Program design in nonformal education must take into account the cultural context in which it exists. In developing countries, it can neither reject all values of Western civilization (an impossible task), nor can it embrace Western values without regard to native cultures. The challenge, especially in literacy education, is to become culturally…

This paper presents a conceptual overview of issues relating to the education of the disadvantaged. Problems of identification and definition of the disadvantaged are discussed in terms of compensatory education. Concepts regarding "disadvantage" that underlie many of the compensatory instructional intervention programs are described, as…

Sojourners, people who stay for a period of time in countries of which they are not natives, sometimes may encounter communication situations for which they are not prepared. A program seems necessary whereby people living in nonfamiliar cultures can learn to interpret cultural idiosyncrasies inherent in communication patterns and to function as…

This paper describes the Chicagoland Deaf Parent to Hearing Parent Project, an initiative intended to bridge the cultural gaps between the deaf community and the hearing parents and school personnel who are nurturing and educating children who are deaf. Through a series of workshops that take place in schools and community centers, parents who are…

This paper describes a culturally competent inservice training program for home visit personnel. The program is designed to help home visit personnel become more aware of their own beliefs and values, and develop an appreciation and respect for others' differences. The program is divided into three sections. Each section offers various activities…

West Chester University (Pennsylvania) set up a project designed to meet the seemingly diverse yet very similar needs of teacher education students and inner city children. Prospective teachers must begin to value and effectively serve more diverse populations, and the relationship between campus and the real world needs to be strengthened.…

On the basis of a belief in the legitimacy of alternative learning styles, the importance of intercultural broadening, and the global nature of international education, the Department of Secondary Education and Foundations at Eastern Illinois University developed a new course, called "Diversity of Schools and Societies." Course…