A review of the difficulties Spanish-Americans and Mexican-Americans encounter in learning English, caused by a lack of knowledge of common idioms and figures of speech in current usage, leads to a discussion of two pilot studies in which the frequency of occurrence of idiomatic and figurative constructions in the reading materials presented to…

Education for minority group children has been completely inadequate through the failure of educators to understand sympathetically the children's linguistic and cultural backgrounds and through the erroneous emphasis upon replacing "poor speech habits" rather than adding a second dialect (standard English). To help reduce the gap between ideals…

The objectives of this study were (1) to determine the characteristics of bilingual (Mexican) and monolingual high school graduates and dropouts and (2) to evaluate the curriculum and guidance in a 4-year school in San Jose, California. The sample for the study consisted of members of the graduating classes and of all dropouts for the school years…

A curriculum guide for secondary levels 1 and 2 offers a linguistic and cultural program for native speakers of Spanish. Designed especially for bilingual students in Texas, the guide recognizes the high level of linguistic achievement of the Spanish-speaking pupils, and stresses an appreciation of Hispanic culture. The bulletin provides…

The following exceptionalities are described: emotional disturbance, social maladjustment, mental retardation, learning disabilities, bilingualism, physical handicaps, visual impairment, disadvantagement, and giftedness. For each exceptionality, a bibliography is given and teaching methods are suggested; further information is included for some…

A formative research project sought to test viewer reactions to two pilot programs of the Carrascolendas series. A total of 360 Puerto Rican-American, Cuban-American, Mexican-American, and Anglo-American children in grades 1, 2, and 3 were observed as they watched the programs. Results indicated that there was high eye contact during the…

Results and descriptions of an exploratory study designed to develop an instrument to identify gifted Mexican-American children who would not ordinarily be identified with traditional techniques are presented. The Mexican American community was used to develop a cultural-community based definition of giftedness and to develop a measure for…

The primary objective of the project for Improving the Teaching of English as a Second Language in the High Schools was to improve the facility of English-language-handicapped students in the four language skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) so that they can make a proper adjustment to high school. Most of the students are from…

This report attempts to place in perspective the position of bilingual education in New York City. It is divided into the following sections: (1) Bilingual Education--A Historical Perspective, (2) The Puerto Rican Child in the New York City School System, (3) Bilingual Education in the New York City School System, (4) Funding for Bilingual…

The author presents her appreciation and defense of Spanish as it is spoken in New York City, especially among Puerto Ricans. She believes that the institution of bilingual education in the city's schools is an important first step in elevating Spanish to the position it deserves as a means of instruction and communication. The instructional…

This resource document presents research on first and second language acquisition, home environments, and other cultural factors that affect the cognitive or affective development of bilingual minority-group children, such as child-rearing practices, styles of learning and coping, and values and attitudes. Sections are devoted to the nature of…

This document presents statistical data with evaluative commentary on the various aspects and activities of the Clark County, Nevada, Title 1, ESEA Project. The activities evaluated include: (1) social experiences for language development, (1a) summer extension of social experiences for language development, (2) bilingual language development…

Various issues involved in the bilingual-bicultural education of Filipino Americans are addressed in this paper. Specifically, its aim is to define the role of bilingual education for the Filipino immigrant student. Educational goals are considered first. In deliberate planning, goal setting precedes assessment of the situation. The discrepancy…

The need to associate bilingual-bicultural learning environments with the development of multidimensional cognitive processes is one of the issues discussed in this paper. Bilingual education is envisioned in terms of affecting a dramatic and progressive trend in the cognitive growth of children. The principal developmental gains found in many…

The degree to which Anglo- and Mexican-American first-grade teachers can accurately decode nonverbal indicants of comprehension and noncomprehension was examined. Teachers perceived boys as understanding more than girls. Slight cultural differences were found in children's behavior, but it did not affect teachers' interpretation. (JAZ)