Examines transformation in the nature of public spaces for children and the school's role in producing those spaces. Draws on two years of ethnographic field-work at an elementary school. Focuses on a field trip to an art museum and explores another type of trip. (CMK)

Argues that a model of "belief systems" can serve as a framework for systematic and comparative investigations of teaching. Reviews current research in cognitive psychology and relates this to the key functions of beliefs in teachers' thinking. Presents a theoretically-grounded framework for field-based research based on the Teacher Beliefs Study…

Examines grading systems in undergraduate education at a large university, using data from a 12-month ethnographic study. Identifies how grades determine student movement from college to other organizations. Questions relationships of grading systems to students' perceptions of their own knowledge and grading's role in educational outcomes. Finds…

Posits that students' social skills and cultural orientations are forms of capital that can be converted into other forms of capital, such as educational credentials. Argues that, within educational institutions, curricular structures create pressures and constraints on such conversions of capital. Discusses this argument in the context of two…