Gender, Achievement, and African-American Students' Perceptions of Their School Experience

This article discusses factors related to academic achievement among African-American male and female students. A review of the literature on achievement and gender differences among African-American students and two empirical studies I conducted are presented. The results of the first study, which focused on achievement, indicated that successful achievers reported more positive self-perceptions, more interpersonal support, and more active problem solving. The results of the second study, which focused on gender differences, indicated differences in support favoring females. In addition, some gender differences were found in this sample that differed from those found for White students.