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9 Strategies That Can Be Used to Close the Achievement Gap

Enhanced Cultural Competence

Cultural competence is at the forefront of closing the achievement gap, which disproportionately affects low-income Blacks and other minorities. In order to address their needs, teachers, staff and faculty must consider students’ diversity to be an asset by including diversity in the curriculum and being sensitive to each student’s culture. They should also work to increase their own cultural competence to better understand and capitalize on students’ culture, abilities, resilience and effort.

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Comprehensive Support for Students

Comprehensive support for children includes understanding and helping to improve the external factors that affect a child’s performance in school. It is important to screen children early for medical/social services and work with medical, social services and community agencies. Educators must identify students who need additional instructional support and support students via mentors, tutoring, peer support networks and role models.

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Chicago’s Ambitious Computer Science Program Could Help Close Diversity Gap in STEM Careers

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has launched an extremely ambitious computer science program and it could ultimately help increase diversity in the tech field.

It was only a few months ago that major tech companies like Facebook and Google revealed that only about 2 percent of their employees are Black.

Since those diversity reports were made public, people have been scrambling to find the solution to the lack of diversity in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers.

One solution has always stood out above the rest, however, and that’s education.

Experts believe the key to generating more diversity in STEM careers is to first make sure minorities have access to the type of education that could prepare them for such a career path.

Thanks to Emanuel, Chicago’s youth will have that type of access.

According to NationSwell.com, the Chicago mayor has teamed up with Code.org to bring computer science classes to every public school in the Windy City.

Every grade from kindergarten to high school will soon have computer science classes as a mandatory part of their curriculum.

CNN Money revealed that high school students won’t even be allowed to graduate without meeting certain computer science requirements.

“In three years’ time, you can’t graduate from high school in the city of Chicago if you didn’t take code writing and computer science,” Emanuel announced at a tech conference. “We’re making it mandatory.”

Emanuel announced the plan last December and now there is an increasingly large need for the plan to come to fruition.

Nearly 40 percent of Chicago’s public school students are Black. More than 45 percent are Hispanic.

If computer science programs are successfully integrated into the school’s curriculum, that means thousands of minority students will be given the type of skills that could eventually grow into a budding career in Silicon Valley.

Perhaps the most important aspect of the plan is to have computer science incorporated in the schools’ curriculum even at the elementary level.

“Just having kids jump into computer science at the high school level, they don’t have a good context for it,” said Cameron Wilson of Code.org to CNN Money. “Having them exposed early and building on concepts year after year is really important.”

And that’s exactly what the mayor and Code.org authorities have in mind.

Code.org has already successfully partnered with 30 school districts in order to promote computer science education, but the partnership with Chicago is the most ambitious one yet.

“This plan will also compete with countries where children take coding classes as early as first grade and create an environment where we can support the next Bill Gates and Marissa Mayer,” Emanuel added.

In addition to being a major step toward adding diversity to the tech industry, this could also help close the major deficit of workers needed in computer science careers.

It was recently revealed that by 2020, there will be 4.2 million job positions for computer science. Based on the current number of computer science students in college and employees already working in the computer science field, there won’t be enough people to fill all those positions.

Exposing students to computer science at a young age and building on those skills throughout their years in school, however, could spark an interest in the field and make the future graduating classes out of Chicago viable candidates to fill those positions.

 

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5 Ways to Get Black Kids Excited About STEM

Knowledge of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) can open up a wide array of doors for Black youths. By getting them interested early, they will perform better in school and potentially develop a love and aptitude for math and science. Here are five ways to get Black kids excited about STEM, according to Ebony Magazine. 

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Connect to after-school STEM programs happening at your child’s school or in your local community center. 

Classroom lessons, plus the increasing time dedicated to prepare for high-stakes tests, rarely give curious students a chance to do the science and engineering activities that captivate their interests in these subjects. Academic extra-curricular activities such as Robotics Competition Teams, Science and Math Clubs, as well as Scouting Programs sponsored by civic organizations, are ideal outlets for youths interested in STEM. These programs and clubs host activities that reinforce classroom lessons, foster critical thinking and allow students to interact with mentors and other science-engaged students.

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The New Era of Education Entrepreneurs Take to New Orleans to Grow Businesses

4.0 Schools takes on new class

We have entered the new era of educational entrepreneurship, and a group of the latest emerging entrepreneurs focused on education has taken to New Orleans to further develop, grow and expand this businesses.

The teams behind nine new education-focused businesses came together for a unique accelerator program that is aimed at taking their companies to the next level.

The program is called 4.0 Schools, and it has the ability to help these teams develop educational solutions that could truly revolutionize the world.

For one month, 4.0 Schools will guide the nine teams through their accelerator program. Further guidance and assistance will be provided remotely after the teams return to the cities they are based out of.

The nonprofit education innovation lab is based in New Orleans with another location based in New York City.

Based on the companies’ record, the emerging entrepreneurs are certainly in good hands.

In less than five years, 4.0 Schools has helped more than 40 companies and business ventures reach the next level.

The key for the program is to not just focus on the typical entrepreneurial lessons that pertain to a broad number of businesses.

The program takes a special focus on trends in the educational sphere and preps the teams to be efficient in those areas.

With that being said, it’s no surprise that there was a great focus on the skills needed for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers.

Now, more than ever, it is essential for leaders in education to have a thorough knowledge of STEM and to be able to share that knowledge with students, partners, clients and others who hope to become entrepreneurs in the realm of education.

“We see trends shifting because we are seeing a new generation of parents that are very talented and well-credentialed,” Tony Zanders, head of communications and outreach at 4.0 Schools in New Orleans, told Forbes.

Zanders went on to say that the program seeks to make parents more aware and proactive about their children’s education.

The program also boasts a great deal of diversity in the teams.

The latest class at the program has six teams that are founded by entrepreneurs of color and seven of the teams are founded by women.

“We continue to be surprised by the places groundbreaking ideas for the future of schools can come from,” Matt Candler, founder and CEO of 4.0 Schools, told Forbes. “In this cohort alone, there’s a rocket scientist, an electrical engineer, a stay-at-home mom, a lawyer, a teacher and even students themselves.”

By the end of the extensive program, 4.0 Schools officials hope all the teams will have the tool and resources they need to return to their own communities and make a major impact in the future of education.

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Jamaican Tech Entrepreneur Seeks to Expand New Web-Based E-Learning App To More Caribbean Islands

Jamaican innovator Gordon Swaby is ready to take his Web-based e-learning app to Trinidad and Tobago after it has already led students in Jamaica to great academic success.

The app is called Edufocal and it gives students a less structured but still effective way to study so that learning can seem more fun.

Edufocal has already been a major success with Jamaican students at the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) and Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) levels.

Swaby believes that the app has already been responsible for many students excelling on their Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT).

The test is Jamaica’s national high school entrance examination and a major milestone for students in grade school.

“Four out of five GSAT students were placed in their school of choice and all scored in the 90s,” Swaby told The Guardian. “Our top five CSEC students also received all their passes.”

More than 3,500 students have already used the virtual program and now Swaby is taking it to Trinidad and Tobago.

Swaby was recently in Trinidad and Tobago as a Jamaican delegate for the eighth Americas Competitiveness Forum in Port-of-Spain, The Guardian reported.

The program costs $15 a month per student or $42 for a three-month subscription.

While the virtual program is not free, it certainly seems to be quite effective and even allows students and parents to track their progress online.

“Students and parents can track their progress on Edufocal,” Swaby told The Guardian. “You can see the areas that you are lacking in, you can see the areas that you are progressing in. How much time you are spending on the program and the areas that you are spending the time on.”

It’s hard to believe that there is an app that can truly be effective while also making education fun, but if anyone were to accomplish such a feat it would be Swaby.

When he was only 15, Swaby created one of the largest gaming sites in the English-speaking Caribbean and was recognized as the top student entrepreneur by the University of Technology in 2012.

He was also a Private Sector Organization of Jamaica (PSOJ) 50 under 50 awardee, according to The Guardian.

 

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9 Contemporary Black Academics You Should Know

Ali Mazrui

Ali Mazrui, who passed away this past weekend, was a Kenyan academic, professor and political writer on African and Islamic studies and North-South relations. He was an Albert Schweitzer professor in the humanities and the director of the Institute of Global Cultural Studies at Binghamton University in Binghamton, New York. Mazrui obtained his bachelor of arts with distinction from Manchester University, his master’s degree from Columbia University and his doctorate of philosophy from Oxford University. He previously taught at the University of Michigan, Binghamton University and the State University of New York.

Mazrui’s research interests included African politics, international political culture, political Islam and North-South relations. He is author or co-author of more than 20 books. Mazrui was widely consulted by heads of states and governments, international media and research institutions for political strategies and alternative thoughts.

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Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr.

Henry Louis Gates Jr. is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker, literary scholar, journalist, cultural critic and institution builder. He is an Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and director of the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard University. Gates has authored 17 books and created 14 documentary films. His TV show Finding Your Roots, now in its second season on PBS, has featured several celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey and Chris Rock, tracing back their ancestral lineage. He is also the co-founder and editor-in-chief of the online daily, The Root.

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Dr. Michael Eric Dyson

Michael Eric Dyson is an academic, author and radio host. He is a professor of sociology at Georgetown University. Dyson received his bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, from Carson–Newman College in 1985. He obtained his master’s and Ph.D. in religion from Princeton University. He hosted The Michael Eric Dyson Show from 2009 to 2011. He’s currently a political analyst for MSNBC and has published 17 books about subjects that run the gamut from hip-hop to Hurricane Katrina.

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9 Black People Who Made an Impact in Physics

As the focus on STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) grows and Black people are more encouraged to take on STEM studies and careers, this article pays homage to Black men and women who were pioneers in the realm of physics, according to Physics Buzz and Buffalo University’s Physicists of the African Diaspora.

Edward Bouchet was the first African-American to receive a Ph.D. from a university in the United States. He received his doctorate in 1876 from Yale after studying optics, but he had trouble finding a teaching position afterwards because of his race. He took a position teaching physics and chemistry at the Institute of Colored Youth in Pennsylvania for 26 years, then moved around to several different colleges and high schools at the end of his career.

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Elmer Imes was the second African-American to receive a physics doctorate, and the first to publish research. His work, published in 1920, on molecular infrared spectroscopy provided one of the earliest tests of quantum theory. Despite his scientific achievements, he also had trouble finding employment at a university or college and spent the next 10 years of his life at different industrial labs. In 1930, he became the chairman of the physics department at Fisk University.

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Willie Hobbs Moore was the first African-American woman to earn a Ph.D. in physics at the University of Michigan in 1972 on vibrational analysis of secondary chlorides. While at Michigan, Moore worked for Datamax. She also held engineering positions at Bendix Aerospace Systems, Barnes Engineering and Sensor Dynamics, where she was responsible for the theoretical analysis.

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