The Jamestown Project and Charisse Carney-Nunes: They Do It Right
Thursday, May 31, 2007
For all the bickering I do about the state of Black America, I'd be remiss not to mention those who are making fantastic strides to make life better for black families.Charisse Carney-Nunes, author extraordinaire and mother, has penned the perfect book for black families called I Dream for You a World: A Covenant for Our Children (The Children's Covenant). I Dream for You a World, written in conjunction with The Jamestown Project, shows black children a life filled with bright promises for the future and plots an easy road map for our children to become productive, intelligent men and women.
Written in Carney-Nunes' classic rhytmic poetry, I Dream for You a World
captures every aspect of black children's lives from their health and education to justice and democracy and draws a lyrical picture of a just and fair world that should be present in all black children's lives. Brimming throughout with vibrant mixed-media pictures of beautiful, smiling children, Carney-Nunes' I Dream for You a World esteems seemingly traditional ideas for black children such as planting financial roots and building up tomorrow and infuses them with small steps all black children can take to make their world a better place.The most substantive part of I Dream for You a World
is the appendix where Carney-Nunes shapes eleven Adinkra symbols around the tenets of being "Covenant Kids" -- kids who make a promise to uphold the ideals for making better black communities. While I Dream for You a World is better suited for children over eight, younger children will enjoy snuggling in your lap for a nice story filled with pictures of happy children who look just like them.
posted by Jennifer James @ Thursday, May 31, 2007,
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Hip-Hop Isn't the Root Of All Blackness. So What Else is New?
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Thomas Chatterton Williams knows how to use big words, shape them into coherent, impressive sentences and accomplish getting a byline in the Washington Post. But adding substance to the conversation of hip-hop and its damaging effects on the black community is what he really needs to work on.
In the Post's Monday, May 28th article, Black Culture Beyond Hip-Hop, Williams sadly does what most writers on black culture do: eloquently point out the problem, but miserably fail to offer any workable solutions.
I believe, as black people, we're tired of the conversation and we're ready for some targeted action. We're tired of the black pundits and activists with bullhorns, but no real agenda. We're tired of the writers and the professional speakers who are looking to bolster their resumes. We're tired of the national conferences and symposiums filled with black intelligentsia who have a lot to say, but no solid game plan. Collectively they have gotten black people where? No where, but back at the beginning. In fact, the only limited good about the hip-hop controversy is that it has launched a few people's careers to national status and has clearly gotten some authors book deals. But in large part, articles like Williams' does nothing more than drive us, once again, into the never-ending circle of low test scores, poverty, failing health, dangerous neighborhoods, sub-prime lending, poor schools, incarceration and the list goes on.
So, in hopes of not sounding hypocritical, here are a few solutions I've devised to counter the hip-hop culture and its damaging effects on black kids. I'll start with parenting.
-- Pay attention to your kids and don't expect the neighborhood, the schools or the community to raise them, because if you don't you might have to visit them in jail. I know this from experience. There are too many black males in my family and my husband's family who know what the inside of a cell looks like. Parents cannot be everywhere at all times with their children, but black parents can do more to save them from the streets.
-- Be vigilant about your children's education. Talk to your children's teachers. Know and understand what they are accomplishing and/or not accomplishing in class. Don't be afraid to schedule appointments with your children's teacher and the principal, if needed. Diligently monitor your children's school progress because if you don't you may have to see your child repeat a grade, fail their end-of-year exams, or, heaven forbid, drop out in high school.
-- Give your children the gift of a mother and father. (GASP) Did I just say that? I did. I firmly believe this about children: It takes two to make'em and it takes two to raise'em.
In the Post's Monday, May 28th article, Black Culture Beyond Hip-Hop, Williams sadly does what most writers on black culture do: eloquently point out the problem, but miserably fail to offer any workable solutions.
I believe, as black people, we're tired of the conversation and we're ready for some targeted action. We're tired of the black pundits and activists with bullhorns, but no real agenda. We're tired of the writers and the professional speakers who are looking to bolster their resumes. We're tired of the national conferences and symposiums filled with black intelligentsia who have a lot to say, but no solid game plan. Collectively they have gotten black people where? No where, but back at the beginning. In fact, the only limited good about the hip-hop controversy is that it has launched a few people's careers to national status and has clearly gotten some authors book deals. But in large part, articles like Williams' does nothing more than drive us, once again, into the never-ending circle of low test scores, poverty, failing health, dangerous neighborhoods, sub-prime lending, poor schools, incarceration and the list goes on.
So, in hopes of not sounding hypocritical, here are a few solutions I've devised to counter the hip-hop culture and its damaging effects on black kids. I'll start with parenting.
-- Pay attention to your kids and don't expect the neighborhood, the schools or the community to raise them, because if you don't you might have to visit them in jail. I know this from experience. There are too many black males in my family and my husband's family who know what the inside of a cell looks like. Parents cannot be everywhere at all times with their children, but black parents can do more to save them from the streets.
-- Be vigilant about your children's education. Talk to your children's teachers. Know and understand what they are accomplishing and/or not accomplishing in class. Don't be afraid to schedule appointments with your children's teacher and the principal, if needed. Diligently monitor your children's school progress because if you don't you may have to see your child repeat a grade, fail their end-of-year exams, or, heaven forbid, drop out in high school.
-- Give your children the gift of a mother and father. (GASP) Did I just say that? I did. I firmly believe this about children: It takes two to make'em and it takes two to raise'em.
I fully agree that single mothers are raising amazing children every day and that some two-parent households raise some of the biggest hellions known to all mankind, but wouldn't life be much easier for moms and more healthy for children if there were two role models for their children to emulate -- a mommy and daddy?
Black women and men must learn how to create better, lasting relationships with one another and have intact homes because if we don't more black men will be absent from their children's lives and more black women will be forced to raise their children alone.
-- Don't settle for the hammering effect of outside influences. In this fast-paced new millennium there is always something vying for our children's attention -- TV, movies, video games, the Internet, music, ipods, Gameboys, cellphones, PDAs, digital cameras, food and all manner of electronic devices that keep kids' minds riveted to LCD screens and snack packs and out of books.
Labels: commentary, education, parenting
posted by Jennifer James @ Tuesday, May 29, 2007,
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Bad News for Black Families
Monday, May 28, 2007
Just when things were looking up for media targeted to the black family we found out this month that the Black Family Channel will no longer be on cable, but will instead move to broadband programming. It will be completely free for its viewers and it promises to be a drastic move into another forward-thinking, new millennium media. So let me be the first to humbly tell them -- it ain't gonna work.
As a media maven and all-around Web junkie myself, I will personally not sit to watch a news segment or a "webisode" of anything past five minutes and I use the Internet to earn a living. If everyday, ordinary black folk are going to sit down at the computer, they're going to do email, hit major news stories and/or read celebrity gossip, not watch a show on the Black Family Channel. It's just not going to happen because the dynamic of the black family will not allow this move to broadband to work and be financially feasible.
More than half of all black families are comprised of hardworking single mothers and their children. In this case, time simply won't allow for the Black Family Channel Broadband to work. Sure, online media in the form of viral video typically found on YouTube is hot, even in the black online community. But let me be the first to point out that viral video earns its success due to its absurdity, not by being journalistic masterpieces, something I'm sure the Black Family Channel is looking to achieve.
We also have to look at the overall numbers of black families who own computers and how many have broadband connections, both of which I'm too lazy to research. I do know, however, that there are far more blacks who own TVs, than own computers with broadband. Again, this is another factor that will make the new Black Family Channel fail before it even gets started.
I, for one, would love to see this work and I know other mainstream parenting companies like BabyTV.com and Parents TV from Parents.com, have moved or are moving to web TV, but how it will work in the black family/parenting niche has yet to be seen. Although some may think I'm putting my foot in my mouth early on in BFC's switch, but the square truth is the odds are squarely in favor of Black Family Channel failing again -- this time on the Net. If I'm wrong, and I hope I am, I'll gladly eat my own foot.
Labels: black media, parenting
posted by Jennifer James @ Monday, May 28, 2007,
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Closing the Achievemt Gap: One Success Story
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
After my rant yesterday about the achievement gap, I ran across an article that lit my eyes with hope for the future of educating black children.
Sharon Johnson, the principal of Winthrow University High School in Cincinnatti, has helped 92% of her students achieve proficiency in reading and 83.7% in math. But this achievement has not come easy. She attributes community support as one key to the overall success of her school and outlines nine other factors that contribute to a rigorous academic environment in her school including:
strong leadership, a safe school environment, skilled teachers, challenging classes, having the necessary resources, giving all students personal attention, extra help to those who need it, “user friendly” information provided to parents, and “bringing in [the] real world to the classroom.”She also assures us that, “There are pockets of success all around the United States. You need the right people to replicate [those successes here].” I just wish more black children had the good fortune of going to school under a principal like Johnson.
Click here to read the entire article about Sharon Johnson and her exemplary school.
Labels: education
posted by Jennifer James @ Wednesday, May 23, 2007,
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We Can Go to the Moon, But We Can't Close the Achievement Gap
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Every day I look at education news across the country and try to find evidence of black children making notable strides in their education and I can't find any. Either the good news is being kept silent, or black children have bigger problems than I thought.
I keep repeatedly asking myself: Why can't we close the achievement gap? Why CAN'T we close the achievement gap? As many people seem invested in the effort and as many symposiums and conferences are dedicated to its demise, one would think the achievement gap would be relegated to the annals of history. Instead it's fast becoming a part of the fabric of America; a piece of historic cloth that will forever remain embedded in our daily lives.
If you've read my bio, you would have read that my husband and I are homeschooling parents. In fact, we're leaders in the movement. In our minds, we simply could not leave the education of our black daughters to the system. The system would mess them up some way, some how. We're sure of it.
As a mom and as a homeschooler, I wholeheartedly feel that the only way black children are going to learn better and get a great education is if black parents rise up and take their children back and you don't have to be a homeschooler to do it. You just have to be a conscientious, dedicated, and concerned parent.
Black parents have to take the initiative to ensure that they're children are not screwed over and forgotten. It happens all too often and it has to stop. If we continue to let the educators, bureaucrats and administrators take our children's live into their hands and leave our kids without any hope for the future, the only people we can blame is ourselves.
Labels: commentary, education
posted by Jennifer James @ Tuesday, May 22, 2007,
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Black Parents Want Teachers to Teach Says "Education Next"
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Black parents all across the country are constantly looking for the precise answer to their children's educational needs. They want to find great schools with excellent teachers, up-to-date resources and small classes. New research released by Standford's Hoover Institute also says black parents, especially those from poor communities, want teachers to raise test scores as opposed to more affluent parents who prefer teachers make their children satisfied in their school environments. According to economists Brian A. Jacob of the University of Michigan and Lars Lefgren of Brigham Young University, parents in high-poverty schools strongly value a teacher’s ability to raise student achievement and appear less concerned about student satisfaction. In more-affluent schools the results are reversed: parents most value a teacher’s ability to keep students happy.For black parents whose children are less likely to receive a stellar education, it is reasonable to deduce that they want teachers to actually teach their children and, in effect, raise overall test scores. Sadly, though, this isn't happening in large enough numbers to put even the slightest dent in the achievement gap. In fact, the numbers are reverse, and despite what dedicated black parents ultimately desire for their children, most continue to find themselves in a constant struggle with schools, teachers and school systems because the formula isn't working.
Editor's Note: I haven't read the article in full from the Hoover Institute, but I'll go on a limb and say that all black parents, regardless of socioeconomic class, want teachers to teach and not make their children feel good in school. I say this because no matter how rich black parents are, black students still fare far worse than their white, Hispanic and Asian peers.
While most black children are taught in traditional public schools, there is evidence that black parents are looking to educational alternatives for their children's educations. Some are looking to vouchers so their children can attend quality, private schools. Others are homeschooling and still others have chosen charter schools for their children. The Center for Educational Reform recently come out with their picks for the best charter schools in the country. You can visit their site to learn all about what differentiates charter schools from traditional public schools and find out how your state ranks in producing some of the best or worst charter schools in the nation.
Labels: charter schools, education, homeschooling, parenting, public schools
posted by Jennifer James @ Sunday, May 20, 2007,
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Diagnosing Special Needs Black Children
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Special Needs Network Founders and Their SonsAreva D. Martin, Esq., Ernest Martin III (“Marty” 6 yrs. old); Donna Ross Jones, Nicholas Jones
(6 yrs. old)
If there is one thing all good parents know, it's their child. They intrinsically know the things their child loves and absolutely loathes. They know their child's inherent strengths and natural weaknesses. They know what their child likes for breakfast and what chores they abhor. They know how their child will act when put in a dicey situation and they know how their child will fare when given the best the world has to offer. Too often, however, black parents, although knowing their children backwards and forward, inside and out, face heavy, institutionalized resistance from the state when it comes to their children's education. This is particularly true for black parents whose children are autistic.
If you are the parent of a black child who you undoubtedly know has special needs, but the system insists he or she simply has behavioral problems or difficulty communicating, you should know your rights. Several articles and studies have tackled the all-too-common late diagnosis of autism in black children. In today's Los Angeles Times, there is a stellar article, Autistic students face race and class struggle, about black and Hispanic parents who have been fighting the system for quality special needs care for their children only to be turned away, given sub-par treatment or seeing their children diagnosed too late.
Areva Martin and Donna Ross, two Los Angeles black moms with autistic sons, have figured out the ins and outs of the system and help poor and minority families secure the treatment their children deserve through their organization Special Needs Network. According to a 2002 study of children enrolled in Medicaid, black children on average were diagnosed with autism 18 months later than white children. White children were diagnosed at age 6.3, compared with 7.9 for black children (Kaiser Health).
Martin and Ross have designed a specific course of action for black, brown and poor parents who need help navigating the system. Currently, the Special Needs Network is a community-based organization serving the Los Angeles area, however, if you need help I'm sure they would be happy to help.
If you need immediate guidance there are two books on autism I highly recommend:
Overcoming Autism: Finding the Answers, Strategies, and Hope That Can Transform a Child's Life
and Could It Be Autism?: A Parent's Guide to the First Signs and Next Steps
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posted by Jennifer James @ Saturday, May 19, 2007,
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Know this Woman and Teach Your Children About Her: Lucille Clifton
Monday, May 14, 2007
Lucille Clifton (b. 1936) has become the first African-American woman to win the US Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize, one of the largest and most prestigious U.S. literary honors. The Ruth Lilly Prize is given annually by the Poetry Foundation in the U.S.In announcing the award, Christian Wiman, editor of Poetry magazine and chair of the selection committee said: “Lucille Clifton is a powerful presence and voice in American poetry. Her poems are at once outraged and tender, small and explosive, sassy and devout. She sounds like no one else, and her achievement looks larger with each passing year.”
Hailing from a long, rich history of African-American poets, Clifton's work was once praised by Langston Hughes in an early anthology of African-American poetry.
Labels: children, education, family
posted by Jennifer James @ Monday, May 14, 2007,
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Lack of Discretion and Intelligence in Schools
I probably sound like a homeschooling elitist, but when I read stories like this, I can't help but come off a little snobby. I mean, when will the madness stop?
Teachers stage fake gun attack on kids.
Staff members of an elementary school staged a fictitious gun attack on students during a class trip, telling them it was not a drill as the children cried and hid under tables.Why would teachers even do this? Whose bright idea was it and why isn't he/she fired yet?
And, did you know that dropout rates are reaching 50%, mostly affecting minority and low-income students? Urban areas are rife with low expectations for students, a lack of leadership, and hardly any resources at all when compared to their suburban counterparts. So, what are we to do? As black parents, we have to make some changes. Some of us are homeschooling and others of us are taking parental responsibilities for making sure our children are receiving a good education, but is it enough?
With this said, the iBlackParenting blog will from this point onward be focused mainly on education and education reform. As black parents, we need an avenue to voice our opinions, make improvements and try to repair the system.
Labels: education, schools, teens
posted by Jennifer James @ Monday, May 14, 2007,
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