The article discusses how digitization in libraries, museums, and archives (LAM) can become more democratic. Digitization within LAM scholarship has been seen historically as a democratic act because it provides universal access to cultural heritage content, breaks down authoritative narratives, and enables participation from users. The article…

Writing in 2011, Philip Kitcher worried in 'Public knowledge and its enemies' that flaws in the dissemination of public knowledge would lead from a state of widespread ignorance to active resistance against expertise and more. Today, we seem to be living in the world Kitcher predicted, where a wide range of facts ranging from the results of…

The religion of Islam is often portrayed with false and negative stereotypes. If we expect our students to understand and participate in the global world and to be informed and engaged citizens in a democratic America, then it is essential that they develop a basic and sound understanding of Islam. Furthermore, learning about Islam can facilitate…

Baseball has enjoyed its status as the "national pastime" in part because it has been associated with democracy. To the extent that baseball, as an institution of civil religion, fosters pluralism and inclusion, it can indeed be viewed in democratic terms. In recent years, the advent of conservative Christian events called "Faith Nights" threatens…

One of the important misconceptions in the American view of poverty is that people are poor because they do not work. This article presents an exercise, the "bottom line," which helps dispel students' misconceptions about the working poor. Through extensive primary-data collection and assembling a budget for low-skilled workers, the exercise: (1)…

Int his essay, the authors identify and problematize the claims and activities of four think tanks supported by contributions from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Kovacs and Christie attempt to show that these contributions support scholars and research of dubious quality, engage in political science abuse, and perpetuate discourses and…

College campuses provide lots of institutions that look like those one finds in a democratic society--newspapers, government, courts--but ultimately the campus versions are not the same. When anybody sign up for college, he/she is volunteering (and paying) to be part of a particular community with particular rules. This article discusses the…

By age three or four, children have already begun to construct their gender and racial identity. Stereotypes, prejudices, and practices in homes, communities, and the media can negatively affect children's feelings about themselves and others. Derman-Sparks (1983, 3) warned that young children may develop "pre-prejudice," which she…

Explores management of expenditures for public education in welfare state. Faced with fiscal overload, Scottish government is seeking to curb expenditure by engaging the compliance of both professional educators and parents under the guise of school self-management. The government's case rests on a (democratic) rhetoric of choice and ownership but…

Written by a prominent array of scholars and practitioners, this book elucidates the complexities, contradictions, and confusion surrounding adolescence in American culture and education. For too long, harmful public myths and lies have portrayed teenagers as a principal cause of our nation's social ills. Similar unfair charges have been lodged…