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1st Reflection Paper
The Reflection on African American School Leadership Issue
Dr. Gooden
Qinghua Huang
University of Cincinnati
The special issue of EAQ (Educational Administration Quarterly) reflects Africa American scholar’s perspectives on African American educational leadership through explaining various theories and practices. The purpose of these articles is to change the fact that African American students are lagging behind whites by improving the African American school leadership in the context of confliction of politics, economy, and culture.
Among these articles, The practice of educational leadership in African American communities of learning: Context, scope, and meaning attracts my attention most because Foster (2005) illustrated the uniqueness of African American educational leadership while encompassing the most important perspectives of other articles, such as the “scared self” (Dantley, 2005), temped radicalism and servant leadership (Alston, 2005), historical perspectives of African American leadership in schools (Murtadha & Watts, 2005), etc. Foster suggested that it is important to promote the success of African American’s instruction and achievement through empowering teaching and learning within the African American community cultural context.
The theory that the support from African American communities is a crucial factor to the success of African American students provides African American school leaders a framework in practices. The community force can’t be ignored when reconstructing school culture in urban schools (Gooden, 2005). All the community members have responsibility to support Africa American students’ learning. The communities should believe they have the capabilities to help school leaders and teachers raise the “color conscious” (Madsen & Mabokela, 2002) and perceive and meet African American students’ special needs. This theory is based on three foundational perspectives on African American leadership in schools. First, the student is a holistic individual who profits optimally from multiple levels of community’s influences. African American students hold the nature of interdependency of the individual and the collective (Beauboeuf-Lafontant, 1999). Second, the essential of interpersonal and institutional caring requires teachers’ high expectations and active interaction with students in the collaborative dynamic environment. Third, the school, parents, and communities’ support will reinforce the efficacy of tripartite advocacy. The connection between communities and schools will nurture African American student achievement.
I have been impressed by the effect of community’s support on schools especially to African American students. The communities will help African American students’ build confidence of their collective identity and promote their learning. African American history is composed of struggling and challenging. “Fictive kinship” reflects African American scared self and the educational leadership should address the connection within the communities in the historical and cultural context. I have been living in the main stream culture and seldom thought about the minorities’ thinking and experience in schools in China. When I came to the U.S., I began to think about Chinese culture and pay attention to the learning and feeling of Chinese immigrant students as a minority. I will explore the influence on Chinese immigrant students’ learning from the perspective of the social barrier caused by cultural discrepancy. I will also find the potential of the Chinese communities and involve the communities to promote student learning in future.
References
Alston, J. A. (2005). Tempered radicals and servant leaders: Black females persevering in the superintendency. Educational Administration Quarterly, 41(4), 675-688.
Beauboeuf-Lafontant, T. (1999). A movement against and beyond boundaries: “Politically relevant teaching” among African American teachers. Teachers College Record, 100(4), 702-723.
Dantley, M. E. (2005). African American spirituality and Cornel West’s notions of prophetic pragmatism: Restructuring educational leadership in American urban schools. Educational Administration Quarterly, 41(4), 651-674.
Foster, L. (2005). The practice of educational leadership in African American communities of learning: Context, scope, and meaning. Educational Administration Quarterly, 41(4), 689-700.
Gooden, M. A. (2005). The role of an African American principal in an urban information technology high school. Educational Administration Quarterly, 41(4), 630-650.
Madsen, J. A.,& Mabokela, R. O. (2001, April). African American leaders’ perceptions of intergroup conflict. Paper presented at the annual conference of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA.
Murtadha, K., & Watts, D. M. (2005). Linking the struggle for education and social justice: Historical perspectives of African American leadership in schools. Educational Administration Quarterly, 41(4), 591-608.