Constitutional bases for challenging ability grouping practices in the schools using the track system are presented. Research findings on ability grouping, law review journal articles, and texts of court cases are analyzed to determine possible grounds for such suits. (PP)

The views of George I. Sanchez are examined to determine what an earlier generation of Hispanic-American educators thought about bilingual education. Sanchez stressed integrating Spanish-speaking children into Anglo classrooms and downplayed the need for a new pedagogy, such as bilingual instruction. (PP)

The federal government has been important in developing and enforcing school desegregation law, including "Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas". The ambiguity of the "Brown" decision has allowed considerable flexibility in defining and remedying discrimination. The U.S. Department of Justice must protect the gains…

Five articles comment on Chubb and Terry M. Moe's book "Politics, Markets, and America's Schools": (1) Choice in Education: Examining the Evidence on Equity; (2) Politics, Markets, and America's Schools: A Review; (3) Political Pollyannas; (4) Degrees of Imperfection: A Note from a Political Pollyanna; and (5) Thoughts on Choice. (SM)

This article provides an overview of America's urban population based on the 2000 Census and the implications of increasing cultural diversity for urban public schools. It addresses three basic questions: 1. What does America's population look like at the beginning of the 21st century? 2. What challenges do children and their families face in this…

This article discusses: (1) whether schools across the country provide students equal access to knowledge; and (2) whether the knowledge provided is equitably humanized in classrooms, permitting access for the the diverse array of students in these schools. Research gathered for "A Study of Schooling" forms the basis of the article. (PP)

The problem of youth unemployment in the state of New York is explored in a study which begins with a general review of the sociodemographic features of the target population. Other topics include: work experience and education, attitudes toward work, job entry and career ladder jobs, and unemployment among minority youth. (JN)

This autobiographical reflection on 40 years of teaching uses various accounts of schooling and teacher education practice against personal experience to explore continuities of teaching, progressive teaching practice, racial bias, teaching for understanding, teacher education, knowing the students, learning communities, teaching as a moral and…

The "Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas" decision was a crucial 20th century civil rights event. However, civil rights leaders underestimated the depth of racism and the enormity of the task of getting all black agricultural workers into the mainstream economy. That task, left over from slavery, still faces the American…

Schools are inadequately prepared to serve the needs of increasing numbers of culturally diverse students. Problems relate to desegregation, multicultural education, higher quality education, and bilingual education. New York City is used as an example, noting the school system's role in serving New York's immigrant students. (SM)

Summarizes the role of short-term and long-term effects of social science research in examining the impact of school desegregation policies on black students, discussing whether it works to improve student achievement. The article suggests that short-term effects research has traditionally been less informative than long-term effects research. (SM)

Describes reform efforts in one urban ghetto school, examining processes and events that illustrate how social manifestations of racial and social class can combine to vitiate reform efforts. Barriers to reform efforts in ghetto schools are detailed. (SM)

Reexamines the Supreme Court's school desegregation opinions, including "Brown v. Board of Education," and concludes that a multicultural society was not part of the Supreme Court's vision of public schools. Argues that the ideology of those opinions cannot be the basis of school districts' efforts to bring together racially or…

Evidence from two school systems whose ability grouping and tracking systems were scrutinized in 1993 in conjunction with school desegregation cases demonstrates how grouping practices can create within-school segregation that discriminates against black and Latino students. In both cases, grouping practices created a cycle of restricted…

Explores alternative ways teachers can serve linguistically and culturally diverse student populations. Two Philadelphia elementary teachers have successfully created learning contexts for bilingual literacy. This article describes ways they adapt their teaching for biliterate development and for the particular bilingual contexts and media of…