Discussed is the difficulty encountered in teaching humanities to underprepared students at Florida A & M University, where 90 percent of the students are in the special admissions category that permits enrollment of students who score below the entrance requirement. Administrative neglect of the humanities is also addressed. (JMD)

Professors and staff members of the University of Portland took the "urban plunge" when they visited the state's Adult and Family Services offices, shelters for the homeless and for battered women, an alcohol- and drug-rehabilitation center, and served lunch at two soup kitchens. A project at Notre Dame is also described. (MLW)

Describes the development of a new mathematics course in a school district in Great Britain which was designed for low achieving high school students. Provides the course design including aims, objectives, levels of attainment, and assessment exercises. Discusses the mathematics achievement certificate created as a result of the course. (TW)

The gap between black and white median age, employment, and imprisonment is increasing. Up until the present period, structural, demographic, and cultural factors combined to sustain both hope and illusion for blacks who have so long been at the base of the American social and economic system. That combination is rapidly unravelling. (BJV)

Tells the story of a special teacher in a rural school and her influence on the writer's life. Notes qualities of the effective teaching including empathy, energy, high expectations, acknowledgement of the whole child, and perception of the hidden curriculum. Discusses teacher's ways of overcoming her students' poverty and educational…

Notes the schools' sorry record at promoting the achievement and participation of Black, Hispanic, and poor children--the sector providing most of tomorrow's students. Explores misconceptions about learning and individual differences, condemns grouping and tracking processes for restricting students' access to knowledge, and suggests alternative…

Children are a part of an ecosystem composed of several institutions. What happens in any part of the ecosystem affects many or all other parts. Strategies to improve the education of disadvantaged children are most likely to work if they are based in this ecological perspective. Approaches to developing ecologically sound solutions are proposed.…

Disadvantaged preschool children attending a program of compensatory education were studied to determine if change in self-concept, delay of gratification, and exercise of self-control were related to growth in achievement. Girls displayed self-concept growth and a decline in delay of gratification, while boys showed growth in self-control.…

Analysis of results from a study of 41 grades three and four Native students found significant positive correlations among self-concept, academic achievement, and teacher expectations and low positive relationship between creativity and academic achievement. Support for the phenomena of age grade deceleration and academic retardation with…

Results of a study of disadvantaged primary school children which focused on effects of exposure to Logo, microcomputer social interaction, and children's expressed interest in computers, are discussed in context of relevant literature. It is concluded computer literacy should be primary goal at this level and computer equity is crucial. (MBR)

This study examined the long-term performance of three cohorts of Head Start graduates as they proceeded through a single school system. Information was taken from application cards and from a computerized pupil data base. Overall findings showed that students who attended Head Start performed better than the comparison group. (LMO)

Describes a study which assessed impact of computer assisted instruction on reading and mathematics achievement of disadvantaged youths participating in US Department of Labor's Job Corps, a federal vocational and educational program. Greater reading achievement gains but no statistically significant mathematics gains were found in experimental…

To provide the conditions for a lasting equality of educational opportunity and results, schools should: (1) enter into a partnership with each family for the educational and social development of the child; and (2) lead a cooperative effort involving other agencies and organizations to create an educative community. (RDN)

Argues that mismatches between home and classroom environments play an important part in accounting for the low academic performance of many low-status, especially minority, students. Discusses approaches emphasizing cooperative learning and individualized instruction for use with culturally different students in desegregated settings. (RDN)

"A Nation at Risk" is only one of a number of recent major reports on educational reform that, contrary to popular opinion, do not necessarily share its major premises and conclusions. The report's emphasis on rigor and excellence threatens to increase the dropout rate and impose uniformity on American students. (JBM)