So let me get this straight, out of all the factors that can be attributed to the poor performance of African-American students in U.S. schools: environment (poor, urban or otherwise), under-paid &/or under-motivated teachers, single-parent households, to name a few - where because of such factors it has been suggested that parents become part of the solution - these nine parents instead choose to become part of the problem!!!! In Atlanta today nine parents were charged with educational neglect because their kids have missed too many days of school "...most of the parents who now face arrest have children who have missed 40 to 50 days of school."
40 to 50 days of school? Yeah, I would hide my face too.
Here's some more food for thought: Statistics reported today at JBHE.com showing African-American scores on the SAT are at a 20-year low; African-Americans lag behind.... um.... well.... everybody.
and a quote:
"When you take the real doubts we harbor about our intellectual abilities and couple them to social alienation, you end up with a prescription not just for thuggish behavior but for large scale academic disengagement."
- Ellis Cose, The Envy of the World: On Being a Black Man in America.
3 comments:
I'm not sure what kind of Management the ATL's Public Schools are under but this strikes me as something of a cheap stunt designed to make cranky white folks cheer and beat their breasts and terrorize drug addled and otherwise dysfunctional parents even further underground. Is there a precedent for this form of attendance intervention ? Any research to show it's effective ? Wanna bet me a Buffalo Bills hat that there isn't any ? Just an empty threat aimed at folks who spend their lives being threatened by everyone from judges to collection agencies to ex-boyfriends and girlfriends. Sorry to pop off like this, I just don't buy it and I think it will only do more damage.
Hey!
Great post. I'm torn about it though. I do think if we held parents more responsible for the behavior of their children, things might improve, but when you're dealing with people who are living below the underdog already, what can you threaten them with? Like that sister in the photo who is not hiding her face--she is defiantly saying, "What else you got?"
Holla at me about Countdown. For all my elitist schooling, I'm not quite clear on how to email other bloggers ;-)
I nominate you for the billiante blog award
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