The racial achievement gap has persisted in the decades since "Brown v. Board," despite large-scale investment in school reform. Accordingly, some administrators and politicians are reconsidering integration policies as a means of addressing the gap. This study examines one Chicago community's discussion of such integration policy.…

The article suggests that the regional origins constitute an important factor in determining the variations in the establishment of Chicano communities. Compared are the experiences of Mexicans in the community area of South Chicago, Illinois and a closely situated city, East Chicago, Indiana. (NQ)

These materials discuss the history of Chicago, Illinois, including prominent persons in the city's past, and landmarks for which Chicago is well known. A number of activities are suggested, some of which concern Chicago's industries, historical sites, architecture, newspapers, ethnic groups, and history. A list of books about Chicago for…

Community history units can provide a framework for elementary economics instruction. The DePaul Center for Economic Education developed a unit on Chicago's economic history. It includes strategies for collecting and organizing content, locating resource people, and developing materials. (AM)

Explores ethnic differences in contextual or neighborhood effects on school attendance in Early Chicago. Analyzes (1) the determinants of school attendance for the sons of native-born Americans and Germans and (2) the effects of proximity to other ethnic groups on the school attendance of boys. (CMK)

Examines the transformation of African-American political power via a historical analysis of the African-American experience within Chicago politics. The article challenges the conventional wisdom that political machines represent a "ladder" for minority empowerment and suggests conditions that facilitate the empowerment of…

This document provides secondary education instructional materials for teaching about selected areas of Chicago (Illinois) history. Designed to support 19th and 20th century U.S. history lessons, it features a lesson plan developed to introduce students to the history and contemporary focus of Chicago's public works. The lesson plan contains: (1)…

This report examines the Chicago Area Project (CAP), the first community-based delinquency prevention program, from both a historical and a contemporary perspective. The analysis is in three parts. The first part describes CAP's founding in the 1930s and analyzes the process through which it was established and the operation of its prevention…

Describes Latino settlement in Chicago, 1910-90. Latino immigration (frequently "importation" of low-skill, low-wage workers) reflects U.S. domination of Latin America; consequent Latino vulnerability and low status allow real estate speculation exploiting their quasi-racial status through exclusion and market manipulation. Questions…

Considers autobiographical works by African American authors, Gwendolyn Brooks and Ronald Fair. Incorporates these works into an interdisciplinary lesson plan concerning black themes, personal identity, and urban history. Includes teaching suggestions, lesson objectives, discussion questions, and other activities. (MJP)

Presents a lesson that focuses on specific places in Chicago's Black Metropolis and examines the process by which buildings become historic structures. Explains that the lesson is based on the National Register of Historic Places registration file, "Black Metropolis Thematic Nomination," and could be used in a unit on 20th-century urban…

This issue focuses on the interpretation of built environments, from Washington Irving's 19th century home in Tarrytown, New York, to structures in contemporary Chicago. Barbara Carson, Margaret Piatt, and Renee Friedman discuss the interpretation of interior and exterior spaces and explain how to teach history with objects instead of teaching the…

Discusses the economic factors and the emerging black leadership involved in African Americans' migration northward in the early 1900s. This lesson plan includes background material, learning activities, and tips for teaching. Handsomely illustrated, any part could be photocopied for a handout. (MJP)