The study reported here was undertaken to determine if a structured human relations program, focusing on positive classroom management techniques, could contribute to more positive teacher-student relations and thereby help to decrease one of the major sources of friction in our educational communities. The major objective of this program was to…

Prominent Americans were asked to reflect on the diversity challenge facing America's teacher workforce. The following leaders from several fields voiced their support of teachers and their beliefs America needs more diverse and culturally responsive teachers: (1) Mary Hatwood Futrell, President of Education International; (2) Carol Moseley-Braun,…

Articles in this theme issue explore pathways into teaching, focusing on programs that recruit future teachers, and specifically on programs that target minority future teachers. "Pathways to Teaching: Building Quality and Diversity in America's Schools" by Segun Eubanks introduces a number of programs that are drawing from populations…

Employment interviews are widely used in the selection of quality teachers, and indeed research confirms administrators' belief in the validity of the procedure. However, many key recommendations for improving the general reliability of interviews including selecting questions that are job-related and research grounded, including well designed…

A major crisis facing urban education is the inability of predominantly white, middle-class college students to deal with the realities of the urban primary school. A program that brings education majors into the urban school is described. The idea of partnership is the guiding principle of this program, in which college students, local teachers…

This collection of 29 unusual and interesting articles in 19 chapters addresses the issues of urban education from several provocative angles. The book outlines how cultural traditions of minority groups can be the fulcrum for positive educational change, and the special challenges of growing up as a male from a minority background. Some articles…

This report describes the ways in which the Center for Minority Achievement works to reform public education for early adolescents in six New York City schools. It consists of edited conversations among the three central staff members of the program and vignettes and quotes from a school student and from staff affected by the program. These…

THIS DISCUSSION OF URBAN EDUCATION BRIEFLY ANALYZES THE OPERATIONAL FRAMEWORK OF LARGE CITIES AND SCHOOLS. IT IS FELT THAT THE PRESENT EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM, WHICH PROVIDES ONLY ONE FORM OF EDUCATION FOR ALL PUPILS, INCONGRUOUSLY REFLECTS THE ADHERENCE TO ESTABLISHED VALUES, LIMITED OPPORTUNITY FOR CHOICE, AND GENERAL ROUTINIZATION WHICH ARE…

This book sets out to put the many questions raised by the selection of urban teachers into a meaningful context, and to suggest some answers. The thesis of this book is that, as quickly as possible, the process by which urban teachers are selected must be converted to a contemporary merit and fitness system. The ability to understand and reach…

This paper describes the evolution of a Professional Development School (PDS) continuum for urban teachers through 5 years of school-university collaboration. The paper reports the impact on education students completing internship experiences at urban PDS's, discusses the impact of the collaborative initiative on PDS faculty, and identifies…

More and more frequently, poor families are described in pathological terms. The emphasis is on the deficits that interfere with the education of poor children, rather than the strengths that they can bring to schooling. A focus on the devastating effects of poverty may lead to the belief that poor children are so disadvantaged that nothing can be…

Project RICE (Responsive Inner City Education) prepared a cadre of 36 teachers drawn from majority and minority populations in 3 inner-city schools in Buffalo (New York) to complement mastery of subject matter with appropriate pedagogical styles. The project was designed to test the hypothesis that minority students in inner-city schools do not…

This paper discusses an ecological approach to training educators for urban schools which focuses on learning to develop and nurture collaborative relationships with parents and communities. It argues that the construct of collective efficacy is the missing link in understanding and implementing successful linkages between schools, parents, and…

Summarizes the mentoring component of a large federally funded partnership project, the Urban Teachers Project, which is designed to support future urban teachers. Twenty-four minority teachers served as mentors. Recruitment and selection of mentor teachers, typical mentor-student activities, and student attitudes are described. (SLD)

Reports on characteristics significantly related to teacher retention in a large urban school district using a Cox regression model to model teacher turnover for a sample of 2,327 white, black, and Hispanic-American first-year teachers. Sex, ethnicity, education, and certification route are significantly related to teacher retention. (SLD)