Reviews research on how much the life chances of children are affected by the socioeconomic and racial mix of their schools and neighborhoods. Reports that the effect on students' chances of attending college or on White students' academic achievement is small. Black teenage pregnancy rates increase in poor neighborhoods. (Author/RT)

Reviews the articles in this special issue. The following conclusions emerged: (1) smaller districts, schools, and classes seem to be better; (2) the need for smaller class size is inversely proportional to student's socioeconomic status; and (3) instruction must be matched to the instructional needs of the students, rather than the organizational…

Proposes a conceptualization of the professionalization that is inherent in graduate school training as resocialization rather than developmental socialization. Discusses the possible negative effects of this process on students' self-concept. Responses by Jane Allyn Piliavin, Norman Goodman, and Joan Aldous follow. (LS)

Blacks in cities remain segregated and economically disadvantaged. Differences between races are far more important than social stratification in Blacks' deteriorating economic condition. Because the spatial and political containment of Black populations has actually reduced their effect on cities' economic fortunes, political strategies for Black…

Examined demographic correlates of familial and nonfamilial sources of emergency assistance among Blacks. Data from Panel Study of Income Dynamics-1980 showed both familial and nonfamilial sources of emergency assistance. Revealed age, gender, marital status, and urban-rural differences in sources of assistance. Results highlight importance of…

Israeli elementary-level hearing-impaired students (N=188) were studied to determine the relation between background variables (family characteristics, student characteristics, and educational intervention) and educational placement (special schools, special classes, or regular classes). Placement was found to be related to socioeconomic status,…

Problems of mainstreaming and racial integration in American schools are analyzed by a Japanese observer. The individualized educational program ideology is seen often to prevail over the principle of mainstreaming. A "separate but equal" approach contradicts the spirit of the Federal Handicapped Education Act. Synthesis of togetherness,…

This article describes a study of enrollment patterns under the Massachusetts open enrollment law as of fall 1992. Results from 33, districts with 20 or more school-choice transfers, show that families generally enroll children in schools with higher indicators of performance and higher socioeconomic status. (SLD)

Children's behavior and sociometric status were rated in kindergarten and first grade. Mothers provided data on family ecology. Rejected children were more likely to come from low-SES families in which restrictive discipline was used, and were more aggressive and less academically skilled than accepted children. Children whose SES improved across…

In the late 1970s, Yugoslavia instituted extensive reforms of the structure of its secondary school system. Surveys of high school upperclass and graduate students before and after reform suggest that reforms had little effect on the relationship between socioeconomic status and type of school enrollment or on student attitudes toward work,…

With comprehensive collaborative approaches to education reform involving schools and businesses, the multiple constituency concept of collaboration can enhance thinking about the influence of race, class, gender, and ethnicity on educational reform. The article explains collaboration and diversity, noting strategies for working with diversity and…

Using the production-function approach and data from Baltimore (Maryland) public elementary schools, a study shows that school size minimally affects student performance on standardized achievement tests. Regression analysis shows the importance of students' socioeconomic status and negative effects of school input measures such as teacher/pupil…

Provides an overview of contemporary elementary-secondary education of black students in Southern Africa, focusing on curricula; instructional delivery; learning materials and equipment; examinations; enrollment and class sizes; teachers; teacher/student ratios; drop-out, failure, and repeater rates; economic considerations; rural-urban…

Examined the influence of mother-child conversation about child's social relationship on the development of children's interpersonal competence. Found that children's relationships with others were an integral part of mother-children conversations. The types of relationships discussed and the elaborateness with which they were discussed varied as…

Asserts that song lyrics illustrate important sociological concepts. Reports on a study using song-lyric packets with 23 students in an introductory college sociological course. Finds that students were very supportive of the strategy and includes an appendix illustrating the approach by presenting one song-lyric packet. (CFR)