Abstract
“Acknowledging the inherent strengths, beauty, and humanity of Black students and their communities, each of us must find ways to make a positive and impactful difference and to teach for the liberation of African American students, such that optimistic educational and economic opportunities are not foreclosed for them.” (Boutte, 2022: p. 1)
As Black students enter classrooms, they arrive with promise, possibility, and brilliance. It is the responsibility of educators to create spaces for them to develop contextualized knowledge about their histories and communities and to be able to read and critique the world. In many educational settings, these spaces are not present. Dr Gloria Swindler Boutte’s text, Educating African American students: And how are the children? Provides the framework as well as powerful examples and strategies that can serve as a road map for educators to approach their work with Black students.
Guided by the question, “And how are the children?” Boutte explains why, in our past and present educational systems, Black children are not well. She explicates forms of oppression and structural inequities which are at the foundation of the educational system in the U.S. and globally. Boutte connects barriers rooted in anti-Blackness to adverse outcomes for Black students. It is important to note that she does this with deep love for teachers and for Black students. This love is clear in her acknowledgment of the fears, concerns, and potential misunderstandings as well as triggers that may be experienced by educators in the journey to examine self, curriculum, and educational systems. This sensitivity means that she provides explanations that are supportive, clear, and easily accessible for pre-service and in-service teachers and administrators as well as for teacher educators.
In Chapters 3–8, Boutte offers antidotes for anti-Blackness: African Diaspora Literacy, Critical Literacy, Biliteracy, Culturally Relevant Pedagogy, and Communalism. Of the book’s many strengths are the exemplars provided of Pro-Black teaching outlined in these chapters inviting readers into classrooms as teachers engage students in becoming literate about the African Diaspora, its peoples and histories. In the process, readers will learn ways to dispel myths born of the miseducation about Africans, the Diaspora, and African descendants that permeate much of our curriculum. The teachers highlighted in the book represent a variety of backgrounds and levels of professional experience across different disciplines and grade levels. The vivid classroom examples, accompanied by rich descriptions and photos help guide readers to understandings about how culturally relevant pedagogy and African Diaspora Literacy can be used as the instructional framework for day-to-day classroom instruction. Boutte emphasizes that these examples should serve as inspirations rather than as prescriptive, lock-step learning engagements.
As Boutte thoughtfully details the history that undergirds inequities in the current educational system and practical responses to them, she lovingly supports educators’ growth by carefully explaining how culturally relevant pedagogy and African Diaspora Literacy are key to ensuring that Black students have educational experiences which are humanizing and thereby, academically impactful. The book is a must read for any educator who has a desire to effectively educate and be re-energized and inspired in the teaching of African American students.