Discusses ongoing ethnographic research on interpersonal caring at an inner-city elementary school. Analyzes the perceptions of teachers, parents, teaching assistants, and students concerning how they describe what acting in the best interest of others means. Considers issues that may hinder the construction of shared meaning. (JB)

Explores the role of television in American culture. America may be more diverse than ever in race, ethnicity, and religion, but, because of mass media, there is less diversity in experience, perspectives, and expectation. Subcultures that once manifested existence locally now look to television for verification of their existence. (SLD)

Describes the Contemporary World Events and Cultures course of the University of Massachusetts Lowell College of Education, a graduate course designed to develop a multicultural mind set. Experiences of the first class of 20 teachers in a master's program confirm the success of the approach to cultural sensitivity. (SLD)

A teacher's interviews with 20 former English-as-a-Second-Language (ESOL) students illustrates ways in which they have adapted to life in the United States and how they have improved, or failed to improve, their English. The subjects' stories are material for the teacher's current classes. (SLD)

This article describes a preservice special education teacher education course at the University of Maryland which requires students to interact directly with parents of different social classes and cultural backgrounds. Three students recount their experiences and changed attitudes as a result of this requirement. (DB)

Described are the difficulties encountered in a bicultural educational context by Australian Aboriginals. Theoretical perspectives, the social context for mathematics communication, and the use of educational software are discussed. Suggestions for overcoming social difficulties in mathematics are provided. (CW)

The Japanese model of business management and Total Quality Management principles being applied to higher education as well as businesses are often ineffective because of the application of packaged ideas without consideration of the subtleties of individual organizations. The cowboy model of teamwork stresses the individual's role and better fits…

Reports on a study of cultural images of people in 5 nations by 24 10- to 13-year-old children of low socioeconomic backgrounds. Finds that 10-year olds focused on the thoughts and feelings of people whereas the 13-year olds included more knowledge abstracted to the country level. (CFR)

Describes the English-only effort in the Territory of Hawaii that typified the Americanization crusade that swept the United States during and after World War I. Asserts that, although the Americanizers focused on southern and eastern Europeans on the mainland, the focus on Japanese in Hawaii added overtones of racial and political discrimination.…

Five texts by Brian L. Fife (1992), Chester E. Finn and Theodor Rebarber (1992), John Godar (1990), Nathan Rutstein (1992), and Yael Sharan and Shlomo Sharan (1992) on cultural diversity and education reform emphasize the importance of cooperation, administrative decentralization, the need for critical thinking, values that provide common ground,…

Contrasts the author's experience as a public school student in Nigeria with his experiences in a public high school in a suburb of Washington (DC). In spite of poor funding, institutional bias, and cultural differences, the student believes that his Nigerian education was superior in atmosphere conducive to academic achievement. (SLD)

Describes programs and activities of the Close Up Foundation for special needs students. Explains how the experiential citizenship education activities are adapted for hearing impaired, visually impaired, recent immigrant, Native American, Alaskan Native, Puerto Rican, and Pacific Island nation students. Includes two classrom activities used in…

Discusses four ways in which clinical diagnosis can be detrimental to minority clients: (1) cultural expressions of symptomatology; (2) unreliable research instruments; (3) clinician bias; and (4) institutional racism. Recommendations to avoid misdiagnosis begin with accurate assessment of a client's history and cultural background. (SLD)

Summarizes the extent to which the literature has conceptualized poverty and self-sufficiency within the broader person-in-environment context. Findings from an ethnographic study of a multicultural community illustrate how residents redefine self-sufficiency in the context of the environment. Support is defined as a prerequisite for…

Responds to criticisms of the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) Columbian Quincentenary Statement. States that the statement does not claim that North American multiculturalism began with Columbus. Asserts that U.S. history needs to be integrated closely with world history to help students understand the concept of world systems. (CFR)