This paper discusses challenges initiated by first and second generation Latino and Chinese American fourth graders in an urban elementary school, toward the perspective of California history in the mandated Social Studies curriculum. The required text highlighted significant moments in California and United States history with limited, if any,…

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 propelled high stakes testing to an unprecedented level of significance. Decisions based on the results of such mandated assessments is flawed in that the tests are not an accurate measure of actual knowledge and neglect to address environmental, socio-cultural, and economic factors influencing student…

Preservice elementary teachers enrolled in a reading methods course learn how literacy instruction is a political act that can affect children's opportunities. Through discussions and readings, they learn how the ways in which they teach reading to children make a difference in their subsequent access to knowledge. Through a practicum experience…

This article looks at the perils and promises of standards-based instruction in urban environments. We begin with an outline of the rise of the current standards movement. Then turn to the con position which contends; states, schools and districts do not always implement standards-based ideals effectively, especially in urban settings where…

This study examines six teachers' responses inside and outside of their classrooms to increasingly mixed messages about how they should develop the literacy of California's youngest and most at-risk students. While they must develop highly developed knowledge and skills to teach literacy in linguistically diverse classrooms, they must also adhere…

In our current climate of standards-based reform, efforts abound to have all students reach the same goals. At the same time, other educational reforms, such as inclusion, are creating increasingly diverse populations of students in general education classrooms. Consequently, teachers often view inclusion and standards-based reform as incompatible…

Using a collaborative program evaluation of a bridge program at a state flagship university, the authors argue that contradictions in student perceptions of their literacy learning are endemic to the effects of the structure of urban schooling. Overcrowding and underfunding of particular schools, in contrast with successful academic magnet…

The purpose of this study is to discern the effects of instruction type on minority students in urban schools, mathematics achievement. Two hundred thirteen third and fifth grade (136 African American and 77 Latino) students attending schools in low-income urban communities were provided mathematics instruction in one of two ways: multiple…

This paper focuses on the challenges faced by faculty in the urban teacher preparation programs, particularly in the area of technology integration by pre-service and in-service teachers in their classroom instruction. The paper discusses the issues of first-order barriers (access to technology, infrastructure support) and second-order barriers…

The value of teacher education is being questioned at the same time as schools are facing the challenges of budget shortfalls and unfunded mandates. Efforts to professionalize teaching are being undermined by overly authoritarian control of the curriculum and test-driven reforms. But schools of education do know how to stay the course. This…

In response to the challenges of new state-mandated requirements for teacher credentialing, a team of university faculty and school district representatives worked in a collaborative project to support beginning teachers. The outcome of the collaborative is an innovative program that provides support and formative assessment of teachers during…

The study reports on changes in beliefs and attitudes toward urban schools evidenced by teacher candidates when engaged in a five week summer tutoring experience in a city school district. Beliefs at pre and post testing are presented descriptively, while changes between the two measures are presented in a matched-case method. Among the most…

This study rests on written statements made by New York City teachers and administrators. The study documents what a sample of urban teachers of mathematics and school principals in elementary, middle, and high schools state are: impediments of, as well as supports to, their productive teaching of mathematics, and their suggestions of what is…

A new Sacramento State University Urban Teacher Education Center (UTEC) is located at Jedediah Smith Elementary School, a highly diverse urban school whose students come entirely from two federally subsidized housing complexes. This paper documents the integration of UTEC into the school and its community, including descriptions of the initial…

Race and other forms of difference are socially constructed concepts, continually reproduced and redefined in interaction. It is important to focus on how race and class are constructed by future teachers, because the ways in which they perceive their students may affect their interactions in the classroom, including having lower expectations for…