This summary report presents an integration of major findings on teachers' perceptions of working conditions, based on survey and interview data from about 375 special educators in six large urban districts. The report focuses on special educators' perceptions of administrative support at two levels--building and central office. Major findings…

A study compared the comprehension abilities of readers when reading narrative and expository discourse. It was designed to investigate how middle-level high-achieving and low-achieving readers comprehend the two discourse genres, testing the readers' comprehension of main ideas in the text under both conditions. Also examined was whether…

This report summarizes a joint session held by the Indian Nations At Risk Task Force and the National Advisory Council on Indian Education to hear testimony on issues in urban American Indian education. Issues and problems were in the areas of: (1) the position of Native Americans as a very small minority in large urban schools; (2) lack of…

The purpose of this study was to determine the contributions of student effort, campus environments and institutional culture to student learning in three types of institutions: small residential colleges; large residential universities; and universities located in metropolitan areas. Data sources were qualitative assessments of 13 campus cultures…

A comparison of educational inputs and outputs in 1975 and 1985 indicates that the current system of financing, organizing, and regulating America's public schools has failed. The following inputs are examined: (1) school buildings; (2) teachers; (3) administrators; (4) support personnel; (5) supplies; and (6) students. The following outputs are…

The study compared available placements, related services, and teacher qualifications for severely handicapped students in rural and urban areas of 190 school districts in 46 states. The effects of two predictor variables, percentage of urban population and median family income, on the following dependent variables were examined: student…

A study examined the types of questions teachers asked and the types of responses they elicited from prestory and poststory portions of reading comprehension lessons. The Question Response Interaction instrument was used to gather data from teachers and their inner city third, fourth, and sixth grade students in both high and low reading groups.…

A study was conducted to determine the patterns of questioning behaviors exhibited by four preservice and four inservice teachers in an inner-city elementary school. Specifically, the study examined the types of questions teachers asked, the types of responses given by students, the wait-time between questions that teachers provided for high- and…

In order to structure reading class activities that would motivate secondary school students, a questionnaire was developed and administered to students in two urban junior high school reading programs. The questionnaire elicited student opinions about the reading class activities they liked and disliked, their reading skills, the materials they…

The purpose of this paper is to describe the practices and ideologies held in common by the African colonial system of education and the urban American educational system. It is advocated that the following ideas be applied from the American colonial experience to improve American ghetto schools: (1) a continued effort in assisting the American…

The purpose of this report is to explain the procedures by which the Chicago public schools have attempted to equalize local school per-pupil costs. It is a case study designed to illustrate what one urban school system is doing to finance equity among schools. There are five major considerations related to the program to equalize per-pupil costs:…

Given in this publication are 15 working papers which were prepared to assist conference participants in discussion of areas of educational neglect. These papers include reports of: (1) on-site studies conducted during the 2 months immediately preceding the conference and (2) national statistics and information regarding an area of neglect. The…

Intending to explore the interaction effects of self-esteem level and perceived program utility on the retention and cognitive achievement of adult basic education students, a self-esteem instrument, to be administered verbally, was constructed with content relevant items developed from and tested on a working class, undereducated, black, adult…

This paper examines the management of training programs for educators who are or will be working in inner-city schools. Four common patterns emerge from investigations of the program which have been effective in preparing personnel for inner-city schools. First, the programs featured a sound and explicit theoretical base, an analysis of the…

The Impact of a Preschool Interracial Program (IPSIP) project, funded under Title III of the 1965 Elementary Secondary Education Act, was designed to test the hypothesis that intervening with sufficient impact in the early lives of environmentally deprived children will produce a significant, lasting effect on their cognitive and social…