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Introduction
The public educational system is comprised of diverse demographics wherein each student has a distinct cultural personal history (O'Brien, 1998). In America, the traditional perception was that a melting pot society existed. But deMarrais and LeCompte (1999) maintain that a stew pot or salad bowl would be a more appropriate analogy. Melting pot suggests a EuropeanAmerican, middle- and upper-class orientation, whereas stew pot or salad bowl implis that diverse demographics exist alongside one another with many distinctive cultures enhancing humanity across America (deMarrais & LeCompte).
The melting pot theory has dominated the education system, adversely affecting many African-American students who attend urban, public schools (Carruthers, 1995; deMarrais & LeCompte; Marks & Tonso, 2006; Pai & Adler, 2001). A growing body of researchers have reported that educational leaders are constantly searching to find the best methods for teaching African-American students who attend urban public schools (NCLB, 2002). Leadership stakeholders and educators alike are now beginning to explore the possibility that infusing the cultural history of African descent within the schooling process may help African-American students learn more effectively (Pai & Adler, 2001).
Literature Review
One of every 10 African-American students drops out of high school (U.S. Department of Education as cited by Cholewa & West-Olatunji, 2008) compared to one out of every five of their European-American peers (Chicago Public Schools, n.d). According to Shockley (2007), the American education system has failed to address properly the educational and cultural needs of African-American students who attend public schools, which has caused major behavioral, social, and academic problems (Cholewa & West-Olatunji, 2008; Shockley, 2007). Little research has been conducted regarding the way culture in general and African descendants' culture in particular is being applied to the educational experience for African American students who attend public schools in Chicago (Davis, 2005).
For decades African-American students who attend predominantly African-American public schools in their Chicago neighborhoods have not been able to experience a culturally relevant education and have continued to fall behind their European-American peers academically (Shockley, 2007; U.S. Department of Education, 2007/09). On the south side of Chicago, the principal of a predominantly African-American school recently adopted an African-centered approach to the Chicago Public School's curriculum (Finkel, 2007), but questions remain about the overall effectiveness of such an African-centered...