Last week, the Lee County School Board in Florida set a precedent by being one of the first school districts in the nation to opt out of all state-required testing for its students. In a 3-2 vote, the board decided to reject state-mandated testing for the over 90,000 students in their school district. According to Reuters, the board stated that they were acting on behalf "of … [Read more...]
School District Prohibits Discussions About Ferguson in Classroom
The superintendent of the Edwardsville school district in Illinois has ordered that discussions about Mike Brown or Ferguson, MO stay out of the classroom. According to KMOX News, Superintendent Ed Hightower says that there would normally be a discussion about current events in the classroom, but in this particular case, he will not allow it since there are so many unknown … [Read more...]
VIDEO: 23 Philadelphia Schools Will Be Closing Their Doors
While four of Philadelphia’s public schools are safe from closure, it is hard not to focus on the “more than two dozen” schools that are not. As a result of the Philadelphia School Reform Commission’s recent vote as part of their efforts to save the school district “about $24 million a year” 23 schools are “slated” to close their doors to students. These schools are described … [Read more...]
Detroit High School Students Stage Walkout To Protest Inadequate Education
Fifty students have been suspended from the all-male Frederick Douglass Academy in Detroit after participating in a walkout. The students were protesting because they felt like they were not getting an adequate education. From the Detroit Free Press: About 50 high school students at Frederick Douglass Academy in Detroit were suspended Thursday after walking … [Read more...]
Educating Your Children Before They Go To School
I have a 3 year old cousin who is the smartest little kid I know. His vocabulary is ridiculous and his comprehension is amazing. While sometimes it's humorous, it's also very admirable, because he's only been in pre-school for less than a year, and doesn't even go full time. My cousin is as smart as he is because his parents, our grandparents, and everyone else around him … [Read more...]
Why Aren’t Black People Outraged About The State Of Education In This Country?
The October issue of Ebony magazine features a sit-down interview with Bill Gates and his efforts to improve America's educational system. The multi-billionaire (and head of the Gates Foundation) has infused billions into U.S. schools and is startled by the lack of urgency surrounding the "dropout factories" we call schools. So 10 years after starting the Bill and Melinda … [Read more...]
Yes, Black People Homeschool Their Kids, Too
by Athelda Ensley In the late 90s my family decided to give homeschooling a try. At the time our oldest daughter was nearly two years old. She'd begun to sing commercial jiggles and the intros to her favorite televisions shows. In our minds it was time for her to give the alphabet a try. Fortunately for me and my husband, there were many tools available in the average … [Read more...]
Who Says Black Parents Don’t Care About Education?
My daughter starts kindergarten in a little more than three weeks and I'm already feeling those stomach butterflies when you're on the verge of something huge. She's still four and won't be five until the end of November, so I'm a little concerned about her not getting lost in the shuffle and feeling comfortable in this new setting. I've deemed August "Kindergarten Boot Camp … [Read more...]
Is Our Educational System Setup To Fail Our Children?
by Ayanna Black I recently felt like I was back in school preparing to take my final exam to get into kindergarten. The triplets are now at the age where it's time to start thinking about preschool and I'm totally stressed about it. It's not the anxiety of letting them go but the pressure I was getting for them to perform. Because the triplets were very premature, they go … [Read more...]