Nongraded Primary Programs: Reform for Kentucky's Children

Abstract

Schools have failed to improve the academic achievement of poor and minority students. Numerous studies have shown an apparent and growing mismatch in the United States between the cultural knowledge children bring to school and the school curicula. The study reported here focused on one reform initiative designed to narrow the achievement gap between poor and minority students and their middle-class counterparts. The article describes the findings from the first year of a 4-year study of children's development in nongraded primary programs. Included are descriptions of how 6 teachers in 4 schools implemented nongraded primary programs with African American and White urban and rural children, most of whom are poor, and many of whom are of Appalachian descent, and how the teachers' instruction changed over the course of a year. Research issues and implications of the study are addressed.