The values of private association and self-help through individual effort have been a compelling aspect of the American philosophy. Reaffirming Americanism was not the only reason that immigrant or minority groups created mutual aid or self-help societies, however, since immediate economic and social goals were significant motivations for such…

These materials provide documents related to the efforts of African, Jewish, Hispanic, and Asian Americans to help themselves and improve their communities through mutual assistance and self-help groups. These materials are designed for teachers of high school history. The study of self-help groups for minorities is a useful part of U.S. history…

This report is an attempt by Public Agenda to capture the voices of teachers across the United States and to spell out their concerns and learn more about their perspectives on educational reform. It is based primarily on two national telephone surveys of teachers, one of 237 teachers and a second survey of 800 teachers of grades 4 through 12.…

The economic consequences and political context of the busing plan of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district (North Carolina) are explored. From an economic standpoint, busing did more to help Charlotte's business elite catch up with Atlanta's business elite than to help Charlotte's blacks catch up with Charlotte's whites. The developmental…

This report explores the characteristics of giftedness in minority, language minority, and economically disadvantaged student populations and ways to assess giftedness in these populations. A qualitative content analysis is used to analyze gifted literature to determine characteristics of gifted children in general (n=262) and characteristics of…

Discusses the rationale, experiences, and outcomes of the Interinstitutional Exchange Program (IEP), sponsored jointly by the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) and the United Negro College Fund (UNCF). CIC made grants of up to $15,000 each to support exchanges of faculty and administrators between nine private historically black colleges and…

This collection examines and explains racial and ethnic family patterns in the United States. Identities, including racial and ethnic ones, are formed and harbored in the family. One's identity influences one's interaction with members of other groups and individuals' behaviors in a number of ways that reflect group membership. The 22 papers in…

A study reviewed nonformal education provided by community organizations, particularly that for women, in the Western Cape (South Africa). It was set against a background of the struggle against apartheid and women's special needs and interests. The interview schedule included open-ended and structured questions and was designed to elicit details…

During the past decade, there has been a simultaneous decline in the number of African American, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American teachers and an increase in the number of students among these same groups of minorities (referenced in this text as people of color). An array of topics relative to this decline were explored as the subject of a…

One important aspect of contemporary career counseling involves the potential for career counselors to help redress the serious and avoidable underrepresentation of minorities within the health professions. This study explored career-related perceptions of the minority seniors at two high schools for the health professions located in two disparate…

A study examined the underlying factor structure of the aptitude tests and work samples being completed by students with educational disadvantages (limited reading and mathematics skills) who were assessed with the current assessment model in the Akron (Ohio) Public Schools. The amount of variance accounted for by the factors was also…

This implementation manual has been developed to describe four model mathematics and science programs designed to increase African-American students' interest in mathematics and science. The manual will help affiliates of the Urban League to mobilize existing community resources to achieve the goals of the national education initiative. The four…

The principalship was studied from the perspective of newly appointed principals in the highly bureaucratized urban context of New York City. Their attitudes, goals, and role and leadership behaviors and the effects of the school-system context were studied. Interviews were conducted with 12 principals from one Pre-K-1, seven elementary and three…

Project AFFIRM (African-American First Investment Return Module) was established at Evergreen Community College in fall 1989 as a comprehensive academic and support program to help African-American students achieve their college transfer or associate degree goals. AFFIRM courses combine career and economic prosperity components into life plan…

The use of English-language literature in South African college instruction for Black students, for many of whom English is a second language, is discussed, drawing on relevant literature. First, the conditions of the education of Black students in South Africa is reviewed, and it is suggested that this population often arrives in higher education…