ings than did those from either stepfamilies or single-parent families.
Similarly, the purpose of a study conducted by Herek (1994) was to determine if there was any difference in academic achievement levels of junior high school students from two-parent families and one-parent families. The study, conducted at Hoover Junior High School (grades 7-9) in Long Beach California, compared grade point averages between the two parental status groups.
Study data revealed that with students who were failing, and with average and above-average, students there was little difference in the academic achievement of middle-school children from one-parent families and those from two-parent families. However, the research data indicated there was a negative relationship between parental status and academic achievement in students who were achieving below average; these were students attaining no more than a 1 to 1.9 grade point average. Specifically, findings revealed that students achieving at this level were detrimentally affected by single-parent status.
Fitzpatrick (1993) investigated the relationship between school performance and family status as measured by academic achievement, attendance, discipline, and participation in extracurricular activities. These relationships were studied in order to determine whether there is a statistically significant difference between the academic performance of one-parent students and that of students living in two-parent families. Data were collected from a population of 11th-grade (N=564) students at Plymouth Salem High School, Canton, Michigan. Students completing the questionnaire were asked to provide data on educational and family status, living arrangements, participation in extracurricular activities, future educational plans, and counselor contacts during the first semester of the 1992 93 school year. Along with the questionnaire, school records from the administrative, guidance, an...