Brock, Cindy; Duenas, Leila Flores; McVee, Mary Birgit; Shojgreen-Downer, Angela M. (1998). No Habla Ingles: Exploring a Bilingual Child's Literacy Learning Opportunities in a Predominantly English-Speaking Classroom. Bilingual Research Journal, v22 n2-4 p175-200 Spr-Fall. A monolingual English-speaking teacher and bilingual researchers analyzed the discursive practices in a third-grade classroom that affected the literacy learning opportunities available to a monolingual Spanish-speaking migrant student. Literacy learning opportunities were shaped and influenced by the specific contexts in which the student acted and interacted. (Contains 48 references.) (Author/SV)…

Wrigley, Terry (1997). Raising Achievement for Asian Pupils. Multicultural Teaching, v16 n1 p21-25,30 Win. Analyzes why ethnic minority groups, such as Asians, are achieving marginal academic success. Analysis of the management, pedagogic, curriculum, resource, and community issues indicates what political guidance might be effective to help improve academic achievement. (GR)…

Hansen, Laurie E. (2003). Science in Any Language. Science and Children, v41 n3 p35-39 Nov-Dec. This article describes how Guided Language Acquisition Design (GLAD) teaching strategies can help English language learners (ELL) with science. GLAD is a model for planning science, social studies, and literature-based units. It includes a collection of innovative strategies designed to help all levels of ELL students' access core curriculum while acquiring English skills and vocabulary. A teacher educator and her preservice students practiced applying the following four GLAD techniques that are described in this article: Pictorial input, picture file cards, poster boards, and ear-to-ear reading. (Contains 1 figure and 4 resources.)… [Direct]

Menken, Kate (2006). Teaching to the Test: How No Child Left Behind Impacts Language Policy, Curriculum, and Instruction for English Language Learners. Bilingual Research Journal, v30 n2 p521-546 Sum. In the wake of the federal No Child Left Behind legislation, standardized tests have become increasingly high-stakes. Yet English language learners (ELLs) typically score far below native English speakers, creating pressure to "teach to the test." This article shares findings from an intensive year long study in 10 New York City high schools, detailing how high-stakes tests become "de facto" language policy in schools. Most schools and individual educators have increased the amount of English instruction ELLs receive; however, some have instead increased native language instruction as a test preparation strategy. Curriculum and instruction focuses on test content and strategies, and English as a second language classes have become more like English language arts classes for native English speakers. In bilingual classes, tests are found to promote monolingual instruction with test translations guiding decisions about language allocation. (Contains 2 endnotes.)… [Direct]

Shih, Tzymei Alexasia (1994). My Fulbright Experience in Mexico. This packet shares general impressions and interpretations of Mexico offered by a participant in a 5-week Fulbright-Hays Seminar. Included are suggestions on how to use this information to open up communication between the school and Mexican students and their parents. In addition to the background information and statistics, the material also has included personal interpretations and observations. The packet includes the following sections: (1) "Geography of Mexico"; (2) "The North and the South"; (3) "The Mexican Education System"; (4) "Parent Involvement"; and (5) "Children's Literature." Curriculum guides from Mexico written in Spanish are provided. (EH)… [PDF]

(1992). Native Americans: Leaders in the 21st Century. A Comprehensive Statewide Plan for Indian Education. This publication outlines Oklahoma statewide standards and strategies for meeting the educational needs of American Indian students and assuring meaningful participation by Indian parents and communities. The Oklahoma State Department of Education believes that all students must be educated in school environments that fully include them. In an introductory section, cross-cultural curriculum is proposed as a key strategy for achieving a fully inclusive school and an educational environment conducive to learning. The full inclusion of Indian students requires that educators recognize the importance of cultural differences, particularly with regard to belief systems. Native American studies are valuable for both Indian and non-Indian students and instruction in American Indian languages facilitates the learning of the Native culture. Other sections discuss state strategies to encourage parent involvement, provide a challenging and culturally appropriate curriculum, ensure… [PDF]

Cantrall, Becky; And Others (1990). Navajo Culture: A Bridge to the Rest of the World. This document describes a Navajo Indian program for making Navajo education more responsive to Native American cultural and educational needs. A survey of existing literature examines American Indian students' historical struggle between cultural identity and Anglo-American assimilation. As Navajo children may lack the schema for traditionally defined educational success and competition, schools might reexamine their customary teaching methods. The Greasewood Toyei Consolidated School began emphasizing bicultural education by weaving Navajo culture into the regular curriculum. Teachers were empowered to create their own culturally relevant study programs as part of a schoolwide curriculum reassessment. Student-testing and discipline policies were reevaluated. Teachers and assistants attended language workshops that exposed them to the Whole Language approach, a holistic learning method. An evaluation committee determined that the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (CTBS) were…

(1985). Navajo Student Enrollment & Basic Educational Data: Navajo Area School Systems SY-1984-85. During school year 1984-85, 61,586 Navajo preschool-grade 12 students were enrolled in 241 schools serving the Navajo Nation in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. Approximately 62.8% of the Navajo students attended 157 public schools, while 25.4% attended 53 Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) operated schools, 6% attended 9 community-controlled and 22 mission schools, and 5.8% attended preschools under the Division of Navajo Child Development. Navajo student enrollment appeared to be increasing at a rate of 01.4% per year. BIA schools showed the lowest rate of increase (00.7%), with public school enrollments increasing at 01.9% per year and contract school increasing at 3.4% per year. Only two of the 26 public school district superintendents were Navajos. Of the 423 administrators in Navajo area schools, 110 were Navajos, with 64% administering the contract schools. While only 739 of the 4,839 teachers were Navajos, 1,160 of the 1,638 teacher aides were Navajos. A total of 38 schools were…

Mbuyi, Dennis M. (1987). Beyond Policy and Language Choice: An Analysis of Texts in Four Instructional Contexts in East Africa. Special Studies in Comparative Education, Number Eighteen. This study compares the English and Swahili language texts used in the primary grades in Kenya and Tanzania in order to ascertain the role of language in determining the content of instruction and to relate the content of these texts to significant characteristics of governmental educational policy and the values underlying them. The introductory section is a general discussion of the political implications of language policies in multilingual nations and the problems resulting from attempts to institute instruction in the mother tongue. The design of the ensuing study is based on two major assumptions: (1) that educational policy and school texts are good indicators of societal "core" values and future orientations; and (2) that salient policy features and values will likely be translated into school texts. Content analysis is used to examine data from four sets of instructional contexts: Kenya/English, Kenya/Swahili, Tanzania/English, and Tanzania/Swahili. The findings… [PDF]

Murray, Lane (1981). A Program to Provide Vocational Training to Limited English Speaking Adults in a Correctional Setting. Final Report. The Windham School System implemented a pilot project designed to provide bilingual vocational training to limited English-speaking adults in a correctional setting. Inmate students enrolled in Windham bilingual academic classes on the Eastham Unit of the Texas Department of Corrections were interviewed, and procedures for student screening and subsequent placement into existing vocational classes were developed and implemented. A vocational academic teacher was hired to provide 6 hours of language training each week as a supplement to their 30 hours of weekly vocational training. Coordination was effected between the vocational trades instructors and the vocational academic teacher to incorporate vocational terminology into the language training class. Relevant vocational materials in Spanish were provided as supplements to the vocational trades curriculum. Ten limited English-speaking adult inmate students were placed into five vocational trades classes. They reported no…

Hernandez, Norma G. (1984). A Model for Mathematics Teaching Effectiveness for Mexican-American Students. Guided by the assumption that teaching methods found successful with the majority cultural group can be utilized effectively with Mexican American students, except where there is clear, significant research evidence to the contrary, the model suggests an instructional approach to improve mathematics achievement of elementary Mexican American students. The model follows a format of planning, implementation, and assessment of instruction, and is modified relative to the influence of language development, low-income parents, and classroom climate on the academic achievement of Mexican Americans. Planning encompasses identification of cognitive entry levels of performance in language and mathematics, externalization of objectives, and selection of instructional techniques and materials. Implementing instruction requires effective use of allotted instructional time in a class format providing set induction, presentation of new material, supervised practice with feedback, homework, and…

de Celis, Margarita (1978). Artesanias Mexico – Americanas. Programa Piloto de Entrenamiento Para El Asociado Bilingue y Bicultural En El Desarrollo del Nino: Guia XIII [Arts and Crafts of Mexico and the Americas. Pilot Program for the Training of Bilingual and Bicultural Teachers for the Cognitive Development of the Child: Guide XIII]. This Child Development Associate (CDA) training module, the thirteenth in a series of 16, provides creative experiences with arts and crafts for young children. Designed for preschool teachers and paraprofessional trainees, the Spanish text offers a variety of craft activities. A list of materials necessary, step-by-step directions and illustrations are included for each activity. Many of the projects have their origin in traditional Mexican and Mexican-Indian culture (pinata, cruz huichol) and can be used as supplemental activities to lessons on the culture and history of Mexico. This module focuses on specific behaviors that directly relate to CDA Competency 2. (CW/RH)…

(1974). Evaluation of Title I ESEA Projects, 1973-1974: Technical Reports. Report No. 7523. This document is an annual report issued by the Department of Title I Evaluation Services, evaluating projects funded under Title I of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Assistance in evaluation design, instrument development, data analysis, and editorial matters was provided by members of the Division of Instructional Research and Development Services. Over the past nine years, comprehensive evaluations of Philadelphis's Title I program have been undertaken both systemwide and project by project. They reveal that, although relatively new, Title I projects have enabled administrators and teachers to create favorable learning environments, and to reverse some of the historic trends toward drastic pupil underachievement. Our evaluations indicate also that parental participation and positive community attitudes have increased dramatically. This volume contains the technical reports of individual Title I project evaluations. It contains extensive information… [PDF]

Allexsaht-Snider, Martha; de Atiles, Julia Reguero (2002). Effective Approaches to Teaching Young Mexican Immigrant Children. ERIC Digest. Of the 22 million children currently enrolled in U.S. schools, more than 2 million have limited English proficiency. Preschoolers and elementary-age children make up the greatest proportion of the immigrant student population, and many teachers need support in educating these young, linguistically diverse students. This digest reviews proven educational strategies for working with Mexican and other immigrant children. Myths about the second-language learner and the complexity and lengthiness of the process of second-language acquisition are briefly discussed. The following teaching strategies for preschool and elementary teachers are described: 1) encourage development of the child's first language; (2) provide visible signs of children's first language, and learn Spanish; (3) learn about Mexican culture, and teach acceptance; (4) be sensitive to children's struggles, and follow a classroom routine; (5) acknowledge children's strengths, and use portfolio-style assessment; (6) plan… [PDF]

Mestre, Jose P. (1981). Predicting Academic Achievement among Bilingual Hispanic College Technical Students. Educational and Psychological Measurement, v41 n4 p1255-64 Win. The predictive validity of several mathematics and language variables relative to criteria of grade point average and word problem-solving skills for 60 bilingual Hispanic technical students is investigated. Examination of standardized college admission criteria is urged. Revealed is a disparity in academic performance between bilingual and monolingual students. (Author/AL)…

Brown, Ian (1994). Comparing the Best of Both Worlds: Cultures through Art. Art Education, v47 n1 p61-67 Jan. Contends that differences in child development and cultural backgrounds affect the way children represent their world through art. Describes an exhibit of children's art from Thailand and Australia. Discusses differences in content, media, and style and concludes that both cultures could benefit from adopting aspects of the other. (CFR)…

Hoover, Mary Rhodes (1990). A Vindicationist Perspective on the Role of Ebonics (Black Language) and Other Aspects of Ethnic Studies in the University. American Behavioral Scientist, v34 n2 p251-62 Nov-Dec. Argues that education's current "deficiency" philosophy supports a negative view of the cultures of people of color, negatively affecting educational policies and the direction of research. Advocates the "vindicationist philosophy," which considers Blacks equally capable of academic achievement. Specifically recommends how to instill the vindicationist perspective through faculty workshops. (NL)…

Harry, Beth; And Others (1993). Crossing Social Class and Cultural Barriers in Working with Families: Implications for Teacher Training. Teaching Exceptional Children, v26 n1 p48-51 Fall. This article describes a preservice special education teacher education course at the University of Maryland which requires students to interact directly with parents of different social classes and cultural backgrounds. Three students recount their experiences and changed attitudes as a result of this requirement. (DB)…

Fentress, Debbie (1993). Educating Special Citizens. Social Studies, v84 n5 p218-23 Sep-Oct. Describes programs and activities of the Close Up Foundation for special needs students. Explains how the experiential citizenship education activities are adapted for hearing impaired, visually impaired, recent immigrant, Native American, Alaskan Native, Puerto Rican, and Pacific Island nation students. Includes two classrom activities used in the program. (CFR)…

Throd, Mary A.; Wenzlaff, Terri L. (1995). The Role of Teachers in a Cross-cultural Drama. Journal of Teacher Education, v46 n5 p334-39 Nov-Dec. Examines why there are so few Native American teachers in this country, specifically in the upper Midwest. Describes how one institution has increased the number of native teachers and notes student reactions to assimilation at a traditional, largely white university. Proposes an eight-hour workshop on diversity training for faculty. (SM)…

Carfagna, Rosemarie (1996). The Ursuline College Experience: Promoting Ethnic Diversity and Social Justice. Interdisciplinary Humanities, v13 n1 p35-39 Win. Highlights the interdisciplinary, multicultural courses at Ursuline College (Ohio) that fulfill their commitment to promoting ethnic diversity and social justice. The courses include "Those Fabulous (?) 60's"; "Women, Doers of Justice"; and an examination of key cities during historical periods. Discusses the courses' integration into the general curriculum. (MJP)…

Vieler-Porter, Chris (2001). Futures Thinking: Consideration of the Impact of Educational Change on Black and Minority Ethnic Achievement. MCT, v19 n3 p12-14,18 Sum. Discusses the potential of information and communications technology (ICT) and the World Wide Web to offer positive alternatives in contemporary British schools that are failing their black and minority group students. Describes the advantages of ICT and looks at future changes in the teaching profession and changes in the curriculum that will require knowledge of ICT. (SM)…

Holloway, Jonathan Scott (2004). Ralph Bunche and the Responsibilities of the Public Intellectual. Journal of Negro Education, v73 n2 p125-136 Spr. Drawing from the authoritative sources on Ralph Bunche's early years in the academy, his personal papers, and his publications from the 1930s, this essay discusses Bunche's political philosophies and how they were informed by the social realities of the world in which he and other Black scholars lived. This essay urges readers to look beyond his important international work in the second half of his career to his earlier years when he repeatedly challenged public and private orthodoxies in service of a larger ideal of a broad and universal humanity…. [PDF]

(1992). Public Education in Idaho: Does It Meet the Needs of All Students? A Summary Report. This report is based on a community forum convened on May 15, 1991, in Twin Falls, Idaho, to obtain information and views on public education in Idaho; its impact on minorities; and, specifically, the high dropout rate of Hispanics, its causes, and possible solutions. Chapter 1 gives the background of a 1979 lawsuit filed by the Idaho Migrant Council against the Idaho State Board of Education. The lawsuit was settled in 1983 when the defendant agreed to implement plans to meet the needs of students with limited English proficiency. However, the state advisory committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights continued to receive complaints alleging a lack of such educational programs. Demographics show that Hispanics are the largest non-White group in Idaho. Chapter 2 consists of summaries of forum presentations by the state superintendent of instruction, local superintendents, principals, teachers, university staff, corporate education and training experts, the director of education… [PDF]

Goulet, Linda (1998). Culturally Relevant Teacher Education: A Saskatchewan First Nations Case. This paper examines culturally relevant teacher education for First Nations undergraduate students, offered by the Department of Indian Education at the University of Regina-affiliated Saskatchewan Indian Federated College. As graduates may want to challenge dominant epistemologies of the schools in which they teach, the program responds to students' needs for connection to traditional cultural knowledge in order to overcome personal and cultural dislocation and racism. All students take classes in Indian languages, studies, and art. In a class affirming cultural identity, Elders are used as teachers in an outdoor education setting that includes ceremonies, traditional activities, and storytelling. Tools to deconstruct racist ideology and practices are given in a third-year class in human justice that focuses on institutional racism, particularly on an analysis of curriculum. The concepts of race, text, identity, stereotyping, bias, and ethnocentrism are used to analyze the impact… [PDF]

Peterson, Robert (1992). Teachers and Parents: The Milwaukee Experience. This booklet tells of the 1987 struggle teachers and parents of a racially-integrated, working-class neighborhood of Milwaukee faced when the central administration of the Milwaukee Public Schools announced the closing of the neighborhood school. Parents and teachers dreamed of a decent school that children would want to attend, in an integrated neighborhood, teaching children to be bilingual in Spanish and English, using cooperative and innovative methods, governed by a council of parents and teachers. La Escuela Fratney grew from the tradition of a long history of progressivism in Wisconsin. The struggles for Fratney School are recounted with both its successes and challenges that lie ahead. (EH)…

Mullen, Carol A. (1997). Hearing the Voices of Hispanic Preservice Teachers: An Inside-Out Reform of Teacher Education. This study of cultural self-identity is based on stories of mentorship drawn from a 6-month study of 11 female Hispanic preservice teachers enrolled in degree programs at Texas A&M University. These students were interviewed about mentoring influences that contributed to their decision to become teachers, about sponsorship and assistance personally available on campus, and about the various mentoring contexts they encountered, organizations to which they belonged, and the nature of their own work. Notably, participants stressed professional development in the context of parental and family support. They articulated needs in the following areas of professional development: interaction among diverse cultures within campus communities; an official bilingual education program at the undergraduate level; opportunity to talk about issues related to teaching within Hispanic and non-Hispanic (culturally-mixed) organizations; leadership training within Hispanic mentoring organizations; a… [PDF]

Slayton, Tamara (1994). Mexican Education: An Analysis. Fulbright-Hays Summer Seminar Abroad Project. This study addresses the basic question: What are the factors that influence the academic experience of Mexican children, and, to what extent do these factors result in deficits in student learning and achievement? The study was conducted over the course of 5 weeks throughout Mexico in the regions of Juarez, Chihuahua, Michoacan, Mexico, D.F., Veracruz, Oaxaca, and Merida. Data were collected by means of personal observations, visitations, interviews, and lectures by and with sociologists, economists, social workers, public administrators, educators, curriculum specialists, and other knowledgeable professionals. Findings include: (1) Mexico has a high illiteracy rate, despite the free, compulsory nature of education in Mexico; (2) socioeconomic issues influence the availability and quality of education received; (3) cultural and social isolation of indigenous people is another component that significantly impacts the schooling of Mexican children; and (4) the economic and political… [PDF]

Sharpes, Donald K. (1983). Developing International Understanding in Teacher Education. Major social science concepts that have an impact on a study of teacher education in developing nations are discussed. The relationship between national progress and teacher education is considered, and economic, political, and social realities facing these nations are pointed out. Among those discussed are: (1) economic problems of high population gains; (2) increasing demands for child labor; (3) the problem of school-age populations outstripping teacher education resources; (4) school involvement in training for rural development and improvement of production and the environment; (5) development of universal literacy and numeracy; (6) education as a social good; (7) social class values and attitudes; (8) social differences between the educated and the illiterate; and (9) national attitudes toward educating teachers. It is argued that American colleges and universities have a responsibility to produce teachers who are aware of the people and problems of the developing world, as… [PDF]

Welch, Richard O. (1977). Academic Achievement of Mexican American Students: The Edgewood School Plan. A five-year bilingual, bicultural program, part of the Experimental Schools Program, employed by the Edgewood Independent School District, San Antonio, Texas, was designed to enhance the affective characteristics of the predominantly Mexican American student population, to train teachers to avoid socioeconomic and cultural biases, and to improve the academic achievement of the students. Measurement of the program impact was conducted yearly in language, mathematics, science, social studies, reading, and study skills through a quasi-experimental research design, wherein the treatment schools were matched with comparison schools where students had similar socioeconomic status, affective characteristics, and standardized test achievement scores. Annual comparison scores were collected from both groups over a four-year period, with some significantly higher scores in the treatment groups attributed to particular subjects and grades where treatments were employed. However, the general…