Four sections discuss multicultural education in Scotland, i.e., historical background; cultural minorities (Gaels, Lowland Scots speakers, Irish, Asian, and others); minority needs within the educational system; and minorities, majorities, and the wider context. (AH)

The value congruence between educators and students, and the effects of this congruence on student achievement were examined with a sample of 360 Mexican American students, 203 non-Mexican American students and 181 educators. The results indicated that value non-congruent students demonstrated higher achievement levels than value congruent…

Results from Biology Cognitive Preference Inventory taken by grade 12 Jewish (N=406) and Arab (N=297) biology majors revealed similarities between cognitive preferences, achievement, and background variables. Reports that, in spite of substantial cultural and home differences, both groups became oriented toward principles/questioning rather than…

Maintains that dropping out of school is more usefully interpreted in social structural terms rather than as an individual psychological event. Reviews research findings to support the argument that schooling reproduces a class-based society by legitimating the social role of the dropout and allocating students to that devalued status. (Author/MJL)

Difficulties experienced by Italian teachers who are employed by the Federal Republic of Germany to teach native Italian pupils their native tongue are described. Suggestions for improving the training of these teachers are given. (PP)

Item difficulty patterns of four groups of nonreferred, average children (ages 7 1/2 and l0 1/2)--Anglos, Blacks, Chicanos and Bermudians--were compared on each of the verbal subtests of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised. Item difficulty curves were remarkably parallel. (Author/HLM)

Major cultural characteristics of Arab students (high level of affiliation, pattern of contextuality, significance placed on verbal messages, and educational and experiential background) and the dilemmas they face are described and compared with what American universities expect and offer. Suggestions for counseling and other services are offered.…

Describes the experiences of an itinerant ESL/D resource teacher from the Peel Board (Canada) who has covered, over several years, a large number of K-8 and K-13 schools. Discusses problems encountered and offers guidelines for helping minority group students and establishing good relationships with school staffs. (MES)

Recent University of Calgary Indian graduates are returning to their reserves, many as teachers, with a sense of being at home and able to serve. This may be due to Native peoples' need for professional services, students' family background and biculturalism, and pressure by Indian groups for special university programs. (SB)

The Rasch simple logistic model is used to examine the relative item parameter values of a personality inventory with respect to populations cross-classified by sex and country. While items conform to the model within each of the populations, half the items show significant discrepancies among the populations. (Author/RL)

Describes the Mexican American Culture Simulator, a self-instructional module containing 40 incidents based on client-worker misunderstandings resulting from sociocultural differences. The aim of the module is to improve caseworkers' empathic understanding of Mexican American children and families in a manner that supports ethnic identity,…

Analyzes how the British conceptualization of racism, diversity, and inequality has affected educational policy and research on race and education. The author examines the effectiveness of strategies adopted by government, schools, and teachers to cope with the demands of educating ethnic minority children. (AM)

A course dealing with the health beliefs of Hispanics, American Indians, and Anglo Americans was developed at the University of New Mexico. An ethnically diverse class visited different cultural settings in the Southwest to study beliefs about religion, nutrition, folk medicine, and other customs affecting health practices. (PP)

The notion that Indians are curiosities of the past tends to be reinforced in many classrooms, particularly at Thanksgiving. Resource materials and classroom activities are suggested to help dispel myths about Native American culture and history. Concentrating on present-day Indian customs and handicrafts is recommended. (PP)

While some forms of test bias (for example, bias in selection and prediction) appear amenable to definitional consensus, a definition of cultural bias will remain problematic so long as it is confused with the nature/nurture issue. (Author/BW)