Takes a qualitative and quantitative look at the curriculum and teaching of a two-way immersion eighth-grade solar energy science classroom and examines its implications for education policy and reform. Results for a class of 25 students indicate that the approach increases the retention rate of Hispanic students. (SLD)

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine characteristics of academically successful Hispanic students. Despite repeated failures and early academic difficulties, some Hispanic students continue to fight through their adversity. Some children have a positive attitude toward school although there are monumental barriers for these at-risk…

This qualitative research was designed to give voice to Latina students in single-gender and co-educational secondary-level special education placements for students with mild to moderate learning disabilities. Classroom observations and interviews were conducted with Latina special education students and classroom teachers in both single-gender…

Focusing on predictors of academic success may help in the design of effective educational interventions. This study explores the enhancement of education for at-risk minority students by considering educationally resilient students and the classroom learning environment. Data was collected from six middle schools in a multi-ethnic school district…

This study (reported in separate English and Spanish versions) used a qualitative approach to identify the supportive parental behaviors of academically successful children from low income families in Even Start programs, from the parents', teachers', and children's perspectives. The sample contained 12 low income parents who had one or more…

Prepared as part of a needs assessment for the Watsonville Center of California's Cabrillo College, the three reports included in this document present findings from studies conducted of area high school students and CC students. The first report presents findings from a fall 1995 study of 1,234 students at California's Aptos High School and…

A study was done to evaluate Partners for Valued Youth (PVY), an instructional cross-age tutoring program in San Antonio (Texas) designed to reduce dropout rates among Hispanic limited-English proficient (LEP) middle-school children, who are at risk of leaving school. The program has these students tutor younger, elementary school students. The…

The articulation or suppression of ethnicity among high school students depends on the individual's estimation of the relevancy of ethnicity, an estimation linked to structural factors in society. Data for this ethnographic study were derived from extensive observations of students by a participant-observer at a multiethnic urban high school. The…

A detailed analysis of the significant gender differences observed in performance on the mathematics portion of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) in 1986 was performed for students enrolled in the Montgomery County Public Schools (Maryland). A disaggregation of data from the 1986 SAT administration was performed to examine homogeneous subgroups…

The interracial experiences, attitudes, and perceptions of minority students toward the University of Maryland, College Park, (UMCP) and its services were assessed. A random sample of 147 ethnic minority students (54 Asian, 54 Black, and 39 Hispanic undergraduates) responded to a 59-item questionnaire with a return rate of 77 percent. The data…

This study used data from the base year and first followup year of the National Educational Longitudinal Survey of 1988 (NELS:88) to investigate determinants of achievement in minority versus nonminority students. In the base year, the NELS:88 collected data on eighth graders. Because there were so few American Indians, that group was eliminated…

This study examined the relationship between perceptions of diversity and overall satisfaction in students at the University of Maryland at College Park. An anonymous 100-item questionnaire on cultural attitudes and climate was mailed to first and third year students, with mail and phone call follow-ups resulting in an overall return rate of 60…

A 4-week study at Goshen (Indiana) Middle School examined the internal and external factors affecting Hispanic student achievement. Data were collected through classroom observation, student interviews, and a survey of Latino parents. Although teacher responses to Hispanic student classroom participation were always positive, student responses,…

The relationships among early adolescents' sense of school belonging, perceptions of their friends' academic values, and academic motivation were studied for 301 African American, white (Anglo), and Hispanic students in 2 urban junior high schools. Correlations between school belonging and motivation-related measures is positive and statistically…

The school lives of culturally diverse young adolescents identified as potential dropouts were studied ethnographically. Data collected across two years indicated that teachers who students considered most successful in helping them learn used practices based on knowledge about students' home cultures and knowledge about the impact of students'…