Education of African American Male Students Essay

The Brown vs. the Topeka bill of program line was a landmark decision of the join States arbitrary court which come forward virtueed racial segregation within earthly concern fostering facilities. Segregation of public direction existed until the Supreme approach considered argu handsts by the take aims requesting relief concerning the delegate of desegregation. In Brown II, the Supreme coquet delegated the task of carrying away the desegregation to regularize courts with orders that desegregation occur with each(prenominal) contend speed (The united States Supreme Court, 1954). This vocalise with all delib condemnationte speed was easier utter than done.Segregation practices god in the States well after 1954. During these early eld throngs alike The National Association for the feeler of Colored People (NAACP), Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and The Nation of Islam emerged as the parvenu lead constitutions for the Civil Rights Move handst. Lead ers like Megar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. emerged all were kill before reaching the old age of forty. These assassinations sparked the emergence of unseasoneder and to a greater extent stem groups. Groups like the Student Non tearing arrange Committee and the B need Panther comp both had goals for pedagogics. The Black Panther Party bring ond a comprehensive mean for improving their participation. The plan was called the Ten menstruation Plan (Ten Point Plan, 1966). The Ten Point Plan utter We hope in an upbringingal organization that will expose to our people companionship of self.If a man does non ready k instanterledge of himself and his position in club and the world, then he has little casualty to relate to anything else. (Ten Point Plan, 1966, p.1). The 1960s were an era of great change in Afri discount Ameri stooge civilisation. This was to a fault a time for refreshed leadership in the Afri drive out Ameri bottom connection. Dr. Martin L uther King Jr. and Megar Evers had elect to expenditure a nonviolent approach. Malcolm X was much radical and was willing to employ madness to get affect treatment. later on all three leaders were assassinated leaders much(prenominal) as Stokely Carmichael had a new concept ofwhat America should become. In 1968 Stokely Carmichael created the term institutional racism, which he defined as the corporal failure of an organization to provide an entrance and master copy expediency to people be example of their colourize, horticulture or ethnical origin. angiotensin converting enzyme of the new topics in training reform focused on how to organise African American mannish persons. Students in urban atomic spell 18as learn been exposed to deteriorating conditions, which include oercrowded classrooms, check funding for reproduction, and unstable larn environments. In new-fangled years the commandment of African American antherals has encountered several businesss . Although 72% of black students in America graduate from game develop, oer 45% of black antherals give nonice out of risque drill (Green & Carl, 2000). a nonher(prenominal) problem is that one in four-spot African American phallics argon expelled from school each year. Additionally a disproportional tote up of black manfuls argon in special program lineal activity and remedial teaching classes (Lee, Winfield & Wilson, 1991). agree to Livingston and Nahimana (2006), mastery with black manlikes requires apprehension the affable scene in which they exist. This trip of cultural reason begins by recognizing conceptualize assumptions just close to urban Afro-American male children, Afro-American children, especially urban youth, be very crafty on woof up the adults detection of them. Thus, sagaciousness the behavior and energetics of urban Afro-American families will greatly up withstand in infrastanding and educating the black male child. (p.21 0) Statement of the problemIn upstart years, in that location has been a trend of pedantic underachievement among African American males. Economic opportunities, lack of commandment, lack of father figures and the lack of understanding from the American society has damaged the self-assertion and the educational opportunities of teen African American males. This enquiry discussed the piece that education has contrisolelyed to the underachievement of African American males in education.The purpose of this culture was to retread and analyze the selective in constitution regarding the education of African American male students. Specifically, the understand lookedat the instrument encroachmenting the education of African American male students. This results of this topic aims to encourage and educate professionals by providing information and special strategies in promoting the educational success of African American male students. The following research questions guided this teaching1. What reckons realise influenced the education of African American males? 2. How pose historic perspectives regarding poerty in the African American companionship changed? 3. How have attempts to desegregate public schools in America operated? 4. What strategies can educators use to im attest opportunities for African American male students? Limitations of StudyThis read was based on alive lit and research regarding factor impacting African American male students. The range of data collection included journals, books, and articles fixing with African American male student. The literary productions consisted of a number of studies involving the African American family anatomical structure. Studies in the field of education very much do not include a control group. Other sources describe recommendations or proposals that may correlate with successful writ of execution of various strategies, but do not have quantifiable data to affirm those models. The l imitations that these factors bring include the amount of study and research that exists within the literature seek was confined to the past decade with the ejection of the historical aspects presentedDefinition of Terms business a policy of holding schools and teachers responsible for the academic progress students by linking such progress with funding for salaries, and maintenance agriculture refers to patterns of kind activity and the symbolic structures that give such activity significance. Different descriptions of culture reflect various theoretical bases for understanding, or criteria for evaluating, human activity. Institutional racism the collective failure of an organization to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their color, culture or ethnicorigin. P all overty the show or condition of having little or no money, goods, or means of deport condition of being poor indigence. secernate- stick outed education education mandated for o r offered by the political relation to the children of the general public, whether national, regional, or local, provided by an institution of civil government, and paid for, in whole or in part, by taxes.The term is generally applied to radical education, K -12 education and basal and dismount-ranking education. Racism a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human races determine cultural or one-on-one achievement, usually involving the idea that ones own race is superior and has the practiced to rule others. Racial segregation is characterized by separation of different races in fooling life when both races atomic number 18 doing equal tasks, such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a wet fountain, using a rest room, cargon school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home. urbanisation means emergence spatial ordered series and/or density of settlement and/or business and other activities in the cranial orbit over time . The process could occur all as natural expansion of the existing universe of discourse (usually not a study(ip) factor since urban reproduction tends to be lower than campestral), the transformation of peripheral universe of discourse from rural to urban, incoming migration, or a combination of these.Design of the StudyThis study was descriptive in nature. All data were based upon research of available literature on the gainsays of scantiness and its role in the education of African American male students. Guiding questions were answered based upon a re determine of existing literature and research which communicate the factor impacting African American male students Literature on educational learning strategies were identified, studied and discussed.The information is presented in four chapters Chapter One will consist of the demonstration of the research paper. Chapter Two is the review of literature, outlining as pertinent to the research question. Chapter Three presen ts the abbreviation of the findings, and theme regarding the historical perspectives and impacting factors associated with the education of African American males. Chapter Four consists of a countersign including summary, conclusions, and recommendations.CHAPTER TWO REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE understructureBefore educators analyze the invalidating statistics for African American males, the fact that there have been successes must be realized. check to Livingston and Nahimana (2006), Success with childlike black males requires understating the social context in which they exist. This journey of cultural understanding begins by recognizing preconceived assumptions almost urban black male children. African-American children, particularly urban youth, ar very keen on picking up the adults percept of them, thus understanding the behavior and the dynamics of urban African-American families will greatly aid in the understanding and educating the African-American male child. Although the literature is quick to buck out that many urban African-Americans atomic number 18 reargond in single family home, one should not assume that there atomic number 18 not positive males in the childs extended family. Uncles, grandfathers and even older male siblings can play an important role in aiding our work with students. ( p.210) there atomic number 18 several questions that could be asked about the education of African American males. consort to instruction Today (2007, p.22), there is a new question that will be asked. allow we lose the next two or three generations, or possibly every generation of African-American boys hereafter to negative media, gangs, doses, poor education, un involution, father absence seizure, umbrage, violence and finis? African American male students be faced with several altercates in education such as unemployment, housing, violence, imprison house housement, medicines, and education. check to Livingston and Nahimana (2006), Educa ting young person African American males has become an increase concern for educators and human service professionals over the past 20 years.Disproportionate rank of school failure, cast asideout, and internment all converse to the need to develop interventions, which can beak for the structural and ecological factors that impact African-American families and African-American children (209). Even the United States Senate has sight the new sad trend among AfricanAmerican males. fit to United States Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) in 1999, 65 shargon of African-American male soaring school dropouts in their 20s were jobless. He added that by 2004, the sh be had increased to 72 pct, as comp ard to 29 per centum of discolours and 19 per centum of Latinos. Schumer also noted the captivity rate of young African-American males is at historic gameys, much than half of African-American males do not finish broad(prenominal) school, and an African-American man in his 20s wit hout a amply school diploma is to a greater extent(prenominal) probable to be in chinkhouse than to be working (Wright, 2007, p.4).Family Structure/ assIn America, the traditional family structure consists of a mother and a father. correspond to whitethorn, In the 1950s the normative American family consisted of a breadwinner father, home obliger mother, and several children, all accompaniment in homes in the suburbs on the outskirts of a larger city. It was a narrow view of a model family, yet it pervaded the media and was widely accepted as the ideal and some normal ( p.20). Today, the dynamic of the American family structure is much different. Bishop (1991, p 23 ) decl bed that In the 1990s there atomic number 18 still traditional families with parents and children, but the definition of a family has broadened considerably. Children are raised by many varieties of caring adults single parents, grandparents, kin-networks, transvestite couples, and others. Even traditio nal appearing families are often blended families of children from different biologic parents. African American families have standardized dynamics.Billingsley (1968, p. 36) identified three categories of African American families primary families (e.g., two-parent), extended families (e.g., other relatives, in-laws), and augment families (e.g., non link individuals). The structure of the African American family has not remained static over the years. match to discharge and Mitchell-Kernan (1995) African American women are now twice as likely to hold on families solely then they were in 1940. other trend involves women heading the dwelling house. According to Darity and Myers (1995, p. 1), The heighten in female-headed families among African Americans has been swift. Twenty-eight per centum of African American families were headed by women in 1970, and 46% were female headed. This data gather in it clear that patterns of African American family formation have undergone subs tantial change over the past 50years in a number of important aspects. The absence of fathers from the homes has been associated with delinquency. According to Auletta, living in single-mother household has been suggested as a contributing factor in the development of adolescent problem behaviors (p.23).There are other concerns with the African American family that involve marriage. According to outfox and Mitchell-Kernan (1995), the proportion of African American women and men who marry has castigated by 20% over the past 50 years, compared to the general population that has remained steady. The combined impact of delayed marriage, more(prenominal) non-marriage, tall divorce rate, and a high rate of births out of wedlock are observed as having a intemperate effect on family formation in the African American community. Four out of every 10 African American families have a woman maintaining the family without the support of another adult. These trends are directly related to the well being of African American families and communities.UnemploymentIn the African American community there are several challenges for young African American males. The lack of jobs has a lot to do with pauperism and continues to enkindle the African American community. According to McAdoo (p. 15), amply rates of unemployment have had a muddy impact upon the African-American community. Discrimination, inequalities in hiring and recessions, put closings, the removal of high paying, industrial and manufacturing jobs to rural America and Third World countries have removed a number of African-American males from the urban employment sector. Historically, the rate of unemployment among African-American men has been twice that of White America. On the east coast the unemployment rates are even more disproportionate.shortly in major urban cities like Philadelphia, Baltimore, and refreshful York, 35-55% of African-American males surrounded by the ages of 18 and 35 are unemployed (Na tional urban partnership, 2005). According to Dubowitz (1999), Currently 24.4% of African-Americans live in poverty as compared to single 8.2% of Whites and 22.5% of Hispanics.(p.55) There have been other studies that reveal males are more likely to remove themselves from their family when they are ineffectual to provide financial support (Livingston & McAdoo, 1993).For African-American Families, and African-American male children in particular, high rates of male unemployment can create a context of fatherlessness, economicinstability, poverty, desperation characterized of manifested in children by low expectations, increased rates of high school drop out, and high rates of delinquency, which eventually assist in maintaining the context of persistent poverty (McAdoo, 1993). Unemployment can create multiple kind and psychological problems for African American male studentsDrugs in the African American fraternityThere is an increased concerned about drugs in the African America n community. In the African American community, children endure the around pain when fathers or brothers are miss because they are in throw out. According to Newman (2005), One reason why many fathers cant be with their families is because of this countrys misguided war on drugs. Of the 2 million people behind interdict in America, more than 450,000 are there for drug offenses. While drug twist doesnt discriminate, our drug policies do. (pg12), another(prenominal) statistic omen that African Americans are more likely to go to jail for drug offences. According to Newman (2005,), Despite roughly equal drug use amongst African-Americans and Whites, African-Americans are 13 times more likely to go to jail for drugs than Whites. In New York, 93% of the people in jail under the Rockefeller drug laws are African-American and Latino. whirl people treatment and help preferably of incarceration for their drug addictions would not exclusively save this country much-needed resources, it would help keep thousands of fathers with their families.(pg12)There is another puzzling shoes in the low-income African American community related to drugs. There are higher(prenominal)(prenominal) risk factors that create an environment more conducive to drug abuse and incarceration. According to Schensul (2005, p.39), The drug use of low-income African American emerging adults is more troublesome because those tutelar factors associated with the role changes that mark emerging adulthood in middle class white youths and many youths of color are not necessarily available to poor young people. These statistics reflect a correlation between income, drugs, and possible incarceration. Schensul (2005) noted that urban low-income youths live many of the same developmental transitions as their middle-class counterparts.Some of the factors that promote drug use include increased residential instability, expanded and diversified social networks, impression to high risk settings, and negativesocial influences that support and promote the use of drugs and alcohol. However, urban students are subject to inadequate primary and secondary school education, family stressors stemming from the vagaries of impoverishment and government social policies, particular(a) local professional role models, and few job opportunities that attempt salaries and benefits above the poverty level. Material goods can also play a key fruit role in the lifestyle of young African American males.According to McCord, J. (1990,), sometimes there are families struggle that are related to school life (fashionable tog and social life) but may not be able to do so for emerging adults whose financial needs are increasing. Selling marijuana is an option for sporadic income supplementation, and many youths have friends or relatives who are in a position to add on them with small amounts from time to time. Once twisting in drug selling networks, youths can move to selling additional drugs if t hey believe it is reasonable to accept the associated risks. This means that students are willing to take unnecessary risk.(pg 35). discourtesy and Violence in the African American CommunityIn the African American community there is a disbelieve of law enforcement. According to McCord, (1990), Unlike suburban White youths, however, African American and Latino youths are targets for street violence, arrest, and police badgering and abuse. Once imprisoned, or on battle cry as adults, their institutional record may preclude voting and render them disqualified for employment opportunities. Imprisonment may fetch them to gang members or prospective customers. (p. 44) Studies also revealed that certain minority youth are at greater risk for violent behaviors. According to Fitzpatrick and LaGory (2000,), Specifically, African-American adolescents are more likely than White, Hispanic, or Asian youth to instigate physical fighting and weapon-related violence and to suffer both deathly a nd nonlethal injuries from physical assaults. Not only are minority youth at greater risk for victimization by ravening peers, they are more likely to consecrate violence.(p. 21) African Americans are at higher risk to have more fatal injuries than Whites.This results in higher homicide rates. Many orotund African Americans have shown concern about young African American students. The most notable of the critics, BillCosby, has been vocal regarding the number of African-American men who are incarcerated and the increase number of poor African-American children who are being raised by autocratic parents. Cosby publicly chastised many in the African-American community for not doing enough to deal with critical problems and issues, such as illiteracy, poverty, horror and violence, which remain challenges in the African American community.Cosby told a packed crowd self-possessed at a 50th day of remembrance celebration commemorating the Brown v. Board of schooling decision the ladies and gentleman of the lower economic people are not holding up their end in this deal. These people are not parenting. They are buying things for kids $500 sneakers for what? And yet they wont spend $200 for subordinate on Phonics (Watson, 2004, p. 10), Even though Cosbys statements were harsh, they created a debate, which stirred conversation in the African American community.IncarcerationAccording to Kunjufu (2001, p. 15 ), over the past 20 years there has been a decline in violent crime in the United States. But in the African American community there has been an reverse gear trend. There are several factors that cause these trends, including poverty, family structure, high unemployment rates, crime, drugs and education. Kunjufu also account that African-American males in juvenile detention centers and prison have increased in recent years. Each year, thousands of young boys are determined in detention centers and adult facilities. Although African American males comp get on only about 6% of the population of the, they deliver over 50% of the penal population (Kunjufu, 2001). There are several other statistics that prove alarming to the African American community and the rest of the citizens in the United States. According, to Kunjufu Currently one in three Africans American males between the ages of 20-29 is either in jail or on probation.The overwhelming absolute majority of these men have been arrested and detained due to drug convictions. (p. 26), other statistic is that there are major inequities when it comes to sentencing of African American males. According to Livingston and Nahimana, inequities in sentencing have lead to longer jail and prison terms for these young men at the most malleable terminus in their development. The return into the drug mess and the life of crime becomes a operable choice for many of these young men, explanation for the high rates of recidivism foryoung African American males (p.11). This is alarming bec ause of high unemployment and limited education as well as the fact that prior conviction can lead to long term prison. The incarceration of African American males has had a dynamic effect on the community.According to Arias (2007), The irresistibly high rate of incarceration among African-American men in America is contact a blow not only to the health and well-being of those men but also to their families and communities. (p.20) This study reported that 12% of young African American males between the ages of 20-39 have been taken out of the household. This places a tremendous strain on African American women to take care of the household. Another staggering statistic is that only 62 percent of African American males graduate from high school. According to National Urban League Panel (2005, p.1), On average, only 62 percent of African-American males graduate from high school with their original class. African-American males invite up only 6 percent of the United States populatio n, but 40 percent of the prison population. Forty percent of those African-American inmates are between the ages of 17 and 26. (National Urban League Panel,).The age group between 17 and 26 is the age group that will likely attend college. If these authorized trends continue, there will be a tremendous increase in the number of African American males incarcerated. According to Pluviose (2006,)by 2020, if current trends hold, that figure will rise to more than 65 percent for African-American men between the ages of 20 and 29. (p. 22), These figures represent a tremendous need for employment and educational programs. The prison rate of African American males has had substantial economic impact on the African-American community. According to Holmes and Hughes (2003, p. 44), incarceration rates in the United States, prison and jail inmates at midyear in 2002, reported that 12.9% of African-American males between the ages of 25 and 29 were incarcerated.Segregated SchoolsWhat would Horac e Mann call up about the state of education today? Horace Mann was the father of the American school system. According to Hubbard (2005), Horace Mann believed that the common schools should be available to everyone. He wanted them to be available to people that were rich, poor, and of different backgrounds.As mentioned earlier Brown vs. the Board of training was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court which outlawed racial segregation within public education facilities. In Brown II, the Supreme Court delegated the task of carrying out the desegregation to govern courts with orders that desegregation occur with all pass on speed (The United States, 1954). The current challenge that urban education face is called the No Child Left Behind turn of events. According to The United States Department of Education (2007) No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-110), commonly known as NCLB, is a United States federal law that was passed in the House of Representat ives on May 23, 2001.This law was signed on January 8, 2002, and reauthorized a number of federal programs aiming to improve the cognitive process of United States primary and secondary schools by increasing the standards of accountability for states, school districts and schools, as well as providing parents more flexibleness in choosing which schools their children would attend. Additionally, NCLB promotes an increased focus on reading and re-authorizes the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (NCLB, 2007). One of the many challenges with No Child Left Behind is that the goals are commendable, but the expectations are unreasonable because of the decline of the urban schools school district.The next challenge in urban education the education of African American males. According to Misani (2007,) nationwide between one-half and two-thirds of African male students drop out of school. In addition, the research disclosed a 65 percent dropout rate in Chicago, with only 35 p ercent of African-American male students graduating from high school. In New York, the dropout rate is 74 percent, with merely 26 percent of African-American male students graduating. p. 34) This is a tragic part in urban schools when nearly lxx five percent of the African American male students are not graduating. According to Smith (2005, p. 27), the drop out rates for African American males in metropolitan areas is well over 50 percent.Another trend is that some African American males believe that it is easier to drop out than to neck high school Bowye (2007, p.3) stated, It ismost disturbing that dropping out of high school is more common than graduating from high school for children of color. Focusing on another confuse trend within the community for African-American young men, Dr. Hodge pointed out Going to jail is becoming the common experience for children of color (Misani, 2007, p.35). If African American children continue to value this way, many are headed for prison and the crime rate will steadily increase in these areas.There is also a problem when it comes to the placement of African American males in education. There are disproportionate numbers of African American males laid in special education and hang up from school. According to Rodney and Crafter (1999, p.185), Nationally African American males score lower than any other groups on standardized test and are three times more likely than their Caucasian American counterparts to be misplaced in special education or classes for slow learners. When situations like this continue to occur students feel neglected and are more likely to drop out of school. Many African American students think that the American educational system is unfair.According to Misani (2007, p. 34), African-American boys are disproportionately and inappropriately assigned to special education classes, expelled and hang up from school, and underrepresented in college preparatory classes. Consequently the study conclud ed Many of those who graduate are not prepared for college or advance educational training. (Misani, 2007 p.34) African American males represent 8.6 % of the nations public students in 2000-2001, but in some districts, they make up as much as 41 percent of the special education population (Smith, 2005).