The increasing linguistic and cultural diversity of U.S. public schools requires teachers to be more sensitive to how symbols and figures of speech are used to maintain an effective cross-cultural communication. The purpose of this paper is to address and discuss the role of sociocultural factors that shape the insights and perspectives of diverse…

Second language tests claiming to assess communicative competence are widespread, despite the vague nature of the construct. Sociolinguistic or intercultural competence is gradually gaining attention in the classroom, but testing has not kept pace, partly because of difficulty in defining the related skills. An opinion is that speech act theory…

Social cognitive theory suggests that individuals' beliefs about their efficacy in specific contexts, such as school, influence their motivation in those settings. The relationship between various sociocultural factors and the development of adolescents' perceived academic self-efficacy are investigated in this paper. Participants (N=202), drawn…

The move toward inclusive education potentially threatens the very heart of the Deaf cultural community, and may be an example of "epistemic violence" where the dominant ideology of equality of access to educational resources actually serves to reproduce structured inequalities. Deaf education has been moving away from a view of deafness as a…

The booklet is part of a grade 10-12 social studies series produced for bilingual education. The series consists of six major thematic modules, with four to five booklets in each. The interdisciplinary modules are based on major ideas and designed to help students understand some major human problems and make sound, responsive decisions to improve…

This theme issue of the Bernard van Leer Foundation newsletter focuses on the problem of teenage pregnancy and teenage parenthood in developing and developed nations, and examines the problems that teenage mothers face in different societies. It explores societal norms and values related to teenage parenting; the effects of teenage parents on…

This overview presents a profile of the Hispanic American community in five key areas: demographics, education, poverty, health, and civil rights. The demographic overview considers population composition and location, population growth, language acquisition, family status, and employment. Educational status and trends, underrepresentation in…

Kentucky has a long history of educational problems and of reform efforts that failed because of state neglect. These problems, which deeply affect rural economic development and are closely tied to patterns of unequal development, have become more troublesome as world markets have changed. The roots of these problems are planted in the state's…

This volume presents 13 essays on urban problems in the United States, particularly in Los Angeles (California) following the 1992 riots, and policy options for the future. Part 1 addresses policies of the past three decades; Part 2 looks at children, youth, and families; Part 3 discusses crime and criminal justice; and Part 4 examines public…

This introduction to sociolinguistics surveys the various ways that language can be studied as a social phenomenon, examining known relationships between language variation and large-scale social factors and showing how this variation runs along "fault lines in social structure," such as divisions between social classes, the sexes, and different…

Designed to open debate about the future of Quebec's community college system, Colleges of General and Professional Education (CEGEP), this report offers projections about the characteristics of Quebec society in the year 2000, explores the mission of the community college system, and considers issues related to the administration of the CEGEP.…

This conference paper discusses the current situation of racial differences in housing in the Chicago (Illinois) area with regard to the ramifications of the "Miliken v. Bradley" (1974) case. The Miliken case closed the door on busing and school desegregation plans crossing school district lines and in many cases, crossing municipal…

Projecting the future for California community colleges involves projecting the future for the state and for the nation in general. According to population projections, the absolute number of 18-year-olds in the U.S. will rise to 4 million in 2004 up from 3.3 million in 1992. The tuition differential between California's community colleges and the…

This background paper provides updated information on the Washington State Higher Education Coordinating Board's comprehensive master plan for improving postsecondary enrollment. The plan stresses (1) increased enrollment levels at the four-year institutions to reach full capacity by 2005; (2) increased community college enrollments to reflect…

A study of Hmong adult immigrants in a Hmong literacy class investigated four aspects of their learning behaviors: specific behaviors manifested in the literacy classroom; overt learning strategies used for literacy learning; major motivations; and specific uses for Hmong literacy skills. Data were gathered through observation, interviews,…