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I am a teacher. I work in the field of Early Childhood Education and Development for Head Start.

People need to recognize that our society has changed. We are not an agriculturally based workforce any more. Nor can we rely on those traiditional factory jobs that once dominated our economic system. I encounter a lot of parents who balk at the idea of year round school. Until mid-summer rolls around-then I find this is the group who complains the loudest about their children being at home. I can only assume that by this time of the year their parents are feeling frazzled from the lack of resources for their children. I usually hear this comment,"My child/children are getting on my last nerve, I will be glad when school starts." This indicates to me that the adult does not see school as a learning source for their children but as a resource to lessen their burdens of responsibility.

We know what the problems are in terms of education. What are we going to do about the solutions? I have found it to be totally frustrating when a parent balks at the idea of spending money on a book for their child but think nothing of purchasing a video game at three times the cost.

It seems to me that we need to re-think our thinking on education period. And then we need to get actively engaged in the process of pushing for needed changes. Until we get in-your-face-type of involved-our children will continue to be the ones who receive the lesser quality.

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I want to address why our kids are failing in school. When an African American is having trouble it is so hard to get their parents to get them the help they need.
The media and black activist have attached this stigma to being labeled special ed. If your child needs an IEP, Behavioral Plan or 504 request it. The school has a certain number of days to complete the evaluation. Then if it is not done call an advocate and get compensated. Then our people go onto a meeting and act like the white man is Jesus. Don't tell them people all your house business to have documented in your child's folder. Now, that pissess me off to see little black kids telling all their business to have white staff sitting together later laughing at them people. My skin boils. Whatever happen to what happens at home stays at home. I tell kids all the time do you know what house business in.

Now, when we speak of getting help our people fail to get the help due to pride, to many forms, refuse to make meetings etc. So who is filling the slots. White kids have no problem getting the help they need for a year or two to work on their reading and math skills. Whatever programs are free in the summer the white parents will bring their kids. I went over to the YMCA and Boys and Girls Club and thats where our children of color were in the pool, basketball court, painting. i said why are you here and not at school working on your skills and you are bound to get my Moma said i don't have to go to that junk.
Well, all you Momas that did not send your below average nonreading, poor math skill kids to summer school don't ask why they are making no progress. You sent them to school illiterate and they are returning to you in the same condition.

The problem with this generation is the parents.
Many parents who have nade it assume that their kids are equal with the white students because they placed them in better neighborhoods or good schools. They have been exposed to the finer things and actual think they are better then your low income blacks.Amazingly these kids experience the most discrimination then any but you can't tell them anything because their parents have put it in their heads their equal. Racism is real real and thriving in America more then ever before.

What would happen if ever black child who could read tutored a black illiterate child in school.

In Japan everyone in the class is responsible for someone else.

A black people aware that full inclusion has stopped people of color from getting individual help. In a classroom 504's, IEP, and behavioral students were getting help they needed and being taught the skills on their level with a group of their peers.

Do you really think in a classroom with one teacher your child is a priority to a school who has to make AYP? If your child is a disruption do other kids want to work with him? Is a teacher excited about dealing with a special ed. student when they trained to work in a regular classroom with regular students?

Come on black parents fight for your children. Just because someone says hey full inclusion is great. think about your children and what is best for them. Dont buy into everything that is thrown on your plate.

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As a teacher in Jackson, MS and soon-to-be mother, I am disturbed by the educational apathy among our children and parents. Here, the adult literacy rate is low which means that the children they are having/have will most likely not know how to read or write. Having taught in OK, LA, TX and now MS, I have found this problem is nationwide. Parents, Students and Teacher have to be held accountable. Parents because it does start at home. Unfortunately, so many dumb the responsibilty on the schools. Students because they have to want and actually open their minds to do it. Teachers because we're getting paid to do what we are passionate about it. Unfortunately, it is the teacher whose responsible for KeKe choosing to run her mouth, fight, not do any class or homework. This should not be. We have to pray for our children.

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This is a huge concern and has been a topic of great importance for me for many years. We have to know and come to terms that the school systems were never designed to educate only to implant false mentalies of who they want you to be which are SLAVES aka the working force which in this day and time is 98% of us then the 2% being the rich and super rich. It's the lack of financial education that will never be addressed in our traditional school systems and I don't mean teach about how to write out a check.. In 1903 the education system was taken over when the General Education Board, founded by John D. Rockefeller, decided what kids should learn. This put the influence of education in the hands of the ultra-rich, and subject of money was not taught in school. So now we have our kids programmed only to learn to work for money and never learn to have money work for them. One think for sure that they excel at is making sure we are well trained to be an employee. Truth is never a cirriculun. Many people go to college and getan MBA find out they're only "GLAMOURIZED" employees. Knowing history would be a start and I'm not talking about the history from school History Books. Enlighten our kids about the Cashflow Quadrant, the E- employee, the S- the self employed,specialist such as doctor or lawyer, or small business owner, the B- big business owner with 500+ employees, and the I- the investor. Understanding of this and the history that goes along with it would be a start for reprogramming our kids with EDUCATION for success and the strong foundation of Mental Education(your mind, your thoughts-creativity) which is even more crucial. Real History such as 1913, when the Un-american federal reserve was formed which is NOT federal, has NO reserves, and is not a Bank. It is controlled by the same people that dictate what should be LEARNED in todays schooling system. Our kids should know that the Federal Reserve has the power to create money out of thin air. My conclusion on that is if money is created out of thin air then Money really is an ILLUSION of something which in our world is DEBT. Real history like 1929 from the Great Depression, the US government created many government agencies such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation(FDIC), the Federal Housing Administration(FHA), and Social Security; and the government took more control over our financial lives via TAXES. This was also the creation of social programs and agencies such as Dept of Social Services(DSS) which consist of Child Supprt Enforcement, Medicaid, and Welfare.My conclusion to this is Government is also an ILLUSION aka an entity that creates dependencies, lazy minds(lazy mentality), and are the cause of crisis, economic depressions,mental depressions,and infinite enslavement of a society and nation. Our kids need to know this History. Know dates like 1944 when the Bretton woods Agreement was made. This international currency agreement created the World bank and International Monetary Fund(IMF). This replicated the Federal Reserve System globally which in effect installed the U.S. dollar as the reserve currency of the world. My conclusion is our currency then was backed by the U.S. dollar, which was then pegged to gold. Now, today the U.S. is pegged to debt. Here's the equation on that, Money is Debt and Debt is Slavery and Slavery is Depression. Remember freedoms are taken away by us striving and working hard(9-5) rat race to aquire ownership of debt because we're IN LOVE. In love with what you might ask? You know, Money which is an ILLUSION of something, that something would be whatever is REAL to you, of Value to you. Our kids need to know this.. In 1971, President Nixon, without permission from Congress, took the U.s dollar off gold standard. The U.S. dollar becomes a derivative of DEBT not GOLD. Make sure our kids know what a derivative is as this will be our way of creation money from thin our like the FEDS. My conclusion on this is that DEBT is the NEW MONEY. Since we depend on the government for help they continue to feed us fairytales so that they can sell us debt and have us think that we're owning something.. An entity sold us " The American Dream ". Fairytale distrubuters are like drug pushers. In order to sell you a product they have to sell you a DREAM. Our kids need to know this. In 1974, Congress passed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act(ERISA) aka 401(k).Employees had to save for retirement. The cange from defines benefit(DB) to defined contribution(DC) pensions forced millions of workers into the stock market. Many are noe broke and having to go back to work and there's no hope for retirement. My conclusion when 401(k) came about it was never with the intention for you to retire on. This leaves me to say that 401(k) plans are for poor people, the 98%ers. Now if we're taught to be E's- employees instead of B's- businessowner and I's- investors will will always strive for debt and 401k's. One side of the Quandrant is for Slaves and the other side is for Freedom. WAKE UP,our kids need to know History like this. Once we have the understanding that they use secrecy and keep the real knowledge to themselves so we can continue to work for them as an employee so there's never a threat that you too can do the same thing. That is what slavemasters do. Remember those old movies where they never wanted the slaves to find a book or to read well today it's still the same just a more modern approach. Have you ever thought about why we have borders? That's just like putting a fence around the slave masters yard not to keep intruders out but to keep you in; enslaved in that is. the U.S. borders are the same thing really they tell us we need it for protection from outsiders and so-called terrorists but the TRUE story is there are no terrorists and outsiders. The borders are to keep you in and to make sure you never know about FREEDOM, you just might want it. The so-called terrorists are not what we should be scared of they knw what the elite and super-rich, and the one's that create entities, agencies,and governments know. Some besides so- called terrorists that would know TRUE history would be farmers, intellectuals, like Harvard-Yale-Stanford Professors,artists, business-owners(CEO's),and preists. Our kids need to know this. So many things WE NEED TO GET RE-PROGRAMMED. Jacqueline

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"Education, the Key to Prosperity."

When are, we, as a people, going to start working with our youth to eliminate the lies that are fed to them by the media that prevent them from achieving to thier fullest potential? When are we, going to stand up and fight the idea, pervasive in our youth, that if you are excelling in school, in advanced classes and dominating (academically) you classmates, you are “acting white”. This idea is absurd! Throughout history, we have pushed education when it was forbidden upon pain of death! Even during Jim Crow, we created over 150 colleges to serves our children when the mainstream ones refused to let us in. When mainstream businesses refused our money, we became entrepreneurs and set up thriving districts such as Little Hayti in Durham, North Carolina and Black Wall Street in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This all happened, because we educated ourselves, either formally or informally!!

Now, after our people fought to open doors to the mainstream of American intellectual life, a thief come in the night to steal the victory and perseverance from our kids; the idea that academic excellence is “acting white”, our ridicule of our brothers and sisters who strive for educational and professional excellence. As they go forward in their academic accomplishments, we have Black idiots taunting them with the label “acting white.” Do not confuse professionalism or academic excellence with “acting white.” One has nothing in the world to do with the other. In fact, those Black folks who do not encourage nor support their fellow Black students or Black businesses are actually the ones “acting white.” They also act white when they do not sound their objections or defend against other races that denigrate their Black brothers and sisters, or when they mistreat their own Black people with the same lies, injustice and incorrectness as white supremacist do. Those who are accusing other of “Acting white,” are simply being niggerish, or, put a better way “stupid”, themselves!

I issue a challenge to everyone! Check you state’s, your individual district’s, your child’s school’s status on proficiency tests. You will see an great gap in the performance of black and white students. Check the ACT, SAT, AP, and other tests. With affirmative action about to go off into history and the standards rising, we must reaffirm our intellectual tradition. Start reading (newspaper, books, magazines, etc., use the public library, etc.). As a special treat, give your kids gifts certificates for bookstores. Take your children to museums, galleries, parks, etc. We must challenge the idea promulgated through BET and throughout history that all we do is play sports and rap!!

View my sites at:
http://www.geocities.com/jvbzook,
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Afro-American_Intellectual_Association/,
http://groups.msn.com/BlackIntelligence.

Or, you can email me at Jeffrey_V_Brown@hotmail.com.

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