Suggests some ideas for improving the teaching of math and discusses critically the role of the administrator in developing a successful mathematics program on the basis of an informal interview survey of 10 elementary school principals and 20 classroom teachers, two from each school of the ten principals. (JM)

Concrete suggestions for using out-of-school objects to help inner-city students learn mathematical and scientific concepts are given. (MK)

Classroom teachers' perceptions of nature and the importance of providing environmental education often determine whether students are given the chance to experience natural area. Interviews of 39 urban teachers examined teachers' preferences for types of environmental education settings. Results suggest that teachers perceive distinct difference…

In this paper, we draw from a narrative life history approach to report in depth on the experiences of one teacher, Shagufta, in a high-poverty urban elementary school in Lahore, Pakistan. The purpose of reporting Shagufta's story is twofold. First, we want to make sense of her role as a science teacher--what should the children in her school…

A study was conducted in the City College of Chicago and replicated in three other urban community college districts to investigate the instructional methods of a sample of exceptional community college teachers and to look for alterable teaching behaviors and techniques that could be presented to other teachers who wanted to improve their…

An exploratory study was conducted to identify the characteristics and behaviors related to effective instruction in an urban community college. The 30 instructors selected for the study taught introductory courses in biology, English, mathematics, or social sciences at the City Colleges of Chicago. All had exceptionally high levels of student…

Some of the factors that have been considered in relation to the teaching of mathematics, especially to students in urban schools, are examined in this paper. First, information on the mathematics achievement levels of students with different demographic characteristics is presented; the extreme variance in achievement between students from high…

THE EXPERIENTIALLY POOR CHILD WHO HAS HEARD LITTLE ADULT CONVERSATION DIRECTED AT AND FOR HIM IS ILL-PREPARED FOR BEGINNING READING. HIS LEARNING ACTIVITIES SHOULD BE PLANNED TO INCLUDE EXPERIENCE, REAL AND/OR VICARIOUS. BEFORE HE IS INVOLVED WITH THE SYMBOLIC REPRESENTATION OF THE SPOKEN OR WRITTEN WORD. THE CHILD SHOULD HAVE DEVELOPED STRONG…

This paper presents an inner-city, elementary teacher education program which focused upon a) the acquisition of teaching techniques and skills in the urban learning setting, b) the learning of theory together with reinforced practice in functional field experiences, c) the reinforcement of principles of child growth and development through direct…

The teacher program described here was designed to create a deeper understanding of a wide span of instructional problems unique to the inner-city school setting, putting participants in a position of forming teaching strategies of their own as solutions. Such school problems as overcrowded classes, frequent daily interruptions, playground…

In attempting to discover how a middle-class teacher copes with lower-class children in an urban school, the authors of this study (one an "outside" observer who sat at the side of the classroom, the other the teacher or "inside" observer) recorded the classroom actions and behavior of the teacher and his seventh grade pupils all day every day for…

Develops a perspective on relevance and suggests some means of maximizing the effectiveness of our educational goals in teaching the disadvantaged child mathematics. (Author/JM)

A college instructor describes her experiences teaching two remedial composition courses as part of the Urban Education Program at Westfield State College in Massachusetts. Focus is on teaching methods that emphasized grammar, writing, and reading, and on student progress throughout the courses. Examples of student work are included. (JMD)

Educators have continually sought to achieve a balance between a phonics-based, code-emphasis program and a more holistic, meaning-based approach to emergent literacy instruction. This article describes an integrated phonics and literature-based approach to developing children's emergent literacy skills. These skills included alphabet knowledge,…

The purpose of this yearbook is to examine key aspects of American urban society, to identify issues that are central to all social studies instruction about the city, and to present specific ideas on how teachers can teach about these issues both inside and outside the classroom. Fifteen social scientists and educators contributed articles to the…