Describes the implementation of an English Language Center in Esteli, Nicaragua in 1993 and identifies social, cultural, and political complexities involved. Qualified teachers were recruited during the planning phase, and after two months of operation, over 200 students were enrolled. Students paid for classes that were marketed only to those who…

Discusses ways in which the structuring of home-school relations around power leads to particular complexities. Looks at the notion of powerlessness as a way of understanding relationships between schools and parents. Suggests that understanding these relationships can help explain the failure of many attempts to improve parental involvement in…

Studied charter schools in California, using case studies and more than 450 interviews with teachers, administrators, parents, and community members. Focused on four assumptions usually made about charter schools to show that these schools are not, for the most part, the highly autonomous, accountable, and efficient schools of choice promised by…

Two studies assessed changes in attentional engagement as a function of exposure to "teachers" differing in perceived power and the communication style associated with perceived power. Results suggested that adult ambiguity (more characteristic of those with perception of low power) leads to reductions in children's attentional…

Responds to Sweet's (Steven) essay on radical pedagogy in the teaching of sociology. Discusses issues related to the degree to which sociology instructors are normative and radical; problems and potential of the radical ideal; and the radical dilemma of power in the classroom. (DSK)

This paper analyzes the case file of an adult male labeled as having mental retardation. The focus is on exploring the power dynamics that underpin services. Using Foucault's treatise on discipline as an analytic tool, the paper examines the mechanisms through which a defective identity is constructed, thereby legitimizing social control.…

Interviews English parents who had at least one child who had finished compulsory schooling about their school choice and experience of compulsory schooling. Examines different significances that parents attached to discipline and why. Argues that power relations between adult/child and resulting from social location are relevant to understanding…

Identifies crucial elements of black feminist theory as they surface in the scholarship and activism of black women at the end of the second wave of feminism in the 1970s and the beginnings of the third wave of feminism in the 1980s and 1990s. Socially constructed categories of race and power are emphasized. (SLD)

Enters a discussion about the appropriate role of researchers from a dominant group in conducting research about a subordinated group. Relates one scholar's experiences as a man researching in the area of feminism. Argues that these researchers can work with integrity but that it takes self-reflection and commitment to accountability. (DSK)

Explores key features of processes school leaders employ to create positive interethnic school communities, identifying five elements for effective intervention and applying an analytical model to each to provide a schema for framing elements of central importance. Addresses how school leaders use their power and authority and how they determine…

Using Texas's experience with standards and high-stakes testing, this critical sociocultural view of accountability illuminates hidden or neglected aspects of accountability-its meanings, consequences, and the processes by which it is institutionalized. Authority is moving to the state level; teachers, parents, and students have too little…

A case study of a college nursing program reveals the politics of planning in higher education and the need to be aware of power relations, negotiated interests, and ethical issues in order to effect meaningful change for students. (SK)

Program planners must be aware of the purposes of professional continuing education and the organization's expectations of it. For example, continuing medical education may be expected to expand clinical practice by generating patient referrals from participating physicians. (SK)

Price's comments argue that Peirce advances understanding of the way in which power relations have a direct effect on language use and learning; however, he raises questions concerning Peirce's theorizing of social identity. Peirce responds that Price's reading was structured by an "a priori" assumption that was not consistent with the objectives…

Traced the emotions of secondary school department heads as they engaged with: their own and others' educational purposes, the power relationships of secondary schooling, and their relationships with people around them who were affected by and had expectations for their role. Interview data revealed tensions between teaching and leading,…