A study investigated the effect of kindergarten class size on reading readiness achievement. Subjects, 2,837 kindergarten students in 38 elementary schools that serve rural, urban, suburban, and inner-city schools, participated in the first year of Project STAR (Student Teacher Academic Ratio) in 1985-86. The subjects' 140 kindergarten teachers…

This report presents data from the 1988 National Health Interview Survey of Child Health, which was conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics. The data concern the proportions of young people (n=17,110) 17 years of age and under who were reported by their parents to have had: (1) a delay in development; (2) a learning disability; or…

Student attrition in the first grade of the eight public school districts serving New Orleans (Louisiana) and the River Region exceeded the statewide average for the school years 1983/84 through 1985/86 and black males are suffering severe, almost irreparable, damage to their academic potential. An analysis of enrollments, student failure, and…

The study examined how 620 children, identified as handicapped while in preschool or kindergarten, had progressed 3 to 9 years later. The study addressed questions of effectiveness of identification procedures, outcomes of early intervention, handicapping condition and placement level, and educational history. Among results were: Identification…

The performance patterns of about 13,000 Asian/Pacific Islander (API) students in mathematics, written composition, and reading in grades 1 through 6 were examined. Student information was obtained through the Los Angeles Unified School District's data base for the Survey of Essential Skills (May 1982). Predominantly English-speaking, the students…

A number of hypotheses have been advanced to explain why black students lag behind whites in school achievement. In the 1950s and 1960s, an environmental hypothesis emerged which attributed the achievement gap to environment. Environmentalists at this point were divided between those who felt the family determined achievement and those who felt…

A study was conducted to identify and compare the prevalence of communication apprehension among foreign, black, and white students. Data from a survey of basic English and speech classes were used to locate 83 nonapprehensive and 64 apprehensive foreign, black, and white students, who were then identified as low communication apprehensive or high…

The average minority family is economically no better off than it was in 1980. While White families gained 4.1 percent in disposable income (income from all sources net of taxes) after adjusting for inflation, Black families had a decline in real disposable income of 2.1 percent, and Hispanic families had an increase of only 1 percent. The Black…

Examination of college enrollment in Atlanta, Georgia, showed the starkest contrasts between White gains and Black declines of any of the five metropolitan regions studied by the University of Chicago's Metropolitan Opportunity Project: while there were no declines in enrollment for White or Hispanic students, there were substantial declines for…

Factors that are most important to institutional effectiveness in the production of black baccalaureates were studied. A further concern was how these factors can be translated into policies and practices for undergraduate institutions that have not traditionally served black students. An effectiveness quotient was developed as an overall measure…

This paper has two purposes: (1) to examine whether Puerto Ricans, non-Puerto Rican Hispanics, and Blacks suffer substantial wage discrimination relative to comparable Whites; and (2) to examine the extent to which employers in the Federal and non-Federal sectors discriminate by race or ethnicity in making wage offers. After a discussion of…

The standardization method of determining differential item functioning (DIF) is not acceptable for detecting biased items because of its methodological limitations. The main problems with the standardization index by N. J. Dorans and E. Kulick (1983) are: (1) it does not detect as DIF all items with large or aberrant group differences; (2) it…

Child caregivers should not answer children's questions in ways that enable children to create stereotypical categories. Because children are aware of differences among the peers and the adults they encounter, children's questions must be answered accurately and in a developmentally appropriate way. When questions about individual difference…

Information is provided in narrative and tabular form on the gender, ethnic, and racial composition of faculty and staff in the California State University, the University of California, and the California Community Colleges for 1987-88. Reports and data are presented in the following groupings: (1) report of the California Postsecondary Education…

The Office of Research and Evaluation of the Austin Independent School District (AISD) in Austin, Texas has reported yearly high school dropout counts since the 1983-1984 school year. This report presents data from three cohorts of high school students--those enrolled in 1983-1984, 1984-1985, and 1985-1986. The method used to assign dropout status…