This collection of essays is a theoretical and practice-oriented treatment of how culture and race influence African American teachers. After an introduction, "The Common Experience" (Jacqueline Jordan Irvine), there are eight chapters in two parts. Part 1, "The Salience of Race and Culture on Teachers and Teaching: Research and Theory," includes (1) "Multicultural Professional Development for African American Teachers: The Role of Process-Oriented Models" (Gretchen McAllister); (2) "Black Teachers' Perceptions of Their Professional Roles and Practices" (Franita Ware); and (3) "Does Race Matter? A Comparison of Effective Black and White Teachers of African American Students" (Patricia M. Cooper). Part 2, "The Stories of Culturally Responsive Teachers," includes (4) "The Development of Teacher Efficacy Beliefs: A Case Study of an African American Middle School Teacher" (Gloria Harper Lee); (5) "The Influence of Professional Development on a Teacher's Changing Praxis: The Journey of an African American Teacher" (Kim Nesta Archung); (6) "Chasing Hope Through Culturally Responsive Praxis: One Master Teacher and Her African American Eighth Grade Readers" (Maria Leonora Lockaby Karunungan); (7) "African American Teachers' Culturally Specific Pedagogy: The Collective Stories" (Jacqueline Jordan Irvine); and (8) "Responses from the Teachers: Comments from Beverley Cockerham, Vivian Stephens, and Patricia White." (Contains approximately 275 references.) (SM)