Draws a comparison between the Australian belief that the aboriginal practice of walkabout is inherited and the American belief that educational failures are due to family problems, low I.Q. and poverty. (AM)

Describes Dolci's most recent project, an experimental school for children of the peasant community in Partinico, in western Sicily. In no other place in Italy is public education available to children on a full-time basis. (Author/AM)

Notes that it is not surprising to find a time lag between the development of a field, in this case socio-linguistics, and the application of its concepts and methodologies to a specific setting, the classroom. (Author)

Discusses the Directed Learning Program in Hempstead, Long Island, one of 13 compensatory education programs across the country recommended for emulation by other school districts by the ERIC/Information Retrieval Center on the Disadvantaged. (Author/JM)

Recent research on science achievement among disadvantaged students in grades K-12 is reviewed. Findings on effects of race, SES, and several classroom factors are discussed. Patterns of preparation and science career choice are examined from the perspectives of students' gender, attitudes toward science, and counseling of minority students. (MCK)

A review of research reveals linguistic, cultural, and psychological difficulties for Spanish-speaking children on standardized tests of academic achievement and aptitude. (RJ)

Argues that the written medium can provide culturally diverse students with opportunities for self-expression and empowerment. Advocates a reciprocal interaction model of teaching writing to non-English speakers that allows for student control and capitalizes on student interests. (FMW)

Used high school yearbook data to examine interracial contact within school teams and other organizations. While white students were rarely outnumbered in groups, nonwhites were frequently outnumbered. Degree of interracial exposure was less than what would occur if all organizations had been racially balanced and much less than what would have…

Students from urban middle schools serving mostly economically disadvantaged, minority youth were asked how they spent their time after school and on weekends. Most students did not participate in after-school programs or lessons. They reported extensive time spent watching television and hanging out with friends. Weekends presented a similar…

Discusses the decisions made in the development of a pre-college program to provide special educational opportunities to talented youths who, because of limiting economic and social forces, would not normally enter college or earn degrees. (RJ)

Focuses on the impact of major political, economic, social and psychological forces on the black community, its adaptive response, and the outcome for black students, past and present. Optimal conditions that foster education, technological change, black adaptation, and educational planning are discussed. (Author/AM)

Discusses the negative aspects of suspension from school, especially its disproportionate impact on non-White students, and surveys some of the most commonly employed alternatives to suspension. (ST)

Following the publication of "A Nation at Risk" and other reports calling for major changes in American public education, advocates for poor and minority students produced a subset of reports urging that the disadvantaged not be overlooked in the movement. Reviews and evaluates recent urban education reform reports and legislation. (AF)