(FinalCall.com) - "Truly abysmal" and "unacceptable" are some of the choice terms educators are tossing around to describe the low scores high school seniors produced in a national test on U.S. history.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress, commonly known as the "Nation�s Report Card," revealed that only one in 10 high school seniors scored well enough to be considered proficient in American history. Eighth graders fared slightly better at 17 percent; 18 percent of fourth graders reached the proficient level.

Performance on the report card exam was scored as basic, proficient (grade level) or advanced. All students are expected to perform at grade level or better. Proficiency, according to the test, is "solid academic performance" based on knowledge of important events and trends in history, and the ability to analyze the material and apply it to real-world situations.

Education Secretary Roderick Paige defined "basic" as "the bottom of the achievement ladder," and he described the overall test scores as "unacceptable."

"History is a critical part of our nation�s school curriculum. It is through history that we understand our past and contemplate our future," he declared.

Another educator also put the knowledge of history into context: "Our ability to defend, intelligently and thoughtfully, what we as a nation hold dear depends on our knowledge and understanding of what we hold dear."

White America in this case is expressing concern that her youth, those who one day lead the country, are lagging in the knowledge of what made this country great. They fear that, if you don�t know where you�ve been then you don�t know where you�re going.

These are words that the Black community should take seriously.

If White America is concerned that her youth do not know their recent history, then how concerned should Black America be to know that we not only lag behind those who are doing badly on this recent test of American mis-education, but we are almost totally clueless of what our true history is?

Blacks in America continue to lag behind others because we operate from the knowledge of those who taught us that we are inferior and if Whites had not freed us from slavery, we�d still be a backwards people.

It is not taught at all in public schools in any meaningful way that Blacks are the mothers and fathers of civilization. White youths don�t comprehend or respect the fact that their ancestors learned the arts, sciences, and math from Black people in Africa. Unfortunately, Black youth don�t appreciate this fact either, because they have not been taught it.

If Blacks are the roots of civilization, what happened? Why are we portrayed today as a people who have not accomplished anything of any significance?

We had many sparks of brilliance during our sojourn here, but many of them�inventions and ideas�were stolen and another man�s name was put on them. But that�s not told in history class.

The Honorable Elijah Muhammad wrote in "Message to the Blackman in America" that, "It is the knowledge of self that the so-called Negroes lack which keeps them from enjoying freedom, justice and equality."

In "Torchlight For America," the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan writes: "A new public school system should relate the curriculum to the self. When we see the curriculum as an outgrowth of self, then we can identify with the curriculum, giving us an incentive to learn."

Education must be something that is presented in a way that it grips a young person�s mind and takes him or her on a joyful ride. And that can only happen if that child sees a healthy image of himself in that education.

Education Secretary Paige, a Black man, was correct when he said, "It is through history that we understand our past and contemplate our future." Educators must give the Black child a true account of his/her history so that they can see their great past and produce an even better future for themselves.