Black Deaf Students : A Model for Educational Success

10 Conclusions and Recommendations

170 Conclusions and Recommendations 10 In this study, the African American deaf and hard of hearing participants described the protective factors that their parents, schools, postsecondary programs, community organizations, and other stakeholders provided for them. These protective factors contributed to their academic preparation for postsecondary programs and their perseverance to earn bachelor’s degrees. The conceptual framework for this study was the resilience model. Studies have shown that with the necessary protective factors in their lives, students can prevail through obstacles and have successful academic outcomes . There were seven major findings from this study: 1. All of the African American families, especially the parents, provided protective factors that were primary contributors to the participants’ academic achievement and graduation from postsecondary programs. 2. The individual characteristics of the participants that prepared them for school and enhanced their ability to succeed in school and postsecondary programs were primarily developed and strengthened in their homes. 3. Both African American and White teachers were the primary agents in participants’ elementary, middle, and high schools who had a major impact on their educational achievement. 4. There was no indication of a coordinated effort to help the participants ’ transition from high school to postsecondary programs. 5. Postsecondary programs provided no organized approach for social and academic integration of the participants into the programs. 6. The community resource that was most vital to their graduation from postsecondary programs was the VR agency that provided them with postsecondary information and financial support. 7. Protective factors had more influence on the participants’ academic achievement and their graduation from postsecondary programs than family demographics. 171 Conclusions and Recommendations Families First and foremost in this study, it was found that families, especially parents , played a paramount role in the preparation of their children for school. The participants’ families provided a caring and supportive environment, and they let the participants know through their words and actions that they were loved and considered important and valued members of the family . Each of the participants had at least one parent with whom they had a caring and supportive relationship during the time that they were in school. The participants also had the support of their siblings and extended family members. Caring and supportive relationships provided them with the foundation and strength they needed when confronted with difficult situations . There is consistent evidence that children’s likelihood for academic achievement is enhanced when protective factors exist in the home. The participants entered school with positive self-images and educational preparation , and they felt cared for and valued by their parents. Children whose behaviors and educational skills are consistent with expected school behaviors are more likely to progress well in school (Taylor, 1991). The participants received academic, social, and cultural preparation through their parents prior to entering school, and their parents provided competent and appropriate role models for them.The participants discussed learning many of their behaviors by watching their parents’ behaviors. For example, some of the parents were avid readers who encouraged their children to read by buying them books, taking them tothe library, and encouraging them to buy books instead of toys. The participants’ parents provided protective factors early in their lives that prepared them for school such as encouraging and helping them to learn to read. The parents also limited the time that their children watched TV. Their parents monitored their homework. Though some of their parents could not help them with their homework and they had to rely on a sibling or others to help them, their parents made the arrangements for this to take place. Most of their parents were not college graduates, but they made sure their children achieved in school. The parents’ determination to ensure that their children succeeded in school again supports the research that it is not the demographics but the protective factors in the home that make the difference. The participants’ parents prepared them to function well in school by having high expectations for them to perform well academically and Chapter Ten 172 for their behavior to be appropriate. Their parents knew they had the intelligence to succeed, and they communicated that they expected their children to achieve in school. They also held high expectations about how children would behave in the home, at school, and in the community . They provided them help with their academic work when needed; however, they expected them to complete their own homework and their household chores. When they...