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ExploringSchool-andHome-RelatedProtectiveFactorsforEconomicallyDisadvantagedMiddleSchoolStudentsNathern S. A. Okilwa

Abstract: This study explored the experiences of middle school students, particularly focusing on the academic achievement of economically disadvantaged students. For low SES middle school students, the known cumulative effects of poverty coupled with school transition and ear-ly adolescence development heighten the potential risks for school failure. By utilizing the nationally representative Early Childhood Longitu-dinal Study–Kindergarten (ECLS-K) 1998/99 longitudinal data, this study explored parent involvement and school belonging as potential protective factors. The findings for this study showed that when parent involvement and school belonging were considered together, parent involvement emerged not to be significant while school belonging consistently emerged as a significant predictor of achievement. However, while school belonging emerged as a significant predictor, prior achievement was the single strongly significant factor explaining achievement.

MiddleschoolintheUnitedStates(predominantlygrades6to8orages11to14)isacriticalstageinstudents’academictrajectories,andyet,itisalsoaveryriskystageintheiracademicandsocialdevelopment.Manymiddleschoolstudentsoftenexperiencesignificantlifecoursechangesthatincludedevelopmentalormatura-tionalchangeandcontextual(orschool)transition(Black,2009; Cook, MacCoun, Muschkin, & Vigdor, 2008;Wigfield, Lutz, & Wagner, 2005). The literature hasidentifiedanumberofpsychological,social,andacademicchallenges associated with developmental and contex-tual transitions among middle school students (Hill &Tyson,2009).Foreconomicallydisadvantagedstudents,thechallengesofdevelopmentalandcontextualchangesonly aid to complicate the students’ already vulnerablelives.Thenegativeeffectsofdevelopmentalchangesandschool transition compounded with the known effectsof poverty create cumulative risk factors that often un-dermine school success for a number of middle schoolstudents (Jozefowicz-Simbeni & Allen-Meares, 2002).Therefore,inacknowledgingthecollectiverolethattheinstitutionsoffamilyandschoolplayinsocializingandeducatingchildren,thepurposeofthiscurrentstudywastoexamineparental involvementanda senseof schoolbelongingaspotentialprotectivefactorsforeconomicallydisadvantagedmiddleschoolstudents.ThisisconsistentwiththevastworkofpsychologistUrieBronfenbrenner(1979)andsociologistJoyceEpstein(2001),whohaveexten-sivelydemonstratedtheinterconnectednessofthevariousaspectsoffamilyandschoolcontexts.Parentalinvolvementandschoolbelongingnessaretwofamilyandschoolfactors,respectively, which the literature has linked to positivestudent academic outcomes (e.g., Goodenow & Grady,1993; Juvonen, Le, Kaganoff, Augustine, & Constant,2004;Osterman,2000).Theyhavethepotentialtocreateasupportnetworktofacilitatesuccessfulmiddleschoolexperiencesforeconomicallydisadvantagedstudents.

Thediscussionpresented in thispaperbeginswithareviewofriskfactorsassociatedwiththemultifacetedtran-

sitionalprocessesthatarecompoundedwiththenegativeeffectsofpovertyformiddleschoolstudents.Also,parentinvolvementandschoolbelonging,aspotentialprotectivefactors,areexaminedfromtheperspectivesofnestedcon-nectionsandoverlappingspheresofinfluence.Further,aquantitativeanalysis,usingdatafromtheEarlyChildhoodLongitudinal Study–Kindergarten (ECLS-K), Class of1998/99,examinesparentinvolvementandschoolbelong-ingasindependentvariablesandeighth-gradeachievementasthedependentvariable.Thisstudytookadvantageofthelarge-scaleandnationallyrepresentativenatureofECLS-Kdatasetandtheabilitytotestforsynergeticrelationshipsofvariablesusingmultipleregressionanalysis.

ExaminingRiskFactorsChallenges Associated With Developmental and Contextual Changes

Across the research, developmental changes areassociated with shifting societal demands, conflictingrole demands, increasingly complex societal relations,neweducationalexpectations,andat timesamismatchbetween social, psychological, cognitive, and physicaldevelopment(Newman&Newman,2014).Thestressesof these new realities usually trigger a search for self-identity; disengagement; and changes in motivation,attitudes, and self-esteem; which may impact academicperformance (Black, 2009; Cook et al., 2008; Gutman& Midgley, 2000). These challenges are potential risk factors(i.e.,individualorenvironmentalcharacteristics,orbehaviors),especiallywhencoupledwiththelong-lastingeffects of poverty that have significant implications onstudents’educationalandlifeoutcomes(Akos&Galassi,2004;Barber&Olsen,2004;Black,2009;Centers forDiseaseControlandPrevention[CDC],2009;Wigfieldetal.,2005).

Furthermore,while in themidstofdevelopmentalchanges,earlyadolescentsareforcedtotransitionintoamiddleschoolsettingthatpresentsuniqueexpectationsandresponsibilities.Middleschoolsarecharacterizedby

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frequentmovementfromoneteachertoanother;learningwithseveraldifferentgroupsofstudents;independentlyhandlinglockerunits;anemphasisonself-disciplineandacademics; a larger,more impersonal institution that isusuallyfartherawayfromhome;andfeweropportunitiesforteacher-studentrelationshipbuilding(CarnegieCouncilonAdolescentDevelopment,1989;Juvonenetal.,2004;Reddy, Rhodes, & Mulhall, 2003). The organizationalstructureofmiddleschoolspresentsanotherlevelofchal-lenge,especiallyforstudentsalreadyexposedtoadverseconditionsofpoverty.

Middle School Risk and Economically Disadvantaged Students

Inadditiontochallengesoccasionedbycontextualand developmental changes, students in poverty areexposedtomultiplerisks,alsoknownascumulativerisk(Jozefowicz-Simbeni & Allen-Meares, 2002), that canfurther challenge their academic success alongmultipledimensions(Wright,Masten,&Narayan,2013).Childreninpovertyaremorelikelythantheirmiddleclasspeerstoberaisedbyaworkingsingleparent,oftenwiththemotherastheheadofthehousehold(Sawhill,2006).Suchhomeenvironmentsmayresultinunstructuredfreetimethatoftencreatesopportunitiesforchildrentoengageinriskybehaviors(Perry-Jenkins&Wadsworth,2013).Inthecaseofparentswithlimitededucationalexperiences,time,andresources,theyhavelimitedparticipationinschool-relevantactivities(e.g.,supportinghomeworkcompletion,advocat-ingfortheirchild,etc.)thatareassociatedwithacademicsuccess(Perkinsetal.,2013;Sawhill,2006).

Forstudentsinpoverty,exposuretoriskextendstothecommunitiestheyliveinaswellastheschoolstheyattend.Manyarelikelytoresideinimpoverishedandsegregatedneighborhoods that offer limited amenities, resources,and social structures that facilitate school success(Johnson,2010;Lareau,2003;Leventhal&Brooks-Gunn,2004). Also, these students are likely to attend high-povertyandlow-performingneighborhoodschools,manyofwhicharecharacterizedbydilapidatedphysicalfacilities,inadequateeducationalresourcessuchastechnologyandbooks, large class sizes, lowacademic expectations,highturnoverofpersonnel, andhigherpercentagesofnoviceteachers (Darling-Hammond, 2000, 2010; Jacob, 2007;Jozefowicz-Simbeni&Allen-Meares,2002).Moreover,class-roomsinhigh-povertyschoolsarelikelytobelessdesirablelearning environmentsdue tobeingovercrowded, struc-turedaround teachercontrol,dominatedbycompetitiveratherthancooperativeacademictasks,andorchestratedbyteacherswhofeeldisempoweredandremovedfromschoolpolicy formulationprocesses (Darling-Hammond, 2010;Nye,Konstantopoulos,&Hedges,2004).Consequently,thecumulativeriskassociatedwithpovertyposesagreatrisktoschoolsuccess.

TheRoleofProtectiveFactorsAmidst the significant risks associatedwithpoverty,

changesinschoolenvironment,andindividualdevelopmentalprocesses,therearestudentswhoreachlateadolescence

andwhoareabletoachieveacademicsuccess(Anderson,Jacobs,Schramm,&Splittgerber,2000;Wigfieldetal.,2005).MastenandWright(1998)defineprotectivefactorsasa“correlateofresiliencethatmayreflectpreventiveorameliorative influences: a positive moderator of risk oradversity”(p.10).Protectivefactorsincludepsychosocialcharacteristicssuchassocialandacademiccompetence;problem solving; autonomy; and sense of purpose(Seccombe,2002) aswell as environmental factors thatoriginatefromthestudent’sfamily(e.g.,parenting,highexpectations,etc.);school(e.g.,positiveteacher-studentre-lationships,caringschoolenvironment,etc.);andcommunity(Hauser&Allen,2006;Southwick,Morgan,Vythilingam,&Charney,2006).Therefore,giventhechallengesstudentsfaceinthemiddleschoolyears,itisimportanttoconceptualizeanapproach to schooling thatprovides for the successofpreventiveandameliorativeinfluences.

Theoretical FrameworkThe ecological theory of nested connections

(Bronfenbrenner, 1979) andEpstein’s theoryof overlap-ping spheres of influence (Epstein, 1995, 2001)provideconceptualframeworksforunderstandingtheroleofpro-tectivefactorsinthecontextofcumulativerisk.Thetwotheoriesadvancetheideathatschoolandfamilycontextsare inevitably interconnected. In essence, school,home,andcommunitysettingsexistinasymbioticrelationship.Furthermore,Epstein’smodel of overlapping spheresofinfluencesuggeststhatschool,family,andcommunityin-teractanddirectlyinfluencestudentlearning,development,and socialization (1995,2001).The interactionbetweenthesettings,forinstancebetweenschoolandfamily,createwhatEpstein(1995)referredtoasfamily-likeschoolsandschool-like families—evidenceofasymbioticrelationship.Therefore,theinterconnectednesspositedbythesetwothe-oriesprovidethebasisforconsideringschoolbelongingandparentalinvolvementcollectively,thusaddressingthegapintheresearchthatusuallyexaminedthesefactorsseparately,especiallyatthemiddleschoollevel.Bronfenbrenner(1979)andEpstein(1995,2001)provideanimportantperspectiveregardingstudentrelationshipstothenestednetworksthatcansupportorhindertheirachievement.Therefore,giventhattheintentofthestudyistotestthesynergeticrelation-shipbetweenparentinvolvementandschoolbelongingandeighth-gradeacademicoutcomes,itisimportanttobetterdefinethevariablesinthisnestedsupportivenetworkandtheirpossiblelinkages.

Parental involvement as protective factor. Parentalinvolvementisbroadlydefinedas“thevariousactivitiesthatallowparentstoparticipateintheeducationalprocessatschoolandathome”(Christenson,Rounds,&Gorney,1992,p.192).Inschool-likefamiliesandfamily-likeschoolsinwhichschoolssustainpositivepartnershipswithparents,parentinvolvementhasbeenshowntobeanimportantprotectivefactor(Christensonetal.,1992;Epstein,1995,2001).Theextantliteratureindicatesthatparentalinvolve-menthighlycorrelateswithawiderangeofpositivestudentoutcomes,includingmotivation,self-efficacy,internallocusofcontrol,prosocialandon-taskbehavior,andacademic

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achievement(Epstein,2001;Hill&Tyson,2009).However,muchof the researchexamining theeffectsofparentalinvolvementonstudentoutcomeshasbeenconductedintheelementarygrades,withsignificantlylessconductedatthemiddleschoollevel(Christensonetal.,1992;Juvonenetal.,2004).Thestudiesthatexistatthemiddleschoolleveltendtofocus,inpart,onthethingsparentsdoathometosupporttheeducationoftheirchildren,suchashelpingtheirchildrenwithhomework(e.g.,VanVoorhis,2003).However,theeffectofsomeaspectsofparentalin-volvementonstudentoutcomeremainsquestionableandinconclusive(Driessen,Smit,&Sleegers,2005;Froiland,Peterson,&Davison,2012;Gutman&Midgley,2000;Hill&Tyson,2009).

Furthermore,thereisevidencetoshowthatparentalinvolvement significantly diminishes in middle schoolgrades;particularly,parentalinvolvementislessamonglowsocioeconomicstatus(SES)families(Hill&Tyson,2009;Lareau,2000,2003).Juvonenandcolleagues(2004)blamemiddleschoolsforcontributingtothedeclineinparentalinvolvement. Many middle schools, when compared toelementaryschools,arelessinvitingtoparents,asituationexemplifiedbyfewerparentalschoolengagementactivities(Epsteinetal.,2009).Furthermore,parentswithlimitededucationandthosewhoareoflowerSESmaylackthesocioculturalcapitalnecessarytonavigateaschoolsystemthatpredominantlyreflectsmiddleclassculturalvalues,organizational patterns, and forms of communication(Lareau,2000,2003).Therefore,differentialinteractionsamong family, social class, and school point to limitedschool-relevant parental participation among low SESparentsandconsequentlypotentialinsignificantinfluenceontheirchildren’sschooloutcomes.

School community as aprotective factor.With theunderstandingthatschoolhasthepotentialtofacilitateafamily-likeschoolenvironment,schoolasacommunityforlearningiscriticallyimportant.Thisisparticularlytrueforstudentswhomaybeconsideredatrisk,suchasthosesituat-edinpovertyconditions,culturalandlinguisticminorities,special education, new immigrants, students exhibitingsignsofacademicandsocio-emotionalproblems,andthoseexperiencingmajorschoolenvironmentchangesduringthemiddleschooltransition(Hill&Tyson,2009;Ma,2003;Osterman,2000).Theconceptofschoolcommunity,whichimpliestheabilityoftheschooltosatisfythepsychosocialneedsof itsmembers, ispredominantlypresentedintheliteratureintermsofstudentperceptionsonschoolbelong-ing(Goodenow,1993),membership(Williams&Downing,1998),relatedness(Conchas,2001),connectedness(CDC,2009), and identification (Voelkl, 1997).Thesedifferentvariationsof schoolcommunityareall associatedwithanumberofpositivepsychosocial andacademicoutcomessuch as motivation, engagement, commitment, positiveinterpersonalrelationships,andself-esteem.

Forthepurposeofthisstudy,schoolcommunitywasexamined throughthe lensof students’ senseof schoolbelonging. Some literature defines school belonging asthe extent to which students “feel personally accepted,respected,included,andsupportedbyothers—especially

teachers”(Goodenow&Grady,1993,p.61).Furthermore,schoolbelonginghasalottodowithstudents’perceptionsofthequalityofteacher-studentrelationships(Fredricks,Blumenfeld, & Paris, 2004). Therefore, teacher-studentrelationshipsinandoutoftheclassroomlargelycontrib-utetostudents’senseofschoolbelonging.Consequently,teachers are uniquely situated to facilitate family-likeschoolsduetotheirdirectinteractionwithstudentsonadailybasis.Teachershaveopportunitiestoengageinthisdirectinteractionthroughtheirnurturingcareofstudents’psychosocialandacademicneeds.Forinstance,positiveteacher-studentrelationships,whicharecharacterizedbycaringcommunication,recognitionofstudenteffort,andacknowledgment of students’ challenges and interests,are increasingly critical to middle school age studentswho often seek support from adults outside the home(Woolley&Bowen,2007).Unfortunately,atthemiddleschool,teacher-studentrelationshipsdecline;thiscouldbeattributedtotheorganization,structure,andthesheersizeofmostmiddleschools(Cooketal.,2008;Mizelle,2005).Thedeclineinteacher-studentrelationshipsimpactsthebuildingofthemuchneededsupportnetworksfordisad-vantagedstudents(Reddyetal.,2003).

Additionally, given that early adolescents are at thepinnacle of peer allegiance, peer relationships provideimportant support networks when positive adult rela-tionships aremissing (Fredricks et al., 2004;Osterman,2000).Positivepeersupportisassociatedwithmotivationaloutcomessuchasintrinsicvalue,self-concept,andpursuitofacademicandpersonalgoals(Furrer&Skinner,2003).Personalfriendshipscanalsoposeauniquedilemmaforsomestudentswhosefriendsmaysubscribetoantiacademicnorm,particularlyamongracialminoritystudentgroups.Forexample,insomeminoritysettings,studentswhostriveforacademicsuccessmaybechastisedbytheirpeersandbrandedasnerds, teacher’spet,weird,andactingWhite(Fryer&Torelli,2010;Murray,Neal-Barnett,Demmings,&Stadulis,2012).

Therefore,thisstudyproceededwiththeunderstand-ingthatparentinvolvementandasenseofschoolbelong-ingholdthepromisetomitigatethecumulativenegativeeffects emerging from developmental and contextualchangescoupledwithpoverty.Also,theextensivenatureofcumulativeeffectsonstudents inpovertywarrantsacollectivesupportsystem.

Current study. In acknowledging the increasingnumberofeconomicallydisadvantagedstudentsinschoolstodayandtheirassociatedriskforschoolfailure(OECD,2012),thegoalofthecurrentstudyistoexploreifparen-talinvolvementandschoolbelongingcanmoderateriskcompoundedbydevelopmentalchanges,schooltransition,andeconomicdisadvantage.Toachieve thisgoal, threeresearch questions guide the study: (a) What are theassociationsbetweenparentalinvolvementandacademicachievementforeconomicallydisadvantagedeighth-gradestudents? (b)Whatare theassociationsbetween schoolbelonging and academic achievement for economicallydisadvantagedeighth-gradestudents?(c)Dotherelationsbetweenparentinvolvement,schoolbelonging,andeighth-

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gradeachievementvaryasafunctionofpriorachievementandmiddleschool?

MethodsDatafromtheEarlyChildhoodLongitudinalStudy,

KindergartenClassof1998-99 (ECLS-K)wereused forthis study. The purpose of the ECLS-K study was tocollectinformationonchildren’scharacteristicsatinitialschool matriculation, their transition into school, andtheirprogressionthrougheighthgrade.Theinformationcollectedincludedstudents’educational,socioemotional,and physical development as well as teaching practices,schoolenvironment,familybackground,andcommunityresources.TheECLS-Kstudyfollowedthesamestudentsfromkindergartenthrougheighthgrade.Datawerecollect-edfromstudents,parents,teachers,andschooladministra-torsinsevenwavesbetween1998FallKindergartenand2007SpringEighthGrade.Thebaselinesampleincluded21,260students(seeTourangeauetal.,2009,foradetaileddescriptionofthesample).

Thedata included in the present study were from12,026studentsinthefifth-gradewave(2004Spring)andeighth-gradewave(2007Spring)whocompletedcognitiveassessments inbothcollectionwavesandwereassignedvalidsamplingweights.Itisacknowledgedthattheeighth-gradesamplewasnotfreshened(introducingadditionalparticipantstosample),aswasthecasewiththefirst-gradesample;thus,allestimatesfromECLS-Keighth-gradedataarerepresentativeofthe1998/99kindergartencohortandnotnecessarilyalleighth-gradestudentpopulationinthe2006/07schoolyear.Theeighth-gradesampleusedinthedataanalysisincluded84%highSESstudentsand16%lowSESstudents.Fifty-onepercentofthestudentsweremale,and49%werefemale.Theracialandethniccom-positionofthesampleforanalysisincluded63%White,10%Black,17%Hispanic,and11%Other(whichincludesAsian,NativeHawaiian/PacificIslander,AmericanIndian,andMultiracial).

MeasuresTable1providesalistofvariablesandtheselected

ECLS-Kitemsthatwereusedtomeasurethosevariables.Achievement.Grade8achievementasadependent

variableisacomputedaveragescorebetweenreadingandmathscores(calculatedrange0–198)asprovidedintheECLS-Kdata.TheECLS-Kdatareporteditemresponsetheory(IRT)scalescoresforreading(weightedM=167.24;SD=28.03;Range=0to212)andformathematics(weight-edM=139.28;SD=23.10;Range=0–174).

Parent involvement.This variable measures parentactivitiesatschoolandhomethatsupportstudentlearning(Christensonetal.,1992).Guidedbyexistingresearch,itemswereselectedfromroundseven(eighth-gradeyear)oftheECLS-Kdataandcategorizedinthreedimensions—schoolparticipation,homediscussion, andhome routine.Theparent involvement itemswerestandardized,duetovari-abilityinresponsescales,toz-scores.Confirmatoryfactoranalysiswasconductedforaclusterofitemsineachofthedimensions todetermine if the itemscoherearoundthe

dimensions.Aprinciplecomponentmethodwithaneigen-valuegreaterthan1applyingVarimaxrotationandatestofinternalconsistency(Cronbach’salphatest)determinedtheinclusionoftheitemsforeachofthethreedimensions.Schoolparticipationwasaseven-partquestionintheparentinvolvementsurveythataskedparentstoindicatewhetherornottheyparticipatedinvariousschool-relatedactivities.After the confirmatory factor analysis the seven itemsgeneratedaneigenvalueof2.79andexplained40%ofthevariancewithinternalitemconsistency(reliability)of.68(i.e.,Cronbach’salphavalue)andanaveragefactorloadingof .62.Homediscussion—four itemswere retained afterconductingaconfirmatoryfactoranalysis,whichgeneratedaneigenvalueof2.14andexplained53%ofthevariancewithinternalconsistency(reliability)of.70(i.e.,Cronbach’salphavalue) andanaverage factor loadingof .70.Homeroutineconstitutedoffouritemsthatwereretainedafterconductingaconfirmatoryfactoranalysis,whichgeneratedaneigenvalueof1.68andexplained42%ofthevariancewithinternalconsistency(reliability)of.51andanaveragefactorloadingof.65.

Schoolbelonging.Schoolbelongingisameasureofstudents’perceptionsofacceptance,respect,inclusion,andsupportwithintheschoolcontext(Goodenow&Grady,1993).Basedonpriorresearch(e.g.,Goodenow&Grady,1993;Osterman,2000),five itemswereselectedfromafive-partquestioninroundsevenoftheECLS-Kstudentfilethataskedeighth-gradestudentstoratetheirbelongingperceptionsaboutschool.Thefiveitemsweresubjectedtoaconfirmatoryfactoranalysistofigureouthowtheycoheretogether.Aprinciplecomponentmethodwithaneigenvaluegreaterthan1applyingVarimaxrotationandatestofinternalconsistency(Cronbach’salphatest)deter-minedtheinclusionofallfiveitems.Theitemsgeneratedaneigenvalueof2.3andexplained54%ofthevariance.Theinternalconsistency(reliability)oftheitemswas.71withanaveragefactorloadingof.68.

Control VariablesThecontrolvariablesincludedwere:FamilySES;prior

academicachievement(i.e.,fifth-grademathandreadingIRT scores); middle school; and student demographicssuchasgender,race,anddisabilitystatus(seeTable1formoredetails).Thereisresearchtoshow,forinstance,thatstudents often receive differential treatment in schoolbased on “race, gender, class, ability, and appearance,andthat[such]differentiationbeginsearlyintheschoolcareerandincreasesasstudentsprogressthroughschool”(Osterman,2000,p. 351).Therefore, it is important toaccountforthesefactors.

SESindicator.TheECLS-Kdataprovidedapovertystatusvariable(W8POVRTY).Thispovertyindicatorwasderivedfromanumberofquestionsfromaparentsurveyincluding:Totalhousehold incomemore/less than25k(P7HILOW), household income category (P7NCCAT),imputedhouseholdincomecategory(W8INCCAT),totalmembersinhousehold(P7HTOTAL),andlastlythe2007censusdefinedpovertythresholds.Forthiscurrentstudy,SESisusedasapovertyindicator,whichisdividedintolow

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Table1

Selected ECLS-K Items for Variables in Current Study

Variable ECLS-KDataItems

Achievement Computedaveragescoreof8thgradereading(codedC7R4RSCL)andmath(codedC7R4MSCL)ItemResponseTheory(IRT)scalescoresfromtheECLS-Kdatawithreading(weightedM=167.24;SD=28.03;Range=0to212)andmathematics(weightedM=139.28;SD=23.10;Range=0–174)

ParentInvolvement

School participation(fromround7parentfile):Sincethebeginningofthisschoolyearhaveyouortheotheradultsinyourhousehold:Attendedanopenhouseorback-to-schoolnight?AttendedameetingofaPTAorPTO?Attendedparent-teacherconferenceormeetingwithteacher?Attendedaschoolorclassevent?Volunteeredattheschoolorservedonacommittee?Participatedinfundraising?Contactedteacherorschool?(allitemscoded0=no,1=yes)

Home Discussion(fromround7parentfile):Howoftendoyou:Discussreportcard?Talkaboutdayatschool?Talkaboutgrades?Talkaboutschoolactivities?(coded,1=notatallto4=everyday)

Home Routine(fromround7parentfile):Aretherefamilyrulesabout:WatchingTV?MaintainingacertainGPA?Doinghomework?Timeonthecomputerorplayingvideogames?(coded,0=no,1=yes)

SchoolBelonging

Fromround7studentfile:Howoftendidyou:Feelyoufitinatschool?Feelclosetoclassmates?Feelclosetoteachersatyourschool?Enjoybeingatschool?Feelsafeatschool?(coded,1=neverto4=always)

PriorAchievement

Computedaveragescoreof5thgradereading(codedC6R4RSCL)andmath(codedC6R4MSCL)ItemResponseTheory(IRT)scalescores

Race/Ethnicity

Twoindicatorsprovidedthechildracecomposite(RACEandW8RACETH).Coded1=White,2=Black,3=Hispanic,4=Other.Alsodummycoded0=White,1=Minorities.

Gender Childcompositegender(GENDER).Coded0=male,1=female

SpecialEdStatus

Childwithdisability(P7DISABL),coded0=no,1=yes

MiddleSchool Derivedfromtwoindicators:Lowestgradeattheschool(S7LOWGRD)andthehighestgradetheschool(S7HIGGRD).Coded0=“notmiddleschoolonly,”1=middleschoolonly

SES SESlevel(W8POVRTY,coded0=HighSES,1=lowSES)derivedfromtotalhouseholdincomemore/lessthan25k(P7HILOW),householdincomecategory(P7INCCAT),imputedhouseholdincomecategory(W8INCCAT),totalmembersinhousehold(P7HTOTAL),and2007censusdefinedpovertythresholds.

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SESandhighSESbasedon2007(yeardatawascollected)federalpovertythresholds.

Middle school. For this study, the middle schoolvariable (referring to stand-alone grades6-8)was gener-atedfromtwoindicatorsintheECLS-Kdatathatwerereportedbytheschooladministrator.Theseincludethelowest grade at the school (S7LOWGRD) and highestgrade at the school (S7HIGGRD). Creating the stand-alonemiddleschoolvariablewasnecessarybecauseintheECLS-KdataschoolswerenotreportedaselementaryormiddleschoolorK-8.Also,astand-alonemiddleschoolwaspertinenttothisstudybecausetransitionintomiddlewasanimportantcomponent.ThemiddleschoolvariablewasnamedMSONLYanddummycoded0=“non-middleschoolonly,”1=“middleschoolonly.”

Priorachievement.Researchsuggeststhatastudent’sprioracademicskillshavethepotentialtopredictfutureacademicoutcomeshencecanserveeitherasaprotectiveorriskfactor(Keith,2006;Tourangeau,Nord,Lê,Soron-gon,&Najarian,2009).Thus,forthisstudy,acomputedaveragescoreoffifth-gradereadingandmathIRTscalescoresisusedwithcalculatedrangeof0-143.ECLS-KdatareportsIRTscalescores,withvaluesrangingfrom0to212,weightedmeanof148.67,andastandarddeviationof26.85forreading(C6R4RSCL);rangeof0-174,meanof122.94;astandarddeviationof25.15formathematics(C6R4MSCL);andrangeof0-111,meanof63.72,andstandarddeviationof15.73forscience(C6SR2SSCL).

Student gender and ethnicity. The ECLS-K datareportedthegendervariable(GENDERorC7GENDER)asderivedfromthreedifferentdatasources:Theparentinterview (INQ.016), child report (AIQ.050), and theFieldManagementSystem(FMS).Forthisstudy,gender(GENDER)isCoded0=male,1=female.Withregardtotherace/ethnicityvariable,ECLS-Kdataprovidedtwoindicators (RACEandW8RACETH)as collected fromparent interview data and the FMS). For this currentstudy,theracecompositevariablewascoded1=White,2=Black,3=Hispanic,and4=Otherandalsodummycoded0=White,1=Minorities.

Disabilitystatus.TheECLS-Kdatareportedthestu-dents’disabilitystatusfromparentinterviews(P7DISABL)andthefalleighth-gradeFMSfile(F7SPCS).Forthiscurrentstudy,thedisabilitystatusvariablewasdummycoded0=no(withoutdisability)and1=yes(withdisability).

AnalysisAllanalyseswereconductedusingStata12statistical

software;allanalysesaccountfortheclusterednatureoftheECLS-Ksurveydesign.Multipleregressionanalyseswereconducted:First,controlvariablesmodelwasestimatedtothesampleasawaytoestimatetheircontributingeffectsoneighth-gradeachievement.Second,maineffectsregressionmodelwasestimatedtotheeighth-gradestudentsample.Lastly,multiplicativeinteractiontermswereintroducedtothemodel.Interactiontermswerecreatedasaproductofthetwomainindependentvariablesandselectedcontrolvariables;thatis,priorachievement,stand-alonemiddle

school,andSES.Thegoaloftheinteractiontermswastoexamineifparentalinvolvementandschoolbelongingweremoderatedbypriorachievementwhichwasassessedatfifthgrade, stand-alonemiddle school,andSES: (a)parentalinvolvementbyschoolbelonging,(b)parentalinvolvementbypriorachievement,(c)parentalinvolvementbymiddleschool,(d)parentalinvolvementbySES,(e)schoolbelong-ingbypriorachievement,(f)schoolbelongingbymiddleschool,and(g)schoolbelongingbySES.

ResultsTable2presentscorrelationcoefficientsbetweenall

variablesinthemodel.Ingeneral,thetableshowsweakcorrelationsbetweenvariablesinthestudy.GroupmeansandstandarddeviationsforlowSESandfullsampleofeighth-gradestudentsareprovidedinTable3.

Main EffectsBefore estimating themain effectsmodel, achieve-

mentwasregressedoncontrolvariables(seeModel1inTable4)toestablishtheireffect.Thesevariablesexplained.765ofthevarianceineighth-gradeperformance.Allcon-trolvariables,butmiddleschool(stand-alonegrades6-8),werestatisticallysignificant.Asexpected,race,disabilitystatus, andSESwerenegatively related toachievement.Prior achievement (fifth-grade achievement) emerged asthesinglemoststronglyrelatedcontrolvariabletoeighth-grade achievement. Model 2 (see Table 4), eighth-gradeachievementwasregressedonthethreeparentalinvolve-mentdimensions(schoolparticipation,homediscussion,andhomeroutine)andschoolbelongingaccountingforSES,priorachievement,gender,race,middleschool,anddisabilitystatus.Thismodelexplained.772ofthevariancein eighth-grade achievement, a .007 difference in thevarianceexplainedbetweenModels1and2.Theslightincrease,althoughstatisticallysignificant,inthevarianceexplainedwascontributedbyasenseofschoolbelonging.Schoolbelongingwassignificant(b=.033,t(2183)=3.22,p=.001);however,noneofthethreeparentalinvolvementdimensions was statistically significant when adjustingfor theothervariables in themodel, implying that stu-dentsfeelingconnectedtotheirschoolaremorelikelytoperformwellacademically.OthersignificantvariablesinModel2includedSES,priorachievement,gender,race,anddisability,butSESstatus,race,anddisabilitystatuswereinverselyrelatedtoachievement.Inotherwords,stu-dentsfromlowSES,racialminorities,andstudentswithdisabilitiesare likely toperformlowerthantheirpeers.Also,femalestudentsarelikelytoperformbetterthantheirmalecounterparts.Furthermore,priorachievementwasthesinglestrongestvariable[b=.863,t(2183)=76.80,p<.001]associatedwitheighth-gradeachievementcontrollingforothervariablesinthemodel.Inotherwords,eighth-grade students who entered middle school with betteracademicskills(suchasmathandreading)aremorelikelytomaintainacademicthroughmiddleschool.Theoverallmodelitself(i.e.,Model2)wasstatisticallysignificant[F(10,2183)=814,p<.001].

40 VOLUME 19 NUMBER 1

Table2

Measured Variable Correlations

Variable 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

1. 8thgradeachieve

1.00

2. Schoolparticipate

-.09*** 1.00

3. Homediscussion

-.02* -.10*** 1.00

4. Homeroutine

.08*** .10*** -.19*** 1.00

5. Schoolbelonging

.16*** -.09*** .02 .01 1.00

6. Priorachieve

.87*** -.09*** -.01 .05*** .13*** 1.00

7. Gender .02 -.01 .00 .07*** .09*** -.02* 1.00

8. Race -.20*** .03*** -.07*** -.05*** -.05*** -.21*** .01 1.00

9. MS(grades6-8)

-.06*** .18*** -.03** .00 -.06*** -.03** .00 .03** 1.00

10. Disability .22*** -.00 -.04*** .00 .13*** .21*** .09*** .05*** -.03** 1.00

11. SES -.36*** .14*** -.08*** .03** -.09*** -.37*** .02 .25*** .05*** -.05*** 1.00

Note.Levelofsignificanceat*p≤.05,**p≤.01,***p≤.001.

41 THE JOURNAL OF AT-RISK ISSUES

Table3

Descriptive Statistics by SES

Means(SD)

LowSESn=1,445(16%)

HighSESn=7,364(84%)

Individualstudentcharacteristics

Gender(%female) 51.28(50.00)

48.94(50.00)

White 28.07a

(44.95)69.39a

(46.09)

AfricanAmericans/Black(%) 22.11a

(41.51)7.09a

(25.68)

Hispanic(%) 33.40a

(47.18)13.85a

(34.54)

Other(%) 16.42a

(37.06)9.67a

(29.55)

SpecialEducation(%yes) 20.00a

(40.00)15.00a

(35.00)

Cognitiveachievement

Mathachievement:5thgrade 126.94a

(23.91)146.06a

(19.99)

Readingachievement:5thgrade 149.82a

(29.59)176.16a

(24.75)

Mathachievement:8thgrade 107.49a

(25.84)129.53a

(22.38)

Readingachievement:8thgrade 131.35a

(26.63)156.82a

(23.89)

ParentInvolvement

Schoolparticipation1 -.58a

(1.11).10a

(.94)

Homediscussion1 -.17a

(1.23).03a

(.94)

Homeroutine1 -.08a

(1.10).01a

(.97)

Schoolbelonging1 -.21a

(1.09) .04a

(.97)

Middleschoolonly(%) 81a 74a

(39) (44)

Note.1OverallMean=0andStandardDeviation=1;originalitemswerestandardizedtoz-scoresduetodifferentiatedscales.Meanswiththesamesuperscriptwithineachrowaresignificantlydifferentata=.05.

42 VOLUME 19 NUMBER 1

Table4

Predicting Average Achievement for 8th-Grade Students

Fullsample

VariablesModel1bSE

Model2bSE

Model3bSE

Schoolparticipation -.01 .01 -.02 .02

Homediscussion .01 .01 -.06* .02

Homeroutine .00 .01 .03 .02

Schoolbelonging .03*** .01 .07** .02

Priorachievement .87*** .01 .86*** .01 .86*** .01

Gender .10*** .02 .09*** .02 .08*** .09

Race -.06** .02 -.06** .02 -.06* .02

Middleschool -.01 .02 -.02 .02 -.02 .02

Disabilitystatus -.09** .03 -.08** .03 -.08** .03

SES -.08** .03 -.08* .04 -.09* .04

SPxBelonging .00 .01

HDxBelonging .01 .01

HRxBelonging .01 .01

SPxPriorachievement .01 .01

HDxPriorachievement .00 .01

HRxPriorachievement .00 .01

SPxMiddleschool .01 .02

HDxMiddleschool .06** .02

HRxMiddleschool -.02 .02

BelongingxPA -.01 .01

BelongingxMiddleschool -.04 .02

BelongingxSES -.01 .03

SPxSES .03 .04

HDxSES .05 .04

HRxSES -.05 .04

R2 .765 .772 .774

Note.b=standardizedcoefficients,SE=standarderror.HighSESwasthereferencecategoryfortheSESvariable,malewasthereferencecategoryforgender,Whitewasthereferencecategoryforrace,withoutdisabilitywasthereferencecategoryfordisability,andnonmiddleschoolwasthereferencecategoryforthemiddleschool(grades6-8).Levelofsignificance:*p≤.05,**p≤.01,***p≤.001.

43 THE JOURNAL OF AT-RISK ISSUES

if the relationshipbetweenparental involvement, schoolbelonging,andacademicachievementvaryasafunctionofpriorachievementandmiddleschool.Thecorefindingofthisstudywasthatwhenparentinvolvementandschoolbelongingwereconsideredtogether,therewasnosignificantrelation-shipbetweenparentinvolvementandstudentachievementwhileschoolbelongingconsistentlyemergedasasignificantpredictorofachievement. Inotherwords, generallywheneighth-gradestudentsfeelasenseofschoolbelongingtheyarelikelytoexperiencehigheracademicachievement.Thisfindingisconsistentwiththeargumentthatearlyadolescentsareatanagewherebytheyoftenseekautonomyfromhomeandpursue relationships and supportoutside thehome(Woolley&Bowen,2007).Therefore,schoolprovidesthesettingforimportantnewrelationships.Althoughastrongrelationshipbetweenasenseofbelongingandachievementwasnotuniquetoeconomicallydisadvantagedstudents,allformsofsupportareparticularlycriticalforthesestudentsduetothecompoundingnatureoftheriskstheyoftenface.

Fromapolicystandpoint,sinceschoolsmaynotdi-rectlyinfluencethekindsoffamilyandhomeconditionsthatencouragepositivestudentoutcomes,schoolpolicycanregulateandelicitschool-basedfactorsfavorableforacademic success for all students. Utilizing GoodenowandGrady’s(1993)definitionofschoolbelonging,schoolbelonging is largely predicated on relationships withintheschool.Itiswithinthepurviewofteachersandschoolleadership to provide a supportive school environmentthatcanfacilitateaschoolcommunityofsuccess.First,teacher-student interactions in particular, both insideand outside the classroom, are a critical component inshapingstudents’overallschoolexperiencesandoutcomes.Duringmiddleschoolyears,inparticular,student-teacher

Interactive Relationships The eighth-grade achievement model (see Table 4,

Model3)indicatedthattheonlysignificantinteractionwashomediscussionbymiddleschool[b=-.06,t(2168)=2.89,p<.05]whichindicatedanegativeeffectonachievement.Allotherinteractionswerenonsignificant.Theoverallmodelwas significant [F(25, 2168)=358,p < .001], explaining77.4%(R2=.774)ofthevarianceinachievement.However,thesignificantinteractioncontributedaverysmall(orneg-ligible)increase(.004)inthevarianceexplained.Inorderto interpret the significant interaction,homediscussionbymiddleschool,graphingfollowingDawsonandRichter(2006)procedurewasemployed(seeFigure1).Figure1seemstosuggestthattherelationshipbetweenhomediscussionandschooldependsonorvariesbywhethertheschoolisastand-alonemiddleschoolornotaswellasthelevelofhomeconversations (lessormore) related to school,butwithanegativeeffectoneighth-gradestudentachievement.Particularly,Figure1suggeststhatlesshomeconversationsrelatedtoschoolwouldbepreferableforstudentsinnon-stand-alonemiddleschoolsettingswhilemoreschool-relatedconversationathomecouldeventuallybenefitstudentsinstand-alonemiddleschools.However,itisworthnotingthatthis relationship registeredminuscule significancewhichimpliesminusculepracticalsignificance.

Discussion,Limitations,andConclusionDiscussion

This study examined how parental involvementand schoolbelonging are synergistically associatedwithacademicachievementofeconomicallydisadvantagedeighth-grade students.This study further sought tounderstand

Figure 1.Interactionbetweenhomediscussion(HD)andmiddleschool(MS)predictingeighth-gradeachievement.

44 VOLUME 19 NUMBER 1

relationshipsareincreasinglycriticalasmostearlyadoles-centslookforrolemodelsandsupportfromnonparentaladults. This may be particularly true for students whomay lack adequate school-home supports (Perry-Jenkins&Wadsworth, 2013; Seccombe, 2002).However, thereisevidencethatdisadvantagedstudentsarelikelynottoexperience the full benefits of positive teacher-studentrelationshipsandsupport,inpart,becausethesestudentsoftendonotfitthemoldofmodelstudents.Therefore,theyarelikelytoexperiencedifferentialteachertreatmentbasedonstudents’“race,gender,class,ability,andappear-ance,and that [such]differentiationbeginsearly in theschoolcareerandincreasesasstudentsprogressthroughschool”(Osterman,2000,p.351).Unfavorabletreatmentproducesfurtherdisengagement,withdrawal,alienation,andaggression(Valenzuela,1999).

Second, school administrators have an obligationtofacilitateaschoolclimatewherebyat-riskstudentscanfeelwelcome,respected,included,andsupported,whichthencantranslateintoschoolengagementandacademicsuccess. Schools that serve economically disadvantagedstudentsrequireschooladministratorswhoaredrivenbyone goal—to improve student achievement (Leithwood,Louis,Anderson,&Wahlstrom,2004).Administratorscantakeanumberofactionstoincludeleveragingtheirhiringpowerandtheir leadership inprofessionaldevel-opmenttoassembleacohortofteacherswhoarewillingand equipped to meet the needs of diverse students(Weiner, 2000). Also, the principal’s strategic presenceorvisibilityintheschoolandcommunitygoesalongwayinbuildingrelationshipswithstudentsaswellasparents.Forinstance,someprincipalsengageinactivitiessuchasdirectingtrafficflowduringstudentdrop-offandpick-upand in theevent initiating informal conversationswithparents and their children during this time (Habegger,2008).Otherprincipalshabituallygreetstudentsastheygointotheschoolbuildingorastheypassbyinthehallwaysandthereforeplayaroleinestablishingrelationshipswithstudents.Moreover,Rieg(2007)suggestedthatprincipalsneedtotaketheinitiativetovisitclassroomsmoreoftenandparticipate in learning activitieswith the students.Further, Rieg noted that outside of the school setting,theprincipalattendingafter-schoolorcommunityeventsreinforcestostudentsthattheprincipalcaresaboutboththeiracademicsuccessandnonacademicinterests.Theseareactivitiesthathavethepotentialtobringtostudentsasenseofbelonging.

LimitationsThefindingsfromthisstudyshouldbeinterpretedin

lightofvariouslimitations.Onelimitationisthemeasuresusedtoconceptualize theverycomplexnatureofparentinvolvement.For example,home-basedparental involve-mentinthisstudywasconfinedtothefamilyrulesguidingparentalexpectationsoftheirchildreninrelationtoschoolandalsohomediscussionwaslimitedtoconversationsaboutschool.Thisissimplisticgiventhecomplexnatureoffamilyprocessesastheyrelatetotheacademicandlifetrajectoriesofchildren.However,thisisnotaspecificproblemofthis

study,butonethatisgeneraltothenatureofsocialscienceresearch.Itisdifficulttocapturethecomplexityoffamilyprocessesandhowtheyeventuallyinfluencechildren’saca-demicandlifeoutcomes.Moreso,itremainsachallengetoisolatethespecificaspectsoffamilyprocessesthataretrulysignificantinchangingtheacademictrajectoriesofchildren.

Furthermore,thisstudyprovidesonlyasnapshot(i.e.,Grade8),asisthecasewithmoststudies,oftherelationshipbetweenparentalinvolvement,senseofschoolbelonging,andschooloutcomes.Therefore,itmaybemeaningfultoexamineparentalinvolvementandschoolbelongingfromalongitudinalperspectivesuchasK-8.Takingalongitudinalapproach could identify changes inparent involvementacrossthegradesanditseffectonachievement,particularlyasapotentialprotectivefactor.Inaddition,alongitudinalstudywouldallowfortheanalysisofhowvariouscompo-nentsofparental involvement changeover time, and towhatextentthesechangescouldexplaindiscrepanciesinachievementbetweenlowSESandhighSES.

Conclusion Accordingtothisstudy,schoolbelongingemergedas

asignificantlyimportantfactorrelatedtopositiveschooloutcomesformiddleschoolstudents.Inotherwords,whenearly adolescents feel a sense of belonging (i.e., feelingaccepted, respected, included, and supported) in theirschool,theyaremorelikelytoperformwellacademically.Fortunately,itiswithinthepurviewofteachersandschoolleaderstofacilitateaclimateofbelongingthatwillallowmiddle school students, particularly those exposed toadverseconditions,tosucceed.

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Author

NathernS.A.Okilwa,PhD,isanassistantprofessorinthe Department of Educational Leadership and PolicyStudiesintheCollegeofEducationandHumanDevel-opmentat theUniversityofTexasatSanAntonio.Hisresearchinterestsincludeeducationalandlifeoutcomesofdisadvantagedormarginalizedstudents, theprepara-tionofschoolleadersthatsupportdiverselearners,andeducationalpolicy.