Guest column: Black educators can help solve racial disparities in education
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As we close out Black History Month, I believe Jacksonville has an opportunity to make history by investing in black educators.
Research has shown that teacher diversity helps all students, especially students who look like them. One study found that low-income black boys are 39 percent more likely to graduate high school if they have just one black male teacher in elementary school. That is an astounding figure from a rigorous, long-term study.
Education experts offer a couple explanations for this. One is representation: Black teachers are living proof to students that they can achieve great things in college and career. Another is cultural responsiveness: Black teachers who share the background of their students may be able to relate to them more easily, and be less likely to have implicit biases that negatively impact students.