The urban and educational literature has recently begun to focus on the increase of concentrated povertyin inner-city neighborhoods and the educational failure ofyouth often associated with livingin these neighborhoods. The currentstudy examines this issue by identifying which neighborhood characteristics influence educational achievementand what mechanisms mediate these associations. Using the National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988 linked to 1990 census information at the neighborhood level, the currentstudyfinds not only that neighborhood characteristics predicteducational outcomes but also that the strength ofthe predictions often rivals that associated with more commonly citedfamily-and school-related factors. When considering how neighborhood characteristics influence educational outcomes, theorists have proposed several mediating processes, including collective socialization, social control, social capital, perception of opportunity, and institutionalcharacteristics. The currentstudy reveals that these mediators account for about40% of the neighborhood effecton educational achievement, with collective socialization having the strongest influence. Also discussed are the theoretical and policyimplications ofthis study and directions for future research.Increasing concentration of poverty in urban areas over the last thirty years has renewed interest in the effects of neighborhood-level conditions on the well-being of residents (Massey

No abstract

This study examines how race and socioeconomic status contribute to disparities in study abroad participation. Our mixed methods approach provides a broad overview of the selection process into study abroad using national data. It also provides a nuanced understanding of the mechanisms that perpetuate inequality among Black and lower class students. Both quantitative and qualitative results show that students' habitus, social networks, and cultural capital shape their study abroad experiences. We find that students with a positive predisposition toward internationalization (having foreign-born parents and/or experiencing different cultures overseas) were more likely to study abroad. Whites and high socioeconomic status students were also more likely to have family and friends who valued study abroad than were lower socioeconomic status and Black students. These advantaged students were better able to acquire and use cultural capital when accessing information from institutional agents. They were also more likely to possess the knowledge and background that complied with institutional standards. These factors contributed significantly to the race and class disparities in study abroad participation. This study contributes to the scant literature on study abroad by revealing mechanisms through which the reproduction of inequality is shaped in the university setting. We argue that patterns found to apply to this process are likely to take place in other processes in higher education as well."What we do know in a global world today is that travel is important. Every major university in this country is trying to raise money in order to get their undergraduates to live and have an experience overseas. They think that it is critical to come into the new world. David Rockefeller just gave Harvard a hundred million dollars to ensure that every undergraduate has a chance to go. i This is not just an elitist thing. David Boren, who is the president of the University of Oklahoma, is trying to get every student at the University of Oklahoma to go overseas. We know that this is now a prerequisite to being, to living, in a very complex world and having positions of responsibility." -David Bergen,

Blacks offer positive responses to a wide range of survey questions gauging attitudes toward schooling, yet perform less well in school than do whites. The credibility of blacks' attitudes is a central issue among competing explanations for this paradox. In this article, the authors assess questions about the validity of blacks' pro-school attitudes with the National Education Longitudinal Study. Two findings prompted the authors to rethink the paradox. First, a key reason for doubting blacks' pro-school attitudes—that they fail to predict achievement—does not generalize to the national data. Second, rather than challenge the credibility of blacks' pro-school attitudes, the results reveal minimal differences in attitude-achievement associations between blacks and other minority groups. These patterns have implications for thinking about whether blacks resist schooling.

Research on family structure has led some to claim that sex-based parenting differences exist. But if such differences exist in singleparent families, the absence of a second parent rather than specific sex-typed parenting might explain them. We examine differences in mothering and fathering behavior in singleparent households, where number of parents is held constant, and we describe individualist and structuralist perspectives for potential sex-based parenting behaviors. We compare 3,202 single mothers and 307 single fathers in the Early