In this study, the authors examined the independent effects of teacher and mother expectations on youth achievement outcomes, the mediating factors that explain the relationship between adult expectations and student achievement, and the effects of congruent vs. dissonant adult expectations on achievement. Participants were an ethnically diverse…

There has been much hoopla surrounding the notion that charter schools may be a viable option for urban youth. However, the existing information on this issue may be easily dissimulated considering less sloganeering about charter school theories and more research on how charter schools enhance the academic experience of the students they serve are…

Three social contexts--family, neighborhood youth centers, and peer relationships--were examined in relation to several measures of adjustment among 1,406 mostly minority, inner-city adolescents. Family and center involvement were directly related to 3 of the 4 adjustment measures (i.e., achievement orientation, emotion regulation, attitudes…

The high school transition was examined in an ethnically diverse, urban sample of 1,979 adolescents, followed from 7th to 10th grade (M[subscript age] = 14.6, SD = 0.37 in 7th grade). Twice annually, data were gathered on adolescents' perceptions of school climate, psychological functioning, and academic behaviors. Piecewise growth modeling…

FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH DIFFERENCES IN THE EDUCATIONAL STATUS OF RURAL AND URBAN YOUTH ARE EXPLORED. TOPICS DISCUSSED INCLUDE EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, ENROLLMENT RATES, PATTERNS OF SCHOOL RETARDATION, FACTORS RELATED TO SCHOOL ENROLLMENT, AND RETARDATION AND FUTURE EDUCATIONAL PROSPECTS OF RURAL YOUTH. THE RELATIVE EFFECTS OF REGION, AGE, SEX,…

To inform effective school-to-work programs, this study evaluates the effect of a school-based psychoeducational intervention on the academic self-efficacy of urban youth enrolled in the ninth grade. Using a mixed-methods design, data were collected using a quantitative measure of academic self-efficacy and eight semistructured interviews over the…

A critical theoretical framework is used to analyze the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) federal legislation and its role in codifying and perpetuating educational practices and policies that contribute to growing campus militarism in urban schools serving low-income African American and Latino students. The author argues that NCLB Section 9528 is part…

For this study, 40 teachers at four admired public urban high schools participated in interviews about the responsibilities, goals, and challenges they face as they try to attend to students' needs in the midst of pressures from high stakes testing and high academic standards. Common themes from their responses included a deep and profound…

Suggests that teachers in new century schools must find ways to forge meaningful relationships with students who come from different worlds, while also helping these students develop academic skills and the skills needed to become critical citizens in a multicultural democracy. (SG)

Studied 11 high-achieving Puerto Rican high school students at an urban Chicago (Illinois) school who were academically successful while maintaining their ethnic identity. Suggests that different conceptualizations of ethnicity, sociohistoric context, and social class may account for this maintenance of identity. (SLD)

Used model of mediated effects to test processes of influence from parents' and teachers' expectations to sixth-grade outcomes. Results revealed that perceptions only partially mediated the effects of expectations to sixth-grade reading and math outcomes, yet added unique independent variance to these outcomes. Prior achievement emerged as…

This study investigated the relationship between racial identity attitudes and academic achievement among 26 urban African American high school students. Results suggest that academic achievement may be related to racial identity attitudes. Educational implications are discussed. (SLD)

Investigated the relationship between participation in special education in grades 1 through 6 and academic achievement among 1,234 low-income children participating in the Chicago Longitudinal Study. Controlling for several factors, children in special education had lower reading and mathematics achievement scores, especially in grades 4-6. (SLD)

This study investigated the long-term effects of exposure to community violence on academic achievement and feelings of safety in school among a large sample of urban middle-school students (N = 759). It also considered the role of depressive symptoms and aggression as mediators of the effects, and the role of parent support in buffering…

Investigating variables associated with the school success and educational resilience of urban youth of color should be a high priority because of the persistent achievement gap in the United States. The current study examined individual and peer factors' relation to the school engagement of 132 seventh- and eighth-grade students from a diverse…