By Cheryl Fields-Smith
Today, 90 years after the publishing of Mis-Education of the Negro and 70 years after the passing Brown v Board of Education (BOE) decision, Black families are increasingly choosing to home educate. 1In fact, data suggests Black families represent the fastest growing group among home educators in the U.S. In what ways does the rise in Black home education relate to these two pivotal points in Black educational history? I believe the rise in Black home education can be attributed in part to Brown v BOE never being realized. Additionally, my research indicates that the learning experiences created by Black home educators aligns with Carter G. Woodson’s seminal work.
As Woodson prophetically proclaimed, education for Children of Color and low-income children is plagued with destructive factors for our children. He criticized the education system at that time for failing to provide Black children with a meaningful and culturally relevant education. Ninety years ago, he observed that the school curriculum perpetuated racial stereotypes and ignored the contributions of Black people. Today, we see banning of books often associated with Black culture and the oppression of anything related to diversity, equity, and inclusion in schools. Additionally, schools continue to be segregated by family income due to inequity in school funding policies. 2The state of Black education has not risen to what Thurgood Marshall and his team had in mind when they won the landmark case. 3Black home education represents a pathway to overcome negative experiences and characteristics typically associated with Black education today. These issues include, but are not limited to, discipline disproportionality, low teacher expectations, barriers to access to gifted education, over representation in special education,
marginalization/disenfranchisement of Black parents’ attempts to advocate for their children, and school-to-prison pipeline. In choosing to home educate, Black parents are seeking excellence in their children’s education and at the very least, a learning climate that fosters their children’s positive self-identity, safety, and a love of learning.
Black parents’ homeschooling practices often align with the ideas Carter G. Woodson espoused for Black families 90 years ago in his seminal book, The Mis-Education of the Negro. For example, in 1933, Carter G. Woodson told us that self-education would be the best form of education for Black people. He encouraged us to learn our history and to create learning opportunities that reflected our history and the contributions of Black people. Why? Because he knew that as a people, we would gain a sense of pride and develop a positive self-identify and empowerment by knowing the achievements of our ancestors.
In my research, I document the many ways Black families foreground our rich African American heritage across subject areas, and in turn their children grow with a strong sense of self and a positive racial identity that empowers them to push against anti-Blackness. So, while it may be disheartening to see that in 90 years school systems have failed to heed the wisdom of Carter G. Woodson, I am grateful for the generation of Black home-educated students who are learning, and will have learned, their history in truth. The sacrifices and challenges of Black home educators are a critical investment in our children and youth. I hope Black home educators draw inspiration in knowing their decision to homeschool would make our ancestors like Carter G. Woodson proud.
1 Casey Eggleston and Jason Fields. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey Shows Significant Increase in Homeschooling Rates in Fall 2020. United States Census Bureau. March 22, 2021. https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2021/03/homeschooling-on-the-rise-during-covid-19-pandemic.html
2 Alia Wong. Enrichment Only for the Rich? How School Segregation Continues to Divide Students by Income. USA Today. (May 16, 2024). https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/education/2024/05/16/brown-v-board-turns-70-school-segregation-persists/73243509007/
3 Sharif El-Mekki. 70 Years After ‘Brown”, Schools are Still Separate and Unequal. Education Week. (May 20, 2024).
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