The future of school psychology requires us to examine present challenges, our capacity to address them, and how we might better prepare ourselves for what lies ahead. This piece raises the question of whether school psychology is not only demographically but structurally oriented to the norms of middle-class White women, especially those who…

It has been more than 50 years since Clay (1966) first introduced the concepts about print (CAP). Emergent readers, aged 4-5, must acquire an understanding of basic and hierarchical concepts of letters, words, and sentences; they must also learn basic knowledge about texts and books; they must develop an awareness of book orientation,…

In addition to fostering bilingualism and biliteracy for all students, one of the main goals of Two-Way Immersion (TWI) programs is building positive cross-cultural relationships (). This can lead to TWI programs having ambitious goals for the kinds of bridges it can build between students, families, and communities, which is a challenge when the…

Drawing on a broader study that focused on examining principal leadership for equity and diversity, this paper presents the leadership experiences of "Jane", a White, middle-class principal of a rural Indigenous school. The paper highlights how Jane's leadership is inextricably shaped by her assumptions about race and the political dynamics and…

This dissertation investigates how the intersections of race, class, and gender operate in the everyday teaching and professional norms of middle-class White women teachers--particularly in schools such as the one in this study, where a majority of middle-class, White women teachers serve predominantly low-income, racially and ethnically diverse…

The majority of American educators are White, middle class, and female. Most textbooks and articles for pre-service teachers assume their readers reflect these characteristics. However, as the K-12 student population becomes increasingly diverse, so do the pre-service teacher candidates at our Southern California public university. This article…

Turner's (1974) conception of liminal space provides an entry point to look beyond the given and to create opportunities to examine, critique, and challenge the assumptions inherent in many music programs. Building upon his theory of liminality as a place that is "ambiguous, neither here or there, betwixt and between all fixed points of…

The developing views of the purposes of school learning (PSLs) and related achievement among immigrant Chinese preschoolers and their European American (EA) age-mates were examined. Both culture and socioeconomic status (SES) were considered simultaneously, an often neglected research approach to studying Asian children. One hundred and fifty…

Research points to particular problems in the experiences of White teachers teaching students of color (Cochran-Smith et al., 2004). Despite good intentions, teaching students of diverse backgrounds and experiences can be challenging for teachers who are unfamiliar with their students' backgrounds and communities. The purpose of this paper is to…

The paradox of the nation's teacher preparation programs is that "everything" is about diversity and social justice in the preparation of teachers and, simultaneously, "nothing" is about diversity and social justice in the preparation of teachers. Across teacher education, there is wide consensus that preparing current and prospective teachers to…

Many white, middle-class teachers tend to dismiss their students' cultures and judge parental involvement by their own behavioral norms. Many nontraditional literary experiences occur as parents and children go about their daily lives. Teachers may also have limited views of parental competence, motivation, and home-school collaboration. Teachers…

Self-concept test scores among Inuit, Montagnais Indian and White seventh and eighth graders in four Labrador communities showed some differences in net conflict, self-satisfaction, self-criticism and identity. These may be due to several factors: reading ability, cultural differences, isolation, and other factors in Labrador culture. (MH)

Studies cultural differences in child rearing practices of 38 middle-class Chinese immigrant mothers and 38 middle-class Caucasian-American mothers of 3-8 year olds. Results suggest similarity in child-rearing goals of both groups, although Chinese-American immigrant mothers rely on traditional Chinese methods of socialization to achieve these…

Examines the nature of disadvantage for minority students, solutions offered by radical theorists, and roles that stories play in furthering progress with antiracism. The paper examines the centeredness of the white middle class; teachers' perspectives; monocultural curriculum; shortcomings of multicultural education; possibilities from critical…

People fail to communicate because they fail to read accurately the cultural signs that each person is sending. This consistently produces bewilderment, and often feelings of anger, frustration, and pain. Communication becomes virtually impossible when people not only operate from different cultural codes, but are unaware that different codes are…