Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO) exists to educate and inform the general public about parental choice initiatives on the local and national level; educate Black families about the numerous educational options available; create, promote and support efforts to empower Black parents to exercise choice in determining how their children are educated; and educate and inform the general public about efforts to reduce or limit educational options available to parents.
This work looks at contemporary Black homeschooling as a form of resistance among single Black mothers, exploring each mother's experience and perspective in deciding to homeschool and developing their practice. It faces the many issues that plague the education of Black children in America, including discipline disproportionality, frequent special education referrals, low expectations in the classroom, and the marginalization of Black parents. Most importantly, this work challenges stereotypical characterizations of who homeschools and why.
This youtube video talks about an African-centered curriculum based on the texts African American History: A Journey to Liberation by Dr. Molefi Kete Asante and Classical Africa.
With the educational landscape becoming more diverse in America, black parents are looking for better ways in which to teach their children. One of the new educational alternatives and the only one thus far exhibiting parity between the races is home schooling. Though many blacks are embarking on home schooling as a new educational choice, many don't fully know why home education tends to work for black children. This article will piece together clues that account for black children's affinity for learning at home.
The National African-American Homeschoolers Alliance was born out of a desire to unite African-American homeschoolers nationally. Launched in January 2003, NAAHA is the only nonsectarian organization for African-American home schooling families. The primary objective of NAAHA is to disseminate home schooling information relevant to African-American homeschoolers or to anyone home schooling African-American children. NAAHA's fundamental mission is to consistently provide the latest and the best home school information and resources for members and online guests to enjoy--from home schooling books and curricula to new African-American support groups and organizations. In addition to being an information clearinghouse, NAAHA also provides free educational advisory help from educational professionals and from those with a degreed knowledge of a particular subject.
Creating a web presence of African-American home school support groups will do much to organize and network families across the country and internationally. This article the basics for creating a personal home schooling website or site for a home school support group or organization.
Anecdotal evidence seems to indicate that homeschooling is growing in the black community. Mike Smith of the Home School Legal Defense Association discusses this with Joyce Burges, co-founder of the National Black Home Educators Resource Association.
In the past couple of years the news has been inundated with national, international and local articles reporting the dramatic rise of homeschooling in the African-American community. Although we often get statistics about Black homeschoolers, we rarely get a glimpse of real families. This article takes you into the lives of Black homeschooling families who are taking their children's education into their own hands.
While families have been homeschooling for nearly thirty years in the United States, it is only recently that African-American families have seen the proven potential of educating their children at home. In a time of perpetual academic underachievement, the ever-stagnant achievement gap and unfettered, unequal access to quality schools and resources, African-American families are taking a dramatic approach to the educational future of their children by adopting a collective and renewed stance on family-led learning.
Great youtube video discussing various African-centered resources for homeschoolers.
The best research on homeschooling indicates the total number of children who are homeschooled is 1.5 to 2 million, and that number is growing by 10 to 15 percent per year. But not everyone recognizes the academic and social success of homeschoolers and some criticize the movement as being white and elitist. While it's true that the large majority of homeschool children are white, the number of black homeschoolers is growing rapidly. Brian Ray, president of the National Home Education Research Institute, estimates that there are 30,000 to 50,000 black children being homeschooled today. Others estimate that black homeschoolers make up 5 percent of the total homeschool population. Most importantly black homeschool movement is growing at a faster rate than the general homeschool population.
In July 2000, Louisiana residents Joyce and Eric Burges created the National Black Home Educators Resource Association, a nonprofit organization that provides advice on curriculum materials, pairs new families with veteran home educators, and produces an annual symposium. The Burgeses’ goal is to encourage other African-American families to become more involved in their children’s education. This article tells their personal story and how they have impacted the community in which they live.
A look at unschooling as a philosophy of life from an African-American perspective.
This group is for African American parents (or parents of African American children) who are homeschooling their children. It is also for parents looking to supplement their children's education with home study.
This list is for Christian families of color who've opted to home educate their children. They exist to offer support, fellowship and to share resources with other African American and bi-racial Christian homeschooling families.
A new wave of pioneers is sweeping onto the home schooling trail. After decades of promises that the public school "system" holds the key to success, some African-American families are finding, like those of other ethnicities, that an increasingly centralized system and social decay are fast dissolving the bonds of their culture and families. And many have found a way to reconnect and restore those bonds by home schooling—an educational path so old and overgrown that it's considered radical and cutting edge.
Brown Sugar & Spice Books carries African-American children's books, multicultural books, and black history books for adults and children.
Afrocentric Homeschoolers Association Email Group is a discussion group for pro-Black African and/or African Diasporan, Black homeschoolers, unschoolers, deschoolers, and home-based educators everywhere. It is also open to non-homeschoolers and non-Blacks who are trying to teach their children about Blacks. It was founded as a resource for Black homeschoolers, Blacks in Canada, the U.S., Caribbean, and elsewhere, including the African Canadian, African American, African Caribbean, Black European, African, and Black Canadian.
African-American Unschooling provides a point of contact for African-American homeschoolers. Connect with unschoolers near you, get information about homeschooling and unschooling, and get access to homeschooling and Africentric resources.
Virtual charter schools are popping up all over the country, providing free computers, textbooks and educational materials to any family who would like to enroll in their program. Jennifer James takes a hard look at how these schools are detrimental to black homeschoolers.