Proficiency of Black Students Is Found to Be Far L

[Arwen]

Proficiency of Black Students Is Found to Be Far Lower Than Expected
By TRIP GABRIEL
Published: November 9, 2010

An achievement gap separating black from white students has long been documented — a social divide extremely vexing to policy makers and the target of one blast of school reform after another.

But a new report focusing on black males suggests that the picture is even bleaker than generally known.

Only 12 percent of black fourth-grade boys are proficient in reading, compared with 38 percent of white boys, and only 12 percent of black eighth-grade boys are proficient in math, compared with 44 percent of white boys.

Poverty alone does not seem to explain the differences: poor white boys do just as well as African-American boys who do not live in poverty, measured by whether they qualify for subsidized school lunches.

The data was distilled from highly respected national math and reading tests, known as the National Assessment for Educational Progress, which are given to students in fourth and eighth grades, most recently in 2009. The report, “A Call for Change,” is to be released Tuesday by the Council of the Great City Schools, an advocacy group for urban public schools.

Although the outlines of the problem and many specifics have been previously reported, the group hopes that including so much of what it calls “jaw-dropping data” in one place will spark a new sense of national urgency.

“What this clearly shows is that black males who are not eligible for free and reduced-price lunch are doing no better than white males who are poor,” said Michael Casserly, executive director of the council.

The report shows that black boys on average fall behind from their earliest years. Black mothers have a higher infant mortality rate and black children are twice as likely as whites to live in a home where no parent has a job. In high school, African-American boys drop out at nearly twice the rate of white boys, and their SAT scores are on average 104 points lower. In college, black men represented just 5 percent of students in 2008.

The analysis of results on the national tests found that math scores in 2009 for black boys were not much different than those for black girls in Grades 4 and 8, but black boys lagged behind Hispanics of both sexes, and they fell behind white boys by at least 30 points, a gap sometimes interpreted as three academic grades.

The search for explanations has recently looked at causes besides poverty, and this report may further spur those efforts.

“There’s accumulating evidence that there are racial differences in what kids experience before the first day of kindergarten,” said Ronald Ferguson, director of the Achievement Gap Initiative at Harvard. “They have to do with a lot of sociological and historical forces. In order to address those, we have to be able to have conversations that people are unwilling to have.”

Those include “conversations about early childhood parenting practices,” Dr. Ferguson said. “The activities that parents conduct with their 2-, 3- and 4-year-olds. How much we talk to them, the ways we talk to them, the ways we enforce discipline, the ways we encourage them to think and develop a sense of autonomy.”

The report urges convening a White House conference, encouraging Congress to appropriate more money for schools and establishing networks of black mentors.

What it does not discuss are policy responses identified with a robust school reform movement that emphasizes closing failing schools, offering charter schools as alternatives and raising the quality of teachers.

The report did not go down this road because “there’s not a lot of research to indicate that many of those strategies produce better results,” Mr. Casserly said.

Other have a different response. The key to narrowing the achievement gap, said Dr. Ferguson, is “really good teaching.”

One large urban school district that has made progress is Baltimore’s, where the dropout rate for African-American boys declined to 4.9 percent during the last academic year, down from 11.9 percent three years earlier. Graduation rates for black boys were also up: 57 percent in 2009-10, compared with 51 percent three years earlier.

Andres A. Alonso, the chief executive of the Baltimore City Public Schools, said the improvement had little to do with changes at the margins, like lengthening the school day or adding mentors. Rather, Mr. Alonso cited aggressively closing failing schools, knocking on the doors of dropouts’ homes to lure them back and creating real-time alerts — “almost like an electrical charge” — when a student misses several days of school.

“Hispanic kids and African-American kids this year had a lower dropout rate than white kids,” Mr. Alonso said.

www.nytimes.com/2010/11/09/education/09gap.html?_r=1&src=twt&twt=nytimesnational

[gatordog]

Related book on the matter. Here is the Time Magazine review of the book.

Studying the Impact of Race in the Classroom
By Randy James Thursday, Jul. 16, 2009


Read more: www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1910823,00.html#ixzz14oGhSkQI


Achievement Gaps: How Black and White Students in Public Schools Perform in Mathematics and Reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress
U.S. Department of Education
80 pages

The Gist:
Narrowing the persistent gap in achievement between white and minority students is one of the toughest challenges in education. In its first major report during the Obama Administration, the Department of Education offers one of the most comprehensive looks yet at the achievement gap between white and black pupils, based on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. The NAEP (pronounced nape) is a federal standardized test — known as "the nation's report card" — administered to fourth- and eighth-grade public-school students in reading and math. The state-by-state results show clear evidence of a continued problem: black students trail their white classmates in every state. But the report also offers some encouraging signs: overall scores have risen, and racial disparities are gradually shrinking in most areas, especially among younger students. Curiously, the South — the region traditionally hit hardest by the achievement gap — has been faring relatively well in bridging the gulf. Some Northern and Midwestern states that pride themselves on strong public-school systems, meanwhile, have been flustered as the gap persists and, in some cases, even widens. (Read TIME's report "How to Raise the Standard in America's Schools.")

Highlight Reel:
1. The bad: Black students trail white students in reading and math in every state. The average overall gap in fourth and eighth grades was 26 points on the 500-point NAEP. Some areas saw an even larger disparity: Massachusetts, for instance, had a 40-point gap in eighth-grade math. (See pictures of a public boarding school.)

2. The good: Scores for all students have risen since the NAEP was first administered, and the achievement gap narrowed by an average of 7 points from 1992 to 2007 (the date of the most recent test). Black fourth-graders have gained meaningful ground in math and reading since the test was first administered, in the early 1990s, while eighth-graders have made slight progress.

3. A problem: The report is not good news for Wisconsin. Excluding the District of Columbia, the Badger State had the nation's largest achievement gap in three of four areas: fourth- and eighth-grade reading as well as fourth-grade math. As in many Northern and Midwestern states, Wisconsin's white students generally perform well, providing a stark contrast to its underperforming minorities. Conversely, the small achievement gap in places like West Virginia (with a racial divide of just 13 points in fourth-grade reading) can prove a mixed blessing, as it often indicates that white students are missing the mark as well.

The Lowdown:
For states with otherwise strong school systems, these striking findings should serve as a wake-up call that not all students are thriving in their classrooms. Tallying data on the achievement gap is crucial to diagnosing the problem, but making real progress will require understanding the source of such persistent disparities and discovering meaningful remedies. On those subjects, unfortunately, the report is silent.

The Verdict: Skim. (this is the Time reviewers recommendation on the book)

Read more: www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1910823,00.html#ixzz14oGPb2k8

[asmodeus]

“There’s accumulating evidence that there are racial differences in what kids experience before the first day of kindergarten,” said Ronald Ferguson, director of the Achievement Gap Initiative at Harvard. “They have to do with a lot of sociological and historical forces. In order to address those, we have to be able to have conversations that people are unwilling to have.”

Just say it -- the reason for the gap is that blacks are having kids out of wedlock at an absolutely astronomical and shameful rate (between 70 and 80%). Until that changes, the scholastic results will not change.

I don't want my tax dollars going to new programs to close the achievement gap via more teachers, mentors, etc. I want those dollars spent on condoms, abortions, and any other system that reduces the number of single parent families. There should be no government support for a child unless the mother provides the SSN of the father. Are there going to be "lost" kids? No doubt. But until we get serious about stopping these out-of-wedlock births, nothing is going to change.

[gatordog]

Nov 9, 2010 22:59:07 GMT -5 asmodeus said:

]

Just say it -- the reason for the gap is that blacks are having kids out of wedlock at an absolutely astronomical and shameful rate (between 70 and 80%). Until that changes, the scholastic results will not change.

.

I am unwilling to jump to this very simple conclusion.

Other places in the world, Sweden for instance, also has a high out-of-wedlock birth rate. (I just looked it up: 55% out of wed lock births there). But their student test scores are high. How does your theory explain that?

Also, the report mentions the vexing conclusion that poverty alone cannot describe these results. Is there data that shows specifically parental status CAN explain the results? My impression was again, it is not so clear cut. For example, does data show parental status of whites and black students has same affect?

[Arwen]

I'm wondering how much of the current gap is due to the gaps of the past. One hallmark of children who succeed in school is that they are read to. If you read to your children, you are likely someone with a core level of literacy. If historically our country has done a poor job in educating African-Americans in comparison to other racial/ethnic groups, then that core level of literacy may not be present. If you aren't confident in your reading skills, then you won't read to your children and they will start school with a deficit compared to their peers who have been read to. I think it is sociologically interesting that the shortfalls are different between African-Americans and Hispanics. On the surface, I'd think the gap would be smaller for African-Americans vs. Hispanics due to English not necessarily being the language spoken in the home for the latter group.

[momto4]

I think it is worth looking into how home life differs prior to school-age for children and how this affects test scores and learning in school. Obviously children learn a lot at a young age and we know it's beneficial to expose them to many different experiences, books, toys, and interactions.

I will always remember visiting a relative teaching kindergarten locally but not in 204 whose class was mostly made up of Hispanic students. She told me that my 2 1/2 year old was already better prepared for K than the students in her classroom as most of them had no prior exposure to letters, numbers, colors, animal sounds, picture books, etc. I don't know what those kids were doing for 5 years, it seems like even sitting them down in front of Sesame Street would have been better.

These things do not require parents to have much experience with reading themselves, only to recognize the importance of their children having some learning prior to starting school.

For those children already in school, how can this deficit be made up? How can they make steady progress in school when they continue to live in the same environment that did not prepare them for kindergarten?

[asmodeus]

I am unwilling to jump to this very simple conclusion.

The simplest answer is usually the correct one.

Sweden for instance, also has a high out-of-wedlock birth rate

I believe more of those children have two parents at home, even if they aren't married.

[gatordog]

Nov 10, 2010 12:04:53 GMT -5 Arwen said:

I'm wondering how much of the current gap is due to the gaps of the past. ..... If historically our country has done a poor job in educating African-Americans in comparison to other racial/ethnic groups, then that core level of literacy may not be present. ....I think it is sociologically interesting that the shortfalls are different between African-Americans and Hispanic

This is getting at the core of the issue, I am afraid. When we are speaking historically here, the poor education of African-Americans is merely the tip of the iceberg of the devastating forces that the tragedy of slavery and then "Jim Crow" segregation in this country has brought.

Arwen's and momto4's comments directly link with a quote from the above article: “There’s accumulating evidence that there are racial differences in what kids experience before the first day of kindergarten,” said Ronald Ferguson, director of the Achievement Gap Initiative at Harvard. “They have to do with a lot of sociological and historical forces. In order to address those, we have to be able to have conversations that people are unwilling to have.”

The conversations that people are unwilling to have is we are still trying to come to grips with the legacy of racism in this country. No, people are not willing to have those conversations.

[asmodeus]

The conversations that people are unwilling to have is we are still trying to come to grips with the legacy of racism in this country. No, people are not willing to have those conversations.

Blacks need to get over it. Yes, slavery was horrible. But nobody is forcing today's blacks to have kids and then abandon them.

[gatordog]

Nov 11, 2010 17:46:46 GMT -5 asmodeus said:

Blacks need to get over it. Yes, slavery was horrible.

So, '40 acres and a mule' and a 'get over it ' message is all it takes!

But nobody is forcing today's blacks to have kids and then abandon them.

But seriously, I think you are missing something in what I understand the experts are reporting. And something they are squeamish about discussing. The "black achievement gap' cannot alone be explained by single parent status. Which suggests that it cant simply be explained (and therefore solved) by "dont abandon your kids." There are plenty of white kids raised in single parent households to. Nor can the gap alone be explained by low income status (as specifically talked about in the article). Yes these are factors. But what is hard to discuss in the PC world, is race somehow seems to be a factor. Because the same circumstances dont seem to produce the same outcome. Of course, we are absolutely in agreement, strengthening families and raising economic opportunities are things that must be done.

[asmodeus]

There are plenty of white kids raised in single parent households to.

And the overwhelming evidence shows that kids raised with one parent are much more likely to drop out of school, end up in prison, and use drugs.

[gatordog]

a search result from Vanderbilt Univ website

'Acting Black' hinders gifted black student achievement
Staff Reports

Gifted black students often underachieve in school because of efforts to “act black,” new research has found, offering insights into the achievement gap between black and white students in the United States and why black students are under-represented in gifted programs.

“Part of the achievement gap, particularly for gifted black students, is due to the poor image these students have of themselves as learners,” study author Donna Ford, Betts Professor of Education and Human Development, said. “Our research shows that prevention and intervention programs that focus on improving students’ achievement ethic and self-image are essential to closing the achievement gap.”

The research, one of the first to examine the concept of “acting black,” was published in the March issue of Urban Education.

Ford and co-authors Gilman Whiting and Tarek Grantham set out to determine how gifted black students achieve compared to their white counterparts, what can be learned about the achievement gap by studying these students, and how gifted students view “acting black” and “acting white.” They surveyed 166 black 5th- through 12th-graders identified as gifted in two Ohio school districts.

Most of the students were familiar with the terms “acting white” and “acting black.” They described “acting white” as speaking properly, being smart or too smart, doing well in school, taking advanced courses, being stuck up, and not acting your race. Terms they used to describe “acting black” were having a “don’t care” attitude, being laid back, being dumb or uneducated and pretending not to be smart.

Sixty-six percent of the students surveyed reported knowing someone who had been teased or ridiculed for doing well in school, while 42 percent reported being teased for this reason themselves.

The authors found discrepancies between students’ attitudes and their behaviors—students expressed belief that school is important and a key to success, but may not behave that way in the classroom.

The authors also found that while black students agree that hard work in school leads to success, they do not necessarily believe that this holds true for black people.

The authors argue for counseling to help battle peer pressure, stereotypes and poor self-esteem, and suggest promoting an achievement ethic in schools through posters, speakers, symposiums and mentoring programs.

Whiting is assistant professor of African American and Diaspora studies at Vanderbilt. Grantham is assistant professor of educational psychology at the University of Georgia.

[gatordog]

another article from www.ericdigests.org/2004-3/gap.html

ERIC Identifier: ED482919
Publication Date: 2003-12-00
Author: Flaxman, Erwin
Source: ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education

Closing the Achievement Gap: Two Views from Current Research. ERIC Digest.


Historically, we have tried to raise the achievement level of low-achieving minority and immigrant students living in urban low-income areas, but we now recognize that there is an even greater gap in student achievement in schools in suburban middle-income communities than in the inner cities, particularly at the higher achievement levels. (College Board, 1999). More minority students attend suburban schools than popularly believed; in 2000, 33 percent of African-American children, 45 percent of Hispanic children, 54 percent of Asian children, and 55 percent of white children lived in suburban areas, and they attended both poor, segregated schools and excellent racially integrated schools with many resources (Ferguson, 2002, p. 2).

We now have two major studies that can help us understand the achievement gap in suburban schools. Ronald Ferguson of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University analyzed the data collected by the Minority Student Achievement Network, formed by fifteen middle- and upper-middle-income districts throughout the nation. To better understand the experiences of different racial and economic group students that affect their academic achievement and academic engagement, the Network surveyed middle- and high-school students in ninety-five schools in fifteen districts using the"Ed-Excel Assessment of Secondary School Student Culture," developed by John Bishop of Cornell University. The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine how the schools can be educationally productive in closing the achievement gap in their heterogeneous student bodies.

The late John Ogbu, Professor of Anthropology at the University of California at Berkeley, conducted an ethnographic study of students at all grade levels in schools in Shaker Heights, Ohio. The ethnographers conducting the study observed 110 classrooms from the start to the finish of the lesson, in classes of (1) different racial makeup, (2) the same subject taught at different levels, (3) different subjects, (4) the same teachers teaching the same courses at different levels, (5) the same teachers teaching different courses, and (6) teachers of different races and genders. In the elementary school, the researchers also acted as participant-observers by assisting the teachers with small tasks when they asked for help (Ogbu, 2003). The purpose of this study was to determine how the identity of African-American students as an oppressed group outside the opportunity structure affects their academic achievement specifically and their school experience more generally. This digest distills and compares the findings and recommendations of these two important studies.

THE FERGUSON STUDY OF THE MINORITY STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT NETWORK (FERGUSON, 2003)

Self-Reported Achievement and Skill Disparities: Black, Hispanic, and mixed-race students reported lower grade-point averages than white and Asian students. Black and Hispanic students also reported less understanding of the lessons being taught and less comprehension of the reading material assigned.

Socioeconomic Status and Home Learning Resources: White and Asian students came to school with more of the educational resources identified with higher academic status (e.g., books and computers) than their African-American and Hispanic peers. However, these resources boost achievement less among African-American and Hispanic students than among students of other ethnicities.

Effort: African-American and Hispanic students identified teacher encouragement as a motive for their effort and substantially indicated that this encouragement was more motivating than teacher demands, unlike white students, who cited demands more than their minority peers. But white students also indicated that teacher encouragement was an incentive for them to make an effort to achieve.

Academic Behavior and Homework Completion Rates: By these measures whites and Asians appear more academically engaged and leave a greater impression of working harder and being more interested in their studies than their African-American and Hispanic peers. However, the students in all the population groups differed very little in time spent studying and doing homework, except Asians, and no group of students - including Asians - expressed a great deal of interest in schoolwork.

Ferguson (2003) draws a number of conclusions from his research for changes in the behavior of teachers in the classroom and in schools generally that can help close the achievement gap:

* Although teachers observe differences in academic performance and behavior between African-American, Hispanic, and mixed-race students on the one hand and white and Asian-American students on the other, in practice they should assume that there are no systematic group-level (as distinct from individual) differences in effort or motivation to succeed among the two groups (p. 18).

* Because there are observable racial and ethnic group gaps in standardized
achievement test scores and self-reported differences in comprehension of the content and lessons, schools should identify and respond to specific skill and knowledge deficit problems of particular groups.

* Because students value and respond to encouragement, teachers need to provide it routinely.

* Schools need to provide more educational resources and learning experiences because of student differences in advantages due to their family background.

THE OGBU ETHNOGRAPHIC STUDY (OGBU, 2003)

Opportunity Structure and Education: Many African American students did not perceive schooling to be a preparation for future success in the job market. They did not understand how their academic performance at one level of schooling affects the courses they will be able to take at a higher level of schooling, which could lead to greater opportunity. Further, they did not know enough about the educational requirements for future jobs. Their role models were entertainers and athletes because they are wealthier and more visible to them than lawyers, engineers, and university professors whose success depended on their educational credentials.

Race Relations and Schooling: African-Americans felt disparaged and misrepresented in the community, despite the appearance of racial harmony, and fearful and socially distant from whites. As an example, whites in the community felt that the achievement gap was due to social class differences while African-Americans maintained that it was the result of racism. African-American students also strongly believed that their teachers did not "care" for them because they were not supportive, nurturing, and encouraging. They also held teachers accountable for their academic performance.

Identity and Culture: African-American students were unengaged in the attitudes and behaviors that lead to school success because to them accepting the school curriculum, language, and pedagogy would mean rejecting their collective identity. However, they were not opposed to earning good grades although it meant being accused of acting"white" by their peers. Many of these same students also questioned their intelligence, having internalized the beliefs of others', and often acted as if they were less intelligent than their white peers.

Educational Strategies: African-American students recognized the need for effort to meet high academic standards, but chose not to apply it for reasons noted above. They reported that they realized that they did not work hard enough to get good grades. They also felt that the lack of discipline and other disruptive behavior in the classes where they were in the majority were not conducive to learning, unlike the climate in advanced placement classes, where most of the students were white and performed academically at a higher level. Parents of African-American students believed that their children should work hard to make good grades; however, they did not involve themselves in their children's schooling by supervising the completion of homework and the use of time or by protecting their children from negative peer pressure. Culturally, African Americans believed that it was the role of the school and teachers to make their children learn and perform successfully. Finally, African-American students often were not educated in honors or advanced placement classes because counselors in the upper elementary grades assigned them to less academically rigorous tracks with less academic and career rewards; further, parents did not fully understand the consequences of the placements, did not adequately prepare their children for academic work, and did not intervene to try countermand the placements.

Based on his research, Ogbu (2003) also makes several recommendations for
communities and schools like those in Shaker Heights, Ohio, for closing the
achievement gap:

* To increase African-American students' academic orientation and performance, communities need to provide supplementary education programs using the resources of for-profit and non-profit community-based organizations to create a parallel educational system.

* The community needs to provide academically successful role models, publicly recognize achievement, and encourage schools to infuse multicultural perspectives into the academic curriculum to counter students' idea that to achieve is to act white and to help students develop a sound self-concept and identity. The schools, in turn, need to develop strategies to help parents take a greater role in the academic life of their children, and to help them learn to be academically self-motivated and persistent.

* Students need help to learn how to distinguish between short-term and long-term educational goals in course-taking, and between courses in academic subjects and courses that develop a cultural identity. They should also help students to develop study habits and study skills and to resist anti-academic peer pressure.

* Teachers need to recognize that their expectations have an effect on their students' concept of themselves as learners and achievers and the internalization of negative or positive beliefs about their intelligence.

* Schools need to provide parents information on tracking practices, and about differences between honors and Advanced Placement classes, regular classroom placement, and remedial classes. Parents also need to be helped in working with teachers to monitor and effectively enhance their children's academic progress.

A FINAL NOTE ON CLOSING THE GAP

In their conclusions about their research findings, Ferguson and Ogbu do not differ in their views on how schools can help minority students to be more academically engaged and better achievers, only in emphasis. For Ferguson, the role of the teacher and the school is to encourage the individual student to meet the demands of academic work by changing classroom practices. For Ogbu, students will perform better and be more engaged in school if they are helped to modify parts of their collective identity that reject school success, through caring individual and institutional practices. This difference of perspective is noteworthy, however. Ogbu maintains that minority students do not participate in the opportunity structure of the United States because they have identified with their oppressed and marginal position in American society. For him, schools must actively alter these students' identity as outsiders, through caring. Ferguson, on the other hand, argues that schools need to develop interventions that improve minority students' capacity to master the learning tasks of the classroom through academic encouragement, implying that their success will change their self-concept and identity.

REFERENCES

College Board (1999). Reaching the top: A report of the National Task Force on Minority High Achievement. New York: Author. (ED 435 765)

Ferguson, R. F. (2002). What doesn't meet the eye: Understanding and addressing racial disparities in high-achieving suburban schools. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government. (ED 474 390)

Ogbu, J. U. (2003). Black American students in an affluent suburb: A study of academic disengagement. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum. (ED 476 118)

[gatordog]

More on the interesting work of Dr Ogbu. Here is a review of a book he wrote on the topic of the above post.

Overcoming the Black-White achievement gap. - Black American Students in an Affluent Suburb: A Study of Academic Disengagement - book review
Black Issues in Higher Education, April 24, 2003 by Ronald Roach

Black American Students in an Affluent Suburb: A Study of Academic Disengagement By John U. Ogbu Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc., 2003 352 pp., $69.95 cloth, ISBN 0-8058-4515-1, $32.50 paper, ISBN 0-8058-4516-X

The affirmative action debate brought on by the U.S. Supreme Court's consideration of the reverse discrimination lawsuits filed against the University of Michigan provides a timely context for the publication of Dr. John Ogbu's Black American Students in an Affluent Suburb: A Study of Academic Disengagement


Readers who have followed the affirmative action debate closely know that the fight has centered around access to the nation's most competitive colleges and universities. Because Ogbu, an anthropology professor at the University of California-Berkeley, has tackled the tricky subject of Black student academic performance in the integrated Cleveland suburb Shaker Heights, he has provided a valuable case study on developing a framework for understanding the Black-White achievement gap.

By focusing on children from educated, middle-class, native-born Black families, Ogbu's subjects represent the very students whose academic performance and standardized test scores are being closely scrutinized in comparison to the White and Asian American students seeking admission to elite institutions. Essentially, the affirmative action debate singles out the competitiveness of the best-prepared Black American students, and it's logical to assume that children from Shaker Heights are among the Black community's best-prepared students.

The subject of Black middle-class student performance has for some time been a topic of controversy. Evidence of Black student performance in affluent communities, such as majority-Black Prince George's County in Maryland and other mixed suburbs like Shaker Heights, have shown Blacks lagging in comparison to Whites. Yet Blacks remain defensive to entertain a deep examination of cultural attitudes and family practices around education.

Ogbu makes a convincing case that such an examination is necessary because of the unique history and experience of native-born Black Americans. And while many may disagree with his methodology and conclusions, he is careful to describe the historical context of Black attitudes towards academics given that discrimination had for a long time severely limited the opportunities that rewarded Blacks for intellectual accomplishment.

Early in the book, Ogbu crystallizes a central dilemma after being hired by a group of Black parents in Shaker Heights to study why their children are lagging academically in comparison to White students. In a transcript of a discussion between an unnamed Black community representative and an unnamed White school administrator, the community representative dismisses the teacher's belief that economic and social gaps explain the academic achievement gap between Blacks and Whites. The community representative instead wonders about the role of racism, saying, "If Black children from high-income families do not do as well as White children from high-income families, what are other reasons for their lower performance? Does race have anything to do with it?"

The interviews with Black students provide answers that point beyond racism. While they are keenly aware of racial biases in their schools, the students acknowledge that they don't see Blacks working as hard as their White counterparts. They express racialized ideas about what's appropriate behavior for Blacks and Whites, and studying hard fails to rank among the highest priorities. What is also telling are Black parental practices with regard to their children's intellectual development. While Black parents are to be commended for seeking outside expertise to help them understand what was happening to their children, Ogbu uncovers evidence that these same parents are failing to attend parent-teacher meetings, supervise their children's homework, and not taking an aggressive role in their child's learning. He concludes from interviews that Black parents "did not perceive themselves as active agents in the education process."

"They did not think they needed to be involved in the teaching process for their children to learn. The role of parents is apparently limited to putting pressure on teachers to do their job of teaching well; that is, limited to pushing teachers and other school personnel to educate their children," according to Ogbu's description of Black parent beliefs.

No matter the outcome of the Supreme Court's Michigan affirmative action case, the dilemma facing the Black community, at all economic levels, on education ought to motivate individual families to take a harder look at the intellectual development of their children. While recommending school reforms where necessary, Ogbu clearly advocates that individuals and communities grapple with "community forces," or attitudes and practices, outside the schools to enhance their children's learning. While his book is sure to spark debate, the notion of families taking more responsibility for their children's learning should never be considered controversial.

[southsidesignmaker]

"While Black parents are to be commended for seeking outside expertise to help them understand what was happening to their children, Ogbu uncovers evidence that these same parents are failing to attend parent-teacher meetings, supervise their children's homework, and not taking an aggressive role in their child's learning. He concludes from interviews that Black parents "did not perceive themselves as active agents in the education process."



I have found the above statement to be consistent not only in the black community but also at times across all racial lines. In business we use the term "it's the other guys fault". Many times in life it is easier to find the splinter in your neighbor's eye while discounting the 2 x 4 lodged in your own.