Showing papers on "Disadvantaged published in 1995"

Malign Neglect: Race, Crime, and Punishment in America

Abstract: Despite the perennial claims of politicians that our courts are coddling hardened criminals, the fact is that America already sends a higher proportion of its citizens to prison-and for longer terms-than any other western nation. To quote the Canadian House of Commons's Committee on Justice, "If locking up those who violate the law contributed to safer societies, then the United States should be the safest country in the world." Yet despite well-documented and mounting evidence that increased penalties alone cannot reduce crime, the Reagan and Bush administrations repeatedly lobbied for tougher mandatory sentences and more prisons. Although black crime rates have been stable for twenty years, the number and percentages of blacks in jail and prison have skyrocketed since Ronald Reagan took office. The trend continues with President Clinton, who recently called for "three strikes you're out" legislation dictating mandatory life sentences for third felony convictions. In Malign Neglect, Michael Tonry addresses these paradoxes with passion and lucidity. Drawing on a vast compendium of the latest statistical, legal and social science research, he takes on the explosive issues of race, crime and punishment. As unconventional as he is committed, Tonry confronts uncomfortable truths head-on. On the one hand, he is outraged by politicians' talk of Willy Horton and Welfare Queens. The texts may be crime and welfare, Tonry writes, but the subtext is race. While he recognizes that the disadvantaged have no license to attack, rape or steal, and that the absolution of disadvantaged offenders would require a cynical acceptance of the suffering of victims, he argues powerfully that crime control policies can be recast so that, without diminishing public safety, they do less harm to disadvantaged black Americans. Tonry presents devastating evidence that our current policies are decimating black communities, and impeding the movement of disadvantaged black Americans into the social and economic mainstream of modern America. A blistering attack on worn-out misconceptions about race, poverty, crime and punishment and a fearless prescription for change, Malign Neglect is an indispensable briefing paper on a topic which goes to the heart and soul of the nation.

Schools as Communities, Poverty Levels of Student Populations, and Students’ Attitudes, Motives, and Performance: A Multilevel Analysis

Abstract: Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine relationships between students’ sense of school community, poverty level, and student attitudes, motives, beliefs, and behavior among a diverse sample of 24 elementary schools. Major findings were that: (a) within schools, individual students’ sense of school community was significantly associated with almost all of the student outcome measures, (b) Between schools, school-level community and poverty were both significantly related to many of the student outcomes (the former positively, the latter negatively), (c) Most of the relationships between school community and student measures held for schools at different poverty levels, (d) Several significant interactions between school community and poverty level indicated that some of the strongest positive effects of school community occurred among schools with the most disadvantaged student populations.

Social Capital and Successful Development among At-Risk Youth

Abstract: Social scientists have been slow to appreciate the great diversity among the poor. Until quite recently, researchers have devoted more attention to examining patterns of persistent poverty than to understanding how individuals and families maneuver their way out of economic disadvantage (for exceptions, see Clark, 1983; Kellam, Ensminger, & Turner, 1977; Williams Kornblum, 1985). Evidence about mobility patterns among the poor provides a perfect analogy to the half-empty/half-full glass. Of individuals who begin life in poverty, at least as many manage to improve their circumstances as remain persistently impoverished (Duncan, Hill, & Hoffman, 1988). Yet relatively little is known about how and why some of the disadvantaged eventually escape while others remain entrapped in poverty. As researchers from different disciplines have begun to tackle this problem, they have, not surprisingly, each featured explanations congenial to their distinctive ways of looking at the world. Economists stress the importance of financial and human capital, highlighting how individuals invest time and money to improve their long-term position in the labor force (Palmer, Smeeding, & Torrey, 1988). Psychologists point out the importance of individual traits such as competence and self-efficacy, both of which are linked to upward mobility (Bandura, 1989; Garmezy, 1985; Rutter & Madge, 1976; Werner & Smith, 1982). Sociologists, for their part, underscore the importance of institutional resources and social networks in the communities where poor people reside (Granovetter, 1973; Wellman 8t Wortley, 1990). Of course, in reality these different sorts of mechanisms often operate in tandem. Perhaps the most interesting question, then, is how these various sources of differentiation among the poor are packaged together. Answering the question of how id why certain types of individuals locate and use resources that are often in short supply within their local environments to improve their own prospects, or the long-term prospects of their children, involves integrating the different disciplinary perspectives. This article draws on data from a longitudinal study of teenage mothers and their children to investigate sources of differentiation on several indicators of young adult success. In particular, we explore the role of social capital, a concept developed by Coleman (1988) that to some extent bridges the disciplinary gaps described above. Our goal is to determine whether successful outcomes among our sample of disadvantaged youth are related to measures of both family-based and community-based social capital. SOCIAL CAPITAL AND YOUTH DEVELOPMENT The process of investment in the economic, psychological, and social resources believed to be associated with upward mobility begins early in life and typically takes place within the family. Parents, in addition to utilizing their financial resources, cultivate and promote individual competencies in their children; with varying degrees of effectiveness, these same parents seek opportunities in the environment and attempt to shelter their children from dangers. Thus, the family represents a point of common interest to social scientists seeking to understand why and how certain children are able to escape the powerful disadvantage of growing up poor. Coleman (1988) employed the term social capital to designate the complex and variegated social mechanisms that parents garner to advance their children's chances of success. Coleman's description of social capital is quite broad and overlaps with some of the specific theoretical constructs and processes identified by developmental psychologists attempting to explain the successful adaptation of children at risk of long-term disadvantage (see, e.g., Garmezy & Rutter, 1983). Coleman's ideas also echo the approach to studying development formulated by Bronfenbrenner and his students (e.g., Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Garbarino, 1992; Steinberg, Dornbusch, & Brown, 1992). …

Effects of Different Instructional Approaches on Young Children's Achievement and Motivation

Abstract: Children in child-centered preschools and kindergartens were compared to children in didactic, highly academic programs in terms of their basic skills achievement and a set of motivation variables. The study included 227 poor, minority, and middle-class children between the ages of 4 and 6 years. Children in didactic programs that stressed basic skills had significantly higher scores on a letters/reading achievement test but not on a numbers achievement test. Being enrolled in a didactic early childhood education program was associated with relatively negative outcomes on most of the motivation measures. Compared to children in child-centered programs, children in didactic programs rated their abilities significantly lower, had lower expectations for success on academic tasks, showed more dependency on adults for permission and approval, evidenced less pride in their accomplishments, and claimed to worry more about school. Program effects were the same for economically disadvantaged and middle-class children, and for preschoolers and kindergartners.

Star teachers of children in poverty

Abstract: Star Teachers of Children in Poverty, by Martin Haberman. West Lafayette, IN: Kappa Delta Pi,1995. 100 pp. $15.00, paper. Reviewed by Frances Y. Lowden, Indiana State University. Throughout this book, Martin Haberman, himself a renowned scholar, teacher, and policymaker, unabashedly supports a concept he calls "star teachers." Haberman states that 5% to So/a of teachers in the U.S. meet the following "star" criteria: (a) their students score higher on standardized tests; (b) parents, children, and school principals rate them highly; (c) other teachers regard them as outstanding; (d) school district administrators consider them successful; (e) cooperating universities regard them as superior; and (f) they evaluate themselves as outstanding teachers. Star teachers are not deterred by the professional and emotional demands placed upon them by students, parents, and administrators; rather, they share Haberman's philosophy that "life's greatest gift is the opportunity to throw oneself into a job that puts meaning into the lives of other people" (p. xii). Having such teachers in the lives of poor urban children, he maintains, is "a matter of life and death" (p. 1). Haberman's star teachers personify warmth, fairness, and discipline. They understand that their role is to teach; love and compassion are not enough. Teachers Haberman designates as failures blame academic underachievement on students' backgrounds, home context, and perceived personal shortcomings rather than recognizing their responsibility to provide a safe, risk-free environment for students to learn. Haberman also contends that pejorative terms such as "culturally deprived," "academically disadvantaged," "difficult to serve," "hard to reach," "alienated," and a host of others-including the currently popular "at risk"-have hampered teachers' attempts to reach and teach all children. According to Haberman, these terms are labels used for the same purpose: to attribute the causes of low achievement and school failure to the child and family, but in a manner that implies the labeler is not prejudiced and is sincerely trying to help. As he steadfastly maintains, there is no way to provide an equitable education to a child one perceives and labels as basically inadequate. The book is divided into four chapters, the first of which, "What Star Teachers Don't Do," discusses issues of parent bashing, discipline, homework, assessment, reinforcements, and time-on-task. Time-on-task, in Haberman s view, is not a separate and discrete function but is best measured through engagement in collaborative projects where time spent is based on students' involvement and interest. …

Coping with discrimination: How disadvantaged group members perceive the discrimination that confronts them.

Abstract: Two experiments examined how disadvantaged group members perceive the discrimination that confronts them. Women reacted to negative feedback after receiving information about the probability that they had been discriminated against. In both experiments, attribution to discrimination was a function of situational ambiguity. When discrimination was certain, participants attributed their failure to discrimination. When discrimination was ambiguous, however, participants minimized discrimination and attributed their failure to themselves. The second experiment investigated the role of perceived control in the minimization of personal discrimination. Results indicated that disadvantaged group members were reluctant to blame their performance on discrimination because they were placing control for their outcomes in the hands of others rather than their own

The "Underclass" Debate: Views from History.

Abstract: Do ominous reports of an emerging "underclass" reveal an unprecedented crisis in American society? Or are social commentators simply rediscovering the tragedy of recurring urban poverty, as they seem to do every few decades? Although social scientists and members of the public make frequent assumptions about these questions, they have little information about the crucial differences between past and present. By providing a badly needed historical context, these essays reframe today's "underclass" debate. Realizing that labels of "social pathology" echo fruitless distinctions between the "deserving" and "undeserving" poor, the contributors focus not on individual and family behavior but on a complex set of processes that have been at work over a long period, degrading the inner cities and, inevitably, the nation as a whole. How do individuals among the urban poor manage to survive? How have they created a dissident "infrapolitics?" How have social relations within the urban ghettos changed? What has been the effect of industrial restructuring on poverty? Besides exploring these questions, the contributors discuss the influence of African traditions on the family patterns of African Americans, the origins of institutions that serve the urban poor, the reasons for the crisis in urban education, the achievements and limits of the War on Poverty, and the role of income transfers, earnings, and the contributions of family members in overcoming poverty. The message of the essays is clear: Americans will flourish or fail together.

Choosing Unsafe Sex: AIDS-Risk Denial Among Disadvantaged Women

Abstract: Choosing Unsafe Sex focuses on the ways in which condom refusal and beliefs regarding HIV testing reflect women's hopes for their relationships and their desires to preserve status and self-esteem. Many of the inner-city women who participated in Dr. Sobo's research were seriously involved with one man, and they had heavy emotional and social investments in believing or maintaining that their partners were faithful to them. Uninvolved women had similarly heavy investments in their abilities to identify or choose potential partners who were HIV-negative. Women did not see themselves as being at risk for HIV infection, and so they saw no need for condoms. But they did recommend that other women, whom they saw as quite likely to be involved with sexually unfaithful men, use them.

Learning and Change in the Adult Years: A Developmental Perspective

Abstract: Does the capacity to learn increase or decrease over time? How does the sense of self and identity change over the adult years? What are the educational implications of that change? And how can teachers acknowledge the experience their adult students bring to the classroom?In this book, Mark C. Tennant and Philip Pogson draw on the field of developmental psychology to provide new insights into the critical connections between experience and learning in all areas of adult education and training. Integrating findings from both adult developmental psychology and adult teaching and learning, the authors examine how experience generates developmental change. They look at how the relationship between self and others changes across the lifespan and, in turn, affects the teacher-learner relationship. And they describe the processes that promote separateness, indepAndence, interdepAndence, and autonomy in adult learners." Learning and Change in the Adult Years" thoroughly explores the role of development in adult learning, the investment of 'self' in learning, and the link between social development and personal development to give teachers and trainers both the concepts and tools for promoting autonomy and self-direction in learners. Mark Tennant is dean of faculty and professor of adult education in the Faculty of Education, University of Technology, Sydney. He has published numerous articles in international journals on the theme of lifespan development and learning. His book "Psychology and Adult Learning" won the 1990 Cyril Houle Award for outstanding literature in adult education. Philip Pogson is staff development manager at the University of Sydney, Australia. He has held a number of positions in education and training at both the university level and in vocational training for the long term disadvantaged unemployed.

Forced Justice: School Desegregation and the Law

Abstract: School desegregation and "forced" busing first brought people to the barricades during the 1960s and 1970s, and the idea continues to spark controversy today whenever it is proposed. A quiet rage smolders in hundreds of public school systems, where court- ordered busing plans have been in place for over twenty years. Intended to remedy the social and educational disadvantages of minorities, desegregation policy has not produced any appreciable educational gains, while its political and social costs have been considerable. Now, on the fortieth anniversary of the Supreme Court's epic decision, Brown v. Board of Education, the legal and social justifications for school desegregation are ripe for reexamination. In Forced Justice, David J. Armor explores the benefits and drawbacks of voluntary and involuntary desegregation plans, especially those in communities with "magnet" schools. He finds that voluntary plans, which let parents decide which school program is best for their children, are just as effective in attaining long-term desegregation as mandatory busing, and that these plans generate far greater community support. Armor concludes by proposing a new policy of "equity" choice, which draws upon the best features of both the desegregation and choice movements. This policy promises both improved desegregation and greater educational choices for all, especially for the disadvantaged minority children in urban systems who now have the fewest educational choices. The debate over desegregation policy and its many consequences needs to move beyond academic journals and courtrooms to a larger audience. In addition to educators and policymakers, Forced Justice will be an important book for social scientists, attorneys and specialists in civil rights issues, and all persons concerned about the state of public education.

When Are Children from Large Families Disadvantaged? Evidence from Cross-National Analyses

Abstract: Using data from Demographic and Health Surveys for 16 less developed countries, this paper examines the impact of family size on children's physical growth. To explore the conditions under which children in large families are disadvantaged compared with those from smaller families, results from country-specific regressions of children's height-for-age on family size are interpreted in light of a variety of socio-economic indicators. This exercise suggests that the effect of family size on children's well-being depends on the extent to which parents – rather than the extended family or state – bear the cost of rearing children, and on the level of economic development. With the emphasis on privatization and reduction in state support for food, health care, and education, parents are becoming increasingly responsible for the welfare of their children. If this trend is accompanied by increasing nuclearization of the family, there will be very few sources of support left for large families. Thus, the burden o...

What mothers say about why poor children fall behind on immunizations. A summary of focus groups in North Carolina.

Abstract: Objectives: To develop a more thorough understanding of the factors that impede poor parents' utilization of health care services for their children and to refine interventions to improve immunization rates. Methods: We conducted focus group sessions with mothers whose children received care at the health departments in five North Carolina counties. Mothers were uninsured or were receiving Medicaid. A total of 50 women participated; group size varied from three to seven mothers. Results: Socially disadvantaged mothers faced barriers at multiple points in the process of obtaining preventive care for their children. Organizational barriers, such as a lack of flexibility in scheduling and long waiting times, were exacerbated by personal barriers, such as a lack of reliable transportation, chaotic home environments, and employment conflicts. Lack of knowledge regarding the timing of childhood immunizations and misperceptions about the safety of immunizations were also important obstacles. Mothers made several suggestions, such as changes in scheduling, greater assistance with transportation, improved waiting facilities, and increased health education. Conclusions: Our study suggests that even with improved financing of well-child care, many important barriers to adequate immunization will remain. Many of the changes that mothers in our focus groups advocated are not related to insurance coverage and would be simple and inexpensive to implement. To help with these changes, we developed a checklist for use by health departments to determine which organizational barriers exist at their facility and suggest strategies to overcome the problems. Organizational, personal, and attitudinal barriers pose serious problems for socioeconomically disadvantaged families. To improve vaccination rates for children, new personnel and programs are probably less important than careful strategies to maximize exisiting resources. (Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 1995;149:1070-1075)

Psychosocial Development and Black Male Masculinity: Implications for Counseling Economically Disadvantaged African American Male Adolescents

Abstract: Few articles exist on issues related to counseling African American male adolescents. This article examines developmental and sex role factors and their importance for counseling interventions and the counselor-client relationship. Implications are drawn for counselors desiring to improve their abilities to assist this population.

Mortgaging the Earth: The World Bank, Environmental Impoverishment and the Crisis of Development

Abstract: Mortgaging the Earth: The World Bank, Environmental Impoverishment and the Crisis of Development, Bruce Rich. Boston: Beacon Press, 1994. Pp. 376. $29.00 (hardcover). I. INTRODUCTION Bruce Rich's critique of the World Bank's development policies, Mortgaging the Earth: The World Bank, Environmental Impoverishment, and the Crisis of Development,l is unabashed advocacy. Therein lies its beauty and its flaws. The beauty is the wrenching emotion evident in the descriptions of disadvantaged people's lives ravaged in the name of development sponsored by a monolithic, secretive, megabureaucracy answerable only to itself. The flaw is that this emotion is too often worn on the author's sleeve and draped in hyperbole. As a result, the underlying merit of the author's message is suspect at times. Rich repeatedly castigates the World Bank, its goals, and procedures through the tool of specific extreme examples culled largely from the community of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)2 and selected documents leaked from the Bank. This somewhat incestuous production of information coupled with his advocate tone chills the reception of his message by those of us who seek comfort in a more analytic discourse. The author, an attorney for the Environmental Defense Fund who has devoted a substantial part of his life to problems associated with the World Bank, has produced a substantial work that has been deservedly acclaimed by his fellow believers in the inherent evil of the Bank and its methods. However, it leaves those of us who enjoy being immersed in facts and "undigested" information hungry for more raw facts from reliable sources so that we may judge the author's statements, conclusions, and proposed solutions for ourselves. The author's message of long-term systemic failures in World Bank development activity is too important to be ignored. That the World Bank has become more of a problem than a cure is independently corroborated in another work, Perpetuating Poverty, published by the more conservative Cato Institute.3 The Bank itself recognizes that there have been problems, at least with regard to the Bank's execution of its environmental responsibilities in the past.4 Also, the Bank's large bureaucracy, cloaked in secrecy, isjust the type of organizational structure-like the Department of Energy's nuclear weapons program from its inception through the 1980s-that tends to fixate on the goal of accomplishing a project and relegates all other concerns, including people and the environment, to no better than ancillary consideration. In sum, the Bank has been the type of organization that makes Rich's allegations all the more believable. When Rich's concerns are echoed by a think tank like the Cato institute,5 the Bank's leaders also admit to problems, and the organization is all but impenetrable to outside scrutiny, his arguments must be recognized as being-if not unbiased-at least on the right track. Rich's bias in assessing the World Bank's problems evidently the product of years of frustration in dealing with the imperious bank, may be distracting, but that is not to say he is misguided. The Bank may be its own worst enemy in countering Rich's criticisms. The World Bank's External Affairs Department issued a three-page rebuttal to Rich's book in March 1994.6 It chastises Rich's methodology, alleges factual errors, and accuses Rich of a northern hemisphere elitist perspective. It goes on to claim credit implicitly for environmental and social improvement in developing countries over the last twenty-five years.7 It also pledges the World Bank to a commitment to improve the lot of disadvantaged peoples.8 The tone of the rebuttal and its lack of verifiable substance are more reminiscent of the negative political advertisements in the 1994 election than a rigorous substantive debate on the merits of Rich's claims. In sum, "Thou dost protest too much." There is another reason why Rich's work demands attention: the new Global Environment Facility (GEF). …

Desegregating Gifted Education: A Need Unmet

Abstract: Few educators would disagree that the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas decision represents the most significant U.S. Supreme Court ruling on equal educational opportunity. Indeed, as Russo, Ford, and Harris (1993) maintain, it is the very cornerstone of all subsequent legal developments ensuring the rights of disenfranchised groups in the past 40 years. In the absence of any specific controlling Supreme Court precedent or mandatory federal legislation entitlements, however, one can only extrapolate the implications of Brown for gifted education. Abundant data suggest that gifted programs are the most segregated educational programs in this nation, and that concerted efforts must be made to ensure that minority students, economically disadvantaged students, underachievers, and other nontraditional students receive the education to which they are entitled. Recent years have seen increased attention and efforts devoted to identifying and placing minority students in gifted education programs. This response reflects an insistence in the professional and scholarly literature that minority children, particularly African American children, are severely underrepresented in gifted programs (Alamprese & Erlanger, 1988; Ford & Harris, 1991; Richert, 1987; U.S. Department of Education, 1993), but overrepresented or overenrolled in special education programs for the learning disabled, behaviorally disordered, and mentally retarded (Chinn & Selma, 1987; Kunjufu, 1993; Patton, 1992). The most far-reaching legislation affecting gifted education thus far has been the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Act of 1988, the passage of which marked the culmination of the efforts of many dedicated gifted education proponents. The Javits Act provides both financial assistance to state and local educational agencies charged with developing and maintaining gifted programs, and it gives highest priority to the identification of gifted racial minority, economically disadvantaged, limited-English-proficient, and disabled students. Despite the altruistic prescience of this legislation, a disconcerting underrepresentation of nontraditional students persists in gifted programs. For example, in 1993, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) noted that African American males were disproportionately placed in special education programs, more so than any other racial or ethnic group. Earlier, Alamprese and Erlanger (1988) reported that African American males were three times more liable than White American males to be placed in classes for the mentally retarded, and one-half less likely to appear in gifted programs. Taking a national perspective, they also reported that whereas approximately 16% of the U.S. school population was African American, African Americans comprised only 8% of gifted programs. Several reasons help explain the dearth of African Americans in public school programs for the gifted. Among these are: abstract and disparate definitions of giftedness, inequitable practices of identifying gifted students, educators' lack of understanding about cultural differences in learning styles and achievement aspirations, inadequate preparation of teachers to recognize giftedness among students from diverse cultural backgrounds, the lack of encouragement given to African American parents to become involved in the processes related to identification and selection of students for gifted education, definitions of underachievement that are particularly disparaging to African American students, and a paucity of funding and funding sources for efforts aimed at making the gifted education population look more like America. This article begins by focusing on the issues surrounding the underrepresentation of African American students in gifted education programs, positing various explanations for this phenomenon. It further suggests ways to address the problem--that is, how to "desegregate" gifted programs and otherwise redress inequities in this area of education. …

Increasing the Academic Success of Disadvantaged Children: An Examination of Alternative Early Intervention Programs

Abstract: In recent years, two programs have gained national attention for producing significant and sustained effects on the reading performance of at-risk children. One is Reading Recovery which uses highly trained teachers and a systematic set of procedures to tutor first graders who are having difficulty learning to read. The other is Success for All which uses research-based beginning and intermediate reading programs, one-to-one tutoring, family support, and other elements to provide support for all students in the targeted elementary school. The present research examined the processes and outcomes associated with the implementation of these approaches in comparable first grade classes during one school year. Results showed that Reading Recovery strongly benefited tutored students, particularly on passage comprehension. Success for All was more beneficial for special education students and for students who were not tutored, especially on word attack measures. School climate and teacher attitude results also s...

Women's health in India : risk and vulnerability

Abstract: An examination of women's health problems over the life-cycle of Indian women - from childhood through the productive and reproductive years to old age. The major focus is on reproductive health problems in the context of the disadvantaged position of women. It also looks at gender bias against female children and the position of older women and widows in their social environment. This book is intended for university departments/institutes of public health, economics, sociology, demographic studies, women's studies. Researchers, policy-makers and planners involved in public health programmes, family welfare programmes, health education and training programmes.

Social Exclusion, Urban Regeneration and Economic Reintegration

Abstract: The increasing spatial concentration of the disadvantaged has resulted in the isolation of many individuals and households from mainstream social and economic activities. This paper is concerned with the exclusion of these individuals from the labour market. This in turn constitutes a considerable barrier to the ability of individuals and households to access services, facilities and networks in the wider economy and society. Recognising the impact of wider macroeconomic forces, the paper reviews and assesses policies aimed to address this problem at the neighbourhood level. Programmes considered include the creation of employment opportunities within disadvantaged neighbourhoods and those which aim to build links between these areas and the wider labour market. The potential contribution of housing programmes and expenditure is assessed. The complex nature of the problem is highlighted leading to an emphasis on the need for multi-sectoral solutions.

Genetic Testing for Children and Adolescents

Abstract: To the Editor. —The article by Dr Wertz and colleagues 1 on genetic testing observes correctly that genetic testing of minors presents issues of privacy and disclosure. It is noted, in a similar vein, that minors who request testing should be informed prior to testing that third-party entities, including employers, insurers, and schools, may be able to "coerce" their consent for access to test results by withholding employment, insurance, or school admission. It is probably true that various third parties may be quite interested in access to genetic testing results, whether they involve children, adolescents, or adults. Insurers, for example, may be interested in knowing the results of genetic tests that have been done by others, for cause, on persons applying for insurance. 2 If access to such data are obtained, however, the affected individual may be severely disadvantaged. There have been instances of persons with phenylketonuria being denied health

The growth of Korean immigrant entrepreneurship in Chicago

Abstract: The growth of Korean immigrant entrepreneurship in Chicago is a product of three interacting factors: employment opportunities in the general labour market, resource mobilization, and business opportunity structures. Because of their language barrier and less transferable education and occupational skills in the American labour market, many Korean immigrants could not find white‐collar occupations for which they had been trained. Disadvantaged, but still strongly motivated for upward economic mobility in the United States, many of them became self‐employed business owners. Korean immigrants’ middle‐class backgrounds and their stable family structures and strong family ties helped them to realize their goal of business ownership. In addition, social networks based on kinship, friendship, church membership, and school ties provided prospective business owners with financial assistance, training, business advice, and information about business opportunities. The first business opportunities for Kore...

Are the “Most Advantaged” Children Truly Disadvantaged by Early Maternal Employment?: Effects on Child Cognitive Outcomes

Abstract: This research examines the effects of early maternal employment on the cognitive ability of 2,040 4- to 6-year-old children drawn from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. Some scholars have hypothesized that it is the “most advantaged” of society's children who are disadvantaged or negatively affected by early maternal employment. If this hypothesis is true, the findings should be that advantages such as high levels of cognitive stimulation in the home or household income do not affect cognitive ability as strongly for children of mothers who were employed during early childhood as they do for children whose mothers were not employed. Of 24 possible interaction effects that would confirm this hypothesis, only one is statistically significant (and the nature of that interaction is not completely consistent with the hypothesis). In terms of effects on cognitive outcomes, the most advantaged children are not disproportionately disadvantaged by early maternal employment.

State Identification Policies: Gifted Students from Special Populations.

Abstract: The results of two studies of state policies related to the identification of gifted students from special populations (i.e., culturally diverse families, economically disadvantaged backgrounds, or gifted students with disabilities) are reported here. In the first study the policies from all fifty states were reviewed to examine their impact on gifted students who have traditionally been overlooked (special populations). In this study state policies were not found to be the major obstacle to more comprehensive identification of gifted students. The follow‐up study examined the implementation of state policies in three states: Ohio, Arkansas, and Texas. These case studies revealed an interesting pattern for policy development and application. Recommendations for future policy directions are given.

Interdependence and reintegrative social control: Labeling and reforming ‘inappropriate’ parents in neonatal intensive care units

Abstract: Labeling theorists have argued that members of disadvantaged groups are disproportionately likely to be labeled negatively, but we find that in some situations members of disadvantaged groups may, in fact, be less likely than others to be labeled for the same actions. In neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), we argue, the process of sorting and evaluating parents of NICU patients varies with the gender, age, and race of the parents and depends on what those characteristics are taken to mean in the context of the organization. We find that social control in the NICU tends to be reintegrative rather than disintegrative. Because NICUs cannot control their organizational borders and because of the fundamental interdependence between medical careproviders and parents, parents must be reformed rather than excluded. We conclude that when substantial resources must be expended to correct deviant behavior, an organization will be more reluctant to label anyone as deviant, and that when a group is dependent on the participation of deviant members, the group will make considerable effort to rehabilitate them.

Improving the Quality of Classroom Instruction for Students at Risk of Failure in Urban Schools

Abstract: One of the major challenges in education today is improving the quality of classroom instruction for students at risk of failure in urban schools Most of these students come from disadvantaged circumstances that heighten the probability that they will not be successful in schools, but what may be considered their greatest risk factor is that their teachers and schools contribute to their failure and academic underachieve-

Immigrant children and the children of immigrants: inter- and intra-ethnic group differences in the United States.

Abstract: Using data from a child file created from the five percent Public Use Microdata Sample of the 1990 U.S. Census this paper provides a descriptive portrait of the socioeconomic circumstances of children by ethnicity and generation in the United States. Using a variety of indicators of well-being we show that immigrant children from Latin America are highly disadvantaged relative to immigrant children from Asia. Generational comparisons within origin groups generally suggest improvements in childrens circumstances as their families spend additional time in this country. (EXCERPT)