Applies palimpsest as model for recognizing Chicano cultural diversity. Promotes interdisciplinary approach to Chicano studies. Examines Aztlan (Aztec homeland) as historical place and nationalist symbol obscuring Chicano identity and Mesoamerican diversity. Encourages use of palimpsest as conceptual tool for Chicano studies, cultural identity,…

Studies response style characteristics among 1,908 Hispanic Americans and 14,425 non-Hispanic whites in 4 studies. Hispanic Americans prefer extreme responses on rating scales more than do non-Hispanic Americans. Hispanic Americans are more likely to agree with a given item. Results are discussed in the contexts of acculturation and education.…

This keynote address states that early intervention services must consider more than professional analyses in their planning. It describes findings from focus group discussions with Latino families of children with disabilities, emphasizing the need to match early intervention services with parent expectations and goals, and the need for services…

Reviews the social and economic costs of at-risk youth and examines three conditions that create risk: poverty, lack of family guidance, and peer pressure. Stresses the need for (1) new roles for educators; and (2) collaboration among the educational, business, and human services communities in efforts to support youth and families. (BC)

Discusses rapid changes in use of computers and related technologies in colleges and universities; the impact of current inequities in precollege access and use of computers experienced by African-American, Hispanic, and American Indian students; and strategies and recommendations to enhance the computer competence of minority students in colleges…

The importance of the teacher to African American and Hispanic American students of lower socioeconomic status (LSES) was studied with 70 urban junior high school teachers and their students. Teacher characteristics, such as self-efficacy, that affect their significance were also studied. Implications for teacher effectiveness are discussed. (SLD)

Describes a small K-6 staff's restructuring plans for its predominantly Navajo student body. The case study, concerned with planning for nongraded classes, represents a lesson in how not to plan. Although some positive curricular changes have occurred, administrative leadership was perceived as ineffective, and staff neglected to plan for cultural…

Grass-root environmental justice organizations charge that, when funding for projects targeting minority communities is won by multimillion-dollar environmental organizations, community-based environmental justice groups are underfunded and the concentration of toxic waste facilities in minority communities continues to grow. Lists top 10…

Determines the relative degree of five personal (academic) attributes and five motivational variables found in a sample of successful Mexican American students. Subjects possessed all five personal attributes and four of the motivational variables. Concludes that Mexican American students possessing these attributes and variables can enjoy…

In Los Angeles County, equal employment in the local government workforce has been defined as a black-white issue, and underrepresentation of Hispanics has been justified as stemming from the lack of an educated and qualified Hispanic labor pool. Contrary to this myth, numbers of high school and college graduates, 1979-92, were greater for…

Epidemiological data on patterns of infection among adolescents, including data on ethnic, racial, and gender differences, are reviewed. Comparisons to patterns of adult infection are made. Patterns of risky behavior that leave youth at risk for HIV infection are discussed. Implications for prevention and treatment are considered. (BC)

Researchers investigated Spanish learning outcomes for fluent and nonfluent limited-English-proficient Hispanic subjects in a maintenance bilingual program. Spanish reading and mathematics achievement were analyzed for each group using Texas norms. Both groups performed at or above the norms for 11 of 12 grade clusters for Spanish reading or…

In two studies involving 18 secondary-level students with learning disabilities and 32 elementary-level at-risk African-American and Hispanic students, it was found that students exposed to positive-mood induction completed more math problems accurately than control children, and the secondary-level experimental students expressed greater…

Statistical analysis of racially polarized voting prepared for the Garza v County of Los Angeles (California) (1990) voting rights case is reviewed to demonstrate that ecological regression is a flexible, robust technique that illuminates the reality of ethnic voting, and superior to the neighborhood model supported by the defendants. (SLD)

A survey of 277 white, Hispanic, and African-American parents of gifted children found few intergroup differences in either the characteristics that first indicated their child's giftedness or in current attributes of their child. More whites than others, however, requested an evaluation of their child for gifted program placement. (Author/JDD)