A study of the child's experience in learning a second language as it is embedded in his experience of kindergarten looks at two classes of unilingual (English-speaking) Canadian children in a half-day French immersion program. The immersion experience for the children is described in these terms: what "French" means to them; what and how they…

Three Australian students who had moved from a small rural primary school to larger secondary schools were interviewed to examine how they experienced the transition. Although the larger environment at the secondary schools was a factor, the transition was not difficult with regard to social aspects, such as making new friends. The teaching and…

How students' ethnicity perceptions affect the educational process is ethnographically studied through interviews of about 50 students attending a multiethnic high school in a California city. Ethnicity's relevance varies depending on social situations and students' interpretations of events. Denial of one's ethnic identity centers around…

A large percentage of African American students comprise special education classes; yet few African Americans are special education teachers. Determinants of success for African Americans pursuing graduate study previously cited in the literature include academic and financial support, and faculty-student mentoring relationships. This qualitative…

As late as 1913, half of U.S. schoolchildren were enrolled in the country's 212,000 one-room schools--the heart of American education. Although only about 428 of these schools remain in use as of 1994, the country school continues to be a powerful cultural symbol. The first section of this book examines country schools' educational and cultural…

This paper considers whether ethnicity is a social construction that is constantly being recreated in a nexus of shifting social relations rather than a set of perceptions and behaviors that remain constant and stem from a youth's membership in an ethnic group. Student responses about ethnicity from a larger study of student role and engagement in…

A study in Finland examined rural students' experiences of the transition from a small rural primary school (grades 1-6) to a bigger village secondary school (grades 7-9). Qualitative data were obtained from essays written by 132 students in 13 small rural primary schools, 1 village school, and 1 city school. Students wrote the essays as…

This book reports on a 3-year ethnographic study of academic achievement and schooling orientations among immigrant Mexican and Mexican American students at a Houston (Texas) high school. The study included a survey of the entire student body (2,281 students), participant observation in the school and community from 1992 to 1995, 25 open-ended…

An ethnographic study examined the experiences of 23 Canadian Sioux students during their transition from a reservation elementary school to an urban public high school. Students encountered racial bias, low teacher expectations, isolation, frustration, and a lack of understanding by school personnel of cultural conflicts. Eighteen dropped out.…

This chapter reviews the current theoretical understanding of the development of social justice attitudes and related concepts.

For this qualitative inquiry, 40 South Asian students in a predominantly White Canadian university participated in interviews to investigate how racism is prevalent among peers in the university environment. Differential treatment is evident in the everyday interactions between minority and mainstream students, negatively affecting the overall…

A review of electronic databases identified 27 research-based articles concerning LGBTQ issues in higher education between 2000 and 2003. These articles are summarized into three categories: studies of campus climate, student life issues, and college teaching. Suggestions are provided for future research on postsecondary students; faculty;…

This paper reports on the use of an online, resource-based learning (RBL) approach in first year psychology at Deakin University. Differences between on- and off-campus students that emerged are examined in the context of the learning goals and study approaches of the two student groups and their attitudes to using computers. Unlike the on-campus…

Adolescents with disabilities are at increased risk for school failure, and those in special education as the result of emotional disturbances consistently have the highest dropout rate of any disability. This paper discusses the importance of feelings of security in relationships for these adolescents and the results of a study designed to…

The "bear" sitting in the middle of the classroom, on the seminar table, or prowling around the edges of a discussion group arises from the subtext that is created whenever teachers and students interact with a curriculum, lesson, or topic. The situation in the postmodern classroom has been destabilized by the unprecedented intrusion into the…