Education
The Shame of Black America Isn’t that Black Boys Can’t Read; The Shame Is that Black America Does Little to Help Them Learn to Read!
By Phillip Jackson, The Black Star Project
Nationally, about 10% of 8th-grade Black males read at or above a proficient level. In other words, on average, if you count any 100 young Black men, only 10 of them read at a proficient level.
In Detroit, only 3 out of 100 young Black men read at or above a proficient level. How is this acceptable to Black America? Where is the protest? I (Phillip Jackson) have challenged Black people to tell me that these statistics are not accurate, but so far, no challenges. In fact, only silence!
Break the Cycle: Teach Black Boys to Read Well by the 4th Grade. Here’s How?
- Read to Black boys between birth and 10 years old.
- Emphasize the value of education–not sports, not entertainment, not games–when Black boys are 2 to 12 years old.
- Give Black boys books for their birthdays, holidays, and to reward them for jobs well done.
- Enroll Black boys in a Young Black Male Reading Academy at your church, park district, library or school. (Call The Black Star Project at 773.285.9600 for assistance setting up your Black Male Reading Academy)
- Have Black boys between the ages of 5 and 15 years old read aloud to you for at least 30 minutes a week.
- Monitor and regulate the content of media your Black boys consume.
- Immerse Black boys in positive, education-based peer groups.
- Find a mentor or a mentoring group for your young Black men.
- Include culture, spirituality, history, economics, languages and critical thinking in the education of Black boys.
- Ask the White House to support The Black Star Plan to teach Black boys to read well by 4th grade.