For as long as there has been special education, there has been racially based disproportionality in identification and placement coupled with the concern that some students may be inappropriately identified as disabled. This is especially true for Black students in the categories of emotional disability (ED) and mild mental retardation (MR),…

Ensuring a safe learning environment for students is a major responsibility of educators and policymakers around the world. Based on the secondary analyses of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) data collected from 33 countries in 1999, the study found that 8th graders who witnessed their friends' violence…

The aim of the book is to serve for clinical, practical, basic and scholarly practices. In twentyfive chapters it covers the most important topics related to Autism Spectrum Disorders in the efficient way and aims to be useful for health professionals in training or clinicians seeking an update. Different people with autism can have very different…

A discussion of cultural stereotypes and civilization instruction focuses on means of sensitizing language students to their own and other cultures. Exercises are offered in seeing the Italians as seen by the French, the French as seen by Italians, and the French as they view themselves. (MSE)

Designed for elementary and secondary school social studies educators, this examination of the beliefs, values, customs, and philosophies of diverse groups of Mennonites living in the United States focuses specifically on major differences between and among the Holdeman Mennonites, the Hutterites, the General Conference Mennonites, the Mennonite…

Artifacts can help students see the differences and similarities between cultures. Describes an artifact collection on India that includes such items as furniture, clothing, kitchen utensils, decorations, and books. Suggestions are given for collecting artifacts to use with the study of other cultures. (CS)

Presents a learning activity in which secondary students read about and analyze the legal institutions of an African tribe called the Ibo. Students compare the Ibo's precolonial system of resolving disputes with the U.S. system. (AM)

A legal education course that teaches senior high school students how different cultures resolve conflicts is described. Students need to see that our system of justice is only one among many, all of which have shortcomings, external influences, and internal variance. (RM)

Many reasons can be offered for teaching about Australia. The field of Australian studies offers many opportunities for U.S. teachers and students to critically analyze aspects of their own culture, for there are many experiences in the history of Australia that parallel the U.S. experience. Australia and the United States have strong ongoing…

A study investigated different cultural perceptions of the appropriateness of advice-giving in native speakers of English (NSs) and non-native speakers (NNSs). Using a questionnaire, 172 NNS college students and 31 NS college students were administered a questionnaire in which 16 everyday situations involving either social superiors or peers were…

In a series of activities, intermediate grade students display data from a questionnaire completed by a selected class of Korean elementary school students. The students complete the same questionnaire. They tally results from both questionnaires and display data in an appropriate form: a graph or a Venn diagram. They compare the responses from…

This unit of study, intended for intermediate grade students, focuses on comparing students from different cultures: Germany and the United States. The unit addresses National Social Studies Standards (NCSS) standards; presents an introduction, such as purpose/rationale; cites a recommended grade level; states objectives; provides a time…

Presents a lesson for secondary Asian studies, U.S., or world history classes comparing U.S. and Chinese concepts of individual freedom. Students study and write essays on U.S. court cases concerning privacy. They discuss two articles about Chinese concepts of self and privacy and the role of Chinese study groups in resolving disputes. (AM)

Taboo or forbidden topics of conversation are compared for Taiwan, the Republic of China, and United States. Emphasis is on the conveyance of conversational conventions in second language teaching. First, the concept of conversational taboos is examined, noting the non-transferability of taboos across cultures and languages. Four kinds of taboos…

A technique for teaching cultural awareness that uses comparisons of French films and American remakes is described. It is argued that the technique provides an appealing context for exploring cultural differences in terms of taboos regarding sex, death, and the body. (13 references) (Author/MSE)