PRAN Themed Research

In Halifax, Montreal, Toronto, and Edmonton, PRAN members are researching, mobilizing results, and building capacity for students and partners. Eight themes linked to SSAI resilience and thriving characterize our work: 1) From pre-arrival to integration; 2) Gender relations; 3) Family, parenting, and children; 4) Youth and systems (schools, criminal justice, social services); 5) Entrepreneurship; 6) Financial literacy; 7) Employment and training; 8) Well-being.

On this page, you will find information on research projects related to one or more of these themes. While these projects are led by our research partners or students, they’re separate from PRAN Core Research and Partner-Driven Activities.

Parenting & Children

Parental & family influences on post-secondary educational achievement

Second generation Sub-Saharan African youth: Parental and family influences on post-secondary educational achievement in Ontario

Lead Researcher: Alana Butler, Associate Professor, Queen’s University

Project Summary

Research shows that Black Canadian students have graduated from high school and university at lower rates than their white counterparts (Abada et al., 2009; Dei et al., 1997; James and Turner, 2017; Livingstone & Weinfeld, 2017; Robson et al., 2018).

According to Statistics Canada (2020):

- - Canadian-born men (25.7%) vs non-immigrant Black men (18%) earned a bachelor’s degree or higher,
  - Canadian-born women (41%) vs non-immigrant Black women (31%) have obtained a degree.

While limited, existing research tells us two important things about the educational experiences of African immigrants in Canada. First, African immigrants experience anti-Black racism in schools (James et al. 2017; Shizha et al. 2020). Second, their parents have high expectations and aspirations for their success in schools (Mason et al., 2022; Okyere et al., 2024; Salami et al., 2020).

Building on the existing research, this project focuses on second-generation Sub-Saharan African youth and the influence of their parents and families on their achievement of post-secondary degrees. The project is asking the following research questions:

1. 1. What are the experiences of second-generation sub-Saharan African youth in Canadian post-secondary education?
  2. How have these youth been influenced by their sub-Saharan African immigrant parents and family members?
  3. How do youth demonstrate their resilience throughout their post-secondary educational journeys?

Methods

The project will conduct in-depth qualitative interviews with 40 second generation sub-Saharan African youth attending post-secondary institutions across Ontario.

Trainees

Two African immigrant doctoral students will be hired for the project.

PRAN Themes

Parenting & Children | Youth & System