Health Question

Tackling a Race-Related Health Question with Decision Skills
At Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia Charter School

“Why are black men in America 1.5 times more likely to develop prostate cancer and two to three times more likely to die of the disease than white men?”

This is a critical issue that students at Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia Charter School explored recently in a school-wide project.

Based in West Philadelphia, Boys’ Latin is a college preparatory high school for qualified boys of diverse backgrounds in a historically underserved population. Drawing from a community comprised in large part of African American families, Boys’ Latin is a school where young men prepare to become leaders through challenging course work within a supportive environment, and where a common uniting factor is a belief in the benefits of a rigorous study program.

As they worked on the project, the boys experienced and practiced elements of quality decision making—framing, values clarification, generating creative alternatives, gathering useful information, applying sound reasoning, and committing to follow through by producing a research paper, article, and group presentations. Key questions that the students are working to answer include: “What information is important for the community to know about prostate cancer?” and “What would be the best method of communicating this information?”

Several teachers from Boys’ Latin have attended summer programs at Stanford University in Decision Quality, presented by DEF in collaboration with the Stanford Center for Professional Development. Thanks to the support of these instructors, decision quality has become part of the core values at Boys’ Latin. The prostate cancer project is a great example of putting these values into action.