TEACHING ETHNIC GROUPS.

THE MAJOR THEME OF FIVE PAPERS OF A PANEL IS THE NEED FOR TEACHERS TO UNDERSTAND THE DIVERSE CULTURES AND VALUE SYSTEMS OF THEIR PUPILS. SISTER FRANCIS MAUREEN POINTS UP THE SENSITIVITIES AND CLOSE RELATIONSHIPS OF PUERTO RICAN CHILDREN, AND REVEREND JOSEPH FITZPATRICK REMARKS ON THE INTENSE FAMILY FEELING, NONCOMPETITIVE ATTITUDES, AND LACK OF COLOR BIAS AMONG THIS GROUP. VERA JOHN REVIEWS THE TRADITIONAL EDUCATIONAL THEORIES USED IN SCHOOLS FOR INDIANS AND MEXICAN-AMERICANS AND CRITICIZES THE STRESS IN THEM ON LEARNING ENGLISH. SHE FEELS THAT A BICULTURAL AND BILINGUAL SYSTEM WOULD BE MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE. GLORIA MATTERA'S REPORT ON MIGRANT CHILDREN STRESSES THE NEED FOR BACKGROUND INFORMATION ABOUT, AND DIRECT CONTACT WITH, THE CULTURE OF THESE PEOPLE. SHE RECOMENDS THAT LANGUAGE, VOCABULARY, AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT BE BASED ON THE PUPIL'S OWN EXPERIENCES AND THAT TEACHERS IMPROVE THE CHILD'S SELF-CONCEPT. MARCELLA WILLIAMS DISCUSSES THE NEED FOR PROGRAMS TO DEVELOP IN TEACHERS DIAGNOSTIC SKILLS AND TECHNIQUES FOR ENHANCING THE NEGRO STUDENT'S SELF-CONCEPT. GEORGE BLAIR, THE SUMMARIZER, NOTES THE SUPERFICIAL REPETITIONS OF THE OBVIOUS AND THE PLATITUDINOUS STRATEGIES WHICH THE PANEL OFFERS. HE SAYS THAT THE ISSUE OF QUALITY INTEGRATED TEACHING AND LEARNING WAS SIDESTEPPED AND THAT THE EDUCATIONAL ESTABLISHMENT APPEARS TO OPT TO PRESERVE THE "STATUS QUO." (NH)