Franklin Symposium: Black Achievement Suffers
Because of Inadequate Relationships With Teachers
Scholars at John Hope Franklin symposium looking for next generation
to engage on issues relevant to Black community.
By John McCann
Durham, N.C.
In this city, now unfortunately infamous for an elite university’s lacrosse team party that may have gotten out of hand, sit two high schools under a judge’s threat of closure because not enough students appear to be on track to attend any college, much less Duke University..
Wake County Superior Court Judge Howard Manning has his eye on 19 schools across North Carolina, including Durham’s Hillside High and Southern High. The schools have both wrapped up for the year, and Manning has said they ought to be shut down if 55 percent of students don’t pass the final exams.
Much of the debate around this issue has centered on underperforming Black students. Many experts on Black student issues have argued that it is almost impossible to boost academic results among those students without first addressing socioeconomic factors like hunger and unstable living situations.
It was those themes that were touched on repeatedly by scholars and higher education administrators during a June 16-17 symposium on Duke’s campus. Sponsored by Diverse: Issues In Higher Education magazine, the event celebrated the scholarship of 91-year-old historian Dr. John Hope Franklin. The overriding message of the conference, named after Franklin, was the need to find the next generation of Black thinkers.
Dr. Michael Nettles, senior vice president for policy evaluation and
research at the Educational Testing Service, knows exactly where to find the next batch of Black intellectuals. He says they’re in grade schools all over the country.Controlling for socioeconomics, his research bears out that test scores for low-income Black children are not nearly as dire as reported. These students are performing rather well, he said.
