A young teacher attempted to engage a class of high-risk urban students by introducing them to books about intolerance and ethnic misunderstanding and developing their own awareness of discrimination and social bias through diaries that documented their own thoughts and feelings. Calling themselves the "Freedom Writers," these students arranged…

The Bridging Cultures Project is a collaboration among several researchers and teachers (n=8) to design professional development activities on the topic of cross-cultural understanding. During the fall of 1996, participating teachers will be given a pre-assessment and post-assessment. The assessments are designed to give some information on how…

This paper discusses how professionals have responded to the challenge of educational discrimination against minority group students in Europe, particularly the United Kingdom, explaining that minority students and their parents may differ from other students in their experience and understanding of the school system, cultural knowledge relevant…

An individual's school motivation and achievement are products of a complex set of interacting motivational goals, sense of self, and self-concept variables. Motivational goals may be differentially salient to individuals from different cultural backgrounds; and sense of self, including academic self-concept, may vary across cultural groups. This…

This paper examines how people reflect, individually and collaboratively, in different cultural contexts, discussing the consequences for teacher education. The paper suggests that the ways in which people reflect individually are shared across cultures, but the ways in which people reflect together are structured differently by their varied…

The purpose of this study was to examine a profile of academic self-concept for a sample of 293 students of a private girls-only high school in Japan as measured by the Dimensions of Self-Concept (DOSC)-Form S, Japanese version (W. Michael and others, 1984). The DOSC-Form S, Japanese version, yields five scores associated with the five underlying…

This digest reviews behaviors and instructional strategies that enable teachers to build stronger teaching/learning relationships with students from culturally diverse backgrounds. Strategies include: (1) appreciate and accommodate the similarities and differences among the students' cultures; (2) build relationships with students; (3) focus on…

This study examines the nature of education policy regarding students with special needs in Italy, Ireland, and the United States. It begins by reviewing the definition of inclusion and then explores the nature of legislation pertaining to special needs education and inclusion in the three countries. Results of the study indicate: (1) the most…

Urban and rural Aboriginal- and Anglo-Australian children were tested for reading and math achievement, for nonverbal psychometric test intelligence, and for three cognitive styles. Psychometric intelligence was clearly a more powerful predictor of the effects of culture and location on school achievement than was cognitive style. (Author/CMG)

Describes how the events of a week of outdoor education for 40 migrant teenagers of various cultural backgrounds moved from racial and geographic discord to cooperation, proving that the melting pot is still working. (SB)

A study used a Functions of Reading Scale to explore the reading activities of students in grades three, five, and eight in Ireland and the United States. Results showed the patterns of relationships between the variables in the Scale to be consistent across cultures and grade levels. (FL)

Of all components that make American diplomacy effective, few are as neglected as the educational, linguistic, and cultural components of foreign policy. Weapons are insufficient for a nation that underinvests in the political, economic, educational, and cultural alliances that can counteract the distorted world image of America. (Author/MSE)

Cross-cultural research findings are summarized in an effort to inform multicultural educators of subtle differences in how children from various cultures learn. Differences in spatial conceptualization, cognitive learning, nonverbal communication, personality, and general attitudes are discussed. Research methodology is noted. (PP)

The work of the Centre for the Study of Religion and Education in the Inner City, a church-related organization in Salford, England, is described. The role of religion in the formation of social and spiritual values is discussed, with emphasis on the needs of those in urban, multicultural settings. (PP)

Available research from sociocultural sports studies have important information for physical educators about sociological forces which operate in physical education classes and on playing fields. This information can give physical educators a better understanding of the effects of gender and racial stereotyping and cultural differences. (PP)