In his essay called "Does the Negro Need Separate Schools," Du Bois argued that African American students were better off with black teachers, because, like all children, they needed teachers with "sympathetic touch." By sympathetic touch, Du Bois meant that the teacher should come from a similar context and class background as the child, so as to create "perfect social equality." This environment would help the child develop and thrive.

Du Bois therefore advocated for segregated black schools for black children, because he felt that in this way, they would be protected from the hostility and hatred of white people towards black people. He believed that a school was more than a place to learn facts, but must be a nurturing, holistic environment.

Du Bois's theory was controversial at the time, as it is today. The strength of his argument is that it is true that children cannot achieve to their highest capacity if they are being treated with disdain by their teacher or are discriminated against in the classroom because of their race. Studies have shown that even in fully integrated schools where classrooms are half white and half black, the educational experience of black people can be quite different from that white people, because of the unconscious assumptions and racism of the teacher.

However, a weakness of his argument is that, then and now, black schools are often underfunded compared to white schools. Access to resources, such as smaller class sizes, more computers, better textbooks, and more support, as well as enrichment programs in the arts and sciences could offset the prejudice against a black child in an integrated school. With the right support from home and community to build self-esteem, a black child might be better off in an integrated school.