Uses the home-education policy arena as a lens through which to view changing beliefs and practices about student assessment. The home-education policies of 10 states illustrate issues relating to accountability in public and private schools and the use of standardized tests. (SLD)

To examine the role of mentoring in urban school settings, conceptions of "urban schools,""mentors," and "mentoring" are explored. The most critical component of successful mentoring is a shared philosophy of the ways students learn and the possibility of learning. Strengthening the ability of mentors to exchange information is essential. (SLD)

As dispensers of information, mentors can support teachers through career stages from recruitment to retirement. This article explores mentorships as transferable transactions. This concept is particularly valuable in urban areas, where teachers unacquainted with physical and cultural conditions may replicate the practices of seasoned mentors.…

The California Mentor Teacher Program is unique among statewide mentor teacher initiatives in its size, longevity, stipends for mentor teachers, and the discretion it allows local education agencies. The shared perspectives of a mentor, a local administrator, and a state administrator trace the legislative and policy history of this program. (SLD)

Teacher mentors in urban schools need particular characteristics to promote development in beginning teachers because the urban school is a unique environment. Urban mentor teachers need to be able to articulate their beliefs and practices, and they need well-developed coaching skills. (SLD)

Reviews the literature on mentoring teachers, focusing on bilingual and bicultural education and emphasizing issues relevant in urban settings. An interactive model of mentoring is proposed in which bilingual teachers, whether mentors or new teachers, can share perspectives sorely needed in this age of increasing cultural diversity. (SLD)

Focuses on the mentoring of beginning (preservice) mathematics and science teachers in classrooms with large populations of bilingual students or students for whom English is a second language. Mentors can play a crucial role in preparing preservice teachers to instruct language minority students. (SLD)

Some urban teachers are marginal teachers who are beginning to internalize a sense of hopelessness about their effectiveness. The characteristics and skills of potential mentors to help marginal teachers are discussed, and salient points to consider in establishing a model for mentoring marginal teachers are reviewed. (SLD)

Offers suggestions for using modeling and mentoring in urban teacher education in the belief that the power of models and mentors resides more in their being and behaving than in the finished products. Good role models live their ethics and beliefs personally and professionally. (SLD)