Traces the development of critical scholarship in the sociology of education, focusing on its attempts to explain failure for low-income youth. The author also examines contemporary theoretical work in "critical" literacy and three historical instances of when critical literacy was practiced. It is argued that helping at-risk students…

Examines the controversy surrounding school choice policymaking and discusses emerging means-based proposals designed to give low-income children a chance to attend high-quality private or parochial schools. Legal issues regarding the full choice movement in education are addressed as well as the political forces arrayed against it. (GR)

A study examined 12 suburban preservice teachers' reactions to an educational field experience in an economically disadvantaged rural school district. Most participants' reactions were negative and based on stereotypes. They did not grasp the complications of poverty nor how geographic isolation might affect this school district. Recommendations…

The International Conference on Rural Aging (June 2000) endorsed policy recommendations in the following areas: health and active aging of older rural people; education, participation, and rights of older rural people; policy development, advocacy, and implementation; components of successful model policies and programs; implications for…

Reports that the dual enrollment program at Santa Monica College (SMC) in California aims to serve underrepresented student populations, particularly in light of the dismantling of affirmative action programs in California. The overall goal of the program is to increase the pool of students qualifying for competitive colleges and universities. (NB)

Two studies examined the representations, lived experiences and subjective worlds of young people in an economically disadvantaged neighbourhood of Istanbul, Turkey. As part of a larger project, face-to-face surveys (n = 500) were conducted with young people aged 14-28, and focus groups (n = 90) were carried out in the community. Along with shared…

A recent article in the "New York Times" observed that the formula used by the federal government to distribute federal student aid funds favors the colleges and universities with greatest resources over those which are less well off ("New York Times," 2003). The story, "Richest Colleges Receive Richest Share of Federal…

Brain research has strengthened our understanding of the first five years of a child's life as a critical period. Quality early care is important to the healthy development of young children, and their later success in school. Concurrently, many families depend on childcare outside the home. Programs that have knowledgeable and skilled staff,…

Project Head Start was created during the heady, idealistic days of the mid-1960s. The idea for Head Start, a preschool program for disadvantaged children, emerged from the observation that, on average, poor and minority children arrive at school already behind their peers in the intellectual skills and abilities required for academic achievement.…

This qualitative study explored the Lived University Campus Experiences of Low Income Students Pursuing Baccalaureate Degrees with Private Foundation Scholarship Assistance. The findings emerged as the themes "Experiences of Affirmation, Cautious Engagement, Vulnerability, and Transformation." "Experiences of Affirmation" explained the positive…

We examined individual differences in developmental trajectories of emotion situation knowledge (ESK), at three time points throughout elementary school in a sample of children from economically disadvantaged families. Results showed that ESK and the subscales of joy, fear, anger, shame and interest exhibited positive growth from the first to the…

We examined links between mothers' parenting and children's relational bullying and overt bullying in a sample of children attending a Head Start program. Mothers completed surveys and face-to-face interviews. Head Start teachers completed assessments on children. Results indicated that a small percentage of children in the sample was rated by…

This article considers Bourdieu's concepts of "social capital" and "social fields", comparing and contrasting his use of these concepts with that of James Coleman and Robert Putnam. It examines how Bourdieu's ideas offer a different way of understanding the lives of economically disadvantaged young women designated as "at…

In this age of greater school accountability, some the country's larger comprehensive high schools have lost their allure with the public. Because of significant achievement gaps between White and minority students, many of these schools have been blamed for not meeting the needs of poor and disadvantaged students. Detractors point out that these…

In the late 1980s, a series of federal laws were enacted which expanded Medicaid eligibility to more of the nation's children. States had a great amount of discretion in how fast and how far these expansions were implemented. As a result, there was great variation among the states in defining who was eligible for the program. This variation…