This paper reports partial findings of a qualitative interpretive study of female secondary school English language teachers' perceptions of curriculum change in the United Arab Emirates. The sample consisted of 16 female teachers in three secondary schools who had experience teaching the former and the current English language curricula. Data…

In this chapter, the authors illustrate on mathematical problem-solving activities within families how the functions and structures of their mathematics at home are dependent on values, and how interacting values during problem situations came to shape what counted as solutions. These values examples from family math illustrate the complex…

After noting the disconnect between students' passionate oral stories and their lifeless writing, an adult education instructor made specific instructional and curriculum changes in an ESOL reading and writing course. All changes served the purpose of teaching the element of voice in second language writing. The instructor used the issue of…

This pilot study examined the effectiveness of standard care and an empowerment intervention for abused pregnant women. Severe psychological abuse was most prevalent (42.2%) among this sample of women. Compared with women in the standard care group at the postintervention survey, women in the empowerment group were more likely to hide money (44.6%…

The unique challenges faced by some youth of color living in high poverty contexts necessitate the creation of innovative, culturally relevant, group interventions. Framing the work of group counselors from a social justice perspective provides a structure for emphasizing the complex intersection of economic, political, and socio-historical issues…

This article is an attempt to study the role of mobile phones in the non-formal and informal context among rural women from resource poor communities. In particular, it focuses on the women's control over the mobile phone as a learning tool through the domestication of technologies. The distance learning, gender dimensions, and use of technologies…

Professional experience is a field increasingly defined by institutionally prescribed practices and outcomes. However, for the pre-service teacher, at an individual level, it is commonly navigated through complex and diverse experiences that for them may defy coherence. What is publicly shared is filtered frequently through a pre-service teacher's…

In an effort to explore the complexity of how teachers develop and sustain the ability to teach uncommonly in commonsense times, the authors conducted a life history case study of Rae, a fifth grade teacher at a local elementary school in the Southwest United States who has practiced and sustained uncommon teaching for four years. Combining…

Within the field of children's mental health, there is increasing emphasis on the idea that young people who experience mental health difficulties should be encouraged to take an active role in shaping not only their own treatment but also mental health services and systems. The terms "empowerment" and, to a lesser extent, "self-efficacy" have…

This study explores pre-service teachers' beliefs about citizenship across two nations, the United States and Singapore; the nature of their conversation about those beliefs; and the impact of their cross-cultural dialog on their reflections about the citizenship goal of social studies. Data is based on a Black Board-based threaded dialog, over…

This article introduces a waka tino whakarawea model for evaluating programmes and services for Maori learners. It is based on a set of underlying principles identified in the author's PhD study (Bevan-Brown, 2002). Explanations are provided for eight principles: kaupapa Maori; importance, relevance and beneficence; participation; empowerment,…

The purpose of this article is to show how the rappers' talk about hip-hop and its connection to pedagogy and social activism parallel the Scandinavian tradition of folkbildning. Scandinavian folkbildning can be seen as a movement to provide voluntary education for the general population. It can also be the name of the process of learning in which…

Inequality of access to educational resources by different social classes has been widely documented, and schools have instituted parent programs to ameliorate this situation. However, lacking are theoretically based studies that explain how and why a program may be effective in bringing about change. The authors studied a 12-week parent…

The incorporation of compulsory courses on human rights into the secondary school curriculum in 1998 has been an important first step in developing respect for human rights and responsibilities among the younger generation in Turkey. Yet, these courses have many shortcomings in terms of materials, pedagogy and teacher attitudes. This paper…

Although much has been written about leaders and leadership, we unfortunately know little about women, particularly minority women, who fill this particular role. This book--the second in a series that explores women leaders in different contexts--presents the stories, and the reflections on their paths to leadership, of seven African American…