Investigated the psychometric properties of the Personal Preferences Self-Description Questionnaire (F. Kier and others, 1998), a measure of Jungian personality types that uses normative items. Results from 328 Hispanic high school students show generally favorable score integrity. (SLD)

Eighty bilingual Hispanic college students evaluated their own Spanish and English language skills before and after administration of the Woodcock-Munoz Language Survey, which provided an objective measure of these skills. Self-assessments were more accurate for Spanish than for English. Contains 37 references. (Author/SV)

Examined teen birth rates in New York City health districts over 25 years, noting ethnic variations. Data from Department of Health vital statistics indicated that the decline in the birth rate among New York City teens was most significant in health districts populated predominantly by blacks. There were substantial decreases among older teens…

Investigated differences in individualism and collectivism between the U.S.'s four largest ethnic groups (African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans, and European Americans). Surveys of Michigan college students indicated that Asian Americans and African Americans but not Hispanic Americans scored higher in collectivism that did…

Derisive attitudes towards Spanish in the United States threaten its survival. Four issues vital to the preservation of Spanish in the United States are examined: the arbitrary nature of linguistic prejudice, the linguistic validity of all dialects, the overwhelming linguistic overlap between nonstandard and standard dialects of Spanish, and the…

Examines the effects of linguistic acculturation (language spoken with friends and parents) and gender on alcohol use among Hispanic adolescents. Results reveal that a greater proportion of bilingual adolescents engaged in drinking than more acculturated adolescents. Within gender, these relationships were found only for boys. Suggests that…

Analyzes how the Latino identity has been socially constructed inside ever-changing concepts of race and ethnicity and within the black-white binary, reviewing the history of Latino school segregation and resistance to that segregation through litigation; examining the contemporary framework for school desegregation; and proposing various measures…

Mexican-born Manuel M. Corella was the first minority student to attend the University of California, taught Spanish there, was an officer in the university cadets, and engaged in debating and literary activity. Yet his university career closed in mystery when after 4 years he suddenly left, without official explanation, only months before…

Demonstrates how drama can highlight the complex process of readers' interpretations of texts, describing a study of Latina literature in a diverse fifth grade classroom. Results show how the Latina teacher-researcher read her students' interpretations of Latina cultural perspectives while also reading her as a Latina teacher-researcher. Results…

Investigated Mexican American cultural traits displayed by young children during sociodramatic play in a bilingual preschool classroom. Cultural traits identified as funds of knowledge include language, values, beliefs, ways of discipline, household care, and value of education. Findings underscore the inadequacy of representing cultures through…

Among 137 rural Hispanic Americans surveyed in central California--over half having limited English proficiency and less than a 7th-grade education--almost all knew that smoking causes lung cancer and osteoporosis, but less than half knew of smoking's other health risks. Current smokers were most likely to underestimate smoking risks. (Contains 26…

Reports results of research on efforts by the Houston School District to raise students' reading and mathematics scores on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills. Houston lowered the achievement gap between whites and Hispanics and African-Americans and made greater gains than the five other major urban school districts. (PKP)

Describes the family-based administrative structure of the Alicia Chacon International School, a magnet elementary school in El Paso, Texas. Students are motivated to learn within the school's family environment through involvement in cultural activities, multilingual instruction, and family participation. (PKP)

Understanding the processes of acculturation in ethnic minority populations is one of the central tasks of crosscultural research. Addressing challenges of theory, methods, and application in acculturation research requires ongoing advancements in methods and theoretical and model development. The current study was designed to explain a…

This study examines the mentoring experiences of African, Hispanic, and Native-American proteges in an academic setting. In doing so we consider whether surface-level and deep-level similarity are related to relationship satisfaction and perceived levels of support. Specifically, we consider whether for proteges of color, having a mentor who is…