In the United States, we tend to assume that young people should become educated and then go to work, as though the two were entirely separate stages of life. This dichotomy blinds us to the fact that work itself can be a powerful means of education. Indeed, the workplace is where many young people become most engaged in learning high-level skills…

Parents from culturally diverse backgrounds need to feel that they play a vital role in the future success of their sons or daughters with disabilities. Differences in culture and ethnicity can affect families' involvement in transition planning and the goals that they emphasize for their children. Families of diverse backgrounds were surveyed and…

This dissertation employs data collected from multiple sites in Southern California over a period of nine months. Several in-depth ethnographic interviews and participant observations were conducted with Pakistani Muslim women (age 17-22) and their parents in an effort to better understand the influence that parents and ethno-religious communities…

This article examines the degree of integration of Roma and Gypsy children in formal education in the Peloponnese region of Greece. It is based on field research conducted by the University of Patras during the school year 2006/07 within the framework of the Greek Ministry of Education's "Integration of Roma children in school"…

Trainees with problems of professional competence (TPPC) present trainers with unique challenges. When TPPC situations include diversity issues, the complexity of such challenges increases. Although attention to such intersections is important, little is known about what influences faculty thinking about diversity issues when trainee competence…

Using data from the Program for International Student Assessment 2006 surveys for 50 countries, this paper explores gender segregation of adolescent science career plans. We ask whether, in different cultures, bridging the male-female gap in science self-concept could reduce gender disparities in students' career preferences. Bringing together the…

In examining life history narratives of 14 linguistically and culturally diverse pre-service teachers, this study addresses two research questions: How do pre-service teachers construct difference between themselves and others? How do they express a sense of belonging and community membership (or construct citizenship) in representing themselves…

Very large numbers of students for whom English is not their native language attend public school classrooms in the USA every year. It is estimated that there are currently about 5.3 million English learners in K-12 grades (National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition 2011). While teacher preparation programmes are required to prepare…

This article follows a research project that collects oral histories of bilingual education teachers from Puerto Rico who migrated to the US Virgin Islands in the late twentieth century. The teachers' oral histories are used as a case study that provides in-depth analysis of competing discourses related to education and globalization in these two…

Chinese classrooms present an intriguing paradox to the claim of self-determination theory that autonomy facilitates learning. Chinese teachers appear to be controlling, but Chinese students do not have poor academic performance in international comparisons. The present study addressed this paradox by examining the cultural differences in…

For 5 years, this research team has sought to learn from more than 700 students encountered in Mexican schools, who had previous experience attending schools in the United States. Although this study has used mixed methods, 1 tool--the written survey--has proven particularly valuable as a means to build profiles of such transnational students.…

Teachers in Cyprus are being called upon for the first time to teach within culturally diverse educational settings. Given the substantial role, teachers play in the implementation of intercultural education, this paper explores the intercultural strategies and procedures adopted by primary school teachers in Cyprus. Interviews were carried out…

This study explores the experiences of graduate students who completed one of two international courses facilitated by family therapy faculty in a U.S. master's-level counseling psychology department. Participants reported that international courses were personally and professionally transformative. Spending time in a foreign country gave them…

The aim of this article is to explore the perceptions and attitudes of Turkish university students about to embark on a European exchange trip. This qualitative study sheds light on their hopes and fears about travelling to and living for a period of three months in a western country. The article shows how participants shared common aspirations…

This article explores perspectives and strands of thought among teachers from five countries about power dynamics in learning environments, perspectives on power of dominant cultures and impacts of power on concepts of citizenship and social justice. Discourses revealed teachers have some understanding of how power impacts teaching and learning,…