Keepin' It Real: School Success Beyond Black And White

by Prudence L. Carter

Why are so many African American and Latino students performing less well than their Asian and White peers in classes and on exams? Researchers have argued that African American and Latino students who rebel against "acting white" doom themselves to lower levels of scholastic, economic, and social achievement. In Keepin' It School Success beyond Black and White , Prudence Carter turns the conventional wisdom on its head arguing that what is needed is a broader recognition of the unique cultural styles and practices that non-white students bring to the classroom. Based on extensive interviews and surveys of students in New York, she demonstrates that the most successful negotiators of our school systems are the multicultural navigators, culturally savvy teens who draw from multiple traditions, whether it be knowledge of hip hop or of classical music, to achieve their high ambitions. Keepin' it Real refutes the common wisdom about teenage behavior and racial difference, and shows how intercultural communication, rather than assimilation, can help close the black-white gap.

Genres: Education, Nonfiction, Grad School

Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Sage Αναστασία · Rating 5 out of 5]

While I do agree with the reviews of Keepin' It Real that note the issues with categorizing people into a small number of groups, I nevertheless love this book. Carter eloquently brings to light the dissonance Black and Brown students often confront at school on a daily basis, and does so through an ethnographic style that highlights the students' own words as much as her personal interpretation.

[Jasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book! 👍👍👍

I chose to read this book for a sociology of stratification course. It answered all of my questions about stratification, segregation, education and identity from a theoretical yet practical perspective.

Good read!

[idana · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty good
writing style was pretty good too. but alas, it is just another informative book! i liked the basis of research and the analysis of it. it's something i have been curious about for a while.
52/100

[Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

definitely could’ve been more fleshed out at certain points… otherwise good premise

[Melissa Fowler · Rating 2 out of 5]

I know Carter means well--and I know there are a lot of people who think she's brilliant. I'm wary of any attempt to explain school experiences that lumps all students into three neat, tidy categories. A better choice is nearly anything by Pauline Lipman or Gloria Ladson-Billings.

[Crystal Belle · Rating 2 out of 5]

If I read another book about why African American and Latino/a kids need to be "multicultural navigators" in order to survive, I'm gonna lose it!!! Some good points every now and then but too much of what has already been written regarding Bourdieu's social reproduction theory.

[Lily · Rating 2 out of 5]

This wasn't great. Just not a lot of new information. And the title alone (along with some sprinkles of slang awkwardly placed in the more scientific language of the rest of the book) was incredibly cringe inducing. There are just better books out there explaining this issue.

[Tamika · Rating 5 out of 5]

i loved her analysis of the achievement gap, and particularly appreciated her debunking of ogbu's theories.