Most arguments about literacy education in the United States are predicated on the idea that learning to read will prevent or overcome poverty. This article places the literacy success equation within some historical and political contexts, presents a critical policy analysis of conservative, neo-conservative, neo-liberal, and liberal views, and…

Describes teacher education in Namibia following independence from South African rule, discussing a basis for transformation, critical factors affecting transformation, features of the teacher-preparation program, and tensions between different actors (including foreign support), suggesting that transformative forces must reorganize themselves at…

Defends the exclusion of Shakespeare course requirements for the English Department at Indiana University by explaining that "Shakespeare can take care of himself"--students will sign up for as many Shakespeare classes as offered. Presents opposing obstacles and objectives to this curricular decision. (SC)

Interviews Regie Routman, well-known advocate of whole-language instruction, about her new book, "Literacy at the Crossroads," in which she presents a clear response to critics of whole language and of education in general. Urges teachers to participate in professional development and communicate their professional knowledge about good teaching…

Argues that the confluence of conservative and scholarly attacks on basic writing instruction can only be understood viewed in its larger sociohistorical context. Outlines the strategic value of basic writing and underscores the need to defend it while acknowledging the importance of concerns about the dangers of tracking, stereotyping, and…

Analyzes interest groups' role within current Spanish educational policy, highlighting historical and structural factors. The historical educational dualism and political opposition between public and private education explains the emergence and political position of each education actor, and the interactional dynamics involved in influencing…

For decades, colleges of agriculture (CAs) and their larger land-grant universities have neglected their mission to promote nonfarm rural development. Cultural, institutional, and financial barriers have impeded this mission. Pursuing a rural development mission would provide a new constituency for CAs and increase their legitimacy in the face of…

Considers the direction of literature curricula and asks why the study of literature and language is an essential part of culture. Explains the curriculum's educational value and intellectual purposes to those who allocate resources. Raises fundamental questions about the political and spiritual aspects of teaching literature. (SC)

Examines the origins and current situation of the recent academic labor movement at Yale University, called the Graduate Employees and Students Organization. Discusses the increased use of non-tenure-track faculty at other universities and analyzes the changing nature of higher education institutions, highlighting reasons for the academic labor…

Describes the work of the Graduate, Adjunct, Lecturers: Organized Labor at the University of Maryland, noting that the bulk of graduate student struggles overall has occurred at state institutions. The group lobbied state legislators to include nontenured faculty in a bill granting collective bargaining to state employees. Highlights the…

Examines the silence of women authors within the canonical political-theory conversation. Discusses the experience of teaching Wollstonecraft's "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman." Stresses the ongoing importance of the feminist project to reclaim women's writing and suggests ways that feminist theory can transform the teaching of…

Reflects on issues presented in C. Dudley-Marling and S. Murphy's critique of Reading Recovery, published in this journal's March 1997 issue. Argues that their critique is paralyzing because it could be used against any successful social or educational program. Argues that educators cannot afford to become paralyzed but must continue to make a…

Discusses what is to come in research on literacy in secondary schools. Connects interest in secondary school literacy to the content area reading movement and points to cognitive psychology as the primary conceptual basis for recent work. Explains why it is important to consider an even more shifting definition that locates the social and…

Albert Shanker made a significant mark on American political life and altered the politics of education and teacher unionism, though his politics often caused controversy and conflict. Through his long career as a teacher union leader, he helped revolutionize the nation's labor movement and its educational system, utilizing strategies from…

This paper reviews the literature on teachers as researchers, tracing the roots of the subject back to Dewey. The paper notes problems with implementing the concept in teacher education programs and in the schools. It also provides a plan for promoting teachers as researchers and suggests a way of supporting the plan. (SM)