To contribute to a more differentiated description of the cognitive status of young disadvantaged children, a comparative study was made of achievement test performance of disadvantaged and middle class groups of children. On the basis of published reading test scores, test data were gathered from nine public schools, four of which were selected…

This essay addressed the question of to what extent does school segregation and school desegregation policy shape residential segregation. Census data, ethnic segregation, voluntary self-segregation, and attitude surveys are discussed in the residential segregation section. The Wolf and Lebeaux study is critically appraised in reference to school…

The sex role development of 3- and 4-year-old middle- and lower-class Mexican American and Anglo American males was compared. The sample consisted of 15 Mexican Americans and 15 Anglo Americans of low socioeconomic status (SES) and 15 Mexican Americans and 15 Anglo Americans of middle SES from day-care centers and nursery schools. Approximate SES…

This paper presents the history of parent education in the United States and describes a mother-toddler program designed to help young mothers acquire knowledge and skills in child rearing through modeling, counseling and discussion. Included are reviews of current methods of education for child rearing, the need for programs to aid young parents,…

Based on an analysis of data from a survey of middle-class junior and senior high school youths in a New York City suburban community, this paper examined: (1) young peoples' reaction to various drug prevention programs in which they have been involved, and (2) the program topics they would like to see discussed. Important relationships were found…

The technique to be described here was developed to meet the need for a language production measure. It samples a variety of morphemic and syntactic patterns, and avoids the problems of imitation and of free speech analysis. The production test is administered in a sentence-completion format. A very brief incomplete story is told by the examiner…

The effect of a high-opportunity (HO) versus a low-opportunity (LO) play environment on the aggression of preschool children was investigated, hypothesizing that the LO play environment will elicit significantly more aggression than the HO play environment. The two environments were presented randomly to one group of 10 4-year-olds, five of each…

The intent of this study is to determine what the concept "Black Power" means to black junior high school students, and to learn about the way in which such attitudes are being formed. A questionnaire was developed and pilot-tested with black students in Kansas City, Missouri. After pilot-testing indicated that most students of that age…

Programs and experiences in University training of manpower personnel for work with lower class minority groups are evaluated. The conclusions focus on problems that lead to limited implementation of new ideas and skills by trainees when they return to their jobs. Primary among these are: (1) limitations due to characteristics of trainees; (2)…

The first purpose of this study was to discover and analyze the values in "The Red Badge of Courage,""Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,""The Catcher in the Rye," and "To Kill a Mockingbird." The values--conscious or unconscious motivators and justifiers of characters' actions and judgments--were classified according to H. S. Broudy's "Building a…

Four experiments (involving a total of 158 children) demonstrated observationally-induced learning effects on multidimensional conservation tasks using brief, single session training. First grade samples of middle class Anglo-American, and economically disadvantaged Mexican-American children displayed gains in vicariously-induced conservation as…

The purpose of this study was to assess the importance of teacher attitudes, maternal attitudes, and traditional versus Montessori nursery school training on the learning and achievement of the preschool child. Eighty-two middle class children and thirty-eight disadvantaged children who attended either Montessori or traditional preschools…

The results of Osgood's Semantic Differential Scale, administered to 81 teachers, revealed that teachers saw themselves as "fair, alert, active, good" and, above all, "clean." The fact that these teachers were inclined to see Mexican American, black, and Caucasian students in much the same light (making only minor…

This report concerns a detailed analysis of syntax in speech samples collected from 69 lower-class black preschool children and 30 middle-class white preschool children. The objectives of the study were (1) to investigate the hypothesis that lower-class black children are deficient in their ability or propensity to produce syntactically elaborated…

This comparison of values held by junior college freshmen and faculty is part of a larger study being conducted by the ERIC Clearinghouse for Junior Colleges to develop guidelines for institutional assessment and/or program development. Part I of this monograph discusses the generation gap as it applies particularly to values and goals of American…