An investigation of the K-ABC,WISC-R,and W-JPB,part two,with learning disabled children

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC), the WISC-R, and the Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeducational Battery (W-JPB), Part Two, with children who experience learning disabilities. Correlational analyses were used to examine relationships among the WISC-R, K-ABC Mental Processing and Achievement scales, and the W-JPB Achievement scales. Thirty-four children with learning disabilities (mean age 8–11 years) received all three measures. Correlation coefficients indicated stronger and more consistent relationships between the WISC-R and W-JPB Achievement tests than between the K-ABC and W-JPB Achievement tests. Significant relationships between the WISC-R Full Scale IQ and the K-ABC Mental Processing Composite (MPC) revealed evidence of validity for this learning disabled sample. However, correlation coefficients among the K-ABC Achievement subtests and the W-JPB Achievement clusters indicated both convergent and discriminant validity. Thus, it is suggested that both the K-ABC MPC, for assessment of cognitive abilities, and the W-JPB Achievement clusters could be employed in discrepancy formulas for special education placement of children with learning disabilities.     

Promoting a self-sustaining learning community: investigating an internal model for teacher development

The authors report an investigation of a five-step structured study-group approach to promoting a?self-sustaining learning community that supports teachers in developing the ‘habits of mind’ necessary for improving literacy acquisition and development for urban African American students attending a low-performing, high-poverty elementary school. The authors report that over a two-year time period the conversations among the teachers at the study-group meetings changed to be more positive about the children, to make linkages between themselves and the culture the children bring to school, to enthusiasm for sharing their own strategies and engaging in public reflection, and collaborating in developing new instructional approaches.     

Multiculturalism: An "as if" phenomenon

Multiculturalism has come to have multiple meanings depending on the context and voice it is given. In higher education it has become a symbol for particular notions about minority and majority groups, and their places in the institution. While multicultural affairs and concerns at academic institutions appear to be genuinely supported and give the impression of commitment, they are, on closer inspection, a superficial and reactionary response to environmental pressures. Multicultural initiatives are not integrated into the very heart of the institution, but, rather, relegated to a cursory importance that, while genuinely intended, maintains the status quo. This paper attempts to closely examine the process of multiculturalism in small liberal arts colleges from the perspective of a minority faculty and administrator. That is, from a simultaneous position of subject and object.     

The ego function of protest songs: An application of Gregg's theory of protest rhetoric

This essay applies Richard Gregg's theory of protest rhetoric to 705 American social movement songs from 1800 to 1985 to discover how songs enable protestors to identify against others and thus to locate themselves positively in the social hierarchy. Songs are ideal messages for ego‐enhancement because they are movement‐centered, concerned with social relationships, and highly self‐directed. Terms denoting innocent victimage and wicked victimizer dominate the selected songs, and the vision of reality is negative, dangerous, threatening, and unfair. Relatively few songs emphasize the unity, virtue, wisdom, or bravery of protestors. The self‐image contained in songs does not appear to express a strongly positive identity or locate the oppressed very high in the symbolic or social hierarchy. This self‐image would seem to fulfill three ego functions essential for the early phases of social movements: raising consciousness, allaying guilt, and reclaiming or proclaiming one's ego. However, a different self‐image is needed as movements grow, confront opposition successfully, achieve some goals, suffer setbacks, and splinter into factions. This analysis of songs indicates that protestors have difficulty making the essential transition from a self‐image of victim to one of power, worth, and virtue. They cannot extricate themselves from symbolically defensive positions in a hostile environment.