“Peas ‘N Rice” or “Rice ‘N Peas”—Which One are We Really Ordering?

Abstract

The intent of the study was to explore the perceptions of African American male students who chose to leave the traditional academic setting and enroll in an alternative education program within the same school system. The primary informants, referred to as early leavers, were 5 African American male students enrolled in a suburban high school program, their parents, and several teachers. The study’s conceptual framework extended the analysis of the drop-out phenomenon beyond the demographics, drug culture, home environments, self-esteem, and teachers’ perceptions as contributing factors of African American early-leaver patterns and academic discontent. Instead, this study focused on the students’ narrated schooling experiences and offered insight to students’ agencies as alternate explanations of drop-out behavior.