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From: nccrest@cudenver.edu
Date: 01/30/05

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NCCRESt News, the electronic newsletter of the
National Center for Culturally Responsive Educational Systems

Volume 3, Number 1 January 2005
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In this issue:

==> NCCRESt Update: NCCRESt's Project Director Elizabeth Kozleski to lead
telephone seminar on disproportionality (February 17)
==> Publication Highlight: Becoming Culturally Responsive Educators
==> Web Site of the Month: Education Trust
==> Events: Dropout Center telephone seminar (February 28); CEC Convention
(April 6-9)
==> Resources: Multiple Intelligences Theory; Culturally Responsive
Parental Involvement
==> NCCRESt Support Desk
 
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NCCRESt UPDATE

==> The Disproportionate Representation of Culturally and Linguistically
Diverse Students in Special Education

A free telephone seminar from the National Center on Secondary Education
and Transition featuring NCCRESt's Project Director Dr. Elizabeth Kozleski

<Thursday, February 17, 2005 * 3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. EST>

The overrepresentation of racially, culturally, and linguistically diverse
students in special education and the quality of their educational
experiences have been regarded as among the most significant issues faced
by the U.S. public school system in the past 30 years. Many of the groups
overrepresented in special education are also those overrepresented among
dropouts. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) entitles
all individuals with disabilities to a free appropriate public education
and mandates nondiscriminatory assessment, identification, and placement
of students with disabilities. Yet, disproportion in special education
persists: just 5% of students identified as Asian/Pacific Islanders are
placed in special education; the rate for Hispanics is 11%, for whites
12%, for American Indians 13%, and for blacks over 14% (National Research
Council, 2002).

During this teleconference, Dr. Kozleski will:
* Describe issues related to disproportionality
        * Discuss what NCCRESt is doing to close the achievement gap
between students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds
and their peers
* Communicate how NCCRESt is helping state and local school systems
to reduce inappropriate referrals to special education
* Explain how state and local school systems may access this
information

For more information, please visit http://www.ncset.org/teleconferences/
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PUBLICATION HIGHLIGHT

==> Becoming Culturally Responsive Educators: Rethinking Teacher Education
Pedagogy

Despite the steadily increasing numbers of culturally and linguistically
diverse student populations in schools, not all teacher education programs
readily embrace multicultural education or culturally responsive teacher
education pedagogy. This new practitioner brief from NCCRESt has a twofold
purpose: 1) to demonstrate the need for rethinking current approaches to
teacher education pedagogy and 2) to provide guidelines for developing
culturally responsive teacher education pedagogy. Authors Dr. Cathy Kea of
North Carolina A&T State University, Dr. Gloria D. Campbell-Whatley of
University of North Carolina-Charlotte, and Dr. Heraldo V. Richards of
Austin Peay State University provide direct and thoughtful answers to a
number of key questions:

* What are the key challenges related to diversity in teacher education
programs?
* What should be done to create teacher education programs that are
mindful of diversity?
* What are the characteristics of culturally responsive teachers?

Downloadable copies of this practitioner brief may be obtained from
NCCRESt's Web site: http://www.nccrest.org/publications.html

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WEB SITE OF THE MONTH

==> Education Trust - http://www2.edtrust.org/edtrust

Founded by the American Association for Higher Education in 1990, the
Education Trust encourages colleges and universities to support K-12
reform efforts. Education Trust's Web site features a number of important
reports and materials that focus on closing the achievement gap between
high- and low-poverty students and their peers. Some highlights include:

* "Latino Achievement in America": This brief two-page piece documents the
current status of Latino Achievement in America, high-performing schools,
and ways communities can help close the achievement gap.

* Telling the Whole Truth (or Not) About High School Graduation Rates:
This report highlights the need for states to better report their high
school graduation data. Ultimately, this data should result in greater
awareness of the number of students, particularly low-income and
culturally and linguistically diverse students, who make it through high
school.

* The Funding Gap Report: This report documents large funding gaps between
high- and low-poverty and minority districts in many states. The study
reveals that, in most states, school districts that educate the greatest
number of low-income and minority students receive substantially less
state and local money per student than districts with the fewest
low-income and minority students.

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EVENTS
 
==> Dropout Prevention: The (Ex)Students' Perspective

A telephone seminar from the National Dropout Prevention Center for
Students with Disabilities featuring Dr. Larry Kortering, Professor of
Special Education, Appalachian State University

<Monday, February 28, 2005 * 12:00 noon – 1:30 p.m. EST>

Schools are confronting increased pressure to improve the school
completion rates for youth with disabilities. This session will examine
youth perceptions of high school and the role these perceptions might play
in developing interventions that hold promise for keeping more youth, with
and without disabilities, in school until graduation. Dr. Kortering's
current research focuses on helping high school teachers develop programs
that are more responsive to the needs of youth at risk of dropping out and
helping them to succeed in today's high-stakes testing environment. He has
conducted interviews with school dropouts and annually surveys more than
1,000 high school students. These efforts help provide a unique
perspective on the high school experience of students with and without
disabilities.

Participants can invite as many people to participate as one telephone
connection can accommodate. When you register, you will receive
instructions on how to access the seminar from your telephone and how to
receive participant materials by mail or e-mail. The seminar registration
fee includes access from one telephone line and one set of reproducible
participant materials. The site registration fee is $75.00.

Register by calling 1-800-775-7654 or online at
http://www.dropoutprevention.org/NDPC-SD/ (Seminar Code: NDP9177-0).

==> NCCRESt's Co-Principal Investigator Dr. Cheryl Utley to offer Positive
Behavior Support (PBS) workshop at CEC's annual convention

<April 6-9, 2005 * Baltimore, MD>

The Council for Exceptional Children's (CEC's) annual convention will
provide ample opportunities to learn about and master current
instructional methods and strategies for working with children and youth
in special and gifted education. Sessions will focus on progress
monitoring, autism spectrum disorders, preparing students for transitions,
positive and safe learning environments, and more.

Dr. Cheryl Utley, NCCRESt's Co-Principal Investigator, will hold a
pre-convention workshop, "Implementing Positive Behavior Support in Urban
Multicultural Schools: Research and Realities." The day-long session on
Wednesday, April 6 (9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. EST) will include presentations
from Dr. Utley's colleagues Amy McCart, Festus E. Obiakor, and Lisa
Bowman. The workshop is designed so that participants will gain an
understanding of issues related to the disproportionate representation of
culturally and linguistically diverse students in special education and
racial disparities in office referrals, suspensions, and expulsion rates
in urban school districts. The presenters will share examples of
successful urban schools that are implementing PBS.

For more information, visit
http://www.cec.sped.org/conventions/maryland_2005/

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RESOURCES

==> How Multiple Intelligences Theory Can Guide Teachers' Practices

NCCRESt's partner, the National Institute for Urban School Improvement,
recently released a new "On Point" on Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory.
MI theory and strategies provide a framework and tools that can help
teachers design classrooms, instruction, and curricula that meet the needs
of all students. "How Multiple Intelligences Theory Can Guide Teachers'
Practices: Ensuring Success for Students with Disabilities" introduces MI
and explores its use with all students by looking at the research on
classrooms that use MI. In particular, author Edward Garcia Fierros of
Villanova University focuses on the Project on Schools Using Multiple
Intelligences Theory so that teachers have a robust example to draw on for
their own classrooms.

Free, downloadable copies are available at
http://www.inclusiveschools.org/publications/on_point.htm

==> Culturally Responsive Parental Involvement: Concrete Understandings
and Basic Strategies

This booklet, produced under an American Association of Colleges for
Teacher Preparation-MetLife Foundation Project at Hofstra University,
explains that strong parental involvement in a child's education is
essential to the success of both the child and the school. It explores
culturally biased beliefs many educators have toward their students and
students' families, examining a variety of ways in which educators and
parents can work together to benefit students. The authors describe key
assumptions, examine common misconceptions, and recommend steps for
initiating culturally responsive parental involvement.

To download a free copy, please visit
http://www.aacte.org/Publications/default.htm
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NCCRESt SUPPORT DESK
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Archives of NCCRESt News are available at
http://www.edc.org/hypermail/nccrest/
For more information about NCCRESt, please contact:
Shelley Zion, Project Coordinator
National Center for Culturally Responsive
Educational Systems (NCCRESt)
1380 Lawrence Street, Suite 625
Denver, CO 80204
Phone: 303-556-3990
Fax: 303-556-6141
Email: shelley.zion@cudenver.edu
Web: www.nccrest.org
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NCCRESt is a technical assistance center funded by
the Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education.
Project Officer: Grace Zamora Duràn. Award No. H326E020003.
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