An Investigation of the Possible Effects of an Immersion as Compared to a Traditional Program for African American Males

Abstract

The establishment of African American male immersion schools has received national attention and generated much controversy. However, the central issue has been the question of whether such schools are tantamount to segregation, rather than whether they are more effective in promoting the educational progress of African American males. In this article, the results of a preliminary investigation of the differences over time in the intellectual achievement responsibility, attitude toward school, and self-esteem of African American male students who attended the Milwaukee African-American Immersion Academy as compared with those who attended a traditional Milwaukee school are reported. A significant difference favoring the Immersion Academy students was found at the fifth-grade level but only with respect to intellectual achievement responsibility. However; the investigation has also provided baseline data from which differences between the two groups of students over a more extended period of time may be examined.