The disproportionate representation of culturally and linguistically diverse students in exclusionary discipline practices is a well-documented practice in education. This paper synthesizes current literature that points to a cultural incongruence between students and teachers as an underlying mechanism for disparity in school practices involving…

The reality that American public schools are not meeting the needs of all students and the increasing incongruity between student and teacher demographics demand increased efforts to prepare teacher candidates to work with students who are ethnically, culturally and linguistically diverse. Teacher preparation programs are charged with this work…

A grounded theory approach is used to explore the "lived experiences" of two upper-middle-class families from India who have children with disabilities. Findings provide insight into the parents' beliefs and perceptions about disabilities, their goals and expectations for their children, and their views of inclusive education programs.…

Professional development that focuses on supporting teachers' abilities to work with diverse families is keenly needed. This article outlines three instructional strategies and how they were used with undergraduate students in an inclusive early childhood teacher education program: (a) involving diverse family members as instructional supports;…

Because of the recent demographic changes, early intervention (EI) professionals are more likely to interact with increasing numbers of culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) children and families. A challenge in providing effective EI services is the lack of personnel from CLD backgrounds and lack of knowledge, understanding, and sensitivity…

Individuals with disabilities tend to experience fewer successful outcomes in postsecondary transition than do youth without disabilities. Ethnically diverse learners have added challenges, such as worldviews, values, language, family involvement, level of acculturation, expectations, decision-making style, meaning of work, importance of money and…

The increasing number of diverse children with disabilities and their families served in schools and other early childhood programs highlights the need to ensure that services and supports are culturally and linguistically appropriate and relevant. Factors that affect the degree to which appropriate services are delivered include the lack of…

The authors examined the perspectives of African American boys on topics related to culturally responsive teaching, cultural discontinuity, and differential treatment. Participants in focus group interviews were 19 elementary and middle school students identified as having emotional and behavioral disorders or chronic behavior problems.…

Individual teacher excellence can only become collective tradition when the contexts in which teachers practice and learn are able to support, sustain, and expect culturally competent practice. Culturally responsive systems require the development of individual and collective discourse and practice focused on exploring how cultural perspectives,…