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The multidimensional nature of the diversity of the nation's labor force was examined, with emphasis on the economic diversity within the population generally and within and among the demographic groups. Principal activities were a literature review focusing on the economics of the labor market, analysis of data from the 1980 Census, and a conference on training a diverse population. Findings were as follows: (1) the work force of the future will not be dramatically different; (2) Blacks had great difficulty in finding and keeping employment; (3) Hispanic men had unemployment rates between those of Whites and Blacks but earned very low wages; (4) Asians/Pacific Islanders had high rates of labor force participation, relatively low unemployment, and high earnings; and (5) Native Americans had low rates of labor force participation, high rates of unemployment, and low earnings. Sources of the diversity of experiences were human capital, sociological diversity, discrimination, and geographic location. Groups varied among and within themselves as to the human capital their members possessed. They varied among themselves along several sociocultural dimensions and showed patterns of geographic concentration. Discrimination was a fact of life for minorities and women. Analyses point to policy implications in these areas, including the need to: increase human capital, expand opportunity, help people to adjust to U.S. society, and reduce or eliminate discrimination. (Appendixes include a 76-item bibliography, supporting tables, and a list of attendees at the July 1990 conference on Training a Diverse Population. (YLB)

This report, designed to provide the Commission for Teacher Preparation and Licensing with documentation concerning the need for credentialing in bilingual/ cross-cultural education, is based on the examination of the performance of minority populations in California having a cultural and linguistic background different than that of the dominant majority. The historical background of the investigation is provided, along with an overview and definitions of bilingual/ cross-cultural education. Educational outcomes providing indices of schools' success in educating minority students include school holding power, reading skills, grade repetition, overageness, and participation in extracurricular activities. A major factor in under-achievement is the lack of teachers drawn from the same minority and/or cultural groups as the students, along with a shortage of minority personnel being prepared to teach. Charts provide statistics on all outcomes. The report recommends that the Commission announce the need for credentialing and identify the standards for credentialing, and that the Bilingual/Cross-Cultural Education Committee identify the types of credentials required, investigate the possibility of creating "career ladder" opportunities to make qualified personnel available immediately, and investigate the requirements for re-training existing certificated personnel in bilingual/cross-cultural education. A preliminary definition and qualifications for a specialist in bilingual/cross-cultural education are provided. (CLK)

Bilingual education is not entirely a new idea. In the 18th and 19th centuries it was practiced in church schools, particularly in German and Spanish. Most communities, however, assumed a strongly assimilationist stance for their public schools, especially after World War I. In recent years, however, this attitude has been partly reversed under the impact of the concept of cultural pluralism and a growing ethnic awareness. The greatest impetus to bilingual education was given by the Bilingual Education Act of 1968. That law defined this area of teaching as the "use of two languages as mediums of instruction." Its design may be transitional, maintenance, restorationist, or culturally pluralistic. The last is exemplified by Miami's Coral Way School in which Spanish-speaking Cuban refugee children effectively learned English and their English-speaking peers learned Spanish. This school's success, the funding provided by the Bilingual Education Act mentioned above, and favorable court decisions help explain the movement's rapid progress in the recent past. Research on the subject has led to several definitive conclusions, but they are relatively few in number. The future of this area of education will be determined by its success in actual practice and in the ebb and flow of social and political influences. (Author)

Utilizing a 77-item questionnaire, the marketing and credit practices of the Spanish American poor in New Mexico were examined. Randomly selected from the Community Action Program files, approximately 100 households in Las Cruces, the main urban center, and 60 households in the small rural communities of Dona Ana and La Mesa (30 in each) were interviewed in the fall of 1969 and the winter of 1970. Interviews were conducted either in English or Spanish as the respondents preferred. A follow-up study was done in 1975 by a brief questionnaire mailed out twice to the original 160 respondents. The 71 returned questionnaires were compared to the original 71 questionnaires of 1969-70. The 1969-70 findings included: most stated one should know the firm or an employee "well" before buying any major item (above $200) at a store; most spent over a month of "search-time" in deciding on what and where to buy; fewer than 12% had checking accounts; fewer than 16% had savings accounts; about 3/10 of the families shopped in Juarez, Mexico for "cheaper" and "different" foods; and the high rate of indebtedness was usually for medical, death, or cars. The 1975 findings included: the average respondent reported being farther in debt, but felt they were better able to handle the indebtedness; over 30% were on the food stamp plan; and the majority of purchases over $200 were on credit. (NQ)

This study examined the accuracy of teacher-candidates in conducting an informal oral-reading inventory, in English, of a student whose English exhibited Spanish language features. In one test, subjects recorded, analyzed, and scored an inventory; in a second, they analyzed and scored miscues which were already recorded. Subjects had training and experience in using inventories. The subjects were highly accurate in determining a reader's reading level and in distinguishing between miscues that were Spanish features and those that were not. It was concluded that differences between the language of teacher and student may not be a problem when teachers use informal, objective, individualized diagnostic instruments. (Author/AA)

The purpose of this report is to describe and evaluate participation and status achievements of Spanish origin persons and American Indians in the labor market relative to the participation of whites. An ultimate aim is to identify factors contributing to intergroup differences and to determine whether differences reflect discrimination. Inequalities and discrimination are examined in terms of labor force participation, occupational achievement, occupational mobility, and earnings. Data are presented in narrative and tabular form. Four major conclusions resulted from the analysis: (1) Color-ethnic-sex inequalities in employment, occupational achievement, job mobility, and earnings permeate the U.S. labor market; (2) when persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, and Cuban origin, American Indians, and blacks are compared with whites of comparable levels of education and training, these inequalities diminish but do not disappear; (3) white women as well as minority women are subject to discrimination based on sex far more severe than color-ethnic discrimination; and (4) inequalities among women in the job market are comparatively small and the status of these minority women is not consistently lower than that of white women. Appendixes include a description of three measures used in the study, public use samples, a 6-page list of occupation scores and frequencies, and ideas for further research. (Author/NJ)

Some of the schooling experiences of a rapidly expanding migrant population from the Dominican Republic are described in this paper. In doing this, the paper examines the societal and organizational context of the educational system in the Dominican Republic, and briefly outlines the organization of and practices in Dominican classrooms, the nature of teacher-student interaction styles, and the relationship between school and home life. Information about school organization and classrooms is obtained through interviews with professors, school directors, teachers, parents, and students. In addition to general interviewing, two public schools were selected for more systematic observations. To check whether the data collected in the two schools were representative of schools in the Dominican Republic, observations were then made in additional public and private schools. It was found that whatever difficulties educators and students in the Dominican Republic encounter in the educational process, education itself is accorded the highest priority throughout the country. Despite many obstacles, the majority of those classroom teachers and school directors conduct classroom programs that allow students to meet the country's educational standards. Dominican children coming to the U.S. bring with them certain expectations based on their experiences in their native educational system. They find themselves attending schools embedded in a different social context, which fact for many of them, leads to confusion and conflict. (Author/AM)

Observational, exploratory and verbal learning, and verbal and imaginal processes of Pueblo Indian children were compared with those of non-Indian (Anglo and Chicano) children. Both Pueblo and non-Indian adults and children were observed, interviewed, and asked to carry out various tasks. The children attended either a Tanoan or a Keresan day school, an Albuquerque public school, a summer school, or a commune school in New Mexico or a San Diego (California) elementary school. Mapping as an observational procedure, a learning experience interview, and story retelling and drawing were used to obtain data on learning processes and modes of representation. Story retelling was explored as a possible measure of bilingualism. Pueblo children were found to be self-confident and independent at an early age; they excelled in visual representation and showed a high interest in role play. Although their verbal expression in English was not as fluent as that of non-Indians, no evidence was found to support the view of the "silent" Indian child--on the contrary, in their native languages and/or in comfortable settings Pueblo children were willing and capable verbal communicators. All of these patterns were linked to the nature of Pueblo communities and the children's place in them. (Author/NQ)

The study identified variables contributing to success in college for low prior educational attainment students from differing cultural backgrounds; described the nature and operation of COPE (College Opportunity Program for Enrichment); described the background characteristics of the COPE students; compared the COPE students' attitudes toward education and careers with those of other students with similar background characteristics; and examined the predictors of college success for three groups of students--COPE, education, and vocational education students. The sample included 256 COPE, 169 education, and 143 vocational education students. Current college grade point average was used to measure college performance. Two self-report instruments were administered to the students: Holland's "Self-directed Search" (SDS) measured their career interests and "Career Education Description Questionnaire" (CEDQ), developed specifically for this study, measured their attitudes toward education, background characteristics, and career interests. Findings included: current attitudes toward education and careers were an important contributor to college success; and COPE students were creative and inventive students. Appendices include a review of literature dealing with vocational interests, success in college, and Spanish-speaking cultural values; and discussions of CEDQ's development, the SDS Hexagonal Model as used with COPE students, and the students' reactions to the SDS Booklet. (NQ)

"Infinity Factory" is a television series which presents mathematics in a common-sense way to help children to understand the usefulness of mathematics in their own lives. The programs are for children ages 8 through 11, especially black and Latino children. Along with mathematics, the programs present a positive approach to the cultural and ethnic identity of minority group children. Major segments of eight programs and the series as a whole were evaluated. This report contains descriptions of each program and gives data on student attention, student appeal, teachers' opinions of the programs, and the number of kinds of related classroom activities. For each show the report presents: an abstract of its evaluation, a description of the show, a summary of evaluation procedures, and a discussion of the results of the evaluation. (JY)

The "Infinity Factory" television series was developed to help children ages 8 through 11 to understand the usefulness of some basic mathematics skills for everyday life. Aimed primarily at black and Latino children, the series concentrates on: the decimal number system; measurement, especially the metric system; estimation; mapping and scaling; and graphing. Throughout the series there is emphasis on creative problem solving techniques and on a positive student self-image. An evaluation of eight of the programs was conducted using 1,000 students and their teachers in 39 3rd-6th grade classes in four cities as subjects. The evaluation measured student attention, appeal of the overall programs and major segments of each program, student comprehension of story line and gains in math skills, attitudes toward math, social attitudes, and teachers' opinions of the effectiveness and usefulness of the series. This report gives a detailed analysis of the evaluation of the series taken as a whole. (JY)

"Infinity Factory" is a television series which presents mathematics in a common-sense way to help children understand the usefulness of mathematics in their own lives. The 52-programs in the series are for children ages 8 through 11, especially black and Latino children. While covering decimal systems, measurement, estimation, mapping and scaling, graphing, and problem solving, the series also stresses positive self images for minority children and other humanistic goals. An evaluation study was conducted of eight programs, using over 1,000 students, grades 3-6, as subjects. The study examined the programs' effectiveness as a whole and individually. Results showed that the series was effective in imparting math knowledge, holding student attention, and that teachers considered the programs to be effective and useful. (JY)

Prepared as part of the Career Education Project of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), the paper deals with curriculum development and implementation. Using current literature on the topic as a point of reference, topics dealt with include: (1) the role of curriculum in career education, (2) the impact of career education on State and local curriculum development efforts, (3) accountability and evaluation, (4) national efforts in career education curriculum development, and (5) staff development. Four career education projects are commented on: (1) The Public Service Occupations Curriculum Project, (2) The Enrichment of Teacher and Counselor Competencies in Career Education Project, (3) The Communications Media Occupations Cluster Project, and (4) The Project: Developing Career Awareness for Spanish Surnamed People. Each project description includes information on the project's development and implementation and some sample materials. The paper concludes that curriculum materials for career education should be: (1) economically feasible, (2) predicated on regular classroom staffing patterns, (3) contained within the current allocation of teacher time and effort, and (4) adaptable to local needs, interests, and options. (MW)

The Responsive Environment Program for Spanish American Children (REPSAC) is a group educational program for "high risk" (of low birth weight and with various handicaps) Spanish American children. It aims to provide successful experiences for these children in both English and Spanish language learning and in improving cognitive and affective development. During 1973-74 (REPSAC's third year of operation), twenty-nine 3, 4, and 5 year old low birth weight children handicapped by physical difficulties, learning aptitude, perceptual and motor problems, language handicaps, and economic, cultural, and education deprivation participated at Clovis, New Mexico. The program was divided into comprehensive components: instructional, staff development, community-parental involvement, and media development. The evaluation design that assessed REPSAC's effectiveness used pre- and posttests. The abilities measured were: learning aptitude, language development in English and Spanish, sensory and perceptual development, speech development, school readiness, and psychomotor development. A periodic subjective evaluation of the students' self concept, observations, and interviews was also conducted. Some major findings were: students made significant gains in language ability in English and Spanish, sensory and perceptual ability, school readiness, and psychomotor development; students developed and maintained a favorable self-image; and parents maintained a positive attitude toward the program. (NQ)

The main purpose of this survey was to gain current information on the representation of minority students within particular fields of study, a level of detail for which only limited information has been available. The survey requested enrollment information within 21 discipline areas for the total graduate population for each institution as well as for black, Spanish-surnamed, American Indian, and Asian American students. A copy of the questionnaire is presented in Appendix A of the document. The survey results indicate substantial variation in minority representation among specific fields of study. To a lesser extent, minority representation also differed according to a number of institional characteristics. The findings presented in this document constitute the most recent data available on the enrollment of minorities in specific graduate fields and should be useful to all concerned with improving the accessibility of graduate study to Americans of minority backgrounds. Appendixes contain: the survey questionnaire, institutional response, and classification of states by the census regions. (Author/PG)

Part 1 of the report's three sections presents a general review of the published literature relevant to understanding the drug problem in the United States. Part 2 presents a summary of data obtained in an investigation into the nature and magnitude of the delinquency problem among youth living in the Wind River Indian Reservation area of Wyoming. The relationship between drug use and delinquency, various background factors, and alcohol use was examined. A self-report questionnaire was administered to 456 male and 391 female students in the 9th and 12th grades at Lander Valley High School and Wind River High School in May 1972. Part 3 presents data on the similarities and differences in drug use and attitudes toward drug use of American Indian and Anglo youth living in the Wind River Indian Reservation area. Data were obtained from 120 Indian and 391 Anglo 9th through 12th grade students from the Wyoming Indian High School, Lander Valley High School, Riverton High School, and Wind River High School. Some findings presented in Parts 2 and 3 were: Indian students had more favorable attitudes toward drug use; and those who had used drugs tended to have poorer relationships with their parents and the schools and a strong tendency to be involved in other delinquent acts. (NQ)

Recently American attention has focused on the problems of pollution and environmental protection. Focusing on the Four Corners Interstate Air Quality Control Region, this study determined which socioeconomic characteristics were associated with concern for environmental quality as measured by willingness to pay for pollution abatement. Sample sites were determined by weighing four pollution concentration zones. Interviews were conducted during the 1972 summer and January 1973 with 747 reservation and nonreservation residents and out-of-region recreationists. Separate questionnaires, designed for each subpopulation, were used to determine willingness to pay via a series of bidding games. To ensure that the means of financing was not a barrier to a respondent's willingness to pay and since no bidding game was appropriate for all, five games were constructed--a sales tax increase; an additional charge to the electric bill; a monthly charge; an increase to the user's fee; or a change in laws. Responses were analyzed by stepwise multiple regression. Some findings were: (1) few consistent relationships existed between concern for environment and socioeconomic characteristics (age, occupation, income, ethnicity, and organizational participation); and (2) a clear majority were willing to pay for pollution abatement. (NQ)

This document contains appendixes to the Rand report which include: (1) recommendations for program evaluation and research made by a panel of 12 black professionals, (2) reaction papers by three black professionals and three Spanish-surnamed professionals, and (3) an expanded discussion of the technical measures proposed in the main report. Major recommendations and reactions focus on the definition of the term "social competence" and the independent variables involved, research design problems, projected outcome validity, and implications for black and Spanish-speaking children. A survey of literature concerning intelligence measurement and linguistic competence in Mexican-American populations is included. Technical information is given on tests used to measure perceptual-motor/cognitive/language skills. Information is included which supplements the discussions of social competence in Chapter 5 of the main report, particularly focusing on instrument recommendations in the areas of direct observation, evaluative responses from others, measures collected from subjects, and measures restricted to subsample studies. Also included are a literature survey on the independent variables, categorization of counties according to metropolitan/sparseness dimension, and an approximation of costs for basic battery testing per site. (ED)

The purposes of this document are: (1) to measure the participation of women, veterans, minority and handicapped students in postsecondary cooperative programs; (2) to provide a descriptive and comparative analysis of selected policies and practices of cooperative education programs, by institutional level and extent of women, veterans, minority, and handicapped participation; and (3) to highlight selected cooperative education and other special programs that are uniquely responsive and have attracted women, veterans, minority, and handicapped students. Approaches taken to collect data and information necessary to the study were: (1) a detailed questionnaire that was sent to 600 colleges and universities; and (2) visitation to exemplary programs, open-ended schedules and extensive written and telephone conversation. Some findings were: (1) cooperative education programs reported that they are experiencing an increase in minority and women student participation; (2) increasing numbers of women, blacks, and other minority students are entering nontraditional curricula such as engineering and other technical fields; and (3) of the total headcount enrollment reported by 150 cooperative education programs, 26 percent were women, 0.8 percent were handicapped, 13 percent were veterans, and 15 percent were male students of minority status. (Author/KE)

In 1975-76, an outreach activities component enabled REPSAC (a highly successful early childhood bilingual intervention program) to provide replication services to various local education agencies requesting such services. Training was taken to the replication centers by a specially designed and equipped motor coach. During the year, the Fort Sumner, Artesia, and Carlsbad (New Mexico) school districts requested replication services. In addition, the Clovis-Portales Bilingual Early Childhood Program made replication, with training sites in Clovis and Portales. Teachers and aides were trained through visits by the outreach training team and a workshop at the parent center. Evaluation was conducted via: objective evaluations of the formal course; classroom visits; site-visits with administrators, teachers, and aides; self-evaluation questionnaires from the trainees and trainers; and a review of various records/logs maintained by the outreach training team. A follow-up of former REPSAC students in grades 1-4 was conducted. Findings included: teachers gained a good understanding of handicapping conditions and of how to adequately screen their children; the training workshop had a positive effect on the participants' teaching behavior; and the follow-up study indicated a downward trend for Spanish language development, a slightly upward trend for English language development; and a rather stable trend for learning aptitude. (NQ)

The purpose of the study was to define factors associated with high (16% or more) and low (15% or less) rates of attrition of ethnic minority students in vocational education programs. Six functional areas of school operations were studied: teacher characteristics, teaching techniques, total school environment, supportive services, organization, and parent and community participation. Course profile sheets mailed to school districts identified programs having substantial enrollments of black, American Indian, Asian, and Spanish surname students and provided pertinent baseline data. A sample of programs in the 31 cooperating districts was evaluated by a questionnaire survey of teachers, currently enrolled students, and students who had dropped out. In 20 of the districts, followup site visits were made. Findings of the study were based on analysis of responses from 62 teachers and 205 students. Developed from results of the study and subjective impressions from the site visits, the model delineates 20 elements in the school environment which should be considered in improving programs for minority students. Recommendations include the need for a meaningful structure within an open, friendly, total atmosphere. Appended are a bibliography, project correspondence, course profile form, questionnaires, and site visitation checklist. (Author/RG)

Data from this study suggest the ACT Interest Inventory is appropriate for use with minority group members. Data from 2,280 college seniors (1,237 males and 1,043 females) representing black, native American, oriental American, Spanish-surnamed American, and white ethnic groups were analyzed to determine whether the ACT Interest Inventory could classify minority group students as accurately as white students into appropriate educational major groups. In addition, the structure of measured interests, as indicated by the intercorrelations of the six ACT Interest Inventory scales, was compared across the white and minoirty samples. For most minority groups, the percentage of clean hits (correct classifications) was as high as or higher than the percentage for the white sample. With one exception, native American males, the interest structure was also highly similar for white and minority samples. (Author/RC)