A study was conducted in Logan County, Oklahoma, among rural disadvantaged high school students whose families' total income was $4,000 annually or below. The objectives of the study were: (1) to determine whether the source of family income, public or non-public assistance, had an effect upon academic performance of students from the same socioeconomic bracket; (2) to determine the relationship between the parent's educational aspirations for the child and the child and the child's own aspirations; and (3) to determine the effects of family role evaluation within the family on academic performance. Separate questionnaires were filled out by 145 students and their mothers. Sixty of the students were from families receiving public assistance and 85 of the students were from families who were not receiving any aid, but who income was below $4,000. The study revealed: (1) public assistance students received lower grades than non-public assistance students; (2) parents had lower vocational aspirations for their children than the children themselves; and (3) academic performance was definitely affected, both by the degree of shared activity with parents, and by the amount of help which parents gave to their children. (RH)