Not available

Against the background of the lack of consensus on the definition of the concept minority and the continuing debates on minorities and their rights in education, a need exists for adequate provision of education suitable to different minorities. This study investigates the provision of education to minorities. A literature survey investigated how various countries make provision for minorities in their education systems, starting from the Constitutions and various education laws to educational practice. These countries include Belgium, Getmany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom (UK) and Italy. Regarding South Africa, an analysis of documents dealing with the provision of education to minorities was undertaken. Unstructured interviews, from a small sample of informants selected by purposeful sampling, elicited additional data to the document analysis. Data was analysed, discussed and synthesised. The major findings are: there is no international consensus on the definition of the concept minority; the concept minority does not even appear in the Constitutions of some of the countries under investigation; the South African Constitution uses the concept communities rather than minorities. However, no definition of the concept community is provided and despite reservations expressed by a key informant on group rights, generally the South African Constitution contains enough sections regarding the provision of education to minorities. Subject to certain limitations, minority groups may open their own schools and use their own language. Based on these findings, recommendations for educational provision for minorities are made. / Educational Studies / D.Ed. (Comparative Education)

This research sought to discover whether minority and economically disadvantaged students are underrepresented in gifted and honors programs. Another goal was to ascertain attitudes of students and teachers currently participating in gifted and honors programs regarding: admission criteria; adequacy of teacher preparation to meet special needs of gifted and honors students; levels of needs satisfaction of gifted and honors students; perceptions of students and teachers about program modification.

M.Ed. / This study focuses on the problems of language and pedagogy in the teaching of English to second language learners. The aim of the study firstly, was to investigate the problems confronting teachers of English when teaching a heterogeneous classroom population which has both first language and second language learners and secondly, to investigate the problems facing Black pupils who were a minority group in the heterogeneous classroom. An extensive literature review was undertaken to examine core areas of the multicultural education and second language teaching and learning which were pertinent to the problem of this study to ascertain if the problems were peculiar to South African schools. The theory framework constructed from the review concluded with the theoretical premise that the problems confronting teachers and pupils were not peculiar to South African schools. The investigation included data collection from two sources or constituents, namely the teachers of heterogeneous classrooms in a rural independent school and their Black pupils. These data were consolidated, reduced and clustered, culminating in empirical findings which were confirmed using different methods and sources.The main emergent patterns indicated that the second language learners had not mastered reading skills, were not capable of expressing themselves in formal writing and encountered difficulty in translating from their vernacular to English. This confirmed that teachers of English in these heterogeneous classes were enountering enormous difficulty in harnessing the full potential of the second language learners.

No description available.

No description available.

The purpose of this project was to design a year long course curriculum in educational development. The curriculum will serve the educational needs of many Mexican-American high school students who academically need it.

This dissertation examined whether there had been any changes in local practices and policies with respect to the identification and placement of English language learners in special education programs and services since the enactment of Proposition 227, and if so, what they were. This study was comprised of an examination of statewide general and special education aggregated student enrollment data, school years 1996-1997 through 1999- 2000, at state and local education agency (LEA) levels and interviews with selected LEA special education administrators. The findings revealed that (1) the proportion of English language learners who were identified and placed in special education programs and services changed since Proposition 227 passed; however, there were no specific changes identified in local practices and policies, (2) district special education administrators believed that this law had no affect on the identification or assessment processes of special education programs, (3), they also believed that proposition 227 had no effect on identification and placement of English language learners in general education or special education programs, and (4) lack of qualified staff, inadequacy of instructional materials, staff training and misconception of the law in general were identified as LEAs primary challenges post- Proposition 227.

Fifty years after Brown v. Board of Education, there remain large gaps in academic achievement between children of color and White students (Darling-Hammond, 2007). It is estimated that by 2050, the population of the United States will increase by 50%; 90% of which will be accounted for by minorities (Vanneman, Hamilton, Anderson, & Rahman, 2009). In less than 50 years, our citizenry will be comprised of "groups that are over represented among low achievers, and under represented among high achievers" (Ferguson, 2005, p. 4). Nationwide, districts are addressing the issue of the achievement gap through implementing formal equity professional development opportunities at their school sites. While formal equity training leaves participants transformed, they leave with little to no support in how to change their practice in order to teach more equitably. Therefore, based on Bridges' and Hallinger's (1995) problem based learning approach, the handbook, Keeping Equity in Mind, was developed, field tested and revised using Borg and Gall's (2003) research and development cycle. The purpose of this qualitative study was to determine the usefulness of the handbook, Keeping Equity in Mind, in supporting teacher leaders in continued equity work in their classrooms once formal equity training had ended at their school sites. Participants implemented the strategies presented in the handbook in order to determine its usefulness in supporting teacher leaders in continued equity work in their classrooms. The findings of this study determined Keeping Equity in Mind is a useful tool for teachers attempting to close the achievement gap in their classrooms and the administrators who support them.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of implementing a school counselor-led intervention, a culturally translated version of the Student Success Skills (SSS) program, on student academic achievement in Hispanic students. The research question investigated in this study was: Does Hispanic student participation in the culturally translated Student Success Skills classroom guidance program increase academic achievement as measured by state mandated standardized reading and math tests? Based on the fact that Hispanic students are at a very high risk of academic failure, there is an urgent need to address the lack of academic success. The cultural translation of the Student Success Skills (SSS) program focuses on student outcomes and helps to provide a link between school counselors and improved outcomes for Hispanic students.The sample for this study included 103 treatment and 98 comparison fourth and fifth grade students from three schools in South Florida. Participating students were selected from all Hispanic students at four schools in South Florida, by selecting the students who spoke mainly Spanish at home and came from Hispanic backgrounds. Academic achievement was measured using a standardized, objective, state-wide assessment instrument, the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT). The procedure used to analyze the results for this study was a Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA). The statistical analysis showed that the treatment group scored significantly higher than the comparison group in reading. There was not a significant difference in math for the treatment group. When fidelity of treatment was investigated a post hoc analysis found that groups with full implementation of the program scored significantly higher in math and in reading than the comparison group. / The results of this study show that a cultural translation of the Student Success Skills program is helpful for the fourth and fifth grade Hispanic students improving achievement in reading. / by Ana Maria Leon. / Vita. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2009. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2009. Mode of access: World Wide Web.