What have been some of the high points and disappointments of K-12 education over the past 75 years? How have shifting demographics in terms of race, ethnicity, social class and other differences shaped the educational experiences of various segments of the U.S. population? Sonia Nieto examines these questions, beginning with a discussion of the…

Successful initiatives for minority women depend on creation of an institutional ethos that supports change, adequate staff training, flexibility in scheduling and curricula, and recognition of the value of adult students' experiences. (SK)

The need for bilingual bicultural school library materials and services for schools with bilingual programs and limited English speaking students was investigated in the state of Illinois. The data were collected by means of questionnaires sent to bilingual program coordinators and school librarians at 140 schools throughout the state. Targeted…

This report presents the findings of the 1981-82 evaluation of two projects that served 200 mildly mentally retarded students of limited English proficiency (L.E.P.) in New York City Public Schools during the 1981-82 school year. Project TRABAJO served six middle and secondary schools, while Individualized Bilingual Education for Children with…

This monograph reviews the findings and recommendations of the Hispanic Dropout Project (HDP) and describes successful school-based strategies to combat the dropout problem and promote academic achievement among Hispanic students. Chapter 1 discusses the high Hispanic dropout rate; why Hispanic students drop out; stereotypes and realities; and HDP…

Issues of bilingual handicapped students are examined through a review of goals, examples of services for physically handicapped and mentally retarded non-English speakers, and a list of considerations in four major areas: appraisal and assessment, placement, decisions, instructional personnel and materials, and physical management. (CL)

A European perspective on multicultural education is presented that focuses on demographic/geopolitical, public policy, and sociolinguistic dimensions, and the intercultural hypothesis. "Positive discrimination" and sociological insertion are also discussed, along with implications for America. (29 references) (LB)

In November 2000, Arizona voters passed Proposition 203, a law that replaced bilingual education with a 1-year program known as Structured English Immersion (SEI). Although SEI has little support in the educational or applied linguistics research literature, all English-language learners (ELLs) in Arizona are automatically placed in SEI…

Five Spanish teachers working in California elementary schools participated in this project. Although they were assigned to teach in mainstream English programs, they noticed that some of the Latino students in their classrooms were officially classified as English language learners (ELLs) and, as such, had difficulties understanding their…

This newsletter contains seven articles related to the educational rights of culturally diverse language-minority students. "20 Years after Lau: In Pursuit of Equity Not Just a Language Response Program," by Alicia Salinas Sosa, points out that educational responses to Lau vs. Nichols have been minimum-compliance programmatic responses…

The following papers on Portuguese-American culture and education are included: (1) "Portuguese-American Folklore: An Alternative to the 'rancho folclorico,'" (2) "Creating Cultural Materials for the Portuguese Bilingual Classroom," (3) "Values and Ideology in the School Curriculum: A Case Study," (4) "Portuguese…

Project Guidance Oriented Acquisition of Learning Skills' (GOALS) high school students (Asian, European, Hispanic, Haitian) who scored at or below the 40th percentile on the Language Assessment Battery and were at risk of dropping out of school received instruction in English as a Second Language (ESL); bilingual and/or ESL content area courses;…

Recent directions in ethnographic study of classroom interaction are surveyed for the help they can give to an analysis of classroom language and conversation. Many studies emphasize that children's responses to school tasks are directly influenced by values learned at home and that these factors add to the complexity of communication in the…

Responds to Dunn's paper on Hispanic-Anglo differences in IQ scores. Comments on Dunn's translation of Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised into Castilian Spanish, and concludes this version is inappropriate for mainland Puerto Rican and Mexican-American children due to improper translation and validation methods. Contains 27 references.…

The master's thesis is directed toward compiling information regarding recruitment and training of bilingual teachers, with particular emphasis on teachers of Mexican Americans. It establishes a rationale for bilingual teacher education programs and inservice education. The study answers questions about (1) the responsbility for staff development,…