Aggressive and non-aggressive black female students: A comparative study of selected high school characteristics

A major problem confronting education today is the at-risk student. In the opinion of some, the American school curriculum is a mirror of American society; and since our society had often oppressed the human potential and development of Black citizens, the school has done the same to many Black children. This writer was specifically concerned about the aggressive behavior of Black female students which places them more at-risk than the average Black student. The purpose of this study was to analyze the characteristics of Black female high school students during their 9-12th grade school experience who were involved in aggressive behavior compared to those students who were not. A second purpose of the study was to propose intervention strategies that would affect the academic success of Black females who were potentially at-risk. The place Black females occupy is established by the interaction of multiple forces, including parents, teachers, peers, and societal norms. To identify characteristics of Black female students, their school records were examined. Two groups were identified: (a) Students who exhibited aggressive behavior and (b) Students who were not aggressive. The characteristics included attendance, involvement in co-curricular activities, standardized test performance, grade point average, and family structure. To augment the information from student records, interviews were conducted with selected students from both groups to ascertain information about the student\u27s school experience, peer relationships, and family support. Data were summarized for females that exhibited aggressive behavior and those who did not. Frequencies and percentages were reported, and chi-square and the t test were used to further analyze the data. Policies, programs, and practices that schools could adopt and implement were suggested