Diversity and the positive impact of African-American teachers and African-American male teachers in Buffalo inner city schools
Few African-American men work as administrators and teachers in Buffalo inner city schools. When they are present, the impact is dramatic. That’s the perspective of Ayana Williams, a substitute teacher who taught in 13 inner city schools in the last three years.
She noticed at one school, led by an African-American male assistant principal, there was a marked improvement in student behavior.
“The boys look up to him. They respect him and there’s certain things they will not try when they see him or when he’s around,” said Williams. “It is important to see that diversity in the schools and it gives hope to the kids.”
The lack of African-American men as leaders in schools is associated with academic problems for young black male students -- from higher dropout rates to larger achievement gaps.
She believes the absence of men may be hurting the education of students. Research backs this up. Minority students perform better when there are people in charge who they can relate to.
“Advocates argue that minority teachers may better understand the cultural and racial backgrounds students bring with them into the classroom, which can lead to improved academic performance among minority students as well as a decrease in suspensions and dropout rates,” wrote Jay Rey in a Buffalo News story published Oct. 17, 2017.
Though local data on the gender of teachers are not available. The ethnic/racial gap in Buffalo Publics Schools are also noteworthy.
Forty-seven percent of students enrolled are African-American, but only 8 percent of teachers are African-American. Twenty percent of students are Caucasian. But they make up 87 percent of all teachers.
Nationwide, the statistics are dramatic.
Only 2 percent of public school teachers are African-American males. Yet students of color make up about half the nation’s public school enrollment from pre-kindergarten to 12th grade, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
Williams spoke passionately about the lack of diversity in Buffalo inner city schools. Williams, who is African-American, said many white teachers from the suburbs don’t understand the culture of their inner-city students.
Clarence, Hamburg, Orchard Park, Lancaster and West Seneca are larger districts with at least a 93 percent white population, according to the Buffalo News.
She believes white teachers who live in very different suburban culture “have difficulty with the students and behavior and attitudes and the whole climate of the school because they don't necessarily understand the climate of the individuals they’re teaching.”
She is not the only one that thinks that.
The disparity of race, teachers, administrators and students in Buffalo Public Schools has become an emerging issue in secondary schools and college campuses in recent years.
“Teachers aren’t graduating from teacher preparation programs and going into urban district well prepared for the challenges they’re dealing with,” said Tiffany Lankes, communications director for The Education Trust–New York.
She put it this way: In any classroom in the city of Buffalo, ask yourself is the child living in a neighborhood where there’s a lot of violence? Has this child recently or in there lifetime experience a violent crime? Or known someone thats been a victim of violent crime. In addition to the families income level, these children are dealing with issues from housing instability to food instability.
“These are really complexed issues, that can have an impact on a child's behavior or how well they’re performing academically,” said Lankes.
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