npr:
How important is it to have a role model?
A new working paper puts some numbers to that question.
Having just one black Teacher in third, fourth or fifth grade reduced low-income black boys’ probability of dropping out of high school by 39 percent, the study found.
And by high school, African-American students, both boys and girls, who had one African-American teacher had much stronger expectations of going to college. Keep in mind, this effect was observed seven to ten years after the experience of having just one black teacher.
Having Just One Black Teacher Can Keep Black Kids In School
Illustration: LA Johnson/NPR
