| Young, Gifted, and Black: Promoting High Achievement Among African-American Students Contributor(s): Perry, Theresa (Author), Steele, Claude (Author), Hilliard, Asa (Editor) |
|
 |
ISBN: 0807031054 ISBN-13: 9780807031056 Publisher: Beacon Press OUR PRICE: $15.26 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: February 2004 Annotation: Young, Gifted, and Black is a unique joint effort by three leading African-American scholars to radically reframe the debates swirling around the achievement of African-American students in school. In three separate but allied essays, Theresa Perry, Claude Steele, and Asa Hilliard place students' social identity as African-Americans at the very center of the discussion. They all argue that the unique social and cultural position Black students occupy, in a society which often devalues and stereotypes African American identity, fundamentally shapes students' experience of school and sets up unique obstacles. And they all argue that a proper understanding of the forces at work can lead to practical, powerful methods for promoting high achievement at all levels. Theresa Perry argues that African-American students face dilemmas, founded in the experience of race and ethnicity in America, that make the task of achievement distinctive and difficult. (For instance: "How do I commit myself to achieve, to work hard over time in school, if I cannot predict when or under what circumstances this hard work will be acknowledged and recognized?") She uncovers a rich and powerful African- American philosophy of education, historically forged against such obstacles and capable of addressing them, by reading African-American narratives from Frederick Douglass to Maya Angelou. She carefully critiques the most popular theoretical explanations for group differences in achievement. And she lays out how educators today--in a post-civil rights era--can draw on theory and on the historical power of the African--American philosophy and tradition of education to reorganize the school experience ofAfrican--American students. Claude Steele reports stunningly clear empirical psychological evidence that when Black students believe they are being judged as members of a stereotyped group rather than as individuals, they do worse on tests. He finds the mechanism, which he calls "stereotype threat," to be a quite general one, affecting women's performance in mathematics, for instance, where stereotypes about gender operate. He analyzes the subtle psychology of stereotype threat and reflects on the broad implications of his research for education, suggesting techniques--based again on evidence from controlled psychological experiments--that teachers and mentors and schools can use to counter stereotype threat's powerful effect. Asa Hilliard's ends essay, against a variety of false theories and misguided views of African American achievement, and focuses on actual schools and programs and teachers around the country that allow African-American students achieve at high levels, describing what they are like and what makes them work. Young, Gifted, and Black will change the way we think and talk about African American student achievement and will be necessary reading on this topic for years to come. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Education | Multicultural Education - Political Science - Education | Student Life & Student Affairs |
| Dewey: 371.829 |
| LCCN: 2002012009 |
| Physical Information: 0.43" H x 5.74" W x 8.38" (0.51 lbs) 183 pages |
| Themes: - Ethnic Orientation - African American |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: "An important and powerful book" that radically reframes the debates swirling around the academic achievement of African-American students (Boston Review) In three separate but allied essays, African-American scholars Theresa Perry, Claude Steele, and Asa Hilliard examine the alleged 'achievement gap' between Black and white students. Each author addresses how the unique social and cultural position Black students occupy--in a society which often devalues and stereotypes African-American identity--fundamentally shapes students' experience of school and sets up unique obstacles. Young, Gifted and Black provides an understanding of how these forces work, opening the door to practical, powerful methods for promoting high achievement at all levels. In the first piece, Theresa Perry argues that the dilemmas African-American students face are rooted in the experience of race and ethnicity in America, making the task of achievement distinctive and difficult. She uncovers a rich, powerful African-American philosophy of education by reading African-American narratives from Frederick Douglass to Maya Angelou and carefully critiques the most popular theoretical explanations for group differences in achievement. She goes on to lay out how today's educators can draw from these sources to reorganize the school experience of African-American students. Claude Steele follows up with stunningly clear empirical psychological evidence that when Black students believe they are being judged as members of a stereotyped group--rather than as individuals--they do worse on tests. He analyzes the subtle psychology of this 'stereotype threat' and reflects on the broad implications of his research for education, suggesting scientifically proven techniques that teachers, mentors, and schools can use to counter the powerful effect of stereotype threat. Finally, Asa Hilliard's essay argues against a variety of false theories and misguided views of African-American achievement. She also shares examples of real schools, programs, and teachers around the country that allow African-American students to achieve at high levels, describing what they are like and what makes them work. Now more than ever, Young, Gifted and Black is an eye-opening work that has the power to not only change how we talk and think about African-American student achievement but how we view the African-American experience as a whole. |