This ethnographic case study investigates social networks and forms of social capital accessed by a group of five urban male youth (ages 15-19), from diverse racial backgrounds, who were disenfranchised economically. We refer to the youth as "disenfranchised" because they were disconnected from forms of institutional support, especially…

Presents six critical thoughts and questions about educating poor urban children in Canada. These thoughts were derived from the development of a directory of Canadian educational poverty programs. Findings from that study emphasize the increasing diversity of the student population, the importance of temporary and large-scale funding, and the…

Provides a profile of after-school programs for low-income children, focusing on supply and demand, program emphases, and program sponsors and support organizations. Discusses the major challenges facing the field in the areas of facilities, staffing, and financing. Illustrates the discussion with examples from an after-school initiative in three…

Uses data from 54 urban school districts to test hypotheses explaining the integration of computer technology into the classroom. Finds no statistically significant effects of funding on the provision of computer-assisted learning, but a higher percentage of black students reduces the percentage of district students receiving computer-assisted…

Suggests a few ways in which civic entrepreneurs can foster charter schools. Civic entrepreneurs, who need not be extremely wealthy, can help meet four critical needs of charter schools: (1) start-up capital, (2) technical assistance, (3) safeguarding freedom, and (4) fostering accountability. (SLD)

Four essays by policy analysts approach programs for school-age children from differing perspectives, each identifying the key forces that influence the policy climate and directions for the future. (Author/SLD)

Reviews programs for increasing earnings of parents with low market skills to prevent pretransfer poverty and discusses three types of income supplementation (public cash transfers, private child support payments, and tax credits) and how successful they are in reducing poverty. Also provides international comparisons of policies to reduce child…

Problems that beset urban education in general are analyzed, and solutions are discussed and evaluated by a policy working group of the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges. The most acute problem in American education involves the unmet needs of disadvantaged students, who are heavily concentrated in urban school…