WHITLOWE R. GREEN COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Doctoral Proposal Defense Announcement
ABSTRACT
A PORTRAITURE OF BLACK HOMESCHOOLING:
A SINGLE DESCRIPTIVE
CASE STUDY
(Date)
Jasmine D. Williams, B.A., Spelman College;
MBA, Texas Woman’s University
Chair of Advisory Committee: Tyrone Tanner, Ed.D.
African Americans have experienced oppression and exploitation throughout their more
than 400 year presence in the United States. A defining feature of that oppression has been the
denial of an equitable education (Watkins, 2011). Yet, the perennial barriers to equitable
education, most of which are embedded in educational policies (Scott, 2011), have failed to
erode the belief of African American parents in its intrinsic importance and value. Although the
African American investment in public education spans centuries (Butchart, 2010; Muhammad,
2011), there have been occasions when alternatives to public schools were embraced, whether it
was independent schools in the 1960s and 1970s (Andrews, 2014) or charter schools in the 1990s
and 2000s. Recent literature suggests that the deep dissatisfaction with the quality of public
schools today, especially in regards to male children, has convinced many African American
parents that homeschooling is a viable means of alternative education (Fields-Smith & Kisura,
2013).
African American students comprise eight percent of the homeschool population, the
third largest demographic. The African American presence in the homeschooling community
may be considered an anomaly due to the level of personal and financial commitment required.
However, not only are there suggestions homeschooling is growing in popularity among African
American families (Ray, 2015), the decision to homeschool does not appear to be solely
dependent upon economics. While findings do indicate that a majority of the African American
families who homeschool have incomes in excess of $55,000 annually, approximately 38% of
homeschooling African American parents have incomes that range from less than $15,000 to
$55,000 annually (Fields-Smith & Kisura, 2013; Lundy & Mazama, 2014).
Whereas contemporary studies have endeavored to illuminate the factors that motivated
African American parents’ decision to homeschool (Lundy & Mazama, 2014; Ray, 2015), the
literature is limited in terms of what can be learned about the extent to which homeschooling is
creating a better educational experience for African American students. Using the theoretical
framework of Critical Black Pedagogy, the researcher seeks to deepen the understanding of the
African American homeschooling experience by exploring how an Afrocentric educational
philosophy influences the conceptualization and operationalization of homeschooling. This
descriptive case study will be guided by the following research question and their related subquestions:
What were the homeschooling experiences of an African American family
oriented within an Afrocentric paradigm?
1. What were the experiences and beliefs that influenced the educational philosophy
of the participants?
2. What is the role of spirituality in the educational philosophy?
3. What is the manifestation of the educational philosophy in the homeschool
environment?
4. What were the experiences and perspectives of students homeschooled in an
Afrocentric environment.
5. To what extent does the critique of knowledge and power pervade the
homeschooling experience?
Keywords: Homeschooling, African American homeschooling, Critical Black Pedagogy,
Schooling
Date: _March 10, 2016__
Department: Educational Leadership and Counseling
Time: __11:30 am__
Location/Room: _Delco 217__
Dissertation Chair: Tyrone Tanner, Ed.D.
Dissertation Committee Members:
Donald Collins, Ph.D.
Terence L. Finley, Ph.D.
Abul Pitre, Ph.D.
Patricia A. Smith, Ed.D.