This digest discusses the rationale behind and development of the English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) standards. To ensure that English language learners (ELLs) would have access to effective educational programs and the opportunity to reach high standards, the Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) decided to pursue the…

In 1983 the National Commission on Excellence in Education declared the United States "A Nation at Risk" because of inadequate education. A decade and a half later, the United States is still at risk because U.S. schools are failing children. Dropout rates have declined, and college attendance has risen, but student achievement has…

Cites references from the ERIC junior colleges collection dealing with community college women. Topics covered include career options for women within a community college setting, educational equity, occupational education, female trustees, and needs of and services for female students. (CAM)

Describes several curriculum resources that focus on eliminating sex stereotypes through nonsexist teaching strategies, activities, and material selection for middle and high school language arts, reading, and English classrooms. (RS)

Children from different backgrounds come to school speaking a wide variety of dialects. Questions concerning the use of dialects in schools have become increasingly complex and controversial in recent years. A central issue is the requirement of a standard dialect in school. Some find it discriminatory, others find it necessary to broaden student…

This digest in Spanish discusses efforts to achieve financial equity in education. It describes the extent of financial disparity and how, after 3 decades of litigation, such disparities among districts and among states remain high. In New Jersey alone, the per-pupil expenditures ranged from $5,900 to $11,950. Even with such inequities, some…

For many years, gender equity has pertained primarily to improving education and career opportunities for females. Recent studies, however, provide evidence that boys no longer hold an advantage. Based on extensive analysis of data from the National Longitudinal Study, the High School & Beyond, and the National Education Longitudinal Study, it…

This digest examines the constitutional framework guiding the use of race-conscious policymaking in K-12 education. Despite the requirements of Brown v Board of Education, recent court decisions suggest that desegregation remedies are becoming more limited, and voluntary policies will be subject to greater scrutiny. The legal framework governing…

This publication is intended to support the effort to focus literacy programs on women. It serves as a guide to the information and resources related to women and literacy and to assist the development of woman-positive programs. The first part of the guide describes the literature base, depicting the subject areas from which the resources are…

This digest discusses issues in the selection of an appropriate focus for a focus school. Schools with a theme and schools targeted for particular students, which are both components of the focus-school genre, have long been a part of the nation's education system. A number of school districts, especially in urban areas, have established focus…

The number of persons confined to correctional institutions continues to grow at an unprecedented rate. Some of the factors contributing to this growth include an increase in the 18- to 25-year-old population, a tougher stance on crime resulting in more prison sentences, longer sentences because younger offenders commit more violent crimes, and…

Development of the information "superhighway" has spawned a number of political, economic, and educational issues and has raised concerns that information inequities are increasing the polarization of society. Among the economic and political issues/concerns that have been raised are the following: whether information is a commodity or a…

The "digital divide," the separation between those with access to new technologies and those without, is seen by many as one of the leading equity issues in the United States. Computer and Internet access varies widely across the United States, with better educated people, those with more money, and whites more likely to have Internet…

This examination of the relationship that exists between technology and students warns that, although technology is routinely touted as a potentially powerful agent of educational reform, technology and equity are not inevitable partners. A review of the literature on computer equity reveals that many students--not only minority, disadvantaged,…

The monograph examines the status of education for the handicapped and addresses the provisions of P.L. 98-199 The Education of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 1983. Chapter 1, on progress in the education of the handicapped, presents information on the following topics: (1) the number of handicapped students receiving a free, appropriate public…