Africa Speaks Reasoning Forum

Homeschooling on the Rise in Black Communities

Monday, May 19, 2003

LOS ANGELES - With a 4,000 percent increase in a 20-year span, homeschooling has become one of the fast-growing phenomenons, especially inside the black community. In fact, black children are now five times more likely to be homeschooled than they were five years ago.

In conjunction with the usual public school concerns, such as safety, many black parents also feel that their African American history is ignored in the curriculum.

Ghia Johnson, a single mother of four, who has been homeschooling for seven years now, is one of the many parents who feel that public schools are dangerous, ineffective and focus too little on African American history.

"That takes precedence over math and science and all other subjects, because if they don't know who they are or where they came from then I don't believe they will know where they are going," Johnson said.

Ironically, many people are accusing black homeschool advocates of turning back the clock on civil rights and integration in public schools.

"What our fathers believed in the 1950s is that if it was a white school, it had to be better," says Joyce Burges, who has homeschooled four children in Baker, La. "But in the last five years, more and more black parents are saying about those same schools: 'I'm not going to sacrifice my children to a system where they're suffering.'"

Others see civil rights as the freedom to educate as one pleases.

Mark Mabson, a homeschooling father, said, "I want to be looked upon as an individual and as an individual I want to do what is best for my family, I don't have to follow with the majority."

The Mabson family feels that the public school system is failing on numerous levels and is moving away from what is right to what is politically correct.

"We can teach our own morals, we can still say the Pledge of Allegiance, we can teach them about our country and loyalties," adds Karen Mabson, Mark's wife.

This movement is growing by leaps and bounds in black suburban communities, such as Atlanta, Richmond, Va., and Prince George County, Md., according to The Christian Science Monitor, and is partly fueled by groups like the Mocha-Moms . The Atlanta-based Mocha-Moms, which is a group of black housewives turned homeschooling mavens, offers tips and advice on the homeschooling experience.

Some critics say that homeschooled children might be academically challenged but miss out on valuable social experiences.

"The socialization process today is far more difficult than we really know," Charles Christian, a University of Maryland sociologist, told The Christian Science Monitor. He notes that a lot of parents "are simply saying that [public] school is not where they want to send their children during their formative years."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,87286,00.html

I'm a firm believer of home schooling!! It gives the options for people like myself who want their children to get an African based decent education. The things that I take into consideration are the socialization of Black children and the quality of their education. "The Nubian Children School" is one school in Trinidad and Tobago that my kids could attend! Black African parents have to take it upon themselves to educate their children about the truth about African history and culture!!

http://www.nubianschool.com/

Bantu Kelani.

Yes, I too am a strong believer in home schooling, my mother didn't do it with me but I would like to teach my children someday.
At general school you hardly learn anything about our african heritage and decent,african studies are very much ignored because they only go as far as teaching the children about the Middle Passage then they close off that chapter and that is the end of it.
I feel many black children will benefit they will find out who they are, where they came from, the hardships they ancestors fought for them to live and have rights in this generation and all the great black men and women who stood up for their rights.

www.rastafarionline.com... those sistren are putting together a curiculum for Rastafari youths being home-schooled. Check their IDUCATION page and there is also reasoning for the Mothers and much more information...
Blessed

This is very good, it alows black children to be taught on a more personal basis and they wont be written off as unteachable.

Well i never really knew much aobut home schooling, but you're right, it's a great way to teach our children. Although i've just turned 20, i've always wanted to teach my future children about my personal values etc but never could figure out how i would do this effectively if they were to go to public schools and be influenced by the friends and teachers encountered there (since children spend more time in school than at home). But homeschooling seems to be a really good idea, especially with the fact that i'm ivorian (west africa) and the only history i've been able to have on my country was whatever i could find on internet, but my kids won't have to suffer that.
The only problem is that i want my children to find out about other people and other races to avoid racism (because i believe that once u are close to a certain type of people, some stereotypes disapear) and i believe that can only happen if they mix with such people.
So my question is this, what do u suggest i should do to enable them to meet and make lasting frienships with other children (i thought of playclubs and all, but that can't possibly be the only option)

PS: I live in the UK.