Tavis Smiley
A new episode of “Tavis Smiley Reports,” a primetime special on PBS, will examine the increased dropout rate among black teenage males.
In the episode, titled “Too Important to Fail,” Smiley travels across the country, speaking to education experts as well as to the boys themselves about the challenges they face and how education can be redirected to address their needs. Smiley also profiles individuals who are making a difference in the lives of young black males and looks at the schools that are best serving them.
“If the crisis were a crisis involving white boys, what would the response be?” said Smiley. “As we saw recently in the UK, an entire society suffers when one part of a population is ignored; s new focus on our black boys is a renewed focus on America.”
In a news release, Smiley noted:
- In many states less than 50% of young black males graduate from high school.
- Low graduation rates combined with high rates of placement in special education classes and disproportionate use of suspension and expulsion, add up to a crisis point for young black males on the brink of adulthood.
- Generational poverty, the pressure on single parent households, continued unemployment, the lack of positive male role models in schools, crime, drugs, gangs and the condition of many urban schools aid in the alarming dropout rate.
- In too many traditional classrooms, particularly where teachers are asked to handle large classes, active boys are seen as disciplinary problems and are treated accordingly; teacher expectations are often lower for boys who seem less focused; it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that boys fail when teachers expect them to do so.
“Too Important to Fail” premiers at 6 p.m., Tuesday, September 13, on PBS.
“In too many traditional classrooms, particularly where teachers are asked to handle large classes, active boys are seen as disciplinary problems and are treated accordingly; teacher expectations are often lower for boys who seem less focused; it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that boys fail when teachers expect them to do so.”
Right, Tavis! When all else fails, blame the teachers!
Here’s what it boils down to: Some kids want to learn, others don’t. Those that don’t can ruin an entire class for those that do. The teachers hands are tied behind their back from the get-go. You are not allowed to actively discipline the trouble makers and you get hardly any support from an administrator who is desperately trying not to make any waves so that he or she can get promoted and get the hell out a.s.a.p. !
I’m tired of people like Tavis, who hasn’t truly walked in the shoes of a teacher, trying to tell teachers how to do their jobs and placing all of the blame at their feet.
How about the parents, Tavis? How about their lack of support for education? How about their idea of schools as a Day Care center for their kids? How about their disdain for the people in charge of teaching their kids? How about the parents who prioritize materialism and a thug culture over learning?
Teachers aren’t the ones to blame here. The responsibility lies in the attitude of the community these kids come from. Admitting such, however, would mean that people like Tavis would have to apologize to Bill Cosby and Larry Elder.
Walk a mile in a teacher’s shoes, Tavis!