(2018). U.S. Department of Education FY 2018 Agency Financial Report. Office of the Chief Financial Officer, US Department of Education The purpose of the United States Department of Education's (the Department) Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 "Agency Financial Report" (AFR) is to inform Congress, the President, other external stakeholders, and the American people on how the Department used the federal resources entrusted to it to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access. The Department accomplishes its mission and the related strategic goals and objectives by administering programs that range from preschool education through postdoctoral research; enforcing civil rights laws to provide equal access and treatment; and supporting research that examines ways that states, schools, districts, and postsecondary institutions can improve America's education system. The AFR is designed to focus on use of federal resources provided to or distributed by the Department to support its mission, with a particular emphasis on the challenges… [PDF]
(2012). Cultural Differences in Face-ism: Male Politicians Have Bigger Heads in More Gender-Equal Cultures. Psychology of Women Quarterly, v36 n4 p476-487 Dec. Women are visually depicted with lower facial prominence than men, with consequences for perceptions of their competence. The current study examines the relationship between the size of this \face-ism\ bias (i.e., individual or micro-level sexism) and a number of gender inequality indicators (i.e., institutional or macro-level sexism) at the cross-cultural level. In one of the largest known face-ism databases to date, the authors used politicians' official online photographs as stimuli (N = 6,610) to explore how face-ism (as an example of individual-level sexism) covaries with institutional sexism across 25 cultures. The authors found that the face-ism bias was greater in cultures with lower levels of institutional gender inequality, demonstrating that institutional equality does not necessarily imply equality on the individual level. The authors offer a number of potential speculations for this mismatch. For example, it may be due to \postfeminist\ backlash that occurs in response… [Direct]
(2010). Using Cocoa and Chocolate to Teach Human Geography. Journal of Geography, v109 n3 p105-112. Food topics are uniquely suited to increase students' interest in human geography. A highly processed food like chocolate can be studied in a variety of different ways, making it possible to include chocolate examples and activities at various points in a human geography class. The goals of this article are to provide sufficient background knowledge about cocoa and chocolate to instructors and to make concrete suggestions how chocolate examples and activities can be used in human geography classes at the college/university and high school level. (Contains 1 figure and 3 notes.)… [Direct]
(2012). Organizational Commitment among Employees at a Private Nonprofit University in Virginia. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, Capella University. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate the similarity between the human resource strategies (benefits, due process, employee participation, employee skill level, general training, job enrichment, social interactions, wages) currently utilized at a private, nonprofit university in Virginia, and those reported in the research conducted by J. M. Buck (1999) in public colleges and universities. This study also sought to determine differences in organizational commitment levels (affective, normative, continuance) as reported by the participants in the J. M. Buck (1999) study and the current study. The secondary purpose was to study the impact of job position (faculty/staff) on organizational commitment levels (affective, continuance, normative) of university employees at a private, nonprofit university. Three research questions were considered in this study. First, are the human resource strategies (benefits, due process, employee participation, employee skill level,… [Direct]
(2013). Particularizing Universal Education in Postcolonial Sierra Leone. Current Issues in Comparative Education, v16 n1 p62-73 Win. This paper presents a vertical case study of the history of universalizing education in postcolonial Sierra Leone from the early 1950s to 1990 to highlight how there has never been a universal conception of universal education. In order to unite a nation behind a universal ideal of schooling, education needed to be adapted to different subpopulations, as the Bunumbu Project did for rural Sierra Leoneans in the 1970s to 1980s. While the idea of "localizing" education was sound, early program success was undermined by a lack of clarity behind terms like "rural" or "community." This was exacerbated by a change in the scope of the project beyond its original objectives. Only by well defining the specific constituents of a target group and fulfilling their precise needs can myriad small-scale programs ultimately aggregate to meet the diverse demands and desires of society writ large…. [PDF]
(2004). Spotlight on Transition to Teaching Music. MENC: The National Association for Music Education The latest title in the popular Spotlight series, this timely book focuses on issues involving recruitment and retention of music teachers, a crucial issue in these days of budget constraints. Arranged chronologically, it features a collection of articles from state journals focusing on issues such as mentoring, teacher shortages, burnout, and professional development options. After an introduction, this book is divided into five sections. Section 1, Is There a Teacher Shortage?, contains the following chapters: (1) \Teacher Shortage: Salaries and a Whole Lot More\ (Brian Anderson); (2) \More Students, Fewer Teachers = Teacher Shortage\ (Carolynn A. Lindeman); and (3) \There Is a Music Teacher Shortage in Arizona–I May Have Caused It!!!\ (Larry Mabbitt). Section 2, How Can We Recruit and Retain More Music Teachers?, includes: (4) \What Happens to Our Beginning Teachers?\ (Dwayne Dunn); (5) \Teacher Shortage\ (Betty Ellis); (6) \Our Dilemma: Raising Music Teacher Preparation…
(2013). To Be a Co-Worker in the Kingdom of Culture. CEA Forum, v42 n1 p179-207 Win-Spr. In 1903, in the introduction to his ground-breaking, seminal work, "The Souls of Black Folks", W.E. B. Du Bois calls for a vision of our country in which African Americans can become "co-worker[s] in the kingdom of culture." In this article I make the case that the use of a novel like "Gods Go Begging" by Alfredo Vea can help us better understand what is required in implementing Inclusive Excellence, an initiative of the American Association of Colleges and Universities, that takes us a little farther down the road toward Du Bois' vision. (Contains 10 notes.)… [PDF]
(2017). U.S. Department of Education FY 2017 Agency Financial Report. Office of the Chief Financial Officer, US Department of Education The purpose of the United States Department of Education's (the Department) Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 "Agency Financial Report" (AFR) is to inform Congress, the President, other external stakeholders, and the American people on how the Department used the federal resources entrusted to it to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access. The Department accomplishes its mission and the related strategic goals and objectives by administering programs that range from preschool education through postdoctoral research; enforcing civil rights laws to provide equal access and treatment; and supporting research that examines ways that states, schools, districts, and postsecondary institutions can improve America's education system. The AFR is designed to focus on use of federal resources provided to or distributed by the Department to support its mission, with a particular emphasis on the challenges… [PDF]
(2011). Unaccompanied Homeless Youth: Intersections of Homelessness, School Experiences and Educational Policy. Child & Youth Services, v32 n2 p155-172. School districts are faced with the challenge of how best to serve the needs of a growing homeless student population. As the numbers of homeless children and youth continue to rise, it is imperative for educators and others to understand the experiences of unaccompanied homeless youth. A qualitative research project was undertaken to obtain the perspectives of six high school students experiencing homelessness. These perspectives illuminate the various and multiple factors intersecting with student's educational lives. Their narratives uncovered the following themes: (a) Homelessness as a misnomer, (b) Homelessness is not a choice, (c) Caring adults, and (d) Student agency. Their counternarratives challenge adults working with unaccompanied homeless youth to rethink and reimagine the manner in which homelessness is understood and framed; this is especially critical in educational spaces. Schools often are the primary contexts in which youth spend their time and can be instrumental… [Direct]
(2010). The U.S Supreme Court Raises the Bar for Strip Searches in Public Schools. Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas, v83 n3 p105-108. Strip searches should be considered searches of last resort based on the intrusive nature of the search and the resulting impact it may have on a student. It is well established by the courts that as the intrusiveness of the search intensifies, the standard of the Fourth Amendment reasonably approaches probable cause which is a higher standard than the reasonable suspicion standard that applies to non-intrusive searches. This article discusses a recent case involving a strip search in which the U.S. Supreme Court applied a more stringent standard that school officials must meet to justify initiating a strip search. The importance of the High Court's decision is that it resulted in a national standard by which actions of school officials will be judged in conducting intrusive searches during their investigation of alleged violations of school policies…. [Direct]
(2016). Department of Research & Evaluation Plan of Work, 2016-2017. DRE Publication Number 16.01. Online Submission Each year, Austin Independent School District Department of Research and Evaluation (DRE) staff develop a plan of work to describe the scope of work for the coming year. The plans that make up this document identify programs to be evaluated and services to be provided by DRE staff and provide the blueprints for evaluation that staff will follow throughout the year…. [PDF]
(2010). Geographical Study of American Blues Culture. Journal of Geography, v109 n1 p30-39. Music is not often utilized in teaching geography, despite the fact that many scholars orient their research around analyzing both the historical and spatial dimensions of musical expression. This article reports on the use of a teaching module that utilizes blues culture as a lens to understand the geographical history of the United States. The relevance of this geographical history to the U.S. South is emphasized. The content of this module incorporates several themes and concepts critical to developing and facilitating a geographical perspective. Educators are encouraged to use this module as a model to develop creative ways in which the geography of music can be effectively incorporated within any educational curriculum. (Contains 4 notes and 4 figures.)… [Direct]
(2011). Privileged Advocates: Disability and Education Policy in the USA. Policy Futures in Education, v9 n3 p392-405. Since the establishment of educational rights for children with disabilities in the 1970s, special education in the US has included a growing share of students and has constituted an ever-growing share of education budgets. Previous research has focused on the disproportionate assignment to special education of low-income and minority students, concluding that special education mainly reproduces social disadvantages. This article argues that privileged parents–by virtue of their ability to navigate complex legal and scientific practices and discourses that are seen as guarantees of fairness and neutrality in special education–are able to secure advantageous resources for their children through special education. Through analysis of the distribution and content of "due process" hearing requests in the California special education system, this article shows how advocacy in this part of the system depends on parents' cultural and economic capital. Specifically, reimbursement… [Direct]
(2012). Sexualities in Education: A Reader. Counterpoints: Studies in the Postmodern Theory of Education. Volume 367. Peter Lang New York With germinal texts, new writings, and related art, "Sexualities in Education: A Reader" illuminates a broad scope of analysis and organization. Composed of a framing essay and nine sections edited by established and emerging scholars and addressing critical topics for researchers and students of sexualities and education, the text provides a timely overview of sexualities considered through a variety of educational lenses and theoretical frameworks. Threads woven throughout include visual, literary, and performing arts; youth perspectives; and an emphasis on justice work in education. The volume provides entry points for students and practitioners at a range of levels. Research-based articles, essays, interviews, poetry and ready-to-reproduce visual materials from the Americas, Europe, and Asia are linked to a resource section to facilitate deep learning, on-going investigation, and informed action. Contents include: (1) Introduction: Love, Labor, and Learning–Yours in… [Direct]
(1991). Prejudice Reduction: What Works?. Social Science Research of the past several decades provides valuable insight into the processes of prejudice acquisition and reduction. This paper lists and briefly describes the following 15 findings based on this research and their implications regarding prejudice and what works to reduce it: (1) attitudes about interpersonal differences begin to be acquired in infancy; (2) attitudes may be set or softened by relationships and experiences; (3) the relationship among attitudes, perceptions, motivation, feelings, judgments, and behaviors is complex and much of it is socially mediated and highly contingent on \setting\; (4) because of this, some would approach the problem through macro-strategies rather than strategies focused on individual behaviors; (5) many researchers from minority communities emphasize strategies that reduce the adverse impact of dominant institutions on minority communities, while leaving the dominating majority to deal with their own biases; (6) social… [PDF]