5-Year-old Prodigy speaks 6 languages, Plays 7 instruments

Your Black World reports. 

Spending $1,500 a week on tutoring and lessons for a child may seem absurd to some, but for Mabou Loiseau the results are substantial. 

Teacher Cuts off Child’s Hair

Lamya Cammon, 7, was sitting quietly in her first grade class absentmindedly twirling her braids. The little girl’s teacher, whose name is being withheld, grew tired of seeing the little girl play with her dozen or so braids, so she called Lamya up to the front of the classroom.

The first graders watched in disbelief as their teacher took out a large pair of scissors and cut off one of Lamya’s braids. Amid the snickers of her students, the Milwaukee teacher threw the braid in the garbage, sent the crying youngster back to her seat, then said, "Now what you gonna go home and tell your momma?"

Lamya claims that she was not twirling her hair loudly nor was she being disruptive. When the child told her mother, Helen Cunningham, what had happened, she immediately went to the school to confront the teacher.

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Your Black Life: Lisa Powell: Believe In Your Child

Lisa Powell: Education: A Road Map for the Future

By: Tolu Olorunda

YourBlackWorld.com

Lisa Powell is the mother of Caitlin Powell. Caitlin, as you many know, is a YourBlackWorld.com family member, whose exceptional talent is inspiring thousands of kids and parents across the country. At just 10-years of age, Caitlin Powell is a role-model, motivational speaker, writer, telecaster and singer. Alongside taking advanced-courses in school, she is also the host of her nationally-syndicated webcast, “Caitlin’s Corner TV,” which helps motivate students toward academic success. Caitlin has a rare gift, and her mom is the first to acknowledge that; but it takes the diligence, skill, dedication and patience of a parent, to help nurture raw talent into a resource of enlightenment and inspiration. [...]

Lisa Powell says she first noticed an “excitement” in Caitlin at a very young age, which always took everything she did “to the next level.” Being her first child, she always “set goals” for Caitlin, because she wanted to see her “be the best that she could be.” As an experienced social worker, Powell knows the dangers of “pushing kids too hard,” or not “pushing them hard enough.” Finding the right balance, between those two tangents, was the key to success in raising Caitlin. [...]

More At Your Black Life

Your Black Education: Upcoming Conference To Confront Challenges In Black Education

The Conference on Research Directions is a biannual event that will be held at the beautiful Hilton Oceanfront Resort on Hilton Head, South Carolina, from May 3-6, 2009.   Hilton Head is also the home of the Gullah people.  These are African people who created a self-sustaining community after slavery with retention of the African heritage.  Conferees will have the opportunity to take the Gullah Heritage Tour in addition to experiencing a Gullah heritage celebration, distinctive Gullah food delicacies, folk art, artifacts and landmarks.  The conferees will be able to experience a beautiful oceanfront resort and also explore the West African heritage and seminal events in American history.

This conference is designed to bridge the gap between research and practice in education.  All researchers and practitioners who are interested in the latest strategies for closing the academic achievement gap that affects African American children should attend. [...]

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Your Black Education: Exclusive Interview With Iconic Educator Dr. Janice Hale

Interview with Iconic Educator, Dr. Janice Hale, by Tolu Olorunda.

It is rare for an educator to reach great heights of popularity and acclaim, but Dr. Janice Hale has earned every stripe of fame. As an internationally-renowned scholar, Dr. Hale is no stranger to controversies surrounding her work and theories. No other than Rev. Dr. Jeremiah E. Wright Jr. acknowledged her in his, much-talked about, speech in Detroit earlier this year. Wright celebrated Dr. Hale as someone we owe “a debt of gratitude.” [...]

YourBlackWorld.com recently had the esteemed opportunity to engage Dr. Janice Hale in dialogue on a wide array of topics. Included in the conversation were issues surrounding the recent selection of Arne Duncan as Sec. of Education, problems confronting Black students, the ISAAC program, Early Childhood education and more. As one never known for mincing words, Dr. Hale took no prisoners as she expressed her feelings about Bill Cosby… Excuse me, Dr. Bill Cosby, modern-day Civil Rights Organizations, Oprah Winfrey, and the public/private school system. Get your pens and pads ready. Class is in session:

Thanks for being with us, Dr. Hale. To kick things off, how did it feel being snubbed for the Sec. of Education position, which you lobbied so tenaciously for?

*Laughs* That’s so funny. I don’t feel snubbed about that. What I feel snubbed about is that, I feel in my book “Learning While Black,” I really provide solutions for what is wrong with education and how to fix African-American education, and I don’t feel my solutions have gotten any attention. [...]

Based on the selection of Arne Duncan – who holds a bachelor’s in Sociology – as Sec. of Education, what is incumbent upon Black folks in pushing an agenda that would improve learning conditions of Black students?

Full Interview At Your Black Education

Your Black World Headlines: 11/10/2008

New Front Opens In DR Congo, Increasing Fears Of Wider Conflict

Search For Survivors In Haiti School Collapse Shrinking Hopes

Colorado Defeats Ward Connerly & Affirmative Action Ban

Another Black Man Attacked For Supporting Obama?

Florida School Keeps KKK Founder’s Name

Black Children: Nation’s Most Obese

Racism At Prop 8 Protests