In this study, Janice Hale critiques existing initiatives for improving the education of African American children. She maintains that the current focus of school reform movements - teacher training and testing, child testing, child retention, and "one-size-fits-all" models of parent involvement - amount to the "same old thing". The solution to creating educational excellence for African American children, she argues, is found in the classroom, in the activity between the teacher and the child. The key to teaching children effectively lies in the instructional leadership provided by the principals. And meeting the needs of diverse learners in urban and rural classrooms means the school becoming the co-ordinator of support services such as tutoring and mentoring provided by concerned citizens, service clubs, churches and fraternal organizations. In this text, educators are called on to give up their belief that the educational limitations of African American children are the reasons for the achievement gap. Principals and teachers are called upon to work with community members to monitor the educational performance and extracurricular activities for each child at the classroom level, making sure that all children are performing at or above grade level and are involved in meaningful cultural enrichment programmes. Finally, Hale calls on all of us to create the "beloved community" envisioned by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and outlines strategies for redefining the school as the Family, and the broader community as the Village in which each child is too precious to be left behind.

Table of Contents:
Contents: Foreword by V. P. Franklin Preface Acknowledgments PART I: Breaking the Silence Chapter 1: Mastery and Excellence versus the Bell Curve Chapter 2: Playing by the Rules Chapter 3: African American Goals and Closed Doors Chapter 4: Down the Up Escalator PART II: Creating the Village Chapter 5: Twenty-First-Century Education Project: Report and Recommendations Chapter 6: A Model for Culturally Appropriate Pedagogy Chapter 7: The Role of the African American Church in Creating the Village Chapter 8: Where Do We Go from here?: A Call to Action Appendix - The Church's Educational and Advocacy Mission with African American Children: Cognitive, Affective, and Religious Context References Index