The California State Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights held an open meeting in east Los Angeles in June 1967, to collect information about civil rights problems in the Mexican American community. The meeting dealt particularly with problems in education. Specific problems presented by parents, students, and community…

Federal census district data for 1974 are used to produce a global index showing the relative degree to which each of the census districts of the island of Montreal is disadvantaged. The internal dynamics and characteristics peculiar to the different local communities within are not specified and necessitate additional data sources such as health,…

Four position papers on language education for the disadvantaged serve as the basis for the second stage of a three-stage seminar and underscore the need for a new look at the teaching of English, its function, and its recorded contribution to the culture. Harold B. Allen's paper, "What English Teachers Should Know About Their Language," is…

These two booklets cover research in reading from 1968 through 1971. The first half of the first booklet covers the years 1968-1970 and includes summaries of general trends in reading, surveys, and research on specific dyslexia, the initial teaching alphabet and the beginning stages of learning to read, and linguistics and reading. The second…

This book reports the experiential deprivation and intellectual retardation of children from the Creche, a Lebanese social agency devoted to the care of foundlings from birth to 6 years. Begun in 1955, this study explored the role of environment, specifically, the effects of adoption, on IQ. Results showed that the mean IQ for both boys and girls…

Access to early childhood education and social exclusion are issues currently of importance for policy and program development in Europe. This paper explores links between early education access and social exclusion in regard to profound and rapid changes in Europe that are forcing families to find new ways to remain integrated within their…

At this time, the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) is commemorating its 50th anniversary, under the slogan "children first." This annual UNICEF report reviews the organization's activities during 1995. An introduction by the executive director states that the report will give readers a sense of what UNICEF is doing with partners to…

Suggests that intimate, proximal situations within the genetic environment, more than heredity, determine child development and achievement. Stresses the need to compensate for skill deficiencies among children from disadvantaged environments through early training for language acquisition and personality development. Describes a program in Iran…

Discusses the theory and practice of rural socioeconomic surveys in developing nations. Highlights the close links between choice of research topic, field area and research methods, and the ethics of field research. Offers a personal commentary on some practical problems concerning field research. (MJP)

Low-income Hispanic elementary students were surveyed to determine tobacco use patterns and sociobehavioral correlates. Tobacco experimentation rates increased by age, with boys more prone to starting than girls. Being offered cigarettes was the strongest environmental indicator of tobacco use, followed by having adult smokers at home, and having…

Summarizes the responses of 38 Canadian principals and inner-city teachers reflecting on their experiences with students exhibiting resiliency. Resiliency is defined as overcoming social and personal disadvantages often through protective or compensatory strategies. Identifies a broad range of compensatory factors including human relationships,…

Background: Disadvantaged communities are increasingly the target for interventions. Sure Start was launched in England in 1999 to tackle child poverty and improve child and family services, with Sure Start Local Programmes (SSLPs) targeted at relatively small areas of marked deprivation. However, they are located in a range of different types of…

This final report describes the activities of Project Dakota Outreach, an early education program for children with disabilities designed to assist families living in Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Empowerment and Enterprise Zones in Texas, New York, and Minnesota. The major feature of the model is power-balancing, a concept…

Extreme environments, such as polar regions or space crafts, provide an analogue for speculations concerning the needs of, educational provisions for, and environmental impacts on ghetto youth in kindergarten through the third grade. This discussion first centers on the common qualities of an extreme environment (whether exotic or mundane): forced…

This study examines effectiveness of preschool and family intervention in prevention of cultural-familial retardation. It attempts to resolve part of the complex of influences on early intellectual development in those born into seriously disadvantaged environments that could account for the increased risk for certain children to be identified as…