Drawing from ethnographic study of two kindergartens in a magnet school, suggests that teachers have different perceptions and expectations of Black and White children who misbehave. Holds that the referral of "problem" Black children to counseling and special classes often occurs as a response to administrative and community tensions over…

An ethnographic study of small group reading instruction was conducted to learn how teachers' judgments of students' abilities influenced the way they grouped students for reading instruction and the effects of these grouping practices on teachers' planning and instructional behaviors. Two teachers and 20 students were observed over the course of…

To determine the need for developing appropriate programs for bilingual/multicultural children, the following factors are discussed: over-representation of minority children in special education programs, biased assessment, negative labeling, low teacher expectations, lack of minority special education, inappropriate programs, lack of teacher…

To assess the potentially stigmatizing effects of the label "developmentally delayed," a term used to identify young children in need of early intervention, this study surveyed preschool teachers from Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee. The 89 teachers who responded to the survey were all female, and all but 16 had received some…

Presented are reprints of 37 articles on mainstreaming handicapped children (published between 1968 and 1974 in "Exceptional Children"). The collected articles are arranged within four broad categories: the general rationale for mainstreaming, other philosophical considerations, types of mainstreaming models, and teacher training and…

Describes a study that focuses on the Pygmalion effect by examining how educators express their expectations to children in a kindergarten class. Indicates that educators, when cultivating high or low expectations toward the children, do not react in the same manner. (46 citations) (MAB)

This paper examines coercive egalitarianism as it relates specifically to gifted education. Deliberate underachievement is seen to result from this egalitarianism which has arisen as a result of overriding concerns with creating equity among students. Additionally, envy by other students results in their attempting to compromise those advantages…

Devereaux Elementary School Behavior Rating Scale scores of 64 handicapped and nonhandicapped Anglo and Mexican American children were analyzed for effects of ethnicity and diagnostic labels on Anglo teachers' ratings of children's behaviors in mainstream classrooms. Significant differences by ethnicity appeared in ratings of…

Thirty-five staff members' views on developmental assessment in a multicultural early childhood setting are described and used to initiate a critique of current practice in assessment of young children. Staff expressed a range of opinions from endorsement to frank rejection of the utility, validity, and ethics of developmental assessment.…

Thirty-seven leading educators participated in a Delphi technique survey regarding future directions in education of students with disabilities, focusing on inclusion and integration, labeling and classification, personnel preparation, instruction and services, and research. Respondents predicted that increasing inclusion will occur, and teachers…

This investigation sought to determine the extent to which examiners' evaluations of writing performance were influenced by the learning disability label and to identify mediating variables which modify expectancy effects. Forty-four preservice regular education teachers were randomly assigned to one of two expectancy conditions (learning-disabled…

The Chapter 1 compensatory education program and the results of the Title 1 Sustaining Effects Study are discussed. Topics include within-case ability grouping and student achievement, quality and quantity of instruction, teacher expectations, labelling of participants, peer influences, and program eligibility criteria. (TJH)

This study examined 50 kindergarten teachers' perceptions of the success of students who were labeled "developmentally delayed," and of students who had not been so labeled. The term "developmentally delayed" is used to identify young children in need of early intervention. Teachers' perceptions about the teaching skills they…

Third- and fifth-grade teachers in four South Carolina elementary schools identified certain students as potential high school dropouts, and indicated factors affecting their predictions for these students. Ethnographic interviews were conducted with the teachers and with 40 identified students and their parents. About 17% of sampled students were…

This paper tracks the changes in beliefs and dispositions regarding the teaching of writing of a cohort group of prospective secondary teachers during their graduate year of teacher preparation. Changes in the prospective teachers' beliefs regarding the knowledge they need to teach and the ways in which learners who differ in race, social class,…