It is argued that the O. J. Simpson murder trial reflects impoverished discourse in America about social identity and power, particularly relating to race, gender, and class. The debate over the relevance and centrality of identity divides American society deeply because it is at the heart of the discrepancy between what America wants to be and…

Presents a summary and sample teaching document from Todd Bennett's "Culture, Power, and 'Mission to Moscow': Film and Soviet-American Relations during World War II" from the Journal of American History. Focuses on the ties between World War II diplomacy and popular culture by focusing on the movie "Mission to Moscow." (CMK)

Presents responses from a group of 10-13 year olds who attend school in St. Petersburg, Russia, answering the question "what do you know about America and Americans?" Considers what can be done to change the negative aspects of the U.S. image and to address character education. (CMK)

Historicized images of First Nations women ("princesses" and "squaws") and related narratives are deeply entrenched in North American popular culture. These appropriated, commodified representations circulate in the politics of difference and influence the identities of Native women. But their mothers' and grandmothers'…

Provides an annotated bibliography of Web sites on the American West, the Oregon Trail, Santa Fe Trail, Gold Rush, Donner Party, mountain men and the fur trade, Native Americans, cowboys, and western folklore. Lists related books, activity books, and CD-ROMs on cowboys, migration, and settling. (PEN)

The authors are two former teachers who created "Full On Magazine," which uses young people's unquenchable thirst for popular culture to inform, motivate and educate students on the edge of disaffection. Throughout the magazine are articles on football, music and computer games interspersed with articles covering college courses,…

This article examines the representation of lifelong learning in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BtVS)." Critics acknowledge the series' representation of school life, but pay less attention to its emphasis on self-directed adult learning. The article draws on the extensive range of academic "BtVS" writing and on relevant educational theory concerned…

The educational aim of this genealogical study of ribbon workers as popular educators is to expose activist and voluntary organisations, not only as generative sites of learning, but also as sites of habituated learning and stereotypical colour assumptions. This study urges popular educators and activists to reflect critically on the popular…

The ability to negotiate and resolve socioscientific issues has been posited as integral components of scientific literacy. Although philosophers and science educators have argued that socioscientific issues inherently involve moral and ethical considerations, the ultimate arbiters of morality are individual decision-makers. This study explored…

This research examined 9- to 15-year-old children's understandings about basic genetics concepts and how they integrated those understandings with their broader theories of biology. A cross-sectional case study method was used to explore the students' (n = 90) understandings of basic inheritance and molecular genetics concepts such as gene and…

The intersections of dance and sexuality and sexual identity are part of the critical discourse important to teaching dance appreciation and dance history. This essay presents aspects of my teaching practice, informed by current writings in queer studies, dance studies, education, and sociology. Awareness of potential classroom diversity helps…

This cross-sectional study explored the role of age and socioeconomic status (SES) in relation to children's popular musical preferences. As part of a larger, multi-method, longitudinal study on children's and adolescents self-views and media preference, the present study investigated the popular music section of a self-report questionnaire. Data…

Neither a bibliography nor a history of genres through historical sequences of listings by author, this book is a guide for those who help readers identify genre authors and titles of desired types in both libraries and bookstores. A secondary purpose of the book is as a text for library school students, aimed at familiarizing them with the common…

In composition journals, graduate classrooms, and informal discussions among writing teachers, there is a lot of talk about liberation, empowerment, student voice, dialogue, critical thinking, and democratic teaching--the familiar tropology of critical pedagogy. This nomenclature seems to have permeated the field of composition, across theoretical…

What is pleasing about hypertext is what has always been pleasing about genre fiction: the creative process of reading. Genre novels are written to a formula--and often called formula fiction. Critics say they are written to make money and to make money only. According to C. S. Lewis, they "rot the mind." If looked at from the standpoint…