Examines connections between diversity and disability in special education, noting increasing tendencies to locate special education under the umbrella of diversity. The paper maintains that the assumptions underlying disability are dramatically different from those supporting diversity and suggests that special educators transform their…

Describes the responses of white, affluent, ethnically-encapsulated first graders to four books that featured African-Americans as the central characters. Finds that students' responses showed a sensitivity for the feelings and actions of people they seldom interact with or even think about. Notes that the students frequently addressed issues of…

Fitchburg (Massachusetts) State College, surrounded by rapidly expanding African American, Asian, and Hispanic populations, was awarded a 1990 federal Student Literacy Corps grant to initiate a Literacy Corps Program. The program created and fostered literacy opportunities for area children, adolescents, and adults and helped participants develop…

Examined how high school students, in individual and peer conditions, process scientific information that contradicts what they believe, and assessed the contribution of this activity to conceptual change. Results indicated two processing approaches: (1) direct assimilation; and (2) knowledge building, suggesting that knowledge building as a…

Evaluates changes in social background, resource constraints, and labor market incentives as possible explanations for differences in the educational expectations between black, and white high school students during 1980-92. Maintains that a consideration of relative direct costs and improvement of social background is necessary to explain these…

In a lecture at Navajo Community College in fall 1995, Russell Means discussed freedom and responsibility in our present-day world. He talked about the true nature of education, the difference between knowledge and wisdom, and why Indian peoples must think critically about the educational and government structures constraining them. (Author/TD)

Describes an action research project which began by asking how English teachers could improve the writing of their African American students, and gradually came to ask how the teachers' own cultural assumptions might be blocking their teaching relationships. Identifies and discusses eight principles of their approach, and discusses changes in…

Educators are challenged to develop specialized programs to serve the varied cultural norms, beliefs, and values espoused by different Native American tribes. To counter bureaucratic pressures toward uniformity, individual schools must foster development of shared school-community culture. To assist at-risk students, schools and communities must…

Describes a study conducted in the United Kingdom that assessed recall and comprehension scores of elementary and secondary school children following the viewing of two prime-time science television programs. Predictor variables including age, sex, linguistic fluency, prior television viewing, and reading habits were investigated. (Contains 13…

Reports on an exploration of gender bias in the multiple-choice portions of six Canadian social studies examinations. Considers the lack of women's experiences reflected in the questions, formal content, and epistemological stance. Concludes that gender biases do exist in the questions and may have contributed to differences in achievement. (MJP)

A modified version of the Societal, Attitudinal, Familial, and Environmental Acculturative Stress Scale (SAFE) was administered to 71 Latino and Euramerican children aged 8-10 from southern California. Despite being U.S.-born, Latino children experienced significantly more acculturative stress than their Euramerican peers, thereby helping to…

Examination of educational and employment status of Mexican American youths in relation to the proportionate size of the Mexican American population in metropolitan areas found that in 1990, 19% of Mexican American adolescents were "idle"--out of school with limited or no employment. However, proportionately larger Mexican American…

Reports on a study that examined the nature of vocal jazz improvisation and the factors that influence achievement in improvisation. Participating subjects performed two jazz improvisation tasks that were measured for tonal, rhythmic, and expressive items. Correlating independent variables included jazz theory knowledge, jazz experience, and…

Investigated the relationship between Vividness of Movement Imagery Questionnaire scores and kinesthetic acuity--the sense of body position and movement--among 10- and 14-year-olds. Found that in the older group, those with high levels of visual movement imagery performed better on measures of kinesthetic acuity; no such effect was found for…

Tested two models of family economic problems and adolescent psychological adjustment. Found that the models did not differ according to age or gender, nor whether subjects lived with two parents or fewer. Found no support for coping as a moderator of stress. Reviewed implications and suggestions for future research involving coping with economic…