Defining Belief in Self: Intelligent Young Men in an Urban High School

Abstract

To address the [ILLEGIBLE] of research on high-ability youth in urban environments this article chronicles the experiences of six intelligent young men in an urban high school. Through a qualitative research design that integrated features of case study and ethnographic research, the study examined how urban life experiences influenced academic achievement. The six cases reported in this study are a subset of 12 cases (Hebert, 1993) that contributed to a larger study (Reis, Hebert, Diaz, Maxfield, & Ratley, 1995) of talented students in an urban high school. Major findings for the high-ability achieving males were a strong belief it self that incorporated an “inner will,” aspirations, heightened sensitivity and a multicultural awareness and appreciation. Data analysis on the participants identified the following factors that influenced the strong belief it self relationships with supportive adults; involvement in extracurricular activities, sports, special programs, and summer school experiences, and family support Implications of the findings are presented along with suggestions for meeting the educational needs of intelligent young men in urban high schools.