Journal of a Black Teacher

There are many reasons why students don’t write well in college; the first of these reasons is that secondary school systems in the Twin Cities have watered-downed writing curricula and students that make it to advanced placement classes or take university classes in high school are an elite few creating another disparity; but still, they struggle too - ask any local university program - some of our scholars in college have 2.0 G.P.A.s simply because they did not learn academic writing in high school.     By Don Allen, M.A. Ed./MAT  (Editorial Opinion) (Inserted photo is my Grammarly overview from June 18-25)      Academic writing is essential for success in college and beyond. However, Twin Cities students often face significant challenges when it comes to mastering this skill. There are several reasons why students struggle with academic writing in college, including limited access to resources, inadequate preparation in high

  By Don Allen, M.A. Ed./MAT A classmate challenged me to write “How to dismantle a bad educational system.” It would take 2 years at maximum velocity if we started in 2023 in the Twin Cities.   ( Note : This is a snippet; the students, families, and stakeholders are not the challenge - but under the current weaponized, anti-educational construct in district administrations, scholars become relics used for price points and funding streams - education is a second-tier non-concern.) Step 1 . Send curious information into the public domain  Step 2 . Showmanship - break agitators and reliance; they’d ride with you anyway just to get a front seat on the s-storm you will strategically produce to start the mechanical processes of change (it’s simple cause and effect.)  a. disrupt the ideas of superiority; b . let targeted subjects (systems) ‘dangle,’ eventually, parts of the system need to be thrown under the bus.  Step 3 . Speak freely  Step 4 . Use the data - it’s not personal; Step 5 . A

By Don Allen, M.A. Ed./MAT Response to professor for 2022 Summer - GED 8101-1 - Human Relations in Organizations (Hamline University School of Education - Superintendent Licensure) Now that we know, now that our data is hanging out there for everyone to see and talk about (during and post-pandemic), what will propel our educational systems in the Twin Cities into systemic change? Malcolm X, MLK, Jr., John F. and Robert Kennedy, Gandhi, Desmond Tutu, and the late Ronald A. Edwards (a local civil rights activist that wrote the book, “The Minneapolis Story” parts 1 & 2, and died broke) were all individuals that pushed systems into change for the benefit of the whole. The unfortunate thing is each one of these men (and many women) lost their lives horribly by zealots that didn’t want change. I mean look at Buffalo, NY and Uvalde, TX; it’s not gun control we need, it’s people and society control which has been ineffective for generations. I’m not talking about the big brother piece, it&