The concept of emotional competence entails resilience, self-efficacy, and acting in accord with one's sense of moral character. This suggests argues that emotional competence is demonstrated by the self-efficacy in emotion-eliciting encounters and identifies eight key emotional skills that support its acquisition in interpersonal contexts. The…

Though the educational achievement of American Indians during the last 10 years has been impressive, indications are that it will be some time before Indian people have an equal educational opportunity with the majority population. To understand the statistics and social indicators of the revolution in Indian education, it is necessary to examine…

This collection of essays was prepared to promote an appreciation of ethnic pluralism as part of the curriculum for professional social work. It is presented in seven chapters. Chapter I reviews the past and present status of the sociocultural factors in American social work and social work education, presents a theoretical framework of ethnicity,…

Examines gender and ethnic differences among Jewish and Arab high school students in Israel with respect to their causal attributions for success and failure in mathematics and language examinations. Results from 333 ninth graders show larger effects of ethnicity than of gender, with effects more pronounced in success than in failure attributions.…

Reviews literature on English as a Second Language teaching in China, examining stereotypes of Chinese learners to highlight mismatches between Chinese students' learning dispositions and expatriates' teaching dispositions. A sociological analysis describes the construction of students as obedient at one Shanghai secondary school in the 1990s.…

Research on the relationship between early childhood literacy experiences and subsequent reading acquisition is reviewed, with a focus on awareness and knowledge of print. Research studies included children, preschool age to age 7, who were identified as normally achieving, at risk, and linguistically diverse. One of the studies involved children…

This report reviews recent initiatives to improve family-school collaboration and communication. The six articles are: (1) "Schools, Families, and Students Get Stronger When Parents and Teachers Take Collaboration into Their Own Hands," which highlights parent-teacher action research projects at eight schools through eight case studies; (2)…

This paper, commissioned for the development of the national report, "National Excellence: A Case for Developing America's Talent," provides historical background on issues in gifted education, together with ideas and practices from the special educational strategies now in use for gifted students. The report focuses on the nature of superior…

Five agencies of the Public Health Service (PHS) joined with PHS Hispanic employees and other Hispanic health specialists to commemorate Hispanic Heritage Week by critically examining health issues of particular relevance to Hispanics. The first day the forum sought to define, from an Hispanic perspective, issues relating to health statistics,…

Exceptional Mexican American students face difficulties not experienced by their Anglo counterparts because the educational system is not set up to deal with members of ethnic and cultural minorities. Spanish-speaking students face the problem of gaining competence in their first language while learning English as a second language. Standard…

This report identifies key issues for providing early childhood special education services to young children who are visually impaired and for working with families of culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. First, it discusses the incidence of visual impairment and associated disabilities among young children, the process of early…

This text on teaching students with language disabilities is divided into three parts. Part 1 presents the components of speech, language and communication and describes language development. Part 2 describes the language abilities of students with a variety of disabilities. Part 3 provides suggestions for assessment and intervention and discusses…

The treatment of politeness features is particularly revealing of the complex dynamics that language teachers face given the cultural variety present in schools and colleges. Along with its positive contributions to the learning environment, the growing student diversity poses a significant challenge for both students and educators. This paper…

A literature review examined the potential impact of a multicultural applicant's nonverbal behavior (specifically, proxemics and kinesics) in a selection interview. Proxemics refers to the perception and use of personal and interpersonal space, which varies from culture to culture. The review indicated that in an interview situation, the chairs…

Reviews literature suggesting that a sociocultural model of infant social development is needed to examine variable influencing infants' interactions with caregivers. Significant variables include familial influences and cultural expectations. Positive development requires that these variables lead to adults who respond appropriately to infant…