Whatever its causes, racial isolation is social dynamite. Problems and destiny of America and American education cannot be separated from fate of American cities, which daily grow poorer, more violent, less socially cohesive, and more isolated. Problems cannot be addressed without taking racism into account. Schools can help students understand…

An Open University (OU) course collected life histories of 60 female students from disadvantaged backgrounds, charting their multiple roles or "careers." OU courses appeared to help them take advantage of community and social opportunities and cope with social or economic instability. (SK)

Examined family support networks and operation of demographic and family network characteristics as determinants of assistance types (financial, emotional, child care) among single and married African-American mothers (n=620). Region, age, household structure, proximity to family, and kin affinity were significant predictors of assistance. Found…

Examines the incidence of child poverty in the United States, criticisms of official poverty thresholds, and the influence of family structure and race on child poverty. Recent data show that 60% of poor children lived in families headed by single females and that the majority of African-American children will experience poverty at some point in…

Rural areas are hard-pressed to finance education, because incomes are lower and fiscal resources are less available. Problems in crop farming, energy mining, and textile manufacturing counties are taking their toll on rural Americans. Because local governments cannot maintain existing services, the time is right to reformulate federal rural…

Assesses the major claims and counterclaims in the debate on the desirability of attaching work-related obligations to the receipt of welfare benefits. Attempts to reach a balanced judgment on whether labor policy should continue moving in that direction. (JOW)

Defining hunger on the basis of poverty or other nonphysiological criteria is misleading. With nutritional data used by human-service agencies, suggests programs with such conception of hunger hurt the efforts at nutritional change. Uses central Mississippi as an example to propose objective nutritional definition and assessment. (TES)

When names of 24,000 children from migrant education censuses were cross-referenced with abuse registries, it was found that migrant children were significantly more likely to be maltreated than other children, although incidence rates varied from state to state. The paper emphasizes research methodology, access to central registers, and…

Concerned about low reading achievement scores, the superintendent of an impoverished, rural Tennessee school district adopted Marie Carbo's reading styles program as a vehicle for a five-year learning improvement plan. The district aimed to improve classroom instruction through long-term staff development that inspired teachers to abandon…

California Senate Bill 620, "Healthy Start," was sponsored by Governor Pete Wilson as the centerpiece of his prevention-focused initiative for children. The program involves schools in community partnerships to restructure children's services. The first projects were funded in 1991-92 with a $20 million appropriation. Key concepts and…

Discusses the implications of evidence on the connections between social and economic deprivation and special educational needs in a British context. Focuses on several recent government reports which detail evidence of the association between poverty and low educational attainment and urges schools to work with other agencies to address the…

Drawing on personal experiences with homeless urban children living in shelters, discusses liberatory science education (focusing on an after-school science program) and describes dilemmas inherent in such work, considering how an understanding of the complexity of the relationship between margin and center is necessary in moving toward liberatory…

Examines detailed school spending and achievement data for over 2,800 Texas elementary schools for 1992-93. A school's student poverty rate is the most important factor influencing student performance. Results emphasize the importance of spending for exemplary teaching, basic supplies, and maintenance. Certain expenditures correlate with lower…

Reports on the Homelessness Immersion Project, a program developed at Molloy College to educate students about poverty that not only provides theoretical information about economic and social issues but also helps students develop personal insight into the experience of living in poverty. Describes how the program brings together community-service…

Public policy should not focus on reducing inequality, but rather on reducing poverty. Explores three possible sources of poverty: unemployment, a lack of earnings ability, and individual choice. Discusses the role of education in relation to the lack of ability to earn. (SLD)