Black male teachers are a rarity in preschools. This pioneering program wants to change that

BALTIMORE– Before 19-year-old Davontez Johnson in a toddler classroom at Dorothy I. Heights Elementary, he was a senior at a nearby high school and, like many students his age, wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with his life. Not in his wildest dreams could he have imagined standing on a colorful carpet and leading a group of four-year-olds in a song and dance about sounds.

“Words have parts, which are syllables,” he said, to illustrate the effect. The kindergarteners looked at Johnson and repeated him. ‘Clap your hands now, syl-a-bles! Stamp your feet now, syl-a-bles!

Johnson is part of the Leading Men Fellowship, which trains young Black and Latino men to become early literacy instructors in kindergarten classrooms across the country. It is a program that aims to tackle several problems at the same time: shortage of early educators, a shortage of Black and Latino male teachers and the acute challenges boys of color face in schools because of their race and gender.

“Not only are we influencing change in the classroom with these students, but (we) are also developing these young future teachers,” said Ivan Douglas of the Literacy Lab, which runs the Leading Men Fellowship.

Many fellows, like Johnson, are recruited right out of high school. After a job interview and intensive summer training, they start working at schools where they may be among the only male teachers. Fellows earn between $16.50 and $18 per hour.

Johnson, a former high school offensive lineman, knows some parents would say he seems out of place in a kindergarten classroom. And the statistics back him up: Less than 1% of K-12 public school teachers are black men. according to federal data. But that’s part of why he wanted to do it.

“I thought it was a really great opportunity. Because I know if I saw someone like me come in pre-KI would be pretty excited,” Johnson said. “You don’t see many young black men.”

Researchers have shown that black male students face discrimination before they even set foot in a kindergarten classroom higher expulsion and suspension rates from kindergarten onwards, although there is evidence that they do not misbehave more than their white peers. Boys are also much more likely than girls to be expelled from school.

But there is growing evidence that Black teachers can make a difference for Black students — and for Black boys in particular. In the years since the Leading Men Fellowship was founded in 2016, researchers have repeatedly found that students of color appear to do better when they teachers who look like them.

Johns Hopkins University economist Nicholas Papageorge, who is based not far from Heights Elementary, examines the impact of black teachers on black students. His research showed that black teachers do higher expectations for black students than for non-black teachers.

“If a black student had a white teacher and a black teacher, that white teacher systematically had lower expectations,” Papageorge said.

His later research found that black students who have a black teacher are less likely to drop out of high school more likely to go to college. The effect of having a black teacher had the greatest impact on black boys from low-income households.

Through his courses, Johnson has learned the ins and outs of early education – and that it involves a surprising amount of singing and dancing for someone who doesn’t work on Broadway. Children learn best through repetition, and when they can link information to movements and singing.

Bridget Jeffrys, whose kindergarten class houses Johnson, said she had never worked with a male teacher until Johnson arrived at the beginning of last school year. She said she saw Johnson become more confident with her students, going from reserved to enthusiastic. Jeffrys said his voice and dance moves could use some work, but he performs the songs with such heart that it doesn’t matter.

“It was so beautiful, because usually you don’t really see men get to the child level,” Jeffrys said. “That made them even more excited. A lot of kids think he’s a big kid.”

In addition to teaching at Heights Elementary, Johnson is studying political science at the University of Maryland Global Campus and hopes to enter politics. However, his colleagues encourage him to continue teaching.

Although Johnson is there to provide focused literacy instruction, he is fully integrated into the school day. During his second week in class, he sang the class morning song in a robotic voice. When a child squirms on the carpet or wanders away from story time, Johnson is there to restrain the child.

On this day in October, Johnson pulled students aside to help them write their names. He had only been with this cohort for a few weeks, but many students were drawn to him. During free play, he encouraged a student who was rubbing a piece of chalk on a leaf.

“You’ve done a great job,” he said to the girl, who looked up at him, eager for reassurance. Another student interrupted him by handing him a handful of play money.

After lunch, while most of the preschoolers sat on the carpet, entranced by a story read by Jeffrys, four-year-old Kodi Hendricks walked to the door and peered into the hallway until Johnson waved him back. Johnson bent his large body to tie the boy’s shoe and then they sat down together for a writing lesson.

“What’s the first letter?” he asked the boy.

“K,” he replied. Johnson showed him how to draw a K in slow motion.

“No, I can’t,” said the boy.

“It’s OK,” Johnson said. He urged him.

‘You can do it. It just takes practice.”

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