Background: Government-funded knowledge brokering organisations (KBOs) are an increasingly prevalent yet under-researched area. Working in the space between knowledge and policy, yet framing themselves as different from think tanks and academic research centres, these organisations broker evidence into policy. Aims and objectives: This article…

The development of the modern nation-state was an inherently centralising process. Education policy and the institutionalisation of mass public schooling played a key role in this process, facilitating industrialisation and the generation of mass loyalty toward the state. In almost all federal systems, however, education policy remained an…

Using a critical discourse analysis, this research examines the coverage by Canada's two national English-language newspapers of the 2012 Quebec tuition protests. The goal was to uncover what relationships were formed and constituted by media when representing people challenging neo-liberal assumptions of payment for continuing education. The…

This article outlines how gay-straight alliances (GSAs) work to connect youth with community resources, and outlines the political and social context of GSAs in Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. Fifteen individuals (youth, teachers, and a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer [LGBTQ] youth service provider) participated in interviews…

Although the determinants of trust in governments have received significant attention in the literature on political trust, there has been no attention paid to whether environmental concerns affect governmental trust. Yet, if individuals are worried about local and global environmental degradation, they may think that the government has failed in…

Centralization of education authority coupled with the growth of confederation of campus unions led in the early 1970s to an escalating "arms race" between the Canadian Ministry of Education and the syndicalistic unions. The effective exercise of union power was ultimately at the polls rather than the bargaining table. (Author/IRT)

The development and delivery of child care services in Canada has never been without controversy. This case study examines the development of the child care system in Alberta, Canada, showing how the role of the government proceeded through four distinct phases, each determining a different outcome for child care stakeholders. Power mechanisms and…

The relationships between government and the universities are explored with examples given of government infringement upon university autonomy and abridgement of commitments. The reasons for the absence of public protest are analyzed. A conclusion is that a university's relations with government reflect the current realities of power and…

Argues that provision of training for the unemployed is driven by capitalist economic policy and political choices about participation in the global economy. The gap between aims and outcomes of programs for the unemployed is integral to the restructuring of the economy that is taking place. (SK)

The Candora women's collective uses a participatory model in developing community-based programming for women. Such grassroots organizations are faced with ethical dilemmas in negotiating the interests of funding agencies, organizations, and the women served. (SK)

Alberta's charter-school legislation responds to certain needs of both liberal and republican ideologies. Alberta's experiment indicates that parents are not very dissatisfied with their local schools. Few minority children are attracted, and charter performance has not been stellar. Schools are chosen for their value systems. (Contains 31…

Examines the concept of political socialization and the sources of distinctiveness in Canadian political life. Focuses on relations between French and English Canada, regional differences, governmental machinery, civic education, and media influences. (DB)

The relationships between provincial and local goverments in Canada have important effects on the course of public education. School districts in British Columbia use a wide variety of political strategies to influence provincial government behavior. Greater knowledge of the nature of such political strategies by school districts would make…

Child care policymakers in Ontario and Michigan were compared in a study of provincial and state political processes and structures that affect child welfare. The two regions were selected due to similarities in their demographic characteristics, economic structures, and Anglo-American cultural commitments. The rationale for the study was that an…

The following invited addresses and research papers are provided: "The Question of Legitimacy" (Harry W. Arthurs); "The Historical Perspective" (H. Blair Neatby); "Politics and Its Limits on Government, Intermediaries and Universities" (Lee Southern); "State Control of Degree Granting: The Establishment of a…