In a national survey, public university faculty, presidents, trustees, coordinating boards, and legislators (total n=251) identified where they felt authority effectively rested for five typical university-related decisions and where they believed authority should rest. Although most believed in campus-based decisions, there was some disagreement…

Maintains that most students learn how sociologists study social stratification in introductory sociology courses. Presents a content analysis of 15 introductory college textbooks to determine whether they use distributional or relational approaches as the basis for their treatment of social class. Finds that depictions of class are…

Expresses concern over the unproblematic acceptance of authoritative educational discourses by educators, describes one educator's efforts to engage teachers in problematizing of a particularly authoritative educational discourse (classroom management) in colleges of education, and highlights a graduate course that engaged teachers in exploring…

Examination of the relationship between academic learning and group relations suggests that the study of each can inform the other. A partnership between the study of group relations and the study of literary theory could give new insights into teaching and learning as discursive practices, power relations in the college classroom, and sources of…

Restructuring is changing the system of rules, roles, and relationships that govern the use of time, people, space, knowledge, and technology. The teacher's new role is inventing engaging work. The school board's role is educating the community about school conditions. The superintendent's role is influencing stakeholder decision making. Without…

Interview data from 40 inner-city seventh graders challenge the stereotype that adolescents' peer conflicts (APCs) are senseless, wasteful, and destructive. Rather, these conflicts raise important micropolitical concerns about power, conflict, coalition, and policy. APCs can increase the relevance of education, play an important role in social…

This series of roundtable papers explores the attempt of writing instructors to empower students by teaching them both to write within the discourse of the academic community and to write critically against it, resisting its accepted forms of thought and discourse. (CJS)

Reports a case study illustrating how one school district's reform efforts replicate the unequal distribution of knowledge, power, and resources by race and class that occurs in society. Discusses three dominant patterns in education organizational change theory (functionalism, culturalism, and critical theory) and suggests more equitable paths to…

A study of leading state-level policy actors in Florida's higher education identified a hierarchy of power and influence. Policy elites were legislators and key legislative staff consultants, the university system chancellor, and the state board of regents. Least influential in policy formation were faculty and student interest groups and…

Presents a study of the literacy practices and attitudes of Bangladeshi families in Birmingham, England. Particular focus is on the extent to which the mothers of 18 6-year-old Bangladeshi children were able to support their children's school-related literacy learning. (Author/VWL)

Argues that a strong case can be made for supporting outreach as a value-added function in a university. Specific strategies for positioning outreach within the university by developing a power base are outlined. The case of the University of Michigan-Flint is offered as an example of this approach. Seven lessons learned in the process are noted.…

Faculties must pass through several stages when becoming learning organizations: the honeymoon, conflict, confusion, messy, scary, and mature-group stages. Mature school communities have learned to view power differently, make learning more meaningful for students, and model a just and democratic society. Consensus is the starting point. (MLH)

The issue of Aboriginal identity is most often played out in Canadian law. Aboriginal "difference" from others is used to maintain inequities in power relations when it is convenient for those with power. Canada Natives should identify themselves from inside themselves, their communities, and their traditions, and not allow others to…

Describes frictions inherent in the decision-making process at a California community college, where shared governance is both clearly defined and mandated. Discusses responsibility versus consultation and offers two successful examples (regarding the writing center and the basic writing program) in which faculty were involved in the decision and…

Outlines the predominant paradigm of teacher training that claims theory as the primary component in teacher preparation and that holds an empty vessel view of teachers-to-be. Advocates asking questions from an ecological and phenomenological viewpoint. Describes four different ways, drawn from the author's experience, that a person might be…