Student self-report data from 933 Black middle school students and standardized mathematics test scores (SAT-10) were used to examine the relationship among student perceptions of teacher expectations and reform instructional practices, aspects of student motivation, and three student mathematics performance outcomes--time spent studying, expected…

Both predominantly White institutions (PWIs) and historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are experiencing low academic persistence rates of Black males. While researchers have focused on factors facilitating the retention and persistence for Black males at PWIs, a paucity of contemporary research has focused on the academic and social…

Seventy-two first-, third-, and fifth-grade Black children heard stories about Black and White students engaged in computer, physical education, social studies, and spelling tasks at school. Children were asked to evaluate the ability, effort, experience of task difficulty, and likelihood of task success for the story characters. Findings…

This article responds to Shelby Gilbert's "A Study of Ogbu and Simon's Thesis." The author begins by saying that he thinks that this study of examining Ogbu and Simons' thesis (to investigate school performance of Black immigrant and non-immigrant students in the United States) makes a thought-provoking contribution to overall discussions…

Disproportionately large numbers of Black youth experience repeated encounters with the juvenile justice system, and often these same youth present with a variety of school-related difficulties. Data from a sample of 842 Black males, assessed in five Ohio juvenile courts using the Global Risk Assessment Device (GRAD), are used to describe the…

Teachers' expectations are consistent predictors of performance outcomes for elementary, middle, and secondary students. However, the literature is not as clear in articulating exactly how teacher expectations influence such outcomes. Thus, the purpose of this study is to examine whether perceptions of teachers' expectations are predictive of…

In life as in literature, both the mainstream public and the Black community writ large, overlook the Black female experiences, both adolescent and adult. In order to contribute to the knowledge base regarding this population, we present through our study a statistical portrait of Black females in high school. To do so, we present an analysis of…

A stage model of Black adolescent racial identity from the perspective of its use by educational researchers in the United States who employ it to explain the academic and social decisions that Black youth make in secondary schools was examined. Researchers often draw on stage models to explicitly challenge forms of White dominance in studies…

If effects of education reforms in the future are similar to effects of education reforms in the past, it may take between 65 and 780 years to close racial achievement gaps in math and science (Taylor, in preparation). From a review of the literature, I found that educational reforms, directed toward eliminating achievement differences associated…

Experiences of Black students at a large, predominantly White, border-state university that houses one of the few comprehensive Black Studies programs in the nation were examined. Previous research has shown that the level of Black identity development of Black college students varied from one higher educational institution to the next. Based on…

For several years now, an achievement gap has been in existence between African American students and white students in mathematics. The purpose of this study is to (1) report on an in-depth case study of a former state mathematics consultant to describe his experiences of the mathematics education of African Americans in public high schools in…

The Nation is ill-equipped to meet the future demands for scientists to sustain scientific disciplines and the scientific literacy required in this technological era. In response to this state of affairs, reforms promote quality science for all but provide little guidance on how to achieve it. This study describes an approach that uses cultural…

Today, it has become fashionable to discuss "closing the achievement gap." People know that an achievement gap exists. The question is, what can be done to close it? In 2005, approximately 50 years after the first Brown vs. Board of Education court case, the authors issue the official call for others to join them in researching the mathematics and…

Historically, lack of access to educational opportunities has been a constant and unfortunate reality for many African Americans. As a result of tracking and ability grouping many African American students lack the necessary accoutrement for persistence in the sciences. Some critical factors for the persistence and success of African American…

It is well documented that perinatally HIV-infected children experience difficulty in learning as well as behavioral and social problems in the school setting. While the research is mixed on the effect of the HIV virus on behavioral and social problems, it is much clearer on the effect of this virus on learning. This exploratory study identifies…