Teaching Reading to Black Adolescent Males

Sorry, guys, I thought I posted this, but I think I wanted to add something, so I waited and saved it. Ironically, I don't remember what it is I wanted to add. Oh well, here it is anyway:

While I sometimes wonder about the cultural symbol of black males that Tatum describes in this book, I am so grateful that attention is finally being given to a group that has so often historically been ignored in our schools. Likewise, I am appreciative of Tatum for bringing the misunderstandings teachers have of black adolescent males to the forefront of everyone's minds. Like others, I saw how this could also relate to many students in our urban schools. I have often heard teachers say certain students don't want to learn, and like Tatum, I find that students, once they assume that the teacher does not care whether they learn, then they are less likely to make an effort. Likewise, there are several studies about students' self perception which confirm this idea that once students view themselves as "non-achievers" or "nonexistant", it is a difficult path back to confidence. Thus, students "wear the mask" that Tatum describes on p. 34. In order to remove this mask, I think we, as teachers, need to celebrate the successes of students more often and show them that their strengths and life experiences are valued and can be used to improve their reading and writing skills.

Finally, I was a bit confused by the reading strategies Tatum discusses in the second half of the book. In particular, the "spelling scaffold for dictation" figure on page 99 was a bit disturbing. I don't think I would ever use this in my class. But, I do agree that teachers, in any case, need to begin to choose texts that their students can relate to if they want to give reading purpose. These texts aren't often found in schools, so as a teacher I began to seek them out on my own. Last summer, I read Fist, Stick, Knife, Gun by Geoffrey Canada, and immediately had a feeling my students would find purpose in it. We ordered a bunch of copies at the beginning of the year, and later, I have never seen so many of my students want to read and discuss the ideas in the text. This allowed me a sneek peek into what can be possible, and the reading of Tatum's book reminded me of its importance.