Notes that for most of the past decade, there have been rumblings that the National Reading Conference, the parent organization of this journal, should be involved in influencing educational policy making, but these discussions often seem grounded in one or more unwarranted assumptions. Challenges these assumptions through the use of descriptive…

Takes up Geneva Smitherman's call to renew the fight for language rights by situating the theory of language rights in composition studies in a brief history of rights rhetoric in the United States. Locates the language rights rhetoric of composition studies within larger struggles over the rhetoric of rights in public policy and perception and…

Addresses the questions of how literacy is defined, by whom, and for what purposes, using critical literacy as a lens of analysis. Considers the "normative assumptions" that are present within the language arts curriculum. Suggests that any methodological approach to what it means to be a "literate" person is based on an…

Traces the rationale for removing Sustained Silent Reading from reading instruction as implied by the Reading First initiative. Suggests that no one is accepting responsibility. Notes the authors are apparently out of step with their teaching because they recommend and use many practices that have not been validated by studies conducted by the…

Considers how silence has positive as well as negative attributes, and composition teachers can help students understand and use its aesthetic, ethical, and political resources in their personal writing. Notes that approaching silence in these ways can establish new alignments among the expressivist, psychoanalytical, and social discourses that…

The discourse of the Learning Society has a vocationalist/managerialist thrust, is oriented toward the global economy, and is market driven. A counter-discourse that rejects emphasis on "performativity" could clash with postmodernist objections to master narratives. (SK)

Mathematics education at every level is increasingly influenced by powerful bureaucrats rather than by the profession. Suggests that mathematical scientists should try to understand the political forces affecting mathematics education for the International Commission on Mathematical Instruction (ICMI) study on teaching and learning mathematics at…

Reviews "History and Educational Policy Making," which includes several essays written over time by one author. The general theme is history informing policy decisions. The essays provide capsule histories of particular federal programs, demonstrating how politics have intervened to dictate policies inconsistent with history or research results.…

Although the nature of knowledge is contested, "official knowledge" is promulgated in national standards such as New Zealand's National Qualifications Framework. Autonomy and accountability are used in the politics of official knowledge by competing interests. Critical theory provides guidelines for adult educators to deal with the…

Presents, in the form of a fable, a challenge to readers to expose the Emperor's new education as being more about getting rid of public education than about literacy. (SR)

Pre/post assessment of 27 masters' degree nursing students who completed a health policy course showed a significant increase in their perceived political advocacy and involvement, a small increase in their ability to understand policy context, and the greatest increase in their political knowledge. (SK)

Discusses why Catholic school parents and teachers have advocated for educational reform and how, as a result, public policies can become more responsive to the needs of our Catholic school communities. States that Catholic school advocacy networks help Catholic school communities to advocate federal/state public policy agendas. (VWC)

Describes the early history of the Upward Bound program, including the role of President Johnson's vision, the Task Force on Poverty, the Office of Economic Opportunity, and Community Action Programs; influences on the development of the program; establishment of the program's administrative structure; pilot programs; and early problems leading to…

Discusses results of international study to determine what 14-year-olds in the United States and several other countries know and understand about citizenship, government, and the law. Reveals gaps in U.S. students' civic knowledge and participation. Calls for greater emphasis on civic education in schools. (PKP)

Examines the idea of civil society, comparing the Marxist and post-Marxist definitions of it. Discusses the political agendas of socialism and radical democracy and their impact on adult education. (Contains 59 references.) (SK)