TEACHING STYLES AND URBAN EDUCATION Introductio

Statistics indicate that almost 30 percent of students entering high school will leave prior to graduation; urban dropout rates often range between 40 and 50 percent (Brady, 1995). Estimates place the nationwide costs of the dropout problem at a minimum of $26,000 for each dropout during his or her working life (Tindall 1988).

The foregoing facts highlight the importance of understanding those factors that assist in the overall effort to help students, especially urban students, to both stay in school and maximize their learning. In this regard, Klausmeier (1995) has reported that one of the most effective tools available to the educational system for achieving the goals if maximal learning and non-dropout is teaching or instructional style. The purpose of this paper is to examine the literature on the effects of different instructional/teaching styles on inner-city, mostly at-risk students.

Teaching/Instructional Styles and At-Risk Students

Diverse teaching styles have been tested for their effects on increasing the academic and social progress of at-risk students. One style that has been particularly effective is Active learning in which instruction is accompanied by a hands-on approach allowing students to actively manipulate and work with the subject matter being taught (Basham, 1994).

An example of active learning can be seen in a study of fourth-grade students (83% of whom were identified as "at ris

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ues have elicited negative reactions from mainstream teachers and administrators, they've earned the enthusiastic and growing support of parents and the community who noted the tremendous academic and social progress that was made by her students. This recognition led to her selection as director of a new private elementary school in the Garfield Park area of Chicago, sponsored by a local community college and the Chicago-based Alternative Schools Network. While the foregoing studies provided descriptions of different kinds of effective teaching styles, the questions can be asked as to what styles are actually used by inner-city teachers and which of these are most effective? An answer to these questions was developed by Levine (1996) who examined the personal creativity and classroom teaching style of 16 second-year, inner-city teachers involved in a mentoring program. Personal teacher creativity was evaluated with the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT) Verbal Form A. The TTCT provided a fluency, flexibility, originality, and a Torrance average score. The Torrance average creativity scores ranged from 83126. Teachers with scores 101 and above were considered more creative. Teachers with scores of 98 and below we
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