Comments on Kenneth Boulding's address to the 1991 Social Science Education Consortium Conference. Compares Boulding's approach to knowledge to the scientific community's correction of errors. Suggests that social studies might do better for the future by focusing on multicultural understanding with the realization that all people share many of…

Grade-retention policies of 100 California school districts were rated according to the amount of effort required to implement retention policies and the extent to which objective criteria govern retention decisions. Results support use of this framework for comparing retention policies and rates when district size is taken into account. (SLD)

Examines the preservice teacher education role of professional development schools in the context of school-university partnerships. The necessary joining of K-12 and university cultures raises numerous problems, including dealing with cultural clash and schools of education, sustaining leadership and commitment, providing adequate resources,…

Addresses the relationship between reader response and culture. Presents portraits of a teacher and her Black students and White students as they studied a series of African American literary texts, including Virginia Hamilton's "House of Dies Drear" (1968). The reading of this text marked a turning point for the teacher and students.…

Children often develop negative attitudes toward culturally diverse and exceptional peers who belong to a particular age, gender, disability, or racial group, and these attitudes evolve into stereotypic thinking, which leads to prejudice, discrimination, devaluation, injustice, and lowered expectations. Preservice teachers need to be prepared to…

An approach to organizational effectiveness in higher education developed in the United States was applied to institutions in the United Kingdom and Australia to establish a basis for policy and organizational analysis. Higher reliability was found for the United Kingdom than for Australia, apparently related to cultural differences regarding…

This article offers a profile of Dr. Andy Chen, an individual from Taiwan with learning disabilities who became an assistant professor of accounting at Northeastern Illinois University. The interview follows his progress through school, college, military service, and postgraduate work and describes learning strategies he developed to deal with his…

Discusses cooperative learning methods for promoting promoting students' peer interaction, self-esteem, interdependence, and academic advancement. Concentrates on the jigsaw method and peer interdependence. Includes discussion of prejudice and the encouragement of interracial contact. Concludes that working toward a common goal should help to…

Examines some effects of culturally based knowledge on memory for stories about people performing common activities. Results with monocultural U.S. college students (n=176) and Mexican citizens (n=57) suggest that any theory of the effects of script-based knowledge on memory must consider the cultural origin of the knowledge. (SLD)

Study examined responses to cultural diversity at three British primary schools with Muslim students. At two schools, Muslim students received different meals when meat was served. Interviews with personnel, parents, and students uncovered undesirable, covert, stereotyping effects from the effort. Policies to avoid such effects and increase…

Areas in which the impact of cultural diversity on college faculty and students is felt are (1) U.S. vision; (2) the canon that is taught; (3) the melting pot; and (4) Western culture. Helping others recognize and accept complexity and diversity should be the real aim of multicultural curricula. (SLD)

Offers insights into the traditional Navajo way of life, with particular emphasis on aspects of culture and language that have implications for teaching Navajo and other Native American students. (LB)

Creation of a college classroom environment that is genuinely culturally inclusive requires leadership of faculty willing to make major changes in an entrenched, traditional academic culture, including a teaching approach combining personal caring with high expectations, incorporation of new knowledge into the curriculum, and authentic response to…

Quantitative and qualitative methods explored the relationships among depression and substance use across suburban (164 students) and inner-city (242 students) high schools. Qualitative analyses suggest that quantitative differences in these relationships may be related to the meanings of depression and substance use in the cultural context. (SLD)

Takes the position, contrary to that of Sandra Scarr, that the details of socialization patterns are crucial to an understanding of normal and deviant development. Research is cited to support the argument that better than adequate parenting optimizes the development of both normal and vulnerable children and that parents' belief in their own…