The number of English language students in American schools has dramatically increased in recent years, creating a greater awareness of cross-cultural issues and considerations in education. Globalization as well as an increase in international exchange student programs has proven that pre-service teachers can benefit from traveling abroad and…

This article focuses on the complex web of issues involved in Esmeralda Santiago's acculturation to US society after arriving from Puerto Rico as a girl. The article is based on examples from Santiago's second memoir, "Almost a Woman" (1998) and the 2001 film adaptation of this memoir; the observations of critics who have written about…

To understand the problems that urban schools encounter educating Puerto Rican students, teachers must understand the history and culture of Puerto Rico, which has been a melting pot of many different cultures. North American culture became prevalent after the Spanish-American War (1898) and the passage of the Jones Act (1917), which gave U.S.…

The mental health needs of two-way migrants from Puerto Rico to the United States and back again are discussed in this paper. Four factors affecting Puerto Rican migrants are outlined. First, the relationship between migration and stress is considered. Often, it is noted, in migrating away from stressful economic conditions, the Puerto Rican…

The United States revolution of 1776 is said to lose validity in light of Puerto Rico's colonial situation under American rule. The plight of the Puerto Rican people is compared to that of the Euro-American settlers under the thumb-screw of British imperialism. (Author/AM)

Presents the successful efforts of an English-as-a-Second-Language teacher to teach English to students in Puerto Rico. The article describes strategies to deal with the students' defensive feelings of nationalism and hostility towards the dominant white culture. These strategies focused on breaking down cultural barriers and validating the local…

This manual was designed for use by Title XX field training personnel involved in providing services for Puerto Ricans in Connecticut. The manual is intended to develop cross cultural awareness by introducing the reader to the cultural orientations, social systems, and values of Puerto Ricans and other Hispanics. Included are background…

Difficulties of Puerto Rican children in adjusting to school in the U.S. mainland can be attributed to their family background and early schooling experience. Unlike the isolated, independent nuclear family unit usually found on the mainland, Puerto Rican families are extended and prize cooperation, socialization, respect for the male patriarch,…

Successful delivery of mental health services to Hispanic Americans depends on understanding the sociocultural variables that produce conflict for this group. For Puerto Ricans on the United States mainland, identity problems arising from Puerto Rico's historical and social circumstances are aggravated by the need to deal with cultural and…

In comparing the teaching of English in the Soviet Union and in Puerto Rico, the author notes that English language instruction in the Soviet Union is characterized by well-trained teachers, good facilities, and an emphasis on practical phonetics, although writing skills are not up to contemporary standards. People are avid and enthusiastic…

Case studies presented by graduate students from the United States and seven other nations dealt with topics in extension education. A system analysis approach to the problems in organizing extension services in developing nations was described, as well as physical and sociocultural problems (including illiteracy) which hinder audiovisual…

THIS SOCIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS DESCRIBES THE LOWER-STATUS URBAN AND RURAL FAMILIES IN PUERTO RICO. THE "JIBAROS," THE RURAL POOR OF THE HIGHLANDS, ARE LANDLESS AGRICULTURAL WORKERS WHO ARE MORE ISOLATED, LESS LITERATE, AND LESS ACCULTURATED TO URBAN LIFE THAN OTHER PUERTO RICANS. THEY TEND TO BE IDEALIZED AS THE PROTOTYPES OF THE ISLAND FOLK…

This anthropological study examines whether sociocultural factors are basic to the etiology of stuttering through (1) an investigation of the incidence of stuttering in a single ethnic group, Puerto Rican rural migrants living in two different cultural milieus (San Juan and New York City), and (2) a comparison of the sociocultural variables in the…

The purpose of this book is to stimulate ideas leading to a sharing of approaches, strategies, and methodologies applicable to the education of Puerto Ricans. Following introductory material, 18 papers are presented, the first 10 of which are in Spanish. Titles and authors are: (1) "El maestro que Puerto Rico necesita," Leonides Santos…