Effects of Adult Modeling and Rule Structure on Responses to Moral Situations of Children in Fifth-Grade Classrooms

This study examined the effects of adults modeling responses to moral situations with or without rule strucon responses of fifth-graders in a classroom setting. Ss were exposed to a model who chose a constructive, internal-control response to open-ended stories about getting-even and provided either rule statements regarding that choice (rule-structure group) or a summary of the story (no-rule-structure group) . In the control group, Ss observed no model. Findings indicated that there was a significant (p<. 10) effect of modeling on internal-control scores on post-treatment stories and of modeling combined with rule structure on constructive scores on post-treatment stories. This study is consistent with previous empirical findings of studies conducted in laboratory settings in which modeling has been effective in modifying social behavior. Further examination of modeling is recommended in natural social settings.     

An Experiment with the Controlled Reader

Abstract

This study was an investigation of items on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT) to ascertain if verbal responses to items missed indicated that the concept was familiar at the same level of abstraction as the word in the PPVT. One hundred 8-year-old children-25 black boys, 25 black girls, 25 white boys, and 25 white girls-were administered Form A of the PPVT. Eighty-eight children responded verbally to the pictures of the stimulus words missed. Data were analyzed by means of a two-way analysis of variance. A chi square test of significance was used to determine significance level of difference between items for each group. Judges analyzed verbal responses to determine if responses elicited were 1) at the same level of abstraction as the stimulus word, 2) considered to be synonymous to the stimulus word, and 3) indicated the student's understanding of the concept signified by the word. A total of 23 words were identified as being missed disproportionately by one group more than the other. Verbal responses indicated that the concept was familiar for 16 items and unfamiliar for three items. Of the remaining four items, there was indication of differences among the groups.     

Cognitive and affective minds: A necessary marriage in criminal justice education

This paper examines the role race and course content may play in the teaching evaluation scores of a black criminologist currently teaching at a predominantly white institution. Making use of a case study design, the author compared his teaching evaluation scores from similar courses taught at both a predominantly white institution and an historically black institution. The data revealed that while race may play a role in the evaluation process, the nature of the course may offer a stronger explanation as to why he received lower evaluation scores on a race-related criminal justice course than a series of other criminal justice courses.     

Child protection reports and removals of infants diagnosed with prenatal substance exposure

BackgroundA frequent response for prenatal substance exposure (PSE) is intervention by child protective services (CPS). Previous research has examined differences in reports to CPS regarding PSE by substance exposure and by maternal race. However, little is known regarding the frequency of immediate removals by CPS relating to PSE and maternal race.MethodsWe investigated hospital reports to CPS and CPS removals of PSE infants by using linked birth, hospital discharge, and CPS records for all children born in Washington State between 2006 and 2013 (N = 760,863). We identified PSE using diagnostic codes, calculated prevalence by substance type and maternal race, and tested for differences by interactions of race and substance using multinomial logistic regression.ResultsPrevalence of PSE births varied by race with 8.1% of Native American, 2.8% of black, 1.9% of white, and 0.8% of Hispanic births diagnosed with PSE. Opioids was the most common type of PSE diagnosis at 48.2%. The majority of PSE infants (86.7%) were not removed by CPS but variations by substance type were observed. Of the interactions in the multinomial logistic regression model, only black infants exposed to alcohol were more likely to result in reports to CPS without removal than the referent group of white infants exposed to opioids.ConclusionsFindings indicate that most infants diagnosed with PSE were not removed by CPS and minority PSE infants were not reported to CPS or removed by CPS more than white infants. Racial differences identified in the prevalence of PSE present opportunities for targeted prevention efforts.     

The effects of immediate achievement and retention of middle school students involved in a metric unit designed to promote the development of estimating skills

Three hundred nintey-seven seventh-grade students were studied to determine the effect on immediate achievement and retention of a unit designed to promote the development of estimating skills involved in metric measurement. The study involved five teachers with a total of 15 average- or advanced-level classes divided into the reference and treatment groups. A five-day metric unit was designed so that both groups received exactly the same instruction in metric length, mass, and capacity with the exception of the treatment group's participation in activities relating to the development of estimation skills. Data collected from the Metric Application Instrument and analyzed with analysis of covariance indicated that students in the experimental group did retain significantly more of their improved metric application skills than the students in the reference group. The analysis of the main effects of race, sex, and ability indicated that white students achieved significantly more than black students and that males achieved significantly more than females. Analysis of significant race/ability and sex/race interactions indicated that (a) white students in the advanced group attained significantly greater achievement in metric application skills than black students of equal status and (b) white males significantly retained their metric applications achievement when compared to black males or black or white females.     

Effects of race of examiner and type of reinforcement on the intelligence test performance of lower-class black children

This study examined the effects of race of examiner and type of reinforcement upon the WISC-R performance of lower-class black children. A total of 120 black males were selected and assigned to either a white or black examiner to form two groups. Within each group, children were given no reinforcement, tangible reinforcement, traditional social reinforcement, or culturally relevant social reinforcement after each correct response. Children given tangible rewards, regardless of race of examiner, obtained significantly higher scores than did children given no reinforcement or children given traditional social reinforcement. Also, children given culturally relevant social reinforcement by a black examiner obtained significantly higher scores than did children given culturally relevant reinforcement by the white examiner.     

The Effects of Biofeedback and Relaxation Training on Memory Tasks Among Hyperactive Boys

This study examined the effects of biofeedback and relaxation training on memory tasks among 48 hyperactive boys randomly assigned to experimental and control conditions for three treatment sessions. Results indicated that subjects exposed to the biofeedback and relaxation training achieved higher scores on memory tasks compared to controls.     

A study of the frequency of analogical responses to questions in black and white preschool-age children

Recent findings of ethnographic research conducted by Heath (1983) indicate that some children, particularly nonmainstream children, may respond to questions analogically—that is, by describing the object or event they have experienced or been exposed to in terms of their own experience, as opposed to responding referentially (i.e., by providing a specific name or label). The purpose of this study was to analyze the relative frequency of analogical responses to questions in three groups: 15 inner-city black preschoolers, 15 inner-city white preschoolers, and 15 mainstream white preschoolers. Data were gathered from the language portion of a developmental screening battery that included question-answering tasks from the Blank Preschool Language Assessment Instrument (Blank, Rose, & Berlin 1978). Analysis of the data indicated that (a) there was a significant difference in the number of analogical responses between black and white children regardless of whether the white children were inner-city or mainstream and (b) the frequency of use of analogical responses to questions was highest among the black children participating in the study.     

The new one-drop rule: challenging the persistence of white supremacy with in-service teachers

ABSTRACT

The one-drop rule refers to the process of being racialized Black when someone contains any amount of Black ancestry, i.e. one drop of Black blood. In this article, I use what I call ‘the new one-drop rule’ to explain how even the smallest presence of white discourse can disrupt racial equity work in schools. Based on a critical race study in a racially desegregated elementary school, I illustrate how one drop of white discourse from even one less racially literate white teacher can cause usually more racially literate white teachers to support white supremacy. I also share how collaborative research utilizing critical race theory (CRT) can help schools build greater racial literacy and resist white discourse. I argue that critical research on race with in-service teachers should not forefront the consciousness-raising of resistant white teachers but rather center the wants, needs, and racial knowledge of racially literate teachers and especially teachers of color.     

The politics of normalcy: Intersectionality and the construction of difference in Christian-Jewish relations

This article examines the workings of a discourse of normalcy for a group of black Christian fundamentalist students. Focusing on the intersection of religion and race the essay analyzes the representation of Jewish people as dark and other, while constructing Christians who are white and normal. The inversion of racial identities unfolds in contradictory ways, reinscribing a discourse of colorblindness while simultaneously reifying categories of race. Through discourse analysis the article discusses how the political moves in both centrifugal and centripetal directions to construct a "universal" (Eurocentric) Christian identity while suppressing subgroup differences.     

THE EFFECT OF RACE OF EXAMINER ON THE MENTAL TEST SCORES OF WHITE AND BLACK PUPILS1

An entire elementary school system with 60% white and 40% black pupils was given several abiity tests group-administered by 12 white and eight black examiners (Es). The tests measured verbal and nonverbal IQ, perceptual-motor cognitive development, “speed and persistence” under neutral and motivating instructions, listening-attention, and short-term rote memory for numbers. With the exception of the “speed and persistence” test, on which white Es yielded significantly and consistently higher mean scores than black Es for both white and black pupils across grades one to six, the results for the various cognitive ability tests showed that the race of the E did not produce large or consistent effects in the testing of white and black pupils.     

Ethnic and regional influences on teachers' evaluations of oral answers

Tape recordings were made of six white and six black ninth-grade northern boys speaking identically worded answers to typical school questions. Black students were given significantly higher grades than white students by 56 white and 50 black southern teachers. Black teachers gave significantly higher grades than white teachers, but no significant interaction was found between students' and teachers' ethnic group. The study is a partial replication of a previous study in which it was found that black students were given significantly lower grades than white students by northern white teachers.     

Teacher Communication Patterns as Related to the Race and Sex of the Student

Abstract

This article summarizes previous research of teacher communication patterns related to student race and student sex and presents the findings of a study which examined the differences in teachers' verbal feedback statements to black and white and to male and female students.

The limited number of research studies which have investigated teacher communication patterns as related to the student's race can be categorized as experimental, naturalistic setting, and teacher perception studies. These studies are not easily interpreted and are difficult to replicate and generalize from. The literature regarding teacher communication as related to student sex differences is restricted by the same lack of internal coherence and idiosyncratic methodologies as the literature on race differences. Few studies have examined the interactive effects of student race and student sex.

The research presented here attends to this void in the research literature. Observational data were obtained from 67 classrooms in 10 schools in 4 school systems. The ANOVAs revealed two significant main effects for race, five main effects for sex, and three significant race/sex interactions. For the race variable, the researcher found that black students received more negative behavioral feedback and more positive-negative feedback than did white students. Females received significantly less total communication, less praise, less negative behavior feedback, less neutral procedure feedback, and less nonacademic feedback. The significant race/sex interactions emphasized the white female's infrequent communications with teachers. She received significantly less total communication than the other three sex/race groups. In addition, white females received less neutral behavioral feedback and less academic feedback than did white males.     

Testing a model linking environmental hope and self-control with students' positive emotions and environmental behavior

ABSTRACT

This study examined a moderated mediation model with 254 Israeli junior high school students, hypothesizing that students' environmental hope would simultaneously mediate the relationship between their engagement in school-based environmental activities (green engagement) and their environmental behavior as well as their positivity ratio, but that students' self-control skills would moderate these mediation processes. The results showed that engagement was linked to self-reported pro-environmental behavior, as well as experiencing more positive than negative emotions. Multigroup structural equation modeling indicated that the model provided a good fit to the data, and rigorous bootstrap analysis confirmed the simultaneous mediating role of environmental hope—but only for students with high self-control skills. The limitations and implications of the findings are discussed, and future directions are presented.     

The relationship between race of examiner,cultural mistrust,and the intelligence test performance of black children

The effects of race of examiner and level of mistrust of whites on the Stanford-Binet performance of black elementary school children were examined. Groups with high and low levels of mistrust of whites were first identified. Half of the participants in each group were than administered the Binet by a white examiner; the remaining were tested by a black examiner. The black examiner-high mistrust group scored significantly higher than did the white examiner-high mistrust group. In addition, the black examiner-high mistrust group scored significantly higher than did the black examiner-low mistrust group.     

Beyond the Black–White Binary of U.S. Race Relations: A Next Step in Religious Education

Abstract

Many if not most people in the academy as well as the public sphere tend to regard race and racism in the United States in terms of a default frame of reference (i.e., a paradigm): the black–white binary. Although this frame is constructive as well as compelling, it displays serious liabilities. This article outlines, for religious educators, nine expressions of the black–white paradigm—three variations of the binary, three approaches from black studies/theology, and three models that express efforts to transcend binary thinking. A concluding comparative exercise illustrates how participants may discern, address, and ideally revise the paradigm.     

Racial Implications for the Design of Instructional Materials

Abstract

The purpose of the research was to investigate the influence that selected ethnic variables of an information source have on selected black and white pupils of the sixth grade. The research was focused on the auditory and visual channels of the information source (tape-slide presentations) and their effects on the intended audience. Results indicated that black and white voices are accepted by both white and black pupils. However, white pupils rated visuals representing only black people lower than visuals representing only white people.     

Paternity establishment at birth and early maltreatment: Risk and protective effects by maternal race and ethnicity

BackgroundMinority race/ethnicity, low socioeconomic status, and lack of established paternity have been identified in previous research as risk factors for child maltreatment. However, given vastly different patterns of income distribution, single parenting and co-parenting across racial and ethnic populations, it is difficult to know which of these factors contribute most to maltreatment risk.ObjectiveThe current study explores whether the odds of maltreatment differ across race/ethnicity when paternity is not established at birth after controlling for maternal socioeconomic status.MethodsUsing merged birth certificate and child protective services records for children born between 2009 and 2011 in Texas (N = 1,175,804), we conducted multiple logistic regression analyses testing the main effects of maternal race and lack of established paternity, as well as the interaction of the two, on substantiated maltreatment.ResultsResults show that children of black mothers were less likely to have established paternity and more likely to experience maltreatment compared with other groups. However, the odds of maltreatment were lower for children of black mothers without established paternity compared to children of white mothers without established paternity (OR = .71, 95% CI [0.67,0.75]). Alternatively, the odds of maltreatment were higher when paternity was not established at birth for Hispanic mothers (OR = 1.13, 95% CI [1.08,1.18]) and mothers of other race/ethnicities (OR = 1.35, 95% CI [1.11,1.65]) compared to white mothers.ConclusionResearch and prevention programming must consider that the processes and pathways linking paternity establishment and maltreatment may differ within and between racial/ethnic groups.     

A Principled Pedagogy for Religious Educators

Abstract

Drawing on whiteness literature and over fifty years of combined classroom instruction experience, two professors of race and religion—one black, one white—at predominantly white institutions, answer the question, “How do we as religious educators effectively teach white students to challenge racially distorted assumptions and promote racially just outcomes?” In reply, they call into question the idea of “safe space,” dissect “the white gaze,” and offer three pedagogical principles for preparing white students to be allies in antiracist struggle: principled dislocation, supportive relocation, and sustained cultivation.     

A Comparative Study of Selected Black and White University Sophomore Students on a Required Reading Test

Abstract

A total of 256 black and 3009 white sophomore students in the four large Georgia universities were studied with regard to their reading test scores obtained during the 1982-83 Georgia Regents' Testing Program. Classification analyses showed that white students scored significantly higher on the reading subtests as well as apposite aptitude/achievement variables. The overlap of black and white student score distributions was consistent, though insignificant, on the aptitude/achievement variables as well as the reading subtests. The extant overlap, however, was significantly greater for black students on the reading subtests than with the aptitude/achievement variables, and these results were similar to those obtained with white students. Further, with the reading subtests, approximately 41% of the black students were misclassified as white students, while only 26% of the white students were misclassified as black students, and this difference in overlap was statistically significant. The study was regarded, to a limited extent, as a cohort extension of the NAEP studies and the results were compared to those findings.