Examines the advantage to urban education of school-to-work transition programs. A vision is presented for a work-centered education that takes full advantage of the best characteristics of cities and clarifies how this approach addresses some of the serious problems facing urban schools. The author indicates how these programs can invigorate…

This paper contributes to the knowledge about the effects that magnet schools have on improving educational quality. The history of magnet schools in American education is examined, linking it with several recent movements to reform and reorganize schooling. A synthesis of research findings from 12 district studies of magnet schools and various…

This paper presents a comparative case study of two students learning in an urban environment but characterized by high motivation, effective discipline, small classes, generous academic support, counseling, and educational equipment. The primary question driving the study relates to the challenges to meaningful learning in a special science high…

This study explored 22 ninth-grade English students' reading engagement and interpretation of a young adult multicultural novel dealing with biethnic identity development. The descriptive multicase study charted students' literary engagement in an urban technology magnet school and a rural Hawaii high school. The research question was: What are…

The experiences of a literature teacher in an inner-city high school in Houston (Texas) give a portrait of the urban classroom and the successes and failures of the everyday life of the urban teacher. The school, in a poor neighborhood, is unremarkable, unstimulating, and ill-equipped for serious learning. The students, who are almost entirely…

This report presents the evaluation results of the Queens Tri-School Confederation magnet programs in New York City: programs designed to reduce minority-group isolation among high school students in three high schools and simultaneously improve the quality of their education through the sharing of resources and expertise. These programs, which…

The effects of attending an urban career magnet high school were examined by comparing the career development of 51 graduates of 4 career magnet high schools and 59 graduates of 4 comprehensive high schools in a large city. Subjects were drawn from a database through a random assignment and matching process. All 110 graduates were surveyed using…

This book contains the following papers examining approaches to integrating high school vocational and academic curricula in U.S. high schools to provide education through occupations: "Resolving the Paradox of the High School" (W. Norton Grubb); "'The Cunning Hand, the Cultured Mind': Sources of Support for Curriculum…