Examines the possibility that properties of family and kinship systems influence the status of the elderly independently of economic factors. Cross-cultural data are employed to support the hypotheses that the status of the elderly is directly related to the occurrence of unilocal (particularly patrilocal) customs of postmarital residence. (JAC)

Attempts to demonstrate that the ethnographic hypothesis is both culturally relevant and empirically grounded. It is noted that any hypothesis which lacks these attributes is inappropriate for cross cultural research. (Author/AM)

This report presents focal case studies of two working-class mothers who are building bridges between their individual homes and Parker Elementary (located in a small midwestern city) where both of their children attend school. The report delineates a study which examined how the literacy practices within the two women's households related to…

This paper discusses the controversial issue of educational resource allocation for the purpose of improving educational standards in secondary schools. The current dilemma is whether educational resources should be directed to increasing school-based resources or directed to supporting teacher training. The paper controversially argues that both…

Since the fall semester of 1998, a committee of university faculty and local school system administrators has collaborated to design an alternative teacher certification program to meet the teacher shortage needs of the Hamilton County, Tennessee, schools. Areas of identified shortages include science, mathematics, and foreign languages at the…

Policies for creating a nonracial, democratic education system in South Africa are spawning implementation issues that reflect change and resistance to change in schools. This paper reports on a multiple-year ethnographic study in two contrasting schools in QwaQwa, South Africa. Faculty, administrators, and students were observed and interviewed…

One especially productive avenue of research is the close analysis of classroom talk. In the micro-ethnographic approach used in this study, conversation is not simply a metaphor, but becomes the unit of analysis. For the study, one key element to the functioning of thinking communities is the way they are co-constructed by participants. While all…

This paper discusses some of the methodological and ethical issues that one educational researcher encountered throughout his work, focusing on the importance of understanding teachers' thinking from their perspective (an insider looking out rather than an outsider looking in). It highlights a collaborative research relationship that the…

This book contends that in the United States, manner of speech and educational background reflect cultural status, and it attempts to prove through interviews with six American women that what is described as illiteracy is in fact shutting down in response to those in positions of power. After an introduction, "Language, Literacy, and…

Review of rural social work literature of the 1970's indicates research has primarly followed the naturalistic model defined by Taylor, rather than the positivist approach favored by Fischer. Discussed are: surveys and case studies; ethnographies; participatory/action research; historical research; positivistic research; hypothesis testing…

Explores the meaning of the term "communication" vs. "mere talk" in selected instances of American speech about interpersonal life. Analyzes two case studies and transcripts of the Phil Donahue Show. Also discusses communication as ritual and ethnography as a form of communication inquiry. (PD)

Using techniques borrowed from ethnography, a participant observer spent four months in one elementary school to examine children's responses to literature as it was expressed in the classroom. (HOD)

Suggests conducting social studies needs assessment through educational ethnography rather than the typical forced-choice questionnaire. Techniques include interviewing and using the researcher as participant-observer. Teachers, administrators, students, and community members are involved. (KC)

Reexamines data from Carol Berkenkotter, Thomas Huckin and John Ackerman's landmark study of the first year in the life of graduate student Nate. Looks at Nate's work at significant junctures in his professional life. Suggests some of the limitations faced by sociolinguistic accounts of student experiences. (TB)

Explores the perspective of American suburban Midwestern high school chemistry students on the motivations for and implications of a particular form of classroom questioning behavior. Discusses the effects of the social atmosphere in high schools on scientific inquiry. (Author/KHR)