In the way of commentary, I offer a brief, summative reflection on the complex, multifarious nature of people's semiotic engagements in and with space. Against the backdrop of three snapshot case studies, I suggest there are actually few neat boundaries to be drawn between the linguistic and non-linguistic, between the semiotic and the spatial,…

This article aims to clarify where and how Christian privilege occurs, what its effects are, and how to overturn it. The study of Christian privilege and how it impacts public education on an institutional and pedagogical level is important work and an essential building block in dismantling religious oppression (both of and by religious groups).…

The notion that language is not simply a politically neutral medium of communication, but a social practice that determines power relations and shapes subjectivity has become widely accepted in critical language and literacy studies. Within any socio-linguistic community, certain ways of using language are considered "proper,"…

The intent of this article is to explore how No Child Left Behind (NCLB) emerges from a discursive frame that is also used in relation to neoliberal corporate conquests and, significantly, America's war on terror. The article first demonstrates through reference to online resistance discourses and NCLB, how NCLB is a product of and reproduces the…

Applies and tests Foucault's theories about local centers of power and knowledge by rhetorically analyzing a Minnesota Midwifery Study Advisory Group. Illustrates how knowledge may be produced/suppressed and how a rhetor may become empowered by projecting negative traits upon the "other." Demonstrates how some traditional midwives…

In the academic world, there is an assumption of reasonable administrative conduct. In fact, to ensure such conduct, universities, like other public institutions, may have collective agreements to reinforce this assumption. However, in some cases, the university as employer can very quick off the mark should any faculty member wander into what it…

This article presents a brief critical commentary on Martin Carnoy's presidential address from Robert F. Arnove, Nelly P. Stromquist, Christine Fox, Henry M. Levin, Vandra Lea Masemann, and Erwin H. Epstein. Among other things, Arnove finds particularly useful Carnoy's recommendations on ways to engage in comparative education research, from…

Argues that the philosophical hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer provides a useful theoretical framework from which to discuss ethical issues in the technical communication classroom. Analyzes a previously published case study to demonstrate how hermeneutics can shed light on the ways that writers can be unconscious of ethical problems in their…

Analyzed two programs in a public agency: Investors in Management (a British government initiative) and employee-led development. Found that both programs exposed tensions between individual growth and traditional values constraining growth. Concluded that effective organizational learning in the public sector must be collective and aware of…

Discusses differing meanings of literacy implicit in three metaphors, each rooted in assumptions about the social motivations for literacy, the nature of existing literacy practices, and judgments about which practices are critical for individual and social enhancement. Provides a study of the social meaning of literacy in a traditional society.…

Theories concerning the organizational dynamics underlying the dispersion of institutional research activities within colleges are proposed. Two theoretical arguments concern whether or not a centralized, monopolistic institutional research office will be found on a given campus: the informational legitimacy argument and the limited attention…

Argues for a change in research priorities and a focus on power relationships in the definition of problems. Presents a case study analyzing a failed attempt by a dean of a school of engineering to enlist communication consultants to improve teaching in a department of Computer Engineering. (SR)

The rights of parents and children can best be understood, it is argued, if the law is seen as distributing power over children's lives. Three case studies that illustrate this thesis are discussed with reference to some changes to the law contained in the Community Welfare Bill 1981 (New South Wales). It is further argued that the legal principle…

Explores the pursuit of equal opportunity for girls in school physical education through liberal reform strategies. Addresses ways in which unequal power relations between the sexes have pervaded the structure, organization, and language of high school physical education. British Columbia's new Physical Education Curriculum 2000 is offered as a…

It is proposed that, in investigating wrongdoing, the university attorney must determine who has authority to decide the institution's position; when to seek a higher or different authority; and to whom the lawyer may tell what he or she knows. Three hypothetical cases are offered to illustrate these issues. (MSE)