This study uses critical discourse analysis to explain how legislators determine the role and contributions of academic researchers in Congressional legislative hearings. The discursive practices that legislators use serve to construct the social identity of academic witnesses, characterize witnesses' qualifications, solicit information from…

This paper draws on the theory of Basil Bernstein and on more recent applications of it by Rob Moore, John Beck and Michael Young to respond to recent calls for the replacement of discipline-based university faculties and departments with "problem-based" curricula and programmes of study. It considers, particularly, the potential…

This paper provides an analysis of the intersection between education and immigration policies within a transnational context and explores the extent to which U.S. immigration law has caused a forced return migration to Mexico of the U.S. DREAMer population. My analysis includes a discussion of the social conditions and lack of policies in Mexico…

Over the years, some military veterans have been influenced by barriers, preventing them from using their educational benefits. Any active duty member or military veteran could have been exposed to and influenced by these barriers and become unmotivated and not use or discontinue using these benefits. If veterans do not use their educational…

The recent high-profile data-confidentiality fights in Arizona and Los Angeles have researchers worried that access to educators may become a difficult path. In the course of a decadelong federal lawsuit over English-language-learner programs in Arizona, lawyers for state schools chief Tom Horne subpoenaed the raw data from three studies…

The author reports on a review of state policies by researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles, which raises questions about the validity of the use of home-language surveys as a step to identify students eligible for special help in learning English. While it's ubiquitous in schools across the country, the practice of educators'…

How can it be that 50 years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act, our institutions of higher education have still not found ways of reducing the higher education gaps for racial and ethnic groups? That is the question that informs and animates the Equity Scorecard model of organizational change. It shifts institutions' focus from what…

Today, there are critics of teacher education who believe that the system itself is archaic. These critics say that "schools of education" are by their very nature incapable of educating teachers. They say there is nothing worth preserving in them. In this paper, the author proposes that teacher education should engender a set of…

Numerous scholars have promoted "practitioner research" or "teacher-research" as a way of facilitating professional development for pre-service and in-service teachers, promoting change and reform in K-12 settings, and giving voice to teachers" personal and professional knowledge. In this article, the authors consider what…

Copyright branch of American law is summarized and two copyright issues of interest to academics are discussed. Ownership of copyright in works produced in the university and what "fair uses" of copyrighted works may be made by teacher-scholars are discussed. The Salinger v. Random House, Inc. case is described. (MLW)

With a presidential election only one year away, now is the time for educators and educational researchers to become acquainted with and involved in legislative and policy initiatives that can improve education. (GC)

"Chronicle of Higher Education" presents an abundant source of news and information for college and university faculty members and administrators. This April 15, 2005 issue of "Chronicle for Higher Education" includes the following articles: (1) "M.A. Students as Pledges" (Hengen, Nicholas); (2) "It's All An Illusion" (Schweber, Simone); (3)…

This document presents a transcript of the hearing to examine undergraduate science education in relation to the traditional and nontraditional sources of future research scientists. Two specific aspects of the topic were identified for examination: (1) successful methods of science education employed at small liberal arts schools; and (2) what…

The history of university faculty in Spain and the changes brought about by the University Reform Act of 1983 are discussed, including the faculty status as civil servants, faculty hiring, provisions for research opportunities, age distribution, women faculty, and faculty development opportunities. (MSE)

This paper summarizes the rules and regulations under which educational researchers are expected to operate. The role of the Institutional Review Board (IRB) in ensuring protection of research participants from unethical procedures or investigators is discussed, as is the general exemption of specific types of educational research from the IRB…