Failure to Address the Needs of African American Children

Racial formation is a vast sum of signifying actions and social structures that clash in the creation of complex relationships and identities that is a labeled race. Throughout the history of the United States, a large array of strategies was engaged in regarding education that took advantage of nonwhites. Since policies by those who supposedly “protect our rights” attempted to eradicate social, economic and cultural aspirations, dominated groups were more often than not suspicious of the school 's interests. According to John Ogby, “children from dominated cultures often failed school because they considered the school to be representative of the dominant white culture” (Spring, 101). This portrays racial formation having an effect on equality. “Acting white” meant to attempt to do well in school because

Less than 4% of the total student population enrolled in America’s colleges and universities (one of the smallest subgroups based on race/ethnicity and gender.) According to the Schott Foundation, the graduation rate of Black males in CT is between 51%, whereas White males in CT have an 83% graduation rate—a 32% gap. Moreover, the achievement gap between Black women and Black men is the lowest male-to female ratio among all racial/ethnic subgroups. (Strayhorn 1). The disproportionate and devastating failure of Black males in the educational system has further ramifications in our social system as black males are over-represented in the criminal justice system: “African-American males represent approximately 8.6 percent of the nation’s K-12 public school enrollment but make up about 60 percent of all incarcerated youth” (Smith 2005). In order to gain a comprehensive understanding of the academic crisis of adolescent black males, one must examine the research findings surrounding the Black-White achievement gap, black male standardized test scores, black male literacy achievement, and the socio-cultural achievement barriers that obscure black males’ self-perception of themselves as readers. “According to many standardized assessments, educators in the U.S.

Students who attend schools can be affected by their culture, race and background, much like how Puerto Ricans were oppressed in East Harlem in the 1980’s. This article explains how race can affect how people of certain races grow up, and how they are treated, and how when this treatment is unfair, the students usually drop out of school. “Study examines how race, culture influence school discipline, dropout rates”.

Systematic racism within education Institutions, such as the lack of adequate funding as well as subtle discrimination, continues to be the root of the problem that plagues this nation. Even though segregation was abolished in 1964, the lingering effects that remain are significant and cannot be passively mended. Although it is tempting to think that this prejudice is caused by a select few and not the many, it is clear that this problem holds more depth. Recent studies conducted by the National Education Studies (NEA) have proven that even in school’s African American students are often times targeted and punished at a significantly higher rate when compared to their white peers. The study states “Black students make up almost 40 percent of all school expulsions [in the] nation, and more than two thirds of students referred to police from schools are either black or Hispanic” (Blacks: Education Issues). This study conducted by the Department of Education, cabinet-level department of the United States

Due to the discrimination of African-Americans, and oppression resulting from it, the government, justice system, educational system, and society has made it clear that African-American teenagers obtaining a thorough and effective education is the least of their concerns. It is almost as though African-American teenagers are purposely being set up to fail. As stated in “The Oppression of Black People, The Crimes of This System and the Revolution we need”, “Today the schools are more segregated than they have been since the 1960s with urban, predominantly Black and Latino schools receiving fewer resources and set up to fail. These schools more and more resemble prisons

Some research suggests that treatment of Kentucky youth of color results in educational opportunities that are lost and limits successful maturation to adults. (Grieshop et al, 2009)

The overrepresentation of African American children in the foster care system is a major issue in the United States. African American children only represent about fourteen percent of the child population in the United States, yet represents for thirty percent of the children in the foster care system (Lorthridge, 2011). Ards (2012) stated that African American children are one and a half times more likely to be involved with child protective services and two times more likely to be placed in an out-of-home placement compared to any other race. Being a minority in a country, but the majority in an institution, such as foster care, is a significant problem. Not only is the overrepresentation of African American children a matter of question, but their experience while in foster care is concerning as well. African American children are overrepresented at every aspect in the foster care system and the numbers are not decreasing. According to Anyon (2011), African American children are overrepresented at every stage/decision point in the foster care system. The five stages are known as the five key decision points, which are, report of abuse and/or neglect, referral of report for investigation, reunification, out-of-home placement and termination of parental rights, and exiting the foster care system (Harris, 2008).

A Broader Problem that plagues Black males are not totally the responsibility of the public schools, but are a responsibility of society as a whole (Delpit, 1995). We can say, however, that the public schools do play a major role in addressing the problems of Black male students. The educational experiences and the support services afforded Black male students could play an

The article digs deeper into the problem of incarceration and the decreasing concentration in school by African American students, which has become a problem in the attainment of education in the U.S. There is a gap in the number of whites graduating at the end of schooling and the Blacks with the dropout increasing each

Education has always been valued in the African American community. During slavery freed slaves and those held captive, organized to educate themselves. After emancipation the value of education became even more important to ex-slaves, as it was their emblem of freedom and a means to full participation in American Society (Newby & Tyack, 1971). During this time many schools for African Americans were both founded and maintained by African Americans. African Americans continued to provide education throughout their own communities well into the 1930’s (Green, McIntosh, Cook-Morales, & Robinson-Zanartu, 2005). The atmosphere of these schools resembled a family. The

American society likes to believe that race relations in our country are no longer strained. We do not want to hear about the need for affirmative action or about the growing numbers of white supremacist groups. In order to appease our collective conscious, we put aside the disturbing fact that racism is alive and well in the great U.S.A. It hides in the workplace, it subtly shows its ugly face in the media, and it affects the education of minority students nationwide. In the following excerpts from an interview with a middle class African American male, the reader will find strong evidence that race plays a major role in determining the type and quality of education a student receives.

The problem of educational disparities among various ethno-racial groups that make up the United States has been a long studied topic. Theories have ranged widely in what they consider as the primary factors for these disparities. Biological and individualist perspectives have cited inherent genetic inferiorities as the cause of these disparities. Others have taken into account social forces but have maintained that the cause is due to the creation of a culture of subordination and poverty that does not allow social advancement. Still others have tended to focus on systemic inequalities and on the roles of prejudice and discrimination (Sidanius et al, 1998).

Those without the white privilege lacked the opportunity to pursue education. This essay explores the problem African-Americans faced years back and somehow connects it to their current lives. Education opens the eyes of many people to see through the atrocities they are going through and how to beat them. This is the case of African-Americas who were

Lyndon B. Johnson, the 36th president of the United States who signed the Civil Rights Act into law, once said, “Until justice is blind to color, until education is unaware of race, until opportunity is unconcerned with the color of men’s skins, emancipation will be a proclamation but not a fact.” Many are unaware of how much race affects their quality of education when it differs from the dominant white majority of the U.S. We don’t know whether it’s ignorance or the deliberate choice of not giving other races the same opportunity to succeed, but that is what we have set out to find. Throughout all of our literature, we see examples of people not receiving the same choices or opportunities as other citizens deemed “higher-class”, although

For centuries, America has wondered why minority students consider rhyming and playing basketball more important than receiving a proper education. The theme of my research is to discover why there is such a vast educational achievement gap between minority and Caucasian students. Many Americans are aware that a educational gap exists among today’s students but they do nothing to bring attention to it. This proposal will inform one of alarming statics that are affecting the welfare and future of minority students. For example, African American students representing a majority of the special education population but they only make up 40% of the student population. My research will also tackle key events that contributed to the mediocre education that minority children are currently receiving. For example, in the past, it was illegal to educate African Americans and when it became legal, blacks were treated as second class citizens and placed in impoverished school districts ( Billing, P. 33). African Americans were segregated from their white counterparts and given used textbooks. They were also beaten and murdered for attempting to seek a proper education. This research will analyze factors that are contributing to the poor education of minority students such as moral principles, socio-political, economic status, and racism. It is the year 2014, the amount of time that has past is tremendous but today’s schools are similar to the ones from the past. Minority children are