Dear Parents: Narrowing the Achievement Gap Begins at Home

“Black people, endowed with an education, who nurture and cherish their Blackness, are more valuable than acres of diamonds or mines of gold.”     John Johnson II, 10/23/23

 By John Johnson, II

Public Schools throughout America have struggled with the tasks of narrowing the achievement gap primarily between white and Black students. Unfortunately, research shows that the achievement gap for Black students exists before they begin school. Consequently, narrowing the achievement gap begins at home.

To address students’ critical formative learning experiences, school districts in conjunction with Head Start instituted Early Head Start, Pre-K, and kindergarten programs. These programs focus on promoting school readiness for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Pregnant women meeting income eligibility requirements can receive support for children younger than three years old.

Having worked 37 years for Miami Dade Public Schools as a classroom teacher and administrator, I faced the same challenge of narrowing students’ achievement gap. The strategy even then was to provide all available resources to positively impact students’ formative years of development.

However, rather than attempting to discuss the boundless strategies and curriculum resources used to strengthen preschool students’ formative learning experiences, I’ll focus on sharing an age-old teaching tip that’s better than the lottery.

But first, I want to share an experience I encountered in first grade. The boy seated next to me was tall for the age of six, knew the alphabet, and could read. I asked him to share one of his books, but he refused.

Right then, I knew he would be the teacher’s favorite. Unexpectedly, our new teacher asked each student to stand, state their name and age. My classmate immediately stood and stated, “my name is Dorsey, I can read and I’m four and a half years old. He also added that his grandmother taught him to read. I stood and shouted, “That’s not fair teacher, he has already learned how to read.” I also told her that I liked to read comic books about Superman and Batman.  I’ve never forgotten the big smile on her face as other students said that they also knew how to read.

The moral of this story as well as the “tip” is that children can and should become readers long before they enter school. Just as parents don’t teach their children to talk, they merely learn to talk by parents talking to them and hearing others talk. And it’s said that talking is the hardest skill for humans to learn. Fortunately, parents never say we’re going to have a bedtime story about learning to talk.

Rather, all children should and can learn to read before starting school.  They simply learn to read and to enjoy it by being read stories at home. The added joy is they learn to read without any phonic lessons.

Children don’t learn to talk by parent pronouncing each syllable. Parents’ awareness of children’s learning abilities begins reading to them while they’re still inside their stomach. This information shouldn’t sound strange because it’s true.  Yes, parents even purchase books to read to their children before they’re born.

In fact, if children didn’t hear people talking they would grow up mute. Another concept to remember is that by reading to children they learn for themselves that speech is just words on pages in their story books. The real joy comes to a parent as they’re reading a story and the child says, “mommy you skipped a word.” This tells the parent that not only is the child listening, he or she is also reading along with you. Reading is one of keys for successful learning at school and throughout life itself. It’s every parent’s responsibility to instill in their children the joy and love for reading.

It’s also important for parents and guardians to remember that children learn by asking endless questions. Therefore, parents must think twice before telling children to go somewhere and sit down because they ask too many questions. Parents must take note of the fact that much of the knowledge and information learned by children before coming to school is acquired from questions answered as well as conversations heard at home.

For example, what conversations would help a child learn the difference between an inference and a fact? Or what discussion at home helps a child learn the meaning of words such as; prediction, expensive, critical, etc.?

As you can see, parents’ responsibilities for child rearing include far more than meeting their   physical, social, health, and safety needs. At the top of children’s needs list is that parents must provide a rich environment of intellectual nurturing. In other words, it’s parents’ responsibility to raise smart children. Schooling will enable them to become even smarter and capable of realizing their potential.

Ron Edmonds ( 1970) said, “We can, whenever and wherever we choose successfully  teach all children whose  schooling is of interest to us.”  Certainly, reinforcing the fact that narrowing the achievement gap begins at home provides excellent opportunities for parents to enhance their children’s success in school.

This information highlights the importance of preschool programs available to equip children with the necessary readiness skills to learn. But equally as important, parents must realize that narrowing the achievement gap begins at home.

YOU BE THE JUDGE!