Anyone who laments that American young people are apathetic, uninvolved or not sufficiently outraged clearly is not up on the news. This article presents some news illustrating that young people are involved on some issues concerning the environment, the improvement of their schools, justice, the affordability of higher education, fairer immigrant…

This article examines African American, Latina/o, and White high school students' assertions of cultural and ethnic identities as they struggle for their educational rights in Los Angeles and Philadelphia. In doing so, this study illustrates the ways in which alternative spaces outside the formal context of schools facilitate expressions,…

For the past eight years, the Speak Up National Research Project has endeavored to stimulate new discussions around these kinds of questions and to provide a context to help education, parent, policy and business leaders think beyond today and envision tomorrow. This report is the first in a two part series to document the key national findings…

Although U.S. schools typically express commitment to preparing students for the responsibilities of democratic citizenship, most American youth are socialized for adult civic life by an institution that defines them as passive and subordinate and treats them in ways that are anything but democratic. In contrast to such counterproductive…

In the chapters presented in this volume, leading experts describe some of the assessment challenges in greater detail and provide federal recommendations on how to address them. In "College and Work Readiness as a Goal of High Schools: The Role of Standards, Assessments, and Accountability," John Tanner of the Center for Innovative Measures at…

Drawing on the parallel literature on increasing student voice in the field of education and on building youth-adult partnerships in the youth development field, this article examines the place of young people in efforts to increase social justice in school settings. Through an examination of thirteen youth-adult partnership initiatives, it…

This article describes the pedagogy, practice and outcomes of a digital art program developed to enable high school and middle school students to become active participants in new forms of grassroots public media. Students and their teachers become producers and controllers of art-based videos and associated digital dialogue which is distributed…

This article describes the school-based, small group adaptation of the existing Strong Teens Curriculum (STC) for African American male adolescents in high schools. The STC was created to equip adolescents with skills that promote more effective social interaction and enhance personal emotional and psychological wellness. The authors present a…

This paper addresses the movement to "improve" schools by means of legislating mandatory testing and then publishing students' results in local newspapers and on the Internet. Students who attend schools where the standards are not met are often the ones who would benefit most from a broad-based language arts program. These students are…

This article discusses how a radical approach to teacher education encourages both pre-service teachers and high school students to embrace a paradoxical model of leadership. A project that positions high school students as teachers and learners in an undergraduate secondary teacher certification course challenges pre-service teachers to learn to…

Focuses on the organization Young Aspirations/Young Artists, or YA/YA, that was founded by New Orleans (Louisiana) artist Jana Napoli after inviting high school students to her studio. Provides background information on YA/YA. States that the organization works within the framework of capitalism and gives a voice to adolescents. (CMK)

The Academy For Learning (AFL) serves urban students with emotional and behavioral problems. Through a Personal and Social Responsibility program, students develop skills for personal growth and service learning. Many alternative programs for troubled students offer little more than a curriculum for containment and control. In contrast, students…

Examines attempts by black high school student activists in Chicago in the 1960s to gain community control of their schools. Their combined efforts did not lead to decentralization, but instead resulted in more black administrators and curriculum changes, as well as increased awareness of inadequate education, lack of black administrators, lack of…

Before educators can assess the problems associated with being at risk of academic failure, they must understand what is occurring in the lives of at-risk students. The focus of this study was the school lives of 15 high school students. Data were gathered from student observations, informal interviews, document analysis, and journal entries to…

Lack of relevant course work is a top reason why high school students drop out, and studies have shown that low-income and minority students are less likely to be enrolled in college preparatory curricula than their more affluent peers. In today's world, it is critical to ensure that all students have access to a rigorous, high-quality education…