Urban Schools: New Teachers

At the same time that student segregation is intensifying in urban school districts across the United States, the number of multiracial or diverse schools is growing, with one in four urban schools being multiracial in 2005–2006. Using Erica Frankenberg's definitions, a segregated school is one in which 90% or more of the students are of color (or White); a multiracial or diverse school is one where students from three or more racial/ethnic groups each make up at least 10% of the school population. Importantly, these diverse schools go beyond Black and White to include a third or possibly fourth racial/ethnic group. How new teachers might deal constructively with the challenges of this diversity in urban schools is the focus of this entry.

These changing demographics mean ...