The Future of Public Education with Thom Jackson, Esq and LaShanda Jackson

“It's not about whether our kids can learn, it’s about how we engage them as critical thinkers and how teachers engage those students,” explains Thom Jackson, Esq, President and CEO at EdisonLearning. In today’s episode host D-Rich sits down with guests Thom Jackson and LaShanda Jackson, Extension Instructor at Michigan State University to talk about the future of public education and how to reduce the achievement gap between white students and students of color.

There are a lot of factors to consider when looking into why students of color often fall behind their white peers in education. In order to truly understand why kids are struggling and turn the tides for them, one must look at their entire learning and home environments. Is the school a safe learning environment where students feel free to engage with their teachers and classmates? Are they getting the proper nutrition? Oftentimes children of color are growing up in situations that are not conducive to learning. For example, they may have repeated exposure to chemicals like lead in their food and water supplies, they may not have access to early education, or they may be held back a grade at a critical time in their development. When kids are more engaged and able to utilize their critical thinking skills, their academic performance improves exponentially. Unengaged kids who constantly have their heads down or don’t care enough to pay attention are more likely to fail, be held back, and ultimately to drop out of school. All kids learn differently and it is important to determine how each student learns best in order to get them fully engaged in their own education.

Join Thom Jackson Esq., LaShanda Jackson, and host D-Rich on this week’s episode of Southern Soul Live Stream - Podshow to learn more about the difficulties facing public education and what needs to be done to ensure better outcomes for children of color.

Quotes

• “If you're not putting the proper food inside your body, how can you even feed your brain the right way? Your first brain is your stomach.” (21:32-21:40 | LaShanda)

• “Our kids are dealing with lead paint, not only in water, but in the piping that's used. They're dealing with the paint on the walls, in the air that they're breathing, and all of these atmospheres, and we ask ourselves these questions about why are our kids in certain neighborhoods underperforming in education, and we've yet not linked it to the very environmental conditions in which we have these kids growing up.” (32:36-33:00 | Thom)

• “It's not about whether our kids can learn. It’s about how we engage them as critical thinkers, and how teachers engage those students.” (48:33-48:42 | Thom)

• “When we say equity, we're saying, let's make sure that every child has access to the tools that will help them become the best student that they could possibly be.” (49:01-49:11 | Thom)

Links

Thom Jackson, Esq President & CEO at EdisonLearning: https://www.edisonlearning.com/equity-everywhere

LaShanda Jackson, Michigan State University Extension Instructor:

https://healthyjustfeelsright.com/

About Southern Soul Thursdays - @SoulThursdays

Witty, thought-provoking, and uplifting, Southern Soul Livestream - Podshow is the program that you’ll invite friends over to watch every week, where you’ll learn about fascinating speakers and get to share in exciting experiences. Tune in each Thursday at 8 pm eastern at SoulThursdays.com to connect with guests from across the generations and to laugh with our "cast of characters," hosts who are as charming as they are talented!