Set in the American community of Rivercrest in a multi-racial junior school, this text provides a portrait of the beliefs and understandings held by students, teachers and administrators with respect to issues such as race, social class and gender.

The community and the school
students' cultural knowledge about human diversity
the administrative team
the teachers
the students and classroom life
why students believed as they did
why the school operated the way it did
a critical
appraisal of what happens after the school bell rings
high
shool and abandoned dreams
a plan for action.