Draws on an interpretive study of classroom authority relations in a U.S. metropolitan high school to describe and analyze the character of these relations and their connection to social theory and educational ideologies. Results reveal that conservative, bureaucratic, progressive, and radical positions all contribute to commonsense…

Examines longitudinal data to assert that in troubled urban school districts, teacher buy-in to curricular reform is best achieved when change agents adapt their program to teachers' daily needs, discussing how staff developers help teachers generate strategies for effectively handling district demands so they can fulfill official directives while…

Examines how teacher networks design for teacher learning, describing several dynamic tensions inherent in the designs of a sample of teacher networks and assessing the relationships of these tensions to teacher learning. The paper illustrates these design concepts with reference to the work of seven networks that aim to revamp teacher' knowledge…

Calls for digital technology in education to embrace forms of pedagogy appropriate for hypertext, challenging western metaphysics and relying on the philosophy of John Dewey to propose an alternative. The paper reviews dominant models of curriculum, especially Ralph Tyler's, revealing their concealed metaphysical assumptions; shows that the…

Demonstrates the critical nature of role formation processes in school reform initiatives, suggesting that a richer understanding of these processes would benefit those engaged in reform implementation as well as those concerned with measuring the penetration of reform initiatives. The article focuses on the role of the educational technologist, a…

Examines new forms of school organization that do not fit traditional definitions of public and private schools. Three case studies explore critical features of the public-private distinction, highlighting the fuzzy boundaries between schools that are clearly public and schools that are clearly private, and contending that their shared…

Examines constructive conflict within the context of a comprehensive Midwestern U.S. high school engaged in significant reform efforts, focusing on constructive conflict as a means to promote individual and organizational learning and growth. Data from observations and interviews indicated that to produce superior results, principals and teacher…

Examines the work of one urban teacher network, analyzing ideas about educational equity and inequality evolving from its professional development practices. Using archival and ethnographic materials spanning 24 years, the article explores how the network's oral inquiry process makes visible two different, but interrelated ethical obligations…

Examines parent opinions on homework between 1900-60, investigating parents' voices in the history of U.S. education and discussing modern day controversies regarding the school-family interface. The article explores whether, in educational policymaking, the family should follow the school's wishes, or vice versa, concluding that if parents want…

Discusses theory/policies supporting zero tolerance policy in schools, including rational choice theory in criminology and national crime policies based on deterrence. Potential consequences of zero tolerance policy implementation are described and shown to involve outcomes similar to those identified by researchers studying national crime policy.…

Responds to a critique of a thesis that Dewey underwent a dramatic midcareer change in his philosophy and that this change drew heavily on Pierce's metaphysics, offering additional evidence to support the claim that comparison of the 1910 and 1933 versions of "How We Think" reveals a major change in Dewey's views about inductionism. New evidence…

Uses the movie, "The Matrix," to evoke both metaphors for human existence and models for learning and teaching by examining two metaphors that have dominated notions of and approaches to education in the United States and arguing for seeking, crafting, and embracing metaphors that cast students as the principal creators of their education and…

Clarifies differences between postmodernism and criticalism through an exploration of ocular- and phonocentric theories of truth and meaning, reviewing alternatives opened by these counter-enlightenment discourses. The paper asserts that certain popular postmodern themes are importantly insightful, but best relocated within a criticalist…

Introduces a special section comprised of papers presented at a National Research Council workshop. The four papers focus on: what constitutes racial discrimination in education from a social science perspective and from a legal perspective; what empirical data exist on the sources of discrimination and racial differences in educational outcomes;…

Synthesizes the social science research on racially correlated disparities in education, focusing on biological determinism (behavioral genetics); social structure (e.g., reproduction theory and resistance theory); school organization and opportunities to learn (e.g., resources, racial composition, and tracking); family background (financial,…