A Journal of Research in Africana Studies
Freedom: Volume 3
“It’s Not Just Black Culture, It’s Home Culture”: The Engaged Detroit Homeschool Co-op
By Britany J Gatewood, Ph.D., Joy S. Jones, M.P.A., Kathaleena E. Monds, Ph.D.
Bowie State University
Joy Jones LLC
Albany State University
Published in Freedom: Volume 3
Keywords
Black homeschooling, culturally relevant pedagogy, parent agency, self-reliance, mutual aid, resilience, resistance, collective responsibility, COVID-19, and unschooling.
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the educational landscape and forced many Black families to homeschool for the first time. Black homeschool families increased from 1.9 percent pre-pandemic to 18.3 percent by 2021 and have continued to climb since. For generations, Black families have educated their children outside of the school system, particularly when the education system has failed them. Historical educational inequities, such as under-resourced schools, high disciplinary rates, a lack of representation within the curriculum, and low scores, deter parents from sending their children to traditional schooling. For families that had never homeschooled previously, the pandemic further showed what homeschooling could offer Black families.
Engaged Detroit, a Black homeschool cooperative, was founded by a veteran homeschool mom in 2020. This qualitative research study consisted of nine one-on-one interviews conducted with administrators, coaches, and parents of Engaged Detroit in the spring of 2021. This study examines the positive impact of homeschooling as a means of promoting Black freedom and liberation. Parental motivation and self-efficacy, a sense of community and mutual aid, and effective coaching and resources, when combined, create ideal conditions for Black families to exercise the agency to educate their children. Culturally relevant curriculum enhances children’s interest in learning and bolsters their self-esteem. Children experience joyful, child-centered learning at their own pace, and are safe and inoculated from racial bias and school discipline found in government school settings.
Findings from the study contribute to the research on Black homeschooling, the geography of opportunity, social entrepreneurship, and cultural resiliency literature. This study provides implications for Black families within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. Its real-world benefits to society and culture include raising awareness of homeschooling’s viability for families, regardless of socioeconomic status.