Congress will consider reauthorization of the Higher Education Act this summer. From our changing population will emerge the leaders of tomorrow. They are too important a resource to relegate to second-class citizenship because of a lack of access to education caused by inadequate federal support for financial aid. (MLW)

Examines middle-class child-rearing philosophies and practices and their effect on children's academic success. Suggests that middle-class parenting practices reflect a coherent set of cultural beliefs about the relation of the individual to the group and about the parents' role in bringing children into the group. Suggests that these beliefs…

Examined the academic, psychological, and family patterns of 200 middle class dropouts and their reasons for dropping out. Proposes that school, psychological, and family factors are not separate but rather coexist and interact in the creation of this social problem. In addition, these factors interact with larger sociocommunal and sociopolitical…

Three decades after massive government commitment to financial aid, minority and low income access is declining and aid going to middle class students. Policies and political deadlock have worsened the situation of those in need, and hard choices must be made if college access is to be restored without greater expenditures. (SK)

These volumes offer a blend of genres, authors, and purposes. Specific portraits are provided for each volume in chronological order. The central historical and educational values are in the view that the books give of the world of petit-bourgeois African-American women at the turn of the century. (SLD)

Louisa May Alcott's "Work: A Story of Experience" (1873) examines, challenges but ultimately accepts the gendered construction of the feminized century. The novel depicts the ambivalence that Americans, especially middle-class northern white women, felt in regard to the proper roles of women and men. (SLD)

Three recent books that deal with China's continuing quest to create a workable educational system address the evolution of teacher education, the position of ethnic minority groups in higher education, and the historical social consequences of educational policies. Taken together, the works indicate the institutionalization of Western-style…

Ethnographic data from a black middle-class Chicago neighborhood indicate that dense social networks fostered by residential stability facilitate informal supervision of neighborhood youth and enhance formal crime-prevention activities. Nevertheless, inclusion of gang members and drug dealers in networks of law-abiding kin and neighbors thwarts…

Research on African American students' low academic performance has focused on Black adolescents, who, like most American adolescents, exhibit oppositional attitudes. In contrast, an ethnographic study of two all-Black elementary schools suggests that middle-class Black children begin school very much achievement-oriented and engaged, and that…

Argues that the issues of good teaching practice and professionalism are at risk of becoming marginalized in the developing market culture. Finds that a growing compliance of schools to middle-class parents may result in the overriding of teachers' professional judgments that do not mirror the perceived requirements of these "valued"…

Concerned about working-class failure, argues that recent (British) government policies have insufficiently considered sociological studies on how social class affects educational success or failure. Social-inclusion policies must address forms of middle-class self-exclusion from mainstream public education as well as working-class social…

This study closely examined interview transcripts collected in six rural schools to describe how educators and community members viewed issues of social class. Data came from an SEA-funded project investigating high-poverty schools honored for serving all students well. This study is one of several drawing on data gathered for this project.…

The present study investigated early literacy development in minority middle-class families. The subjects were parents and preschool children ages 3-5 that attended a private early childhood center in Irvington, New Jersey. Each family was given one home visit and a library visit. The literacy practices of the families were observed and recorded…

This paper describes an agenda for expanding interest and motivation among sixth-grade foreign language students in a middle-class suburban community located in northeastern Illinois. The problem was originally noted by the teaching staff/researchers who found students unable to focus and maintain attention during class. Administration of surveys…

Interviews with 209 African Americans in a number of United States cities are the basis for a discussion of the black middle-class experience. Although middle-class African Americans appear to have secured the promises of the American dream, conversations make it apparent that they have experienced discrimination and hatred from Whites. The…