Changing the Narrative: Student Empowerment in Unequal School Contexts

<p>Educational experiences affect a wide variety of life outcomes for individuals. The type of education an individual receives influences their occupation, the neighborhood in which they live, and even their risk of mortality (National Research Council, 2013; Sasson, 2016). In particular, the life trajectories of students who attend high-poverty schools are not the same as youth who attend schools with greater resources (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2013; Taylor, 2005). In this dissertation, I provide a brief background on current rates of disproportionality in education and examine how specific theoretical constructs and educational policies may be used to explain the aforementioned disparities or develop solutions to them. I conducted a convergent parallel mixed methods research study examining perceptions of student empowerment in one high-poverty elementary school using a quantitative survey and qualitative interviews with students in grades 4-6. I used Kirk et al.’s (2016) three constructs of student empowerment to guide this dissertation. The findings indicate that there is a need for teachers and social workers to increase opportunities for relationship building, power sharing, and sense of community amongst students and staff. This holds particularly true for older students, males, and students of color as they reported fewer instances of empowerment. Participants specifically described wanting teachers to see them as diverse individuals and not just students. They also discussed needing opportunities to make decisions and share their voice, and staff intervention when bullying or foul language is used to aid them in feeling safer at school. In this dissertation I make recommendations for how teachers, social workers, and policy makers can implement these practices into the school system to strengthen its effectiveness. This study has the potential to show that by empowering students, it may allow them higher rates of academic achievement despite the disparities they face in school and illuminate the benefits of working collaboratively with students rather than in a position power.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Year dc:date.available

2024

Author dc:creator

• Nisle-Mikos, Stephanie A.

Contributors dc:contributor

• Jennifer Greenfield

• Equitable roles
• High-poverty
• Sense of community
• Student empowerment
• Student voice
• Student-teacher relationships
• Disability and Equity in Education
• Education
• Education Policy
• Elementary Education
• Inequality and Stratification
• Social and Behavioral Sciences
• Social Work

Statement dc:rights

• <p>Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.</p>

Language dc:language

English (eng)

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/2420

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digitalcommons.du.edu:etd-3408