Falling Stars : The Valuing of Academic Achievement among African American, Latino, and White Adolescents / April Z. Taylor, Sandra Graham and Cynthia Hudley.

Two studies examined adolescent students' achievement values. Study 1 participants were 146 male and 161 female African American seventh and eighth graders attending an all-black middle school. Using sociometric procedures, participants nominated classmates whom they admired, respected, and wanted to be like. These nominations were combined to create a "value index." Respondents also nominated classmates who tried hard, followed school rules, did not try hard, did not follow school rules, wore nice clothes, and were good at sports. All participants were classified according to achievement level (high, medium, or low). Gender differences in the nomination pattern revealed that girls valued high-achieving girls more than low-achieving girls. The opposite was true for African American male respondents, who tended to show preferences for low-achieving boys. These gender patterns were partially replicated in an ethnically diverse middle school sample consisting of 159 African American, 240 Latino, and 60 White middle school students. In this second study, girls across the three ethnic groups tended to value same-ethnicity girls who were high achievers. White males showed a pattern of preferences similar to girls. African American and Latino boys, on the other hand, valued males who were low achievers. The implications of the findings for gender by ethnicity differences in adolescent achievement values are discussed. (Contains two tables, four figures, and five references.) (Author/SLD)

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