The Child Development and Behavior Branch (CDBB), within the Center for Research for Mothers and Children, has grown in the past four years from supporting five programs to supporting seven, with a concomitant increase in the number of grants of more than 50 percent, and a corresponding increase of more than 87 percent in overall funding. During…

A study of 319 special educators investigated issues related to the education of students with visual impairments who had limited English proficiency. Twenty-seven percent of the students came from homes where languages other than English were spoken. Teachers expressed the need for bilingual interpreters, family involvement, and cultural…

Hispanic individuals typically experience several often traumatic stages of cultural adjustment as they adapt to life in the United States. This includes euphoria, culture shock (hostility), recovery (humor), and assimilation or adaptation. This article examines the challenges of each stage and explains the implications for schooling. (SM)

This article discusses the use of language sample analysis (LSA) as a screening tool for preschool linguistic minority children due to the difficulty of using standardized tests in assessing language delays in speakers of minority dialects and languages. The use of LSA with seven African American preschoolers is examined. (CR)

Examines how language-of-instruction choice affects Estonian Russian-speaking minority students following legislation requiring Estonian-only secondary education. Research indicates that Russian-speaking choice parents selecting Estonian-speaking schools differ from nonchoice Russian-speaking parents in resourcefulness. Despite Soviet-era…

This article provides an overview of the critical elements of emergent literacy, discusses specific strategies for using storybooks with preschoolers to facilitate language development and emergent literacy skills, and provides specific strategies for children learning English as a second language. Sample phonological awareness activities are also…

Describes the Family Focus for School Success Project, a model program that provides education and support to language minority families in poverty and their children through comprehensive early intervention for children at risk of academic failure because of their home environments. An evaluation of the first year's efforts with 69 families…

Describes a first-grade classroom to illustrate a classroom environment that supports second-language learners while drawing on linguistic diversity to enrich the language learning of all students. Discusses resources and routines; as well as risks and rewards both in a rich language arts curriculum as well as in the social environment. Describes…

A response to an article on multiculturalism and the status of community languages in Australia focuses on three aspects of the article: (1) proposed links between global capitalism, nation-state development, migration, and language policy; (2) the meaning ascribed to "cultural democracy;" and (3) implications of language policy issues…

Offers suggestions on how to add the power of a free online translator, links, and multicultural search engines to a teacher's classroom home page. Describes the Alta Vista Babelfish online translation service that can be used to translate Web pages on a variety of topics written in German, Spanish, Italian, French, or Portuguese. (SLD)

Briefly describes federal legislation, federally funded programs, and publications supporting the inclusion of limited-English-speaking (LEP) programs in schoolwide programs. Includes a list of regional, state, and national sources of assistance in designing programs for language-minority students. Notes the growing trend toward systemic inclusion…

Graduate-level multicultural training is important for preparing future teachers to work effectively with diverse students. Professionals experienced in multiculturalism must revise and refine multicultural training to better address immigrants' diversity issues and issues around sexuality, disability, and spirituality. Those new to…

Discusses whether schools can be vehicles for improving race relations, describing one elementary school that simultaneously provides language instruction for language minority students and integrates children across ethnic groups to break down tensions fostered by segregation. Innovative classroom teaming, teacher-led professional development,…

Based on middle-class, white values and assumptions, school restructuring proposed in "first wave reform" will increase inequity and stratification and hamper social mobility for minorities. School choice, outcomes-based education, and secondary track systems are critiqued. When race, culture, and ethnicity influence educational policy, students…

Reviews three new books about the current political battle over bilingual education, focusing on: bilingual education theory and the importance of transformative pedagogy; political analysis of bilingual education and key issues in indigenous language loss; and politics of multiculturalism. Discusses the maturation of bilingual education since…