Equity Over Grit, What Black Boys Need to Succeed in Our Schools

If you’ve been paying attention to what’s happening in our educational institutions, you’d probably have noticed the sudden attention to non-cognitive skills or  “soft skills” development. The idea here is that our boys, especially the ones from African-American background, need to adopt a mindset for growth and acquire “grit” to succeed in their endeavors.

On the surface, there is some truth to all of this. However, if you were to dig a little deeper, you would find that “grit” and a “good attitude” isn’t what black boys need. What they need is to be treated as equals.

Anything else is a glorified attempt at discrediting the racial prejudice that exists within the halls of our hallowed institutions.

More harm than good

The idea of grit is actually harming our young black men; quite contrary to how it has been portrayed. Ebony McGee, an Assistant Professor for Diversity and Urban Schooling at the Vanderbilt University, tells us that the concept of grit has only caused the black boys to suffer from psychological and physical ailments.

As part of a study, McGee found that many black students worked themselves to a point of illness only to avoid being tagged as intellectually inferior. The professor goes on to state that concepts such as grit overshadow the real issue here, which is societal racism.

In fact, one could go so far as to say that the prevalence of racism within educational institutions is what’s driving black boys to work harder than they need to.

Grit is a term that refers to the measurement of success through the instilling of specific characteristics that are deemed necessary for achieving goals. However, the concept of grit doesn’t factor in the discrimination that black students encounter on their way to success.

Resiliency is a great value, but, black students have the added burden of overcoming racism before they prove their intellectual worth.

In fact, studies show that ideas such as “grit” harm everybody. One study found that “grit” only makes people goal oriented at the risk of their individual well-being. When faced with tasks, “gritty” individuals force themselves to attain goals without even considering that there probably could be an easier solution or no solution at all.

To put it simply, grit forces people to keep going even when the risks outweigh the benefits.

The solution

Communities and concerned bodies from the arenas of education and politics must seek reforms in existing policies. Our black boys need support, not soft skills training.  The system needs to be fixed. There are programs out there that already help with this. Unfortunately, public schools aren’t a part of these efforts. 

So, let’s start by addressing the public school system. We need better teachers, qualified ones that can make a difference. Additionally, there need to be more scholarships and improvements within the public education setup. Nurturing environments must be created where African-American youth can thrive.

Students shouldn’t be told that they need to be more resilient. They need to be taught to question inequality and demand justice.

All the grit in the world cannot help one overcome barriers that are embedded deep into the system. It requires a collaborative effort from all sides.