One minority population that often slips through the cracks is that of migrant families—students, most often Latin Americans, whose families are constantly on the move and across the border, seeking work wherever they can find it. While these families often seek better opportunities for their children, the constant moving makes it hard for schools to help provide a consistent educational program for these students:
www.csmonitor.com/2005/0215/p11s01-legn.html
Another Bridge Across the Achievement Gap
A new study by the American Educational Research Association looks at the qualities of schools and classrooms that support the success of minority students. The common qualities? A curriculum that demands achievement and a social network within the school that supports it:
www.aera.net/uploadedFiles/Journals_and_Publications/Research_Points/RP_Fall-04.pdf
Black History "In Motion"
The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is offering a new online exhibit, "In Motion: The African-American Migration Experience." If you're looking to provide your students with a fascinating resource for Black History Month, this is the place to visit. The AAME provides a look at the role African-Americans have played in American migration, going beyond the role of the slave trade and examining the voluntary migrations of African-Americans who sought a better life for themselves and their families:
www.inmotionaame.org/home.cfm
College Dreams May Remain Just That
While the number of young people seeking a college education is on the rise, a new report indicates that for those from disadvantaged and culturally diverse backgrounds, that dream may not become a reality. Even for those who do make it to college, they often find that it's not what they imagined, and are unprepared for a reality that's nothing like the "13th grade" many former struggling students say they expected:
www.usatoday.com/news/education/2005-02-02-college-cover_x.htm
Remembering Rights Right
Quick—how many female civil rights leaders can you name? What was the Black Power Movement and what were its goals? Stumped? Then we have just the site for you! This great web-based quiz, honoring Black History Month and the 40th anniversary of the Civil Rights Movement, debunks a variety of common myths about civil rights and those who fought for them:
www.civilrightsteaching.org
To AP or not to AP? Despite recent overall growth in the availability of AP classes, a recent study finds that students who may be most in need of the opportunities AP classes offer—those in rural areas and from culturally diverse populations—still have limited access to AP classes. Read the report in the Education Policy analysis Archives here:
epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v12n68
America's economic interdependence with nations such as China is steadily increasing—yet the knowledge that American students have of other cultures, including those with which we have extensive economic ties, is not:
www.csba.org/csmag/Winter04/csMagStoryTemplate.cfm?id=58
