Findings of a 3-year study of the experiences of Black and African-Canadian students in the Ontario public school system are presented. The paper focuses on urban students in four schools and on their parents' perceptions of public schooling. Interviews were held with nearly 150 African Canadian students, including 22 dropouts, some of whom returned to school. Surveys were completed by 145 of these students. It is argued that a critical interrogation of individual narratives provides alternative and disturbing insights into how schooling and education in Euro-Canadian and American contexts function to engage some students, while disengaging others. African-centered schools are also discussed as an alternative educational strategy to address the fundamental concerns of student disengagement and underachievement in mainstream schools. Canadian schools need to be more inclusive and to be governed by principles that stress power sharing with all stakeholders in the educational system. (Contains 47 references.) (SLD)