bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Global stability: risks and remedies
Authors: Flemming J.S. , Posner M.V. , Sargent J.R.
Published: March 2007

In the last few years the stability of the world economy has rested upon a prolonged boom in the USA offsetting recession in Japan and a slowdown in other East Asian ‘tiger’ economies. The risk now has to be faced that, if the ‘bubble’ in the US stock market should burst, recessionary influences would spread throughout the OECD area and beyond; and this could happen at a time when the conventional wisdom has lost faith in the effectiveness of ‘reflationary’ monetary and fiscal policies. After re-examining the case for deploying such policies as a positive response to recession, the authors first ask how the rules guiding monetary policy should be amended to reduce the probability of recession, and to counter it if it develops. They then consider the possibilities for fending off or mitigating recession by use of fiscal measures. They conclude by calling for public discussion of the policy issues involved as a basis for the formulation of contingency plans against the non-negligible risk that the balance of the world economy could before long be tilted in a recessionary direction.
Within-classroom grouping: a rejoinder
Authors: Prais S.J.
Published: March 2007

Let us briefly remind ourselves of the current policy-context of this issue in Britain. The need to raise children's schooling attainments to a very substantial extent has become widely accepted in the past fifteen years following international comparisons (many based on research at this Institute) of workforce vocational qualifications and school-leaving standards. The consequences are expressed today in interventionist public policy in terms of a National Curriculum laid down for all school-ages (adopted ten years ago), together with more recent detailed syllabuses in the core subjects of language and mathematics embodied in the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies for primary schools (adopted in the past two years). Much of the need for such reforms in Britain can be traced to worries as to whether teaching time was well spent, particularly in primary schools using ‘modern’ teaching methods which required children within each classroom to be divided into small groups, each group sitting around its own small table, many children not facing the wall-board (many classrooms even having their wall-board removed) so as to promote less ‘didactic’ teaching and more ‘discovery’ learning by pupils. The frequently ensuing difficulties of teachers in dividing their time effectively among those groups, the consequential frustration of those children who awaited the teacher's attention, the slower general pace of learning, and the particular disadvantages suffered by slower-developing children, need not be spelled out here; they have been closely examined in research involving timed classroom observation, such as the ‘Oracle’ project of Professor Maurice Galton and his colleagues.
Section I. Recent economic developments
Authors: Pain Nigel
Published: March 2007

The world economy appears to have embarked upon a cyclical upturn this year. Despite the widespread fears of a year ago, the downturn in global demand that began in the latter half of 1997 proved unusually mild and short-lived compared to others seen in the past three decades. Our latest projections indicate that global output growth is likely to have picked up to 2.9 per cent this year from 2.4 per cent in 1998, and may accelerate further to 3¼ per cent next year. In the OECD economies output growth has accelerated this year to 2.8 per cent, with a continued robust expansion in North America and a gradual stabilisation of the Japanese economy more than offsetting the relatively mild slowdown in the Euro Area and the UK. Elsewhere there has been a strong rebound in output in many of the Asian economies, and the impact of the currency crises in Brazil and Russia appears to have been absorbed more easily than had been expected at the time they occurred.
Section II. Prospects for North America and Japan
Authors: Pain Nigel , Ashworth Paul
Published: March 2007

Economic growth remains robust in the United States. Output growth is projected to be around 4 per cent this year, for the third year in succession. IMF estimates suggest that the present expansion will become the longest on record if maintained until February of next year. Private sector demand is continuing to expand rapidly, underpinned by the sizable gains in equity markets over the past few years. Underlying price inflation has remained quiescent, helped by continued above-trend growth in productivity at a time when the unemployment rate has fallen to levels last seen in the 1960s. Even so, there are some emerging signs of overheating in the economy, with the current account deficit projected to rise to 4 per cent of GDP in the latter half of this year. Some favourable transitory factors which have helped contain inflationary pressures, such as the appreciation of the dollar and weak commodity prices, also now appear to have come to an end.
Social Capital in the Social Democratic Welfare State
Authors: ROTHSTEIN BO
Published: March 2007

The strength of the Swedish Social Democracy implies that Sweden is a critical case for theory about social capital. First, what is the relation between the encompassing welfare programs and social capital? Second, what is the effect on civil society of the neo-corporatist relations between the government and major interest organizations? Using both archival and survey data, the result is that the sharp decline in social capital since the 1950s in the United States has no equivalence in Sweden. This has to do with the specific way in which social programs have been institutionalized. Social capital may be caused by how government institutions operate and not by voluntary associations.
Student Teachers' Perceptions About Communicative Language Teaching Methods
Authors: Miller Lindsay , Aldred Deborah
Published: March 2007

This paper presents some aspects of student teachers' perceptions about the suitability and usability of communicative language teaching methods (CLTM) in the language classrooms of Hong Kong. Teacher education around the world emphasises a move towards more communicative teaching methods with interactive student-centred learning encouraged. But for student teachers who have grown up in cultures which often have teacher-centred classrooms, examination and curriculum constraints, and large classes, there is often a mismatch between theoretical methods and reality.

The paper describes how a research initiative used to gain an understanding of some of the student teachers' perceptions of CLTM became incorporated in an awareness raising exercise in the methodology course. This move was an attempt to make the course more relevant for the local student teachers involved and provide more support in training them for the classroom. Ultimately it is hoped that such initiatives will encourage student teachers to have more positive attitudes to communicative teaching methods.
Proposal for the Teaching of Japanese as a Foreign Language in Singapore
Authors: Nakamura Yoshihiro
Published: March 2007

The paper is an attempt to lay out a practical approach to the teaching of Japanese as a foreign language in Singapore. The first section discusses the importance of developing both linguistic com petence and communicative competence in a foreign language learn ing environment. The second section argues that learning objectives in most general language courses, including Japanese, are too far- reaching for the learner. This section, therefore, proposes to set up the primary goal of Japanese language education at entry level — the ability to fulfill fundamental needs immediately after the learner's entry to Japan. The third section reviews briefly the existing syllabi and methods in search for an effectively balanced means to teach. The section on suggested approach tries to incorporate the previous three sections into a realistic and feasible approach in the classroom. Finally, the paper stresses the use of eclectic approach in Japanese language teaching in Singapore and alludes to change in the foreign language classroom in the 1980's.
Contrastive Rhetoric: Pedagogical Implications for the ESL Teacher in Singapore
Authors: Fagan Edward R. , Cheong Peggy
Published: March 2007

This study investigated the rhetorical styles of English and Chinese expository prose and analyzed sixty compositions written by English-As-A-Second Language (ESL) ninth graders in Singapore.

The first part of the study involved the delineation of the rhetorical patterns of English and Chinese expository styles. A Contrastive Rhetoric study was then undertaken of the two styles. The similarities and differences at the composition, paragraph, and sentence levels of English and Chinese exposition have been highlighted.

The second part of the study involved the analysis of sixty English compositions written by nine-grade Chinese ESL students in Singapore. Four Singapore teachers and the researcher did the analysis. These compositions were analyzed for rhetorical patterns and charateristics and were then compared and contrasted with English rhetorical patterns.

The findings of the study suggested that the sixty students were influenced by Chinese rhetorical styles. The raters' analyses indicated that 39.2% of the sixty compositions exhibited the English three-part pattern of Introduction-Body-Conclusion, and 50.6% exhibited the Chinese four-part pattern of Introduction-Body-Related or Con trasting Subtheme-Conclusion. The raters also indicated that 71.4% of the compositions had examples of digression, repetition, and in- direction and 53.8% had flowery, metaphorical styles.

Pedagogically, results of this study imply a need for in-service programs for ESL teachers which address rhetorical theory for teaching composition. One corollary of that would be modification of the Singapore ESL curriculum to include rhetorical theory and its concurrent teaching techniques, which will help to minimize the ef fects of negative language transfer from Chinese to English composi tion writing.
The C-Test in English: left-hand deletions
Authors: Cleary Christopher
Published: March 2007

The topic of this article is the C-Test — a relatively new addition to the existing battery of techniques, cloze in particular, which claim to measure general language proficiency. Recent trials of th C-Test in Oman on subjects at lower levels of attainment have produced en couraging results on all counts except discrimination. This paper reports an attempt to address the problem of poor discrimination by means of an experimental C-Test variant in which grammatically un marked items were deleted to the left rather than to the customary right. The findings showed that the discrimination of the C-Test could indeed be enhanced by left-hand deletions, but for a negative rather than a positive reason. It is concluded that the C-Test, and possibly other testing techniques which have proved effective at inter mediate level and above, may be less appropriate when applied to lower levels, and that caution should be exercised in their use.
Understanding TOEFL's Test of Written English
Authors: Kroll Barbara
Published: March 2007

In 1986, Educational Testing Service (ETS) added the Test of Written English (TWE), which requires the production of a 30-minute writing sample, to some administrations of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). The test was developed on the basis of two major research projects which investigated the role of writing in the academic community and the type of writing tests that faculty felt their students should be able to produce (Bridgeman and Carlson, 1983; Carlson et al., 1985). ETS appointed a committee of outside consultants, the TWE Core Reader Group, to develop topics for the exam and to determine whether or not a given writing topic should be approved for the exam. This article details the topic development process for the TWE, the work of the Core Reader group, and the procedures for reading and scoring the TWE.
Do Self-Assessment and Peer-Rating Improve With Training?
Authors: Jafarpur Abdoljavad , Yamini Mortaza
Published: March 2007

Though self-assessment and peer-rating are believed to be in line with current learner-centered education, there is yet skepticism about the dependability of such appraisals. The intent of this study has been to determine if training with self-assessment and peer-rating questionnaires improves language learners' skill to estimate their own and their peers' language ability. The results of the study are discussed in the light of the effect and amount of instruction, the type of questionnaire, and the mismatch between the schemata of the learner and those of the instructor.
Un centre consacréà l'etude empirique de la vie religieuse: le DIS de Madrid
Authors: LOPEZ-GARCIA Julián , de ISUSI ECHEITA María Begoña
Published: March 2007

The DIS has devoted itself for over 30 years to the sociological study of data (gathered both intra and extra muros) concerning the apostolic life of male and female religious and various religious institutes, for the most part quite international in character. In the first part of the article, the authors briefly explain the sociological method the DIS has used for 35 years to study thousands of male and female religious at these institutes. Since the very beginning, these religious have been responsible for the management of the DIS as concerns technical matters. The second part of the article offers general conclusions concerning the religious life that can be drawn on the basis of the data collected. These conclusions refer particularly to the religious life in Western Europe.
Catholic Ritual Practices, Culture and Society in Greater Montreal
Authors: TURCOTTE Paul-André
Published: March 2007

According to a survey of French-speaking Catholics in Montreal, rites of passage have supplanted Sunday Mass. At the same time, Mass-goers demonstrate broad acceptance of the ritual modifications which have resulted from Vatican II. Their participation is based on an intimate religiosity, on a level considered first and foremost as the social locus of the relationship with the divine. Mass-goers are looking for an atmosphere of recollection, and Bible readings are central to services. They are reluctant to allow their religious experience to be dictated by the rite, while at the same time acknowledging the contribution its institutional character makes to the historical continuity of their belief and culture. This reluctance appears to be related more to level of education than to the frequency of their attendance at Sunday Mass.
Diaspora chrétienne en Afrique du Nord
Authors: Cuny P.
Published: March 2007

Christian presence in North Africa is not a speci fically religious phenomenon, but the result of settle ment colonization. The Christian is a foreigner and the Moslem willingly identifies Christians with Europeans. Whence the formation of two opposing blocks which turn the prejudices originating in defensive reflexes into myths (for example, the pioneer spirit). Europeans are defending a privileged position, very different, moreover, in Algeria, Tunisia, or Morocco. This situation is now undergoing basic transformations which make a new Christian and less ambiguous beha vior foreseeable.
The personal and the functional element in pastoral care
Authors: van den Ende W.M.I.
Published: March 2007

Troeltsch distingue deux formes de socialité (qui peu vent être définies « grosso modo comme institution et communauté) quand à l'Eglise et la secte. Aujour d'hui cependant les théologiens insistent sur le fait que les deux formes sont représentées à l'intérieur de l'Eglise. A partir de cette constatation. l'A. se demande comment ces deux formes sont présentes dans le rôle du prêtre . Ensuite, il pose la question à savoir si le rôle du prêtre peut être défini en termes de rôle bureau cratique organisationnel, personnel et institutionnel, Cette analyse met en lumière la conclusion selon laquelle le comportement du prêtre est influencé par de nombreuses forces sociales et qu'il n'est pas exact de formuler des critères pour ce comportement, sans tenir compte de ces facteurs.
Modèles culturels socio-religieux des groupes élitiques catholiques à Sri Lanka
Authors: Houtart François , Lemercinier Genevlève
Published: March 2007

This study, which is an extract from the more general resarch on interrelations between the religious and political fields in Sinhalese society, tries to establish the cultural patterns of westernized and nonwesternized Catholic elite groups. Following the schools' question, which polarised opposition in the political field between Christians and Buddhists, religion formed the basis of social belonging in the collective situation. With the alleviation of this problem, the question of development became the main political objective, at least in the officially proclaimed ideologies. What then of the social viewpoint of the Catholic groups and their relationship with religion ?

Only the elite groups are taken into account here. The data of the survey was studied by means of factor analysis which showed the existing patterns for the three sub-groups studied : westernized elite, nonwesternized elite and clergy. If the function of religion as an ideological structure is evident only among a very small group, it serves however to conserve the dominant position of the westernized elite. Differing attitudes prevail among the nonwesternized elite, particularty a combination of a stereotyped attitude with regard to authority and more critical positions regarding the socio- political organization. As for the Catholic clergy, their cultural patterns strongly resemble the westernized group, which is understandable given their formation and cultural environment.

However, it is interesting to note that in each group there exists a minority who see in religious motivation a basis for a more radical attitude towards the transformation of society.
Sex Roles in the Jesus Movement
Authors: Harder Mary W.
Published: March 2007

Au sein du phénomène du Jesus People, l'Auteur s'est atta ché à l'étude des positions différentielles et des rôles joués selon les sexes dans une communauté religieuse.

L'analyse met en lumière l'absence de conflit de rôles, eu égard aux sexes, et la volonté de minimiser toute idée de conflit de la part des membres du groupe.

L'auteur souligne cependant la perdurance d'une position d'infériorité des femmes dans le groupe.
Communion et Manipulation ?
Authors: Cavallaro Renato
Published: March 2007

This article traces the brief history of the Italian Catholic movement, Comunione e Liberazione, founded in the early seventies in Milan by Don Luigi Giussani. The author presents certain ambiguous aspects of the movement, which appears as a right-wing political force through its program envisioning the restauration of a medieval church present on every level of social life. The contradiction of Comunione e Liberazione particularly appears in the abusive treatment the movement makes of " the organic intellectual," a concept borrowed from Gramsci.
Religion and Magic : Two Sides of a Basic Human Experience
Authors: D'Agostino Federico
Published: March 2007

Ce bref article ne rend pas compte de l'immense littérature qui existe au sujet du thèmc Magie et Religion. Il constitue un effort pour clarifier le terrain sur lequel s'enracinent concep tuellement ces deux faces de la même expérience humaine.
Tendances actuelles dans les recherches sociologiques sur le thème « religion et classe ouvrière »
Authors: Cipriani Roberto
Published: March 2007

Thorough a comparative analysis of some case studies dealing with the working class attitudes towards religion and the churches, the author emphasises the weight of the cultural dimension in the study of religion in the working class.
New Religious Movements in Britain : The Context and the Membership
Authors: Barker Eileen
Published: March 2007

Un aperçu des traditions de dissidence et de non conformisme permet tout d'abord à l'Auteur de cet article de situer les nouveaux mouvements religieux dans le contexte social britannique. Il lui semble que l'attention accordée par le public à ces mouvements fut disproportionnée en regard de ce qu'ils repré sentent réellement du point de vue du nombre des adhésions. Bien que la diversité entre et au sein de ces mouvements soit fort impor tante, on peut néanmoins tenter de décrire le profil des personnes et les divers facteurs sociaux qui prédisposent à l'adhésion à ces mouvements. Enfin, il semble que ces nouveaux mouvements et les adhésions qu'ils entraînent puissent n'avoir qu'un caractère temporaire.
The Prodigal Church : South Africa's Dutch Reformed Church and the Apartheid Policy
Authors: Jubber Ken
Published: March 2007

Cet article analyse les conceptions de l'Église (blanche) réfor mée hollandaise d'Afrique du Sud, qui soutient la politique d'apartheid du Parti National, face aux Eglises sœurs noires qui considèrent cette politique comme une hérésie. On y examine éga lement en quoi la théologie réformée, l'organisation ecclésiale et les circonstances locales ont contribué à forger la position de l'Église Réformée Hollandaise. Certains événements et enjeux récents liés aux positions de cette Église sont discutés.
Secularisation and the Sikh Religious Tradition
Authors: Madan T.N.
Published: March 2007

L'auteur examine les faits saillants de l'émergence et de l'évo lution de la tradition religieuse Sikh. Il fixe son attention sur le processus de sécularisation. Il tente de montrer comment la répu diation de l'idéal Hindu de renonciation et I'accent mis sur une morale d'orientation intra-mondaine ont conduit le Sikhisme à envisager progressivement le pouvoir politique comme un but légi time. Foi religieuse et conflit armé se sont alors imbriqués et sont devenus les moyens de cet objectif. Au cours de ce processus, la conception Sikh du sécularisme a entraîné la suppression de la séparation entre la religion et l'Etat. Mais cette perspective entre toutefois en conflit aujourd'hui avec le processus de modernisa tion qui cherche au contraire à limiter le rôle de la religion dans la vie publique.
Bibliography on Social Analysis of Indian Religions
Authors: Visvanathan Susan
Published: March 2007

This bibliography is a first attempt to collect a list of books and articles using the approach of the Social Sciences to study the religions of India.

We have limited this work to the main religious group having Hinduism as historical origin and to Islam in India.
La religion et la recomposition du symbolique chez les jeunes Français
Authors: LAMBERT Yves
Published: March 2007

This article tests the following hypothesis: values would become the dominant form for referentials, particularly among youth, ideologies and religions being partially reinterpreted, in a general restructuring. The decline of ideologies would prove a relative advantage for “axiologies” (value-systems), which are more open than ideologies, especially for basic values of human rights within a pluralist democracy, which, referring to Weber, form a “monotheism of values”. The role of religion in public life would depend very much on its axiological contribution. Religious attitudes are characterized by a certain relativism or syncretism, by a pragmatic adaptation to the goal of worldly happiness and by a differentiation between rather a “cultural christianity” (in the majority) or a “confessing christianity”.
Le bouddhisme et la formation de la personnalité vietnamienne d'aujourd'hui
Authors: THU NGUYEN TAI
Published: March 2007

The renaissance of Buddhism in Vietnamese society poses the question of its role in the formation of the collective personality. The Great Buddhist scriptural tradition is the expression of a conception of the individual and the universe. The basic works have been translated into Vietnamese, together with their popular versions. Traditional religious practices, bi-monthly pagoda visits, health rites, the conservation of ancestors' ashes in urns in pagodas have been reintroduced and form part of a system of thought and action. For the Buddhist, every event enters into a series of causes and effects, life being a process strewn with sufferings and joys. The ideal is to avoid misery and enter into Nirvana, aided by the Buddha and the whole range of Buddhist practices. The Buddhist influence leads not only to acceptance of the difficult conditions of life, to a disciplined life, to compassion for others, but also to a pessimistic outlook on existence and a certain negligence of human free will. In the present transformation of Vietnamese society towards a market economy, there is an ideological and moral crisis in the development of individualism, indifference and egoism. The Buddhist principles of solidarity in misery, of compassion, of moral non-violence, free of hate or vengeance, form an antidote to the new values. Under the influence of intellectuals, the magical aspects of Buddhism have been minimized and the prescriptions adapted to the circumstances of modern life.
Le vitalisme, un spiritualisme corporel
Authors: MAFFESOLI Michel
Published: March 2007

We must grasp the importance of the “incarnated” myth as well as evaluating its consequences. Like it or not, the sensory is no longer a secondary factor within the social construction of reality. On the contrary, there are many signs underlining its essential role. No fields are untouched by the current emotional environment. It shows the existence of a dialectical link between the awareness of the senses and the experience of them. Unlike the 19th century's “sensualism”, such a dialectic is not just an individual process, but also has a powerful social meaning. One could say that it is the basis of any lucid knowledge of social phenomena as a whole. Dionysos' emblematic figure casts its shadow over our contemporary megalopolis; the setting up of a “Dionysian” knowledge might enable us to grasp the deep meaning of postmodern vitalism.
Buddhist Identities in Toronto: The Interplay of Local, National and Global Contexts
Authors: McLELLAN Janet
Published: March 2007

Over 60 Buddhist communities and institutions reside in Toronto, Canada, representing a diversity of ethnic, linguistic, national and doctrinal differences. This paper examines the re-creation and redefinitions of Buddhist identities among several of these groups, reflecting the interplay of local, national and global contexts. From a local perspective, similar to the religious adaptation of other minority ethno-religious groups in Canada, adherence to traditional beliefs and practices has played a dynamic role in the adjustment process of Buddhist immigrants and refugees. Buddhist identities have been significantly altered and redefined within the various communities, most notably in innovative forms of worship and ritual services, in new models of social interaction and affiliation, and in transformed authority patterns and gender roles for both Sangha and laity. Consequently, there is enormous differentiation among Buddhist groups, even those which share ethnic and linguistic backgrounds, calling into question issues of authenticity and representation.
La religion comme système de sens. Introduction à la sociologie de la religion de Niklas Luhmann
Authors: MINNEMA Lourens
Published: March 2007

Niklas Luhmann's principal contribution to German sociology of religion, a book entitled Funktion der Religion (1977), has yet to be translated into French. Its precise but abstract language is not easily accessible without a preliminary introduction. In this article, the author attempts to provide just such an introduction. As an entry into Luhmann's sociology of religion, he has chosen the notion of meaning. In evaluating Luhmann's sociology of religion, the author limits himself to characterizing it relative to his underlying image of humankind.
Ordinary, Ambivalent and Defensive: Class Identities in the Northwest of England
Authors: Savage Mike , Bagnall Gaynor , Longhurst Brian
Published: March 2007

This paper uses data gathered from an ESRC funded research project on social networks, social capital and lifestyle to provide an account of contemporary class identities derived from 178 in-depth interviews carried out in the Manchester area between 1997 and 1999. We use this data to unpack the ambivalent nature of contemporary class identities. We argue that despite the diversity of the sample, a number of common elements characterize people's attitudes to class. People are more hesitant in placing themselves in classes than they are about talking class as a social and political issue. Most people wish to see themselves as `outside' classes. Even so, class is a marker by which people relate their life histories, and most people are aware of class terminology. The major division in our sample is between those with the cultural capital to play reflexively with ideas of class, and those who lack these resources and feel threatened by the implications of relating class to their own personal identities. This latter group are mainly concerned to establish their own `ordinariness', which we read as a defensive device to avoid the politics of being labelled in class terms. Both middle-class and working-class identities can be used to establish ordinariness. We argue that sociologists should not assume that there is any necessary significance in how respondents define their class identity in surveys. We use these findings to take forward debates deriving from Bourdieu regarding class identity.
Studies in the Static Electrification of Filaments
Authors: Cunningham R.G. , Montgomery D.J.
Published: March 2007

An apparatus has been constructed to rub filaments together under controlled mechanical and ambient conditions and to measure the charge remaining after separa tion. The apparatus is similar to that of Hersh and Montgomery, with refinements to ohtain better control of mechanical variables and to allow variation of ambient pressure. A photomultiplier has been added near the filaments to detect the incidence of electrical breakdown of the atmosphere. Many of Hersh's findings for 45°-45° rubs have been confirmed, specifically those on reproducibility and triboelectric series. On the other hand, some findings have not been substantiated when the range of vari ahles is extended. For nylon rubbed on polyethylene. the charge q shows a square-root dependence on the normal force F, in place of the linear dependence found by Hersh; the charge shows an inverse proportionality with diameter d, in contrast with the inde pendence noted by Hersh. For tantalum rubbed on nylon. the charge is found to depend on a combination of velocity v. conductivity σ, and presumably dielectric con stant . together with a characteristic distance l to be determined empirically. If the charge dependence on length of rub L is taken to he the proportionality found by Hersh. the combined relation is suggested, where the sign and the magnitude of c are in principle determined by the details of the band structure, but in practice are fixed experimentally. No detailed theoretical picture has been obtained to justify the rest of the expression, and it must be considered at present as an empirical relation whose generality and basis remain to be established.
Who Controls Succession in the Superintendency?
Authors: Ortiz Flora Ida
Published: March 2007

For Hispanic women, the succession process is controlled by those who wish to bring order and stability to the district through ethnic representation. In a limited sample of 12, the majority of cases show that succession is controlled by school board members and former superintendents holding search committee membership.
Mrs. Boyd’s Fifth-Grade Inclusive Classroom
Authors: Brown Elinor L.
Published: March 2007

Public school students are increasingly heterogeneous in their family structure and the social, cultural, ethnic, and economic diversity they bring to the class-room. Inclusive classrooms broaden this scope to encompass behavioral, intellectual, and physical diversity. Educators who are committed to providing each student with an equal opportunity for success frequently seek and experiment with accommodation methods that use creative management, instruction, and assessment strategies to foster academic proficiency and social responsibility. This case study of one exemplary multicultural fifth-grade classroom teacher provides educators with accommodation activities that support and encourage all students without limiting or impeding their academic or social development.
The Mayor's Role in School Desegregation Implementation
Authors: Rossell Christine
Published: March 2007

Successful, or at least nonviolent, strategy for school desegregation depends upon the city's social and political structure.
Teacher-Pupil Relationships
Authors: Sweeting Lurlene M. , Willower Donald J. , Helsel A. Ray
Published: March 2007

Teacher behavior versus student ideal: congruity and discrepancy. Students seem to prefer more "custodial" teacher behaviors.
Track Position, Peer Affiliation, and Youth Crime
Authors: Kelly Delos H.
Published: March 2007

Peers and track placement determine, to a large degree, students' deviance.
The Two Faces of Education
Authors: Pace Prudence Posner
Published: March 2007

Education should provide for the welfare of the student, but also for the renewal of society.
A Gymnasium in Buffalo
Authors: Dunn REV. Edward. T.
Published: March 2007

The founding of a German gymnasium in Buffalo illustrates both the continuing European influence on American educational institutions and the process by which such institutions are adapted to conditions in the United States.
Teacher Work Tasks as Forms of Resistance and Accommodation to Structural Factors of Schooling
Authors: Kanpol Barry
Published: March 2007

Seeming contradictions in teachers' behavior and perspectives of their work and that of administrators.
What Does it Mean?
Authors: Adams Natalie G.
Published: March 2007

This article, based on an ethnographic study in a predominantly White working-class middle school in the South, critically examines why a literature-based multicultural curriculum failed to get "students to talk about racism." According to the author; attempts to implement a multicultural curriculum fail not because of unprepared, insincere, or insensitive teachers; rather; these efforts fail primarily because of dominant mainstream beliefs embedded in the institution of schooling and in the discourse of multiculturalism itself:
Positive Self-Concept and Expressions of Blackness among African American Intellectual-Activists
Authors: Sekayi Dia N. R.
Published: March 2007

The focus of this article is a qualitative description of the narrated life experiences of 11 African American intellectual-activists with regard to three major vehicles of overt expressions of Blackness; hair, clothing, and names. The voices of the informants are used to illustrate the importance of these expressions. Because each of the informants is involved with African American educational institutions in urban settings, the impact of their chosen expressions of Blackness on urban schools is also discussed.
Linking School-To-Work Programs to Community Economic Development in Urban Schools
Authors: Fitzgerald Joan
Published: March 2007

The author argues that community-based organizations can improve the quality and relevance of school-to-work programs. Community-based organizations can integrate secondary schools into broader community economic development initiatives and keep students interested in staying in school. Case studies of four partnerships between schools and community-based organizations are presented to illustrate different approaches and concentrations for school-to-work programs. The author concludes with specific recommendations for creating similar partnerships.
Toward a Critical Race Pedagogy
Authors: Lynn Marvin
Published: March 2007

This article explores the connectivity of research and theories of African American emancipatory pedagogy to Critical Race Theory (CRT). In doing so, the guiding principles and maxims of CRT as an emergent ethical and moralistic discourse on race and racism in the law will be briefly outlined. Next, the premises of CRT will be used to analyze ethnographic interviews conducted with eight African American teachers. The interview data will then be used as a manner in which to articulate a Critical Race Pedagogy.
Computer-Assisted Learning in Urban Classrooms
Authors: Hess Frederick M. , Leal David L.
Published: March 2007

This article uses data from 54 urban school districts to test hypotheses explaining the integration of computer technology into the classroom. Surprisingly, the authors find no statistically significant effects of funding on the provision of computer-assisted learning. However, median family income actually has a negative effect on the percentage of urban district students receiving computer-assisted classroom learning. Suggesting that equity is nonetheless a significant concern, a higher percentage of Black students reduces the percentage of district students receiving computer-assisted learning. Finally, the authors find that competitive pressure from private schools significantly increases the percentage of public school students receiving computer-assisted instruction.
High Hopes in a Grim World
Authors: ARNETT JEFFREY JENSEN
Published: March 2007

Views of the future were explored among emerging adults (aged 21 through 28). In general, they viewed their personal futures optimistically and believed their lives would be as good or better than their parents' lives in aspects such as financial wellbeing, career achievements, personal relationships, and overall quality of life. Interview responses indicated that many participants emphasized personal relationships, especially marriage, as the foundation of their future happiness. However, regarding the future of their generation as a whole, they were pessimistic. A majority of them agreed with the “Generation X” characterization of their generation as cynical and pessimistic. Reasons for this cynicism and pessimism were diverse and included economic prospects as well as societal problems such as crime and environmental destruction. Nevertheless, the participants tended to believe they would succeed in their personal pursuit of happiness even amidst the difficult conditions facing their generation and the world.
Experiences of Urban Youth Navigating the Transition to Ninth Grade
Authors: NEWMAN BARBARA M. , LOHMAN BRENDA J. , NEWMAN PHILIP R. , MYERS MARY C. , SMITH VICTORIA L.
Published: March 2007

The study describes perceptions of the transition to ninth grade for low-income, urban, minority adolescents. Students who had a grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher in middle school were interviewed about their school transition. Results focus on perceptions of the transition, major challenges, sources of support, and coping strategies. Students who continued to perform well in ninth grade were differentiated from those who had academic difficulties. Students described the transition to high school as including new academic challenges, a more complex environment, new social demands, and new interactions with teachers. High performers mentioned fewer challenges than low performers. High performers received more support from their immediate family, and many had friends who supported their academic goals. Students described three kinds of coping strategies: individual (be dedicated, stay focused), academic (study, keep up with homework), and social (hang with the right people). Implications focus on supporting academic success for urban youth.
Restorative Justice in School Communities
Authors: KARP DAVID R. , BRESLIN BEAU
Published: March 2007

In response to recent school violence, most schools in the United States have adopted increasingly punitive disciplinary policies. However, some schools have embraced restorative justice practices. This article explores the recent implementation of these practices in school communities in Minnesota, Colorado, and Pennsylvania, examining how school communities can make use of this approach to address drug and alcohol problems and how this approach may offer an alternative to zero-tolerance policies.
Social Learning Theory, Self-Reported Delinquency, and Youth Gangs
Authors: WINFREE L. THOMAS , BÄCKSTRÖM TERESA VIGIL , MAYS G. LARRY
Published: March 2007

Social learning theory has been applied to a wide variety of criminal, delinquent, and deviant behavior. The current study examines the utility of applying selected elements of the theory to the examination of youth gangs. The subjects consist of a stratified random sample of male and female 9th-grade public school students living in a southwestern state. Following the logic of Akers' variant of social learning theory, we ask the following question: To what extent are attitudes toward gangs and gang activity, social reinforcers and punishers, and differential associations linked to self-reported gang involvement and gang-related delinquency? We found that the social learning perspective provided considerable insights into gang membership. Our analysis of group-context offending was related to both social learning theory and gang membership. Other forms of self-reported delinquency, however, while linked to social learning theory, were unrelated to gang membership. These findings portend significant theoretical and policy implications for future studies of youth gangs.
A Sociological Analysis of an In/Visible Minority Group
Authors: EDWARDS WILLIE J.
Published: March 2007

This article examines the following areas of 37 Black male adolescent homosexuals' (age range: 16-21) self-identity, family relation, school/work relations, and social adjustment. Information about these areas was collected by using a Likert-type questionnaire that required the respondents to select the answers true or false. A majority of the respondents were comfortable with their sexual identity, although all of them were passing as heterosexuals. A sexual history of the respondents is presented. Even though the respondents understand their sexual minority status, it has not deterred the development of a positive and well-integrated self-perception.
Family Abduction Outcomes
Authors: PLASS PEGGY S. , FINKELHOR DAVID , HOTALING GERALD T.
Published: March 2007

Using data from a national survey, we examine factors associated with two specific outcomes of family abduction events: duration of the episode and the likelihood of emotional trauma to children involved. Duration appears to be influenced by indicators of preparedness, planning and intent, and with difficulty in physically locating the child. Emotional harm is influenced by factors associated with child awareness, disruption in the child's routine, and levels of animosity between parents.
Values and the Family
Authors: GARNIER HELEN E. , STEIN JUDITH A.
Published: March 2007

The influence of family values on adolescent problem behaviors is explored in an 18-year study of 199 families. Factor analyses revealed two value dimensions: traditional/achievement and humanistic/egalitarian. Problem behavior was indicated by drug use, delinquency, dropout, and sexual behavior. Maternal values predicted similar adolescent values. Traditional values generally protected adolescents against problem behaviors. Humanistic/egalitarian values protected against delinquency but increased drug use risk. Maternal countercultural identity protected adolescents against hard drug use.
Kazimuh - Jewish Kraków
Authors: Tighe Carl
Published: March 2007

Is it at all possible that no trace should be left of the Jewish presence in Eastern Europe? Some traces are certainly left; but whether in the long run they will have more meaning than the traces that the Red Indians have left on the American civilisation of today is another matter.
Hierarchy of Scientific Consensus and the Flow of Dissensus Over Time
Authors: Kim Kyung-Man
Published: March 2007

During the last few years, several sociological accounts of scientific consensus appeared in which a radically skeptical view of cognitive consensus in science was advocated. Challenging the traditional realist conception of scientific consensus as a sui generis social fact, the radical skeptics claim to have shown that the traditional historical sociologist's supposedly definitive account of scientific consensus is only a linguistic chimera that easily can be deconstructed by the application of different interpretive schema to the given data. I will argue in this article that such an idealistic conception of scientific consensus results from the radical skeptics' failure to take into account the following three factors that are central to the historical sociologist's narrative account of consensus formation: the "judgmental" character of the reconstruction of scientists' beliefs, the hierarchical nature of the consensus change in science, and the importance of the "temporal dimension" in the explanation of scientific consensus formation. To substantiate these three points, I will draw extensively on two recent historical-sociological studies of scientific consensus formation.
Theory Choice and the Comparison of Rival Theoretical Perspectives in Political Sociology
Authors: Levey Geoffrey Brahm
Published: March 2007

A standard problem in empirical inquiry is how to adjudicate between contending theories when they work from different fundamental assumptions. In the field of political sociology, several strategies are adopted, from metatheoretical and comparative historical approaches to the recent formal models of scientific growth proposed by Imre Lakatos and Larry Laudan. After considering the limitations of these approaches, I develop an alternative strategy—"second—order empiricism"—based on the idea that successor theories have an onus to explain the apparent success of their rivals, not only their own and their rivals' anomalies. Such a strategy, I argue, underscores some of the most effective analysis and argument in political sociology, yet is obscured by the appeal to other methodologies.
Is Coase a Realist?
Authors: Mäki Uskali
Published: March 2007

Ronald Coase has been a vigorous critic of mainstream economic theory, arguing that it is unrealistic and that a good theory is realistic. The attributes "realistic" and "unrealistic" appear in three senses at least in Coase: one related to narrow ness and breadth; another related to abstracting from particularities (and the issue of "blackboard economics"); and the third related to correspondence with the legal. This does not yet make Coase an advocate of realism. It is therefore separately argued that each of the three kinds of "realisticness" as a property of theories is consistent with realism as a theory of theories.
The Rashomon Effect
Authors: ROTH WENDY D. , MEHTA JAL D.
Published: March 2007

Positivist and interpretivist analytical approaches are frequently believed to be incompatible as research strategies and ways of understanding the world. This article argues that not only may versions of positivism and interpretivism be combined in the analysis of contested events, but this combination can further the goals of both approaches by contributing information that may have been missed by adopting only one perspective. The authors illustrate this using two case studies of lethal school shootings near Paducah, Kentucky, and Jonesboro, Arkansas, and introduce methodological strategies to manage potential biases that may lead to contradictory testimony. However, these same contradictions act as distinct data points from the interpretivist perspective, offering insight into the cultural understandings of a community. The authors develop new forms of triangulation that are tailored to these research goals and illustrate how, just as positivist analysis may be used to aid interpretivism, an interpretive understanding of a community may be necessary to develop causal theories of contested events such as school shootings.