Much of the research that focuses on the academic success of Black youth in urban science education does not consider the provision of tools that educators can use in becoming more effective. This article discusses this issue, and introduces an approach to pedagogy--reality pedagogy--which includes five distinct types of practices (the 5 C's)…

Past studies have shown positive correlations between the arts and academic achievement when the arts were integrated into the literature curriculum. Other studies have shown positive associations between the arts and other areas of the curriculum, such as mathematics and science. Considering the Theory of Change, which employs understandings in…

Workshop pedagogy is a staple of writing classrooms at all levels. However, little research has explored the pedagogical moves that can address longstanding critiques of writing workshop, nor the sorts of rhetorical challenges that teachers and students in secondary classrooms can tackle through workshops. This article documents and analyzes the…

The author discusses the boarding school model as a schooling alternative to improve life chances for disadvantaged youth, particularly African American youth, by positively meeting their social and educational needs. Bourdieu, Coleman, and other social scientists purported that these needs can be better met by exposing students to social and…

This article extends upon Susan Dion's theory of the "perfect stranger" by exploring how this position is articulated and embodied by white teachers (N?=?67) involved in urban Indigenous education reform. On the lookout for deconstruction, we think with Derrida around the interrelated self/other and familiar/strange binaries that uphold…

To address the issue of pre-service teachers being under-prepared for work in multicultural and impoverished environments in America's urban schools, teacher education programs have taken steps to improve diversity-oriented curricula and provide relevant fieldwork experience. However, research indicates that a large proportion of teacher…

This case provides emerging school administrators the opportunity to learn about the school system in Mexico. The case relates to a successful principal in her new school assignment. Martha Miramontes is an experienced and successful principal who quickly identified a number of challenges in her new campus. Even though each problem can be solved…

Numerous studies show the effectiveness of culturally responsive teaching with urban students of color. Yet few articulate the dynamics of how whiteness impacts the delivery of culturally responsive teaching. Using critical "whiteness" studies, critical race theory, and Black feminist concepts, this article interrogates the effectiveness…

In April of 2010, the author was approached to write a proposal that would provide grant money for a summer program to take place at the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University's Developmental Research School (FAMU DRS). The FAMU DRS functions as a normal K-12 school; however, it is administered by the Florida A&M University College of…

A university near a major city in Georgia and a large, urban school district established a Professional Development School (PDS) in which the majority of junior and senior-level preservice teacher coursework and fieldwork took place at seven urban, high-needs public schools. The purpose of this study was to provide preliminary feedback to the…

Recent research suggests a major crisis exists affecting urban children's educational opportunities. This study focuses on the use of research-based strategies to determine whether, and to what extent, transformative leadership influences the development of quality education that overcomes educational inequity in the lives of students who attend…

Collaboration (GDMC), an informal education program in 3D computer modeling and 2D interactive game design serving primarily African American youth aged 7 to 19 years in the Washington, D.C. metro area, transformed from a program designed and taught by adults to one designed and taught by youth. In Year 1, 8% of youth participants held a…

While urban settlements have been an integral part of human life for millennia, cities today are arguably at the heart of survival on, and of, this planet. More than half of the world's population now lives in cities, and urban centers present some of the greatest social and environmental challenges of their time. Though students may study in or…

This article contributes to research on contextual influences on technology integration in urban mathematics classrooms through an investigation of five middle-grade teachers' participation in a laptop program. Drawing on activity theory, findings illuminate teachers' dilemmas and coping strategies in their efforts to integrate technology.…

Consistent with a sociocritical frame and the analytic tools of hybridity theory, this article explicates how urban fifth-grade children made language hybrids using rap and poetry to participate in classroom literacy. Ethnographic data from a yearlong study illustrate two key findings. First, standards-based and canon-driven writing models…