This course also helps them situate this particular work
within the larger context of challenges and innovations in urban education by introducing participants to literature on the achievement gap, the impact of
racial identity on school achievement, charter school policy and critiques, and the advent and
development of charter schools serving low income students that are based on high support and high expectations.
The primary constructs
within the hypothesized framework are: (1) social position variables — characteristics that are used
within societies to hierarchically stratify groups (race, gender, socioeconomic status); (2) parenting variables — familial mechanisms that may influence African American adolescents well - being, perceptions of competence, and attitudes towards others in various contexts (e.g., parenting practices and
racial socialization messages); (3)
racial discrimination — negative racially driven experiences that may influence feelings of competence, belongingness, and self - worth; (4) environmental / contextual factors — settings and surroundings that may impede or promote healthy
identity development (e.g., academic settings); and (5) learner characteristics — individual characteristics that may promote or hinder positive psychological adjustment outcomes (e.g.,
racial identity, coping styles).