Paper Example: Parent College Readiness Interventions

Colleges continue to play their critical role in providing the students with a pathway of exploring themselves. They also assist the students in expanding their social and cultural experiences and ensuring that they eventually build a more promising career. Although the college education is perceived to be rich in diversity and rewards, it continues to ardour the first-generation college students (Hahs-Vaughn, 2004). The college education opportunities were initially limited to students from lower socioeconomic status. Hence, the parent college readiness intervention will lead to an increase in college enrollment for low-income first-generation minority students.

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Parent college readiness intervention will result in an increase in students being enrolled because they play a significant role in offering the practical and academic knowledge that the students require in order to be successful in higher education. However, first-generation college students are from low-income families hence attending low performing pre-k-12 schools (Dumais & Ward, 2010). The parent college readiness intervention can help in the increase in enrollment of such students through offering the necessary family support as well as financial stability. They can as well assist in doing away with the low academic self-esteem that seems to affect the majority of the low-income first-generation minority students.

The parents continue to assist the students in gaining familiarity with the signs of the high school curriculum and its relationship with the college preparedness as well as the readiness of the first-generation minority students. They continue to play a role in increasing the demand of their children taking advantage of the advanced placement courses (Roderick et al., 2009). When the parents combine such factors, they will positively impact enrollment for low-income first-generation minority students (Dennis et al., 2005). For the parents to increase the enrollment of such students, they will need to have a wider knowledge of the various higher education institutions and the specific educational needs that suits their children.

Most of the low-income first-generation minority students feel uncomfortable within the collegiate atmosphere. One of the key reasons why the students may feel that way is because of the limited communication as well as interactions among their peers. If the parents would increase the enrollment of such students, then they need to help such students in increasing their confidence while interacting with their peers (McCarron & Inkelas, 2006). The parent college readiness intervention can assist in improving the students` low levels of academic self-esteem and the various challenges that such students may experience while adjusting to their respective college settings.

Low-income first-generation students often need developmental coursework, and most of the times, they tend to score lower grades compared to the other students from much stable income families mainly because of their college-educated parents. The parent intervention may contribute to an increase in the students being enrolled because they assist in building confidence in the low-income first-generation students in their capability towards being academically competitive and successful (Atherton, 2014). In most cases, such minority students face the stigma that for their admission within the colleges, the process is mainly based on affirmative action instead of their academic abilities hence that is one perception that the parents need to do away with from their children.

Minimal exposure towards the college-going culture results to challenges while assimilating to the college setting for the low-income first-generation minority students both academically and socially. Such students struggle a lot while finding their place in the college and that results in a feeling of being left out. Perceptions of negative student-college interactions may result in counteractive effects towards the sense of belonging of such students hence resulting from dropping outs (Leonard, 2013). Therefore, while the parents assist in the increase of such students, they need to increase their estrangement through not separating the children from their respective families which in return would help in ensuring that they become more socially engaged with the college culture.

Lack of family support is another significant factor that results in low enrollment of the low-income first-generation college students. Although the parents have diverse opinions concerning college education, most of the low-income parents perceive college as a venture that is developed mainly for rich people. Such parents, in most cases, perceive the desire of their children to join the college education as either offensive or arrogant (Gándara et al., 2001). As part of increasing the number of students being enrolled in the colleges, the parents need to have a better understanding of the amount of time and academic focus that is required from the students (Jeynes, 2007). The parents will do so by offering the necessary emotional support to their children and having a better understanding of the commitment that is required for a student to be successful in their college education.

The parents will contribute to increasing the number of students enrolled in the colleges by encouraging their children to participate in various college-readiness programs that would assist them in their pursuit of a college education. The key objective of such programs is to increase the college enrollment as well as increasing the completion rates for the economically disadvantaged students (Barry et al., 2008). When the parents encourage their children to be more involved in such programs, hence it increases the opportunities for the first-generation college students to learn about the financial support they will get once enrolled in their respective colleges.

Conclusion

In conclusion, when the parents take various college readiness intervention measures, they will significantly increase enrollment for low-income first-generation minority students. The parents need to do so through doing away with the low academic self-esteem affecting most of the low-income first-generation minority students. They can also do all that by increasing their estrangement through not separating the children from their respective families.

References

Atherton, M. C. (2014). Academic preparedness of first-generation college students: Different perspectives. Journal of College Student Development, 55(8), 824-829. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/561674/summary

Barry, L. M., Hudley, C., Cho, S. J., & Kelly, M. (2008). College Students' Perceptions of Parental Support: Differences and Similarities by First-generation Status. Southeastern Teacher Education Journal, 1(1). http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx

Dennis, J. M., Phinney, J. S., & Chuateco, L. I. (2005). The role of motivation, parental support, and peer support in the academic success of ethnic minority first-generation college students. Journal of college student development, 46(3), 223-236. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/182831/summary

Dumais, S. A., & Ward, A. (2010). Cultural capital and first-generation college success. Poetics, 38(3), 245-265. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304422X09000680

Gándara, P., Gutiáez, D., & O'Hara, S. (2001). Planning for the future in rural and urban high schools. Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk, 6(1-2), 73-93. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1207/S15327671ESPR0601-2_5

Hahs-Vaughn, D. (2004). The impact of parents' education level on college students: An analysis using the beginning postsecondary students longitudinal study 1990-92/94. Journal of College Student Development, 45(5), 483-500. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/173980/summary

Jeynes, W. H. (2007). The relationship between parental involvement and urban secondary school student academic achievement: A meta-analysis. Urban Education, 42(1), 82-110. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0042085906293818

Leonard, J. (2013). Maximizing College Readiness for All Through Parental Support. School Community Journal, 23(1), 183-202. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1004338

McCarron, G. P., & Inkelas, K. K. (2006). The gap between educational aspirations and attainment for first-generation college students and the role of parental involvement. Journal of College Student Development, 47(5), 534-549. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/201902/summary

Roderick, M., Nagaoka, J., & Coca, V. (2009). College readiness for all: The challenge for urban high schools. The future of children, 185-210. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27795040