The culmination of twenty years of research, this book is a cross-cultural exploration of the ways in which age, gender, and culture affect the development of social behavior in children. The authors and their associates observed children between the ages of two and ten going about their daily lives in communities in Africa, India, the Philippines, Okinawa, Mexico, and the United States. This rich fund of data has enabled them to identify the types of social behavior that are universal and those which differ from one cultural environment to another. Whiting and Edwards shed new light on the nature-nurture question: in analyzing the behavior of young children, they focus on the relative contributions of universal physiological maturation and universal social imperatives. They point out cross-cultural similarities, but also note the differences in experience between children who grow up in simple and in complex societies. They show that knowledge of the company children keep, and of the proportion of time they spend with various categories of people, makes it possible to predict important aspects of their interpersonal behavior. An extension and elaboration of the classic Children of Six Cultures (Harvard, 1975), Children of Different Worlds will appeal to the same audience--developmental psychologists, social psychologists, anthropologists, and educators--and is sure to be equally influential.

Growing up in the 1930s, Dankwart Koehler was a typical German boy. But his youth came to an abrupt halt with the advent of World War II. He served as a German soldier, eventually becoming a prisoner of war. Koehler tells his story¿from working as a lumberjack while a POW to building a home in the American suburbs.

On the threshold of a new century the organisers of the European Population Conference 1999 (EPC99) in The Hague decided not only to highlight the population trends that Europe is facing today but also the changes in the 21 st century that are set to shape the future of Europe. They decided to focus on comparative issues, both in time and in space. In order to trace the degree of homogeneity and heterogeneity of European populations over time, converging and diverging population trends that are specific to contemporary and future Europe need to be explored. This is reflected in EPC99's motto: 'European Populations on the threshold of the new millennium; unity in diversity. ' Future demographic developments will be caused by specific economic, social and cultural conditions in Europe, and will, in turn, have a major influence on future economic and social conditions. To the extent that demographic trends differ across countries, separate countries may face different social and economic problems. As demographic trends tend to have long-lasting effects, it is important to assess the possible consequences of future demographic developments at an early stage. On the occasion of EPC99 , two of the organisers, Statistics Netherlands (SN) and the Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI), decided to produce a set of two population scenarios, showing the possible impact of converging and diverging population trends in the next century.

"The less known the real world is, the more plausibly your marvels can be located near at hand." As the creator of one of the most famous "other worlds" of all time, C.S. Lewis was uniquely qualified to discuss their literary merit. As both a writer and a critic, Lewis explores the importance of story and wonder, elements often ignored or even frowned upon by critics of the day. His discussions of his favorite kinds of stories--children's stories and fantasies--includes his thoughts on his most famous works, The Chronicles of Narnia and the Space Trilogy. "A must for any collection of C. S. Lewis." --Choice

Originally published in 1997. By drawing on the experiences of children aged 3 to 8 attending schools in Britain, Germany, Iceland, Australia and the USA, the authors of these eleven case studies provide insights into what it means for young children to enter a new language and culture in school. They look at the scope of out-of-school language and learning practices (the role of care givers, siblings and community language classes) and go on to look at the ways in which the teacher can act as mediator of a new language and culture in school. This book helps teachers develop culturally responsive teaching programmes based on an awareness of the knowledge children bring from home and the community. The book will be of interest to early years and primary school teachers working in multilingual classrooms and students.

This collection of 25 essays of literary criticism includes pieces on British poet John Milton, British fantasy writer C. S. Lewis, American horror writer Stephen King, American SF and fantasy writer Orson Scott Card, British horror writer Clive Barker, and several others. Complete with bibliography and index.