Concludes that at worst, welfare states should be regarded as only one of the unwelcome aspects of poverty, not as a cause of disability. (Author/AM)

The Rurality Index measures community access to resources for resolution of local problems; includes physical, population, educational, and financial elements; and assesses community connections to the larger society and the global economy. Analysis found that U.S. metro counties were heavily skewed to the least rural end of the scale but…

America's inequitable school funding system assigns urban children of poverty only half the value accorded suburban professionals' children. Beware of casting certain children as models of resiliency. Less articulate children also deserve adults' attention and support. Tracking, which isolates social classes, should be outlawed. One South Bronx…

Reports on a study of African-American college students at a state university in the Midwest. The study examined the effects of marginality on their college experience and performance. Identifies six reactions to marginality and provides case study examples of each. Includes extensive references and verbatim comments from the students. (MJP)

Describes the Senior Project, a program at California State University, Fresno, designed to help children at risk of school failure. The project stresses one-on-one mentoring of at-risk, limited-English-speaking children by Liberal Studies/teacher preparation majors. Plans for most sessions feature reading and writing activities, simple science…

Describes social, economic, and family structure variables that place specific Latino subgroups at risk, synthesizes available data on Latino children in the child welfare system, and discusses a direction for ethnic-specific child welfare policy for vulnerable Latino groups. Concludes that family services must promote economic and social…

Examined differences in self-reported psychiatric symptomatology on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 according to the Adult Attachment Interview in first-time mothers from a high-risk poverty sample. Different symptom patterns were consistent with adult attachment status as an index of self-representation and as a set of…

Explores supply-and-demand factors by combining a 100-county sample of independent preschools with 1990 census data. Price negatively affects hours demanded. More hours are purchased in poorer counties with more black single parents and rapid population growth. Center accreditation significantly increases demand, but depresses supply. Public…

Analysis of 1990 data on 151 U.S. cities indicates that the spatial isolation of blacks from whites strongly predicts rates of urban black violence (homicide and robbery). Suggests that underlying the relationship between segregation and crime is the geographic concentration of poverty, joblessness, low job skills, low education, welfare, teen…

This editorial examines the passage of the 1996 welfare reform bill and relates it to a possible backlash against children with disabilities. The full inclusion movement is seen as potentially leading to the elimination of special education services. Members of the disability community are urged to consider how to strengthen the effectiveness of a…

Revisits G. Robert Carlsen's call for the use of young adult literature in the classroom by looking specifically at the emotional and reading needs of older adolescents, those in the upper grades. Discusses problems associated with adolescence in the late twentieth century and lists recommended young adult books that touch on those issues. (TB)

Profiles some of the efforts of Appalachian educators to connect area children with their heritage while combating the trends toward school dropout and poverty. Teaching students the history behind their own dialect and customs helps them accept the customs and speech of others and helps them overcome stereotypes. (SLD)

Presents results from ethnographic fieldwork regarding a program to develop telematically delivered distance learning packages in Britain. Describes aims of the program, including building an infrastructure for distance learning and community development, to provide training software, and to identify limitations of attempts to break down economic…

Interviews with service providers and welfare recipients on 15 Arizona American Indian reservations indicated that low levels of education and work experience were barriers to employment, and employment was scarce. In remote areas, the lack of support services, paved roads, transportation, and communication made it impossible for many residents to…

Investigates the establishment of ragged schools in nineteenth century Wales. States they dealt with the many shabbily clad, underprivileged youth found roaming the streets. Explains Wales focused on creating church and boarding schools. Concludes that other schools eventually provided welfare based services which caused ragged school's demise.…