Educators working to improve dropout prevention programs should closely examine the development of defensive overlays in children's world views. Efforts to neutralize defensive world views within existing dropout prevention initiatives should refocus efforts to be more holistic. Such neutralization may best succeed in small schools. (SM)

Assessed the influence of the racial consciousness attitudes and identity of 126 white prospective teachers on their perceptions of the teachability of students of various racial/ethnic backgrounds. Perceptions of these student teachers varied with the race and ethnicity of the students and for cognitive and personal/social variables. (SLD)

San Francisco teachers and principals in low-performing schools receive one chance to repair things and are removed if they fail. Many closed schools have reopened with new staff. The paper describes school takeovers, discussing advantages and disadvantages of the method and opinions of various school officials and teachers. (SM)

Poor and minority children, who make up nearly a quarter of American youth, have not been benefited by the educational reform movement. Their needs can be better met through the following means: (1) the reassertion of the family's role in schooling; (2) closer school-community ties; and (3) community schools and community outreach programs. (AF)

Identifies the current sociodemographic characteristics of educationally disadvantaged youth, and projects the changes in the disadvantaged population between 1986 and 2020. Discusses the need for increased resources and new methods of service delivery to meet the educational needs of the group. (FMW)

More important than issues of funding equity are questions of how poor school districts can improve student achievement using new resources. The article discusses how schools can increase achievement following funding equalization, examining the nature of funding inequity, making a difference with funding equity, and effective programs for…

New Trier High School in Winnetka (Illinois) and DuSable High School in Chicago illustrate the gross inequities in the state's public education system. Wealthy New Trier is able to spend twice as much per student in an environment that is already advantaged in every respect, from teacher salaries to courses offered. (SLD)

Summarizes problems and concerns expressed in this special issue devoted to child poverty. Examines child poverty under the broader context of wealth and power, presenting it in a historical perspective. Suggests that children raised in poverty experience more than the simple stress and strains of living on the margins. Discusses current problems…

Describes the author's recent visits to school-based community service programs in different parts of New York City and reviews the educational literature to highlight the value of community service for middle schoolers. Illustrates ways that community service activities counteract students' negative self-concepts. Argues for service learning for…

Studies ethnic differences in parent involvement and ways to increase involvement of low-income parents. Interviews with 83 parents (51 identified as Latino) of 83 students indicated parent attitudes. An intervention with 58 families of 119 kindergarten and first grade students resulted in greater participation than for 61 control families. (SLD)

Some educational solutions to the problems facing young African-American males have been developed through the New Orleans (Louisiana) Public School Study on Black Males (1987-88). From the more than 50 study recommendations, 10 are selected to illustrate the range of strategies. (SLD)

Describes initiatives undertaken by the Job Corps in recent years to improve the educational abilities of the enrollees served, and reports results of various research efforts to examine the effectiveness of some of these initiatives. Evidence suggests that Job Corps initiatives have improved basic skills of students. (SLD)

This paper describes a curriculum provided to homeless high school students in San Francisco. The curriculum is delivered at a community-based organization already serving the homeless rather than in the schools and features spontaneous symposiums, scheduled symposiums, independent learning, private and small group instruction in basic academic…

The 11 articles in this issue present the message that African-American students can succeed and that a significant body of knowledge already exists to help them. The Institute for the Education of At-Risk Students proposed by Congress would be the optimum vehicle for continuing the research highlighted in the 11 articles. (SLD)

Use of a "days to learn" measure of progress in reading and arithmetic at the elementary level was found to be an effective measure for early identification, but the 183 students in the Chapter 1 or special education programs did not show acceleration in progress when receiving extra help from special teachers. (Author/DB)