Examines the individual nature of student responses and identifies common themes in student experiences during the first year of postsecondary studies. Academic demands were central concerns for students, but there was considerable variability in perceived characteristics of transition demands associated with student roles. Discusses age and sex…

A 5-year study examined the educational experiences of 69 culturally traditional American Indian students at a small midwestern university. Although all students experienced initial alienation, strength of ethnic identity enabled "transcultural" students to engage non-Indian culture without assimilation and successfully complete college. Insecure…

This article discusses how critical literacy can offer gifted students a way to research great leaders and their actions in times of crisis, enabling them to project the type of leadership that is called for in today's world. Reading activities, writing activities, and oral language activities are described. (Contains 1 reference.) (CR)

This study examined the relationship between widowed persons' baseline assessments of self-efficacy beliefs and their ratings of perceived health-related quality of life, life sanctions, and self-esteem obtained in an 18-month follow-up. Results revealed widows and widowers differ significantly with respect to self-efficacy and perceived quality…

Racial identity is important in a person's identity. The author's experiences growing up a working-class White among Blacks and working on an all-Black project are recounted. What it is to be an ally in the racial struggle is discussed, and ideas for counseling students of color are provided. (EMK)

This study tested the factor structure of coping and stress responses in Navajo adolescents and examined the reliability and validity of the Responses to Stress Questionnaire (RSQ; Connor-Smith, Compas, Wadsworth, Thomsen, & Saltzman, 2000) with this population. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed that a correlated five-factor model of…

To get some notion of how deeply scholars have been affected by Hurricane Katrina, one might look to someone like Dr. Erma Lawson, a medical sociologist from the University of North Texas. Lawson, who has coordinated the assistance efforts for the Association of Black Sociologists, has not hesitated to call on colleagues, graduate students, civil…

Sixteen preservice teachers participated in a service-learning project to build tolerance in the community as a result of their desire to do something or to make a difference after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Student reflection papers revealed an increase in student tolerance and feelings of competence after participating in the…

Background: Dissociation--a pattern of general disruption in memory and consciousness--has been found to be an important cognitive component of children's and adults' coping with severe trauma. Dissociative experiences include amnesia, identity disturbance, age regression, difficulty with concentration, and trance states. Stable individual…

This study investigated the peer victimisation and conflict resolution experiences of adolescent girls attending a single-sex school. A modified version of the Direct and Indirect Aggression Scales (DIAS, Bjorkqvist, Osterman, and Kaukiainen, 1992) and conflict resolution scales, drawn particularly from the work of Feldman and Gowen (1998), were…

Major physical illnesses usually have an impact on the psychological well-being of any individual. An illness of early onset, with necessity of frequent diagnostic and therapeutic interventions can adversely affect the emotional balance and behavioural adaptation of children and adolescents. This is applicable for congenital heart disease,…

Many parents assert that, despite the considerable and sustained stresses involved in parenting a child with a disability, their experiences have been personally transformative. Increasingly, researchers are advocating for a theoretical understanding of family life management following the diagnosis of disability in a child, with an emphasis on…

This research employed both quantitative and qualitative approaches to studying the immediate and long-term coping strategies adopted by survivors of child sexual abuse, focusing on how strategies evolve over time. Qualitative findings showed that coping with child sexual abuse is not static, but changes over time. The narratives of these…

Educational institutions have played a central role in colonizing Indigenous peoples. The colonial school system has also been a very effective tool in implementing racist theories and indoctrinating them in children (Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike) worldwide. In this paper, the author demonstrates how, despite the vast differences in actual…

Many deep-rooted problems in urban areas of the United States--including crime, poverty, and poor health--correlate with illiteracy. The statistics reported by organizations such as the National Alliance for Urban Literacy Coalitions are telling. Urban citizens who cannot read sufficiently are at a clear disadvantage in life. They are more likely…