Describes results from the Perry Preschool Project, which began in 1962 to assess whether high-quality preschool programs would provide short- and long-term benefits to impoverished African American students. Longitudinal data indicated that compared to nonparticipants, participants had significantly higher earnings, percentages of home and second…

Analysis of 101 projects in 7 public works programs (PWPs) in Western Cape Province in the mid-1990s estimated the public expenditure needed to transfer resources to the poor. Comparison of the result with that generated by a hypothetical, untargeted transfer showed that most of the PWPs outperform the benchmarks. (Contains 26 references.) (JOW)

Maintains that welfare rights are not incompatible with liberalism's commitment to private property and freedom. Argues that students need to be aware of liberalism's favorable historical position on welfare. Examines the positions of John Locke, Thomas Paine, and John Stuart Mills on poverty, welfare, and the role of the state. (RW)

Poverty and racism are the chief causes of homelessness. Political action is needed to persuade the government to provide affordable housing and related social services. (DM)

Examines the growth of recognition of adult illiteracy in Western Europe and North America since the early 1970s. Discusses the invisibility of the problem, types of illiteracy identified in schools, importance of literacy across the curriculum, links between illiteracy and poverty, and involvement of international organizations. Contains 36…

Discusses the role of the psychologist concerned with individual education and development in helping to redefine or identify effective environments of Black children. Focuses on developmental psychology and the public interest, and educational intervention and schooling. (RJC)

Summarizes themes of welfare reform in America and policy shifts that have resulted in the introduction of state-focused workfare programs. (MW)

Reviews research on family processes that affect the socioemotional functioning of children in poor families and families in economic decline. (PCB)

The paper describes experiences of 88 Black spinal cord-injured and wheelchair bound adults living in Soweto, South Africa. Discrimination in the areas of income, education, housing, transport, social attitudes, family life, and social participation are reported by the respondents. (DB)

Uses national survey data to demonstrate that, compared to the rural or U.S. non-poor, the rural poor consumed less of eight of nine key nutrients; and disparities were greatest for vitamins A and C, iron, and calcium, and for the youngest (two-five years) age group studied. (SV)

Provides important information to better prepare advocates participating in the welfare reform debate. Presents excerpts from reports by the General Accounting Office and the Advisory Committee of the Department of Health and Human Services. Suggests that virtually all of the reform proposals require much more stringent work participation by…

Systemic reform of rural education must move beyond strictly educational matters to encompass enhancement of technological infrastructure to combat isolation, changes in political thinking to overcome the disempowerment of rural citizens, increasing educational resources and services to achieve equitable rural education, and eradicating persistent…

Literature review on social exclusion and disadvantage in rural Europe suggests that rural poverty arises from unemployment, low wages, and, most significantly, inadequate income in old age. Discusses difficulties in identifying rural incidence of exclusion and disadvantage, as well as the need for such research in light of major ongoing social…

Focuses on political misrule through the use of statistics. It examines the defining of political events in this century and the reasons for the rise of the statistics-oriented, problem-solving state which, it is argued, has had adverse affects on social programs and antipoverty policies and has created a misunderstanding of the prevalence of…

Discusses incidents of violence in communities and describes the relationship between poverty, media violence, easy access to handguns, violence at home and on the streets, and neglect and abuse of children. Advocates living nonviolently and viewing the prevention of violence as a multifaceted task. (DR)