This theme issue of the serial "Educational Foundations" contains four articles devoted to the topic of "Sociopolitical Analyses." In "An Interview with Peter L. McLaren," Mary Leach presented the views of Peter L. McLaren on topics of local and national discourses, values, and the politics of difference. Landon E. Beyer's "Educational Studies and the Liberal Arts: Cultural Politics and Institutional Change" outlined the conceptual orientation to educational studies that formed the basis for efforts at institutional change and explored the nature of the institutional, bureaucratic, and cultural constraints to proposals. In "Sociopolitical Influences on Federal Government Funding of Gifted and Talented and Bilingual Education Programs," Ursula Casanova and Sheila Chavez examined the influence of various socio-political factors on government policies in federal programs for the gifted and talented and those for bilingual education and suggested that sociopolitical pressures, rather than pedagogical interests, have shaped the evolution of the two programs. In "The Challenge of Peace Education: Do Our Efforts Make a Difference?," Ian M. Harris looked at the impact of peace studies courses upon 108 students at the college and university level. Results on attitudes and beliefs were inconclusive, interest in peace studies were wide ranging in variety, and behavior changed in peaceful directions after taking a peace studies course. Appendix A includes the instrument used in the study. (CK)