(1988). Education for Peace. Peace is one of the greatest needs in the world today. Until the causes of war are addressed, there can be no peace. Education, justice, and unity are the building blocks to peace and the necessary conditions for its existence. Achieving a peaceful world depends upon our willingness and efforts to remove those things that lead to war and to replace them with the things that lead to peace. Prejudice is the root cause of war and education is the means of overcoming it. Prejudice is the result of self-centeredness and blind imitation. The aggressive and selfish qualities of our past must be replaced by the more mature qualities of cooperation and reciprocity. Five prejudices deserve special attention and are discussed because of the untold suffering they have inflicted upon the world and because of their importance in establishing peace. They are racism, nationalism, classism, sexism, and religious prejudice. Education can help to eliminate these prejudices by teaching the truth… [PDF]
(2005). Racial Experiences Influence Us As Teachers: Implications for Gifted Education Curriculum Development and Implementation. Roeper Review, v28 n1 p30 Fall. In this article, the authors share a story that, in part, represented both of their experiences teaching in higher education. As African American educators in predominantly White universities, they both find themselves facing, dealing with, and overcoming racism. These experiences shape their curriculum. They see their personal and professional responsibility as that of preparing future and current educators (e.g., teachers, counselors, administrators) to work effectively in culturally and racially diverse settings. They challenge educators to think or rethink gifted education curriculum. They urge educators to become self-reflective professionals who see the connection–direct connection–between their personal beliefs, attitudes, and values and their work in developing and implementing curriculum. They maintain that teaching is not only a social process–it is also a personal and cultural process. Who they are as individuals, who they are as cultural and racial beings, influences…
(2006). Creating Public Policy for Minority Access to Higher Education: A Case Study. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, The University of Texas at Austin. It is a well-known fact that one way to a better life is through education. Individuals who have a college education will earn significantly higher income that those who only have a high school diploma (McGlynn, 2001). Having a college degree is not only beneficial to an individual, but a community with an educated work force can acquire significant economic and social benefits. If there is no access to higher education, individuals and the community generally cannot advance as well economically. Individuals living in South Texas did not have the opportunity to improve their socio-economic status because of the lack of public institutions of higher education in their region. The South Texas Region is comprised mostly of a Hispanic population. It has the "state's least educated population, the state's poorest facilities, and the least capacity to generate local taxes to improve educational opportunities" (Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, 1993). This study… [Direct]
(2024). Disrupting Hierarchy in Education: Students and Teachers Collaborating for Social Change. Teaching for Social Justice Series. Teachers College Press This timely book features rich examples of students and teachers, defined as learning partners, disrupting hierarchy in education by collaborating on social change projects. At the book's core is Paulo Freire's theorization of students and teachers working together toward co-liberation. Co-written by learning partners, each chapter in this collection highlights a social change project that puts Freire's theories into action. Projects span a range of academic disciplines and geographical locations from K-12, university/college, and nonformal educational contexts. Appropriate as both a textbook and a primer on collaborative social change-making, "Disrupting Hierarchy in Education" offers inspiration and models of community-engaged learning programs from across the globe. Topics include community education, public writing, using media for popular education, adolescent and youth development, climate change education, peace and justice leadership development, revolutionary… [Direct]
(1975). A Guide for Improving Public School Practices in Human Rights. The guide contains ideas, materials, and suggested practices for teachers and administrators in dealing with human rights issues. It is organized into six parts. Part I discusses the human rights concept, its importance in Western democratic society, its legal bases, racism, and school responsibility. Part II outlines the responsibilities of administrative leadership for appropriate human rights education. Topics include the role of state and educational organizations, and obstacles the school administrator must overcome. Part III deals with methods for increasing teacher competency in human rights. The chapter includes a model for workshops or study groups. Part IV presents material for the study of individual human rights, provides check lists for evaluating human rights behavior, and includes case studies. Part V deals with curriculum development. Topics include social studies and language arts improvement, the study of controversial issues, equality of the sexes in curriculum…
(1976). The Plight of Career Counseling for Blacks and Other Minorities: Issues and Concerns. Career counseling and upward mobility for Blacks and other minorities in many cases is a myth. Among the major issues and concerns of the professional in this field is still racism in its subtle forms. The slogan of equality is plagued by the long years of injustices, and many Euro-Americans even today feel very little sympathy for Blacks, Native Americans, Puerto Ricans, and others. This psychological attitude prevents the career progression of minorities in our democratic society. Factors presenting problems in counseling Blacks (adults/young adults) and other minorities are personal problems, inadequate education, job discrimination, and low motivation and aspirations. For many minorities, the system during the past l0 years has failed them with \Great Society programs\ and the \War on Poverty,\ the end result being frustration, bitterness, and despair. From l970 to the present, many programs designed for upward mobilizing minorities have yet to reach their objectives. Still…
(1989). Assessing Student Attitudes towards Cultural Diversity. ASHE Annual Meeting Paper. The findings of a survey on freshmen attitudes in four areas: interest in cultural diversity, racism, ethnocentrism, and cross-cultural beliefs and values, are presented. The 81-item survey was given to 234 students at Virginia Commonwealth University. Results indicated: most freshmen express an interest in learning more about other cultures, and a clear majority assert their willingness to live with a foreign classmate, spend vacations abroad with people of other cultures, and take at least some of their college courses in a foreign country; most freshmen feel Americans do not receive enough information about other world cultures and disagreed with the idea that it is important to teach American values to people in other countries; most freshmen agree in abstract that learning about diverse cultures is an important part of a college education and value cultural diversity in the institution; and most freshmen disagree with the notion that blacks need to conform to American cultural…
(1994). Interaction. 1993-1994. Interaction, v7 n1-4 Spr 1993-Win. This document is a compilation of four quarterly journal issues in both English and French language editions. Each of the journal issues is organized under four sections: Opinions, Practice, Focus and News. The first section explores subjects such as the importance of family resource centers, the importance of a national child care strategy to women's equality, the need for school-age child care training, and rural child care (spring issue); supervision of new graduates in the field of early childhood care and education (summer issue); single mothers and labor force participation, and children's literature (fall issue); at-home mothers as child care providers, and integrating children with developmental disabilities (winter issue). This section also contains book reviews. The second section, Practice, deals with topics such as loneliness of the day care supervisor, organizing a successful staff meeting, working with a board of directors, and good supervisor/staff relations. In…
(2002). Neighborhood Renewal: Case Studies & Conversations Focusing on Adult and Community Learning. This document explores the themes of sustainability, rural poverty, community activism, and challenging racism in the United Kingdom. The book presents 21 case studies demonstrating ways in which 18 organizations and 3 activists in the United Kingdom have worked successfully with adult learners to empower their communities, develop capacity, and encourage participation in local decision making. Selected themes highlighted in the individual case studies are as follows: (1) enabling and preparing residents for participation; (2) meeting the needs of people who are black or from minority groups; (3) women's education and learning the skills for active engagement; (4) baseline research and providing the right opportunities; (5) reaching out to communities; (6) neighborhood renewal in residential areas; (7) adult and community learning and its relationship to neighborhood renewal and the economy; and (8) seafaring and neighborhood renewal. The concluding chapter discusses the following…
(1972). The Educational Change Team: An Effort to Develop a National Facility to Generate and Implement Information and Resources Relevant to Secondary School Crisis and Change. Final Report. The final report of a research effort, interracial and multidisciplinary in nature and designed to deal with the politics of change in professional systems, outlines a) a diagnosis of American high schools and consequent change strategies, b) its goals and objectives, c) program outcomes, and d) issues facing the Educational Change Team and others engaged in controversial aspects of school change. The Team conducted basic research to discover, document and illuminate the issues of racism and control of youth which appear as the major institutional conditions leading to educational failure and political crisis in schools. It also conducted a variety of developmental programs to generate alternative models of aspects of secondary education and to design new materials and resources helpful in the change process. A series of regional consultant teams were identified and trained to provide direct assistance to school systems in crisis (Network on Educational Unrest). Further, the ECT… [PDF]
(1998). Noises in the Attic: The Legacy of Expectations in the Academy. As an outcome of the author's experiences at several American universities, and based on critical race theory as espoused by Bell (which uses narrative to bear witness to lived experiences of racism in American society), a project was undertaken to record conversations with four non-white students at a university in the southern United States. Three, unplanned, hour-long conversations were recorded to explore participants' feelings and experiences as non-whites at a predominantly white academic institution. An edited version of the videotaped narratives, entitled "Noises in the Attic: A Conversation with Ourselves," was subsequently shown at conferences and private presentations in an effort to raise the consciousness of graduate students, administrators, and professors of education. The video is divided thematically, with each section describing some aspect of the experience of being "alien" in the white academic institution. The following issues are…
(1998). Unscrambling the Semantics of Canadian Multiculturalism. This paper explores the evolution of multiculturalism in the Canadian context. Some opponents of multiculturalism in Canada detect in the ideology an undermining of a unique Canadian identity in favor of hyphenated Canadians, while proponents see the hyphenation as adding richness and color to the Canadian character. This controversy is nothing new. In Canada, as in the Untied States, citizens have been struggling with the issue of reconciling diversity into national identity. The United States and Canada have dealt with cultural and ethnic diversity in two different ways, with the "melting pot" the goal for U.S. society, and the "mosaic" the goal for Canadian. The multicultural reality of Canada is enshrined in the Charter of Rights enacted in 1982 as an official policy for the Federal government. However, much of the work to promote multiculturalism falls into the purview of education, a responsibility of the provinces, and each has been free to commit to the…
(2005). Learning to See with a Third Eye: Working to Address Inequity Effectively. Educational Horizons, v84 n1 p47-50 Fall. A few years ago the National School Reform Faculty (NSRF) revised its mission statement to include language about working to \foster educational and social equity.\ The revision makes sense to the author as a graduate student in urban education and a former Philadelphia middle school teacher, as well as in her role as a facilitator of Critical Friends Groups (CFGs) and CFG coaches. Each role has convinced her that racism and other forms of bias are the greatest barriers that everyone faces in making a positive transformation in educational experiences, especially when they involve poor, inner-city kids of color. She calls herself an \inside-outsider\ because she is an insider (an educator working in schools) and also an outsider (a guest facilitator in schools where she formerly taught). As a white teacher she is likewise a cultural outsider in schools where children of color predominate. Here, she talks about Jacqueline Jordan Irvine's \Educating Teachers for Diversity: Seeing with… [PDF] [PDF]
(1994). OERI Native American Youth at Risk Study. This report examines personal, cultural, school, and family factors that contribute to the decision of American Indian students to remain in school until graduation or to drop out. A 140-item questionnaire, the Native American School Study, was completed by 165 participants who had either graduated or dropped out of school during 1989-91. Respondents lived on reservations in Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota. In addition, 76 graduates and 37 dropouts were interviewed at length. Factors examined in the questionnaire and interview included substance abuse by self or family members, peer pressure, trouble with the law, self-esteem, teen pregnancy, family structure, socioeconomic status, parent education, academic achievement, teacher attitudes and expectations, school attendance, abuse by school personnel, tribal self-identity and pride, discrimination and racism, and bilingualism. Results indicate that respondents who dropped out of school demonstrated significant differences… [PDF]
(1968). An Analysis of Dissent. Student activists in the US attend the best colleges and universities, approximate the intellectual and ethical ideals of their professors, and have experienced the affluence and security provided by post-industrial society. Their current moralistic protest concentrates on the Vietnam war and racism in the US. They are most dissatisfied with war-related university policies and administrative response to political pressures and not with the quality or relevance of their education in itself. On a world-wide basis, student activists are searching for new values that involve an identification with the process of social and personal change and emphasize openness, mobility, fluidity, and continuous self-transformation. They also feel that existing society is hypocritical, outmoded, oppressive, unworthy of respect, in urgent need of reform, and suffering from symptoms of exhaustion. The problem in the US may be that society has exceeded its earlier goals and, lacking new goals, has become… [PDF]