Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine persistence in school among students with Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) from the perspectives of the students themselves and their parents. Tinto’s (Citation1975, Citation1997) Student Integration Model (SIM) provided the theoretical framework for this research. This model involves an interplay between (1) background characteristics and attributes affecting the level of goal commitment, (2) level of academic integration, and (3) level of social integration into the institution that determine whether or not a student will graduate. The findings showed limited support for Tinto’s SIM and that parental advocacy is strongly linked with persistence among adolescents with FASD. A new model showing the parents’ role in encouraging persistence through their actions at home and advocacy at the schools is presented.
Acknowledgement
The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support of this research through a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.