AFRICAN AMERICAN MALE TEACHER SHORTAGE

Introduction to the Problem and Study Purpose

The U.S. Department of Education, 2000, reported that there is a disparity between the numbers of teachers of color and the numbers of students of color. Research has concluded that Black and other minority role models for minority and majority students is important. These role models effect a child's impression regarding what they can become and the minority teacher also brings an inherent comprehension regarding the cultural experiences of minority students. The Black teacher is able to understand and communicate with students of color and they are able to assist majority teachers regarding this ability (Lewis, 2000). The problem is that there is a lack of needed minority teachers, implying the importance of understanding why the African American male is not entering the teaching profession.

The purpose of this research paper is to explore the problem of male African American teacher shortage. Specifically the following research question is answered: Why are African American males not entering the teaching profession?

The procedures used to conduct this research paper include a review of relevant literature. The sources used for this review included peer-review journal articles from several data bases (Proquest, Infotrac, U.S. Department of Education, and ERIC) and articles from the U.S. Department of Education publishe

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f black teachers. Onwuegbuzie (1998) provided support regarding the need for black male role models. The author reported that in a study comparing the achievement of 29 African American and 145 European American teachers in research-methodology courses, findings showed that the African American group performed less. Motune (1999) stated that black under-achievement in schools may be due to the lack of black role models. Boys in particular need to have a positive role model they can relate to in order to realize that they can also grow up to achieve what they want. Wilder (2000) studied a group of African American students and found that this group provided praise for their interactions with the African American teacher. It was concluded that more teachers of color are needed. Lack of job satisfaction for minority teachers may be a reason for teacher shortage. Tack and Patitu (2000) reported that salaries are less than for other professions and faculty positions do not bring the status they once did. These factors are leading to job dissatisfaction. Internal job stressors such as lack of achievement and recognition, autonomy, growth potential, poor student quality, poor institution reputation, and negative student inter
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 3708
Approximate Pages = 15 (250 words per page)

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