:0013-1245
1552-3535
DOI:10.1177/0013124507301579