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05/31/2008: "Blacks are fastest growing demograph amongst home schooled children"

According to the National Urban League, black male achievement begins to decline as early as fourth grade. Blacks continue to fall behind through high school, in test scores, grades and dropout rates. Fewer than half of black males graduate in four years.

The Barcos join an increasing number of black families in the Triangle and across the country who choose to home-school their children. Of the estimated 1.1 million home-schooled children in the U.S., about 10 percent are black, according to the most recent federal statistics from the U.S. Department of Education.

Blacks are the fastest-growing demographic among home-schoolers, said Jennifer James, a Boone mother of two who in 2003 founded the National African-American Homeschoolers Alliance, a nonreligious group that provides online information and support to about 3,000 home-schoolers.

Disappointed with the public school system, many black parents opt to home-school because they want more rigorous academics and a truly multicultural education, James said.

[ Just the fact that these kids have a parent who is concerned about their education will help them immensely. ]

http://www.newsobserver.com/2810/story/1086306.html