Interviews were conducted with adolescents (age 10-18) and with one parent of each to determine whether differences between parents and their adolescent children on political information and news media use had any impact at all on the amount of discussion about politics that goes on between them. The period during which the data were collected was…

The motivation for monitoring public affairs and for taking part responsibly in the civic process depends on a person's "civic identity," defined as a sense of kinship with and responsibility toward others in the community. Currently civic education is the province of social studies teachers, but English and language arts teachers could…

The increasing number of women today becoming involved in political activities and holding elective office is evidence of the changes in women's roles in politics which began in the 1960s. Role change began with increased political activity in the 1960s Civil Rights Movement. In the late 1960s and early 1970s feminist organizations were formed to…

Patterned after a 1976 study, a study examined voters' decision making during the 1980 campaign for the presidency of the United States. Data from a survey of 183 registered voters indicated that partisan voters were likely to be precommitted to a candidate choice and thus relatively immune to mass mediated campaign effects. However, those voters…

An analysis of political rhetoric from a perspective suggested by the theories of Richard M. Weaver indicates that during the post-World War I and post-World War II eras, the United States experienced interplays of sociohistorical variables that prevented the nation from rapidly returning to a tension-free experience of peacetime living.…

Critical thinking is defined as the ability and willingness to be objective, impartial, and non-arbitrary, based on evidence. It is crucial to ethical instruction, study of theory, teaching methods, and training in skills or abilities. There are three reasons why critical thinking is an educational ideal: (1) it influences teachers to respect…

A review of research on the roles played by the mass media and the political parties during the agenda-setting stage of political activity in the United States indicates that the mass media have assumed some of the informing and issue-initiating functions generally understood to be performed by political parties. It seems desirable to develop an…

This paper is concerned with policy-making and policy processes in education and with the role of the administrator in these processes. More specifically it aims to explore ten conceptual tools or models that appear to have utility in developing our understanding of these areas. This examination includes policy-making and policy processes in…

Like other political speakers who have drawn on the personification, identification, and dramatic encounter images of mythology to pressure and persuade audiences, Jimmy Carter evoked the myths of the hero, the American Dream, and the ideal political process in his presidential nomination acceptance speech. By stressing his unknown status, his…

The purpose of the research on which this paper is based is to develop fundamental understanding of the problem-solving behavior of school superintendents, given the political character of their work environment. Data drawn from interviews with a school superintendent and a long-standing consultant to school boards are relied on as the basis for…

The authors examine the historical context and current implications of four questions: (1) What is the relationship of land grant universities to agrarian discontent? (2) What was the Wisconsin Idea? (3) What is "public service"? and (4) What views of knowledge predominated in the early days? The land grant university was central as a cause/effect…

The paper presents some informal observations and conclusions drawn from Hawaii's experience with large-scale implementation of new curricula in music, the arts, English language arts, and science over the past ten years. It summarizes each project's different approach to implementation and discusses briefly a number of common conclusions…

Considers recent developments in critical-interpretive approaches to organizations by examining the relationship between power, ideology, and organizational narrative. Discusses organizational narrative as one of the principal symbolic forms through which organizational ideology and power structures are both expressed and constituted. (NKA)

The political processes involved in an academic program evaluation are discussed. Data gathered from a program evaluation conducted at a small, public, liberal arts university in the Southeast were used in examining the explanatory power of the various theories and models. (Author/MLW)

As a starting point in exploring issues of how texts and discourses are affiliated with differing kinds and levels of cultural capital and social power in institutional contexts, this paper considers the experiences of the Hartford (Connecticut) school district to provide definitions of literacy, discourse, and textuality, and their application to…