The Curriculum of the Negro College

Table of Contents

“…Though the level of specialization was generally narrower, curriculum patterns at black colleges often emulated those at white institutions, as it was widely held that curricular differences would be misjudged as intellectual deficiencies (Daniel and Daniel, 1946). This calculation often failed to mollify early critics who thought black colleges were "handicapped by the tenacity with which they have clung to the classical form of curriculum" (W. M. Cole, 2006, p. 358), a curriculum they deemed superfluous and impractical for black students.…”

“…In "The Curriculum of the Negro College," Daniel and Daniel (1946) highlight the dilemma black colleges faced in designing appropriate curricula to meet the needs of their students, given the difficult milieu of racial inequality. In addition to an adequate course of study, black colleges also had to provide students with experiences, examples, and a campus climate that would prepare them "for both the adjustment to a world which restricts [their] movements due to [their] race .…”

“…The classical curriculum of private HBCUs was initially geared toward the training of ministers and quickly shifted to encompass, to a greater degree, the training of teachers (Daniel and Daniel, 1946;Harris, Figgures, and Carter, 1975). Teaching and preaching as occupational choices and course offerings at black colleges must be considered in the social context of the era in which they dominated HBCU campuses.…”