Two studies were conducted to develop techniques for testing the effectiveness of minority portrayals in television programing. In the first study, 666 fourth and fifth grade children (Chicanos, blacks, Asians, American Indians, and Anglos) viewed a composite episode of the American Broadcasting Corporation's (ABC) Saturday morning…

This paper highlights three major aspects of recent trends in immigration and their impact on schools: high sustained flows, growing geographic dispersal, and an increase in undocumented immigration. It focuses on such topics as who comes to the United States (legal, humanitarian, and undocumented immigrants); demographic context (income level and…

In 1992, the U.S. Department of Education, through its National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), surveyed the mathematics performance of approximately 250,000 students through two comprehensive surveys: (1) the National Assessment and (2) Trial State Assessment. The National assessment surveyed approximately 26,000 fourth, eighth, and…

Middle schools throughout New York State were surveyed regarding the recruitment of gifted students. Data from 199 schools revealed that most middle schools in New York do not have programs for the gifted and when they do, minority students are underrepresented. A multivariate analysis of variance demonstrated that none of the identification…

Half of a sample of 11,457 college-bound juniors used a calculator on Scholastic Aptitude Test mathematics questions, while half did not. Both genders and three ethnic groups benefited about equally from calculator use. Students who routinely used calculators were relatively advantaged, but effects on individual test items varied. (SLD)

Since deaf students who are members of more than one cultural group (e.g., Deaf and Black, Deaf and Asian, Deaf and Native American, Deaf and Hispanic) seldom encounter teachers who are deaf, let alone deaf and representative of their ethnic/racial group, this paper offers a framework to help teachers attend to the variations in beliefs,…

Two editions of the Verbal and Mathematical portions of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) were used to study differential speededness and differential omission and the relationships among differential item functioning (DIF), differential omission, and item difficulty for Asian Americans, Blacks, Hispanics, and females in a total sample exceeding…

A study investigated factors in Chinese language maintenance among balanced and pseudo-bilinguals who are second-generation Chinese-Americans. Subjects were 12 fifth-grade students in a Chinese-language school; half were balanced bilinguals (proficient in both languages) and half were pseudo-bilinguals (those in whom skills are more developed in…

This study examined how race and ethnicity inform college friendships of women of color and sought to determine how these two variables altered the learning characteristics of such relationships. The study, at a predominantly white college campus, found these relationships consistent with the sociological definition of intentional communities and…

A study was done of ways to use data from the Cooperative Institutional Research Programs (CIRP) to provide information on policy questions related to international education. The CIRP survey is an annual project that provides participating institutions with the opportunity to use the database to explore questions concerning an institution's…

College attendance patterns, areas of study, and abilities of Asian Americans are considered. Asian Americans pursue higher education at somewhat higher rates than average, and the rate is increasing. They concentrate in business, the physical sciences, and engineering in greater than expected numbers in comparison with the general student…

The Task Force on Library and Information Services to Cultural Minorities was established to address the information needs of four major minority groups--American Indians, Asian Americans, Blacks, and Hispanic Americans. The proceedings of the Task Force's 1981 hearings include statements and written testimony from 24 librarians, library…

A study was conducted to determine special educators' sense of concern or awareness about ethnic/multicultural issues. A questionnaire, sent to 1,000 members of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), achieved only a 17.5% response rate but was felt to represent adequately the entire group. Respondents were asked their opinions regarding the…

A comprehensive composition course for the college level should include the strengthening of cognitive skills, language skills, social organization, and language patterns. The subjects which students are asked to read and write about should be multi-cultural in nature so that students learn more about other cultures while they analyze their own…

Important steps in building a multicultural curriculum are the development of specific criteria for cultural inclusion, use of different methods of instruction in the classroom, and implementation of in-service programs for the continual retraining of teachers. Various state departments have developed criteria for inclusion, and these can be used…