| Abstract: | As the school-age population grows in its ethnic and economic diversity, those who become teachers remain overwhelmingly white, female, and middle class. To assist teacher education students understand a world that is largely unfamiliar to them, the University of Houston teacher preparation program offers a volunteer experience in an urban social service agency for its students as part of a cultural awareness requirement. The results of this program suggest that it may help preservice teachers to understand better the lives of the children they will face and hence better prepare them to teach, perhaps diminishing the  revolving door of teachers in urban classrooms.Kip Téllez received his Ph.D. from The Claremont Graduate School in 1991. He is currently Assistant Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Houston. His present academic interests include the reexamination of pragmatism, teacher education, and Latino youth gangs. Peter S. Hlebowitsh received his Ed.D. from the Rutgers Graduate School of Education. He is currently Assistant Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Houston. His present scholarly interests are in curriculum theory, curriculum history, and teacher education. |
