This article proposes a multiliteracies-based pedagogical framework for the analysis of computer-mediated discourse (CMD) in order to give students increased access to expanded discourse options that are available in online communication environments and communities (i.e., beyond the classroom). Through the analysis of excerpts and a corpus of…

This article presents a discussion of how postmodernist, poststructuralist and critical educational thinking relate to different theories of power. I argue that both Critical Theory and some poststructuralist ideas base themselves on a concept of power borrowed from a modernist tradition. I argue as well that we are better off combining a…

This article explores the methodological turning points in conducting a critical ethnography on the discursive practices of Italian Canadian youth identities across their multiple worlds in Toronto (cf. Giampapa, 2004a). Specifically, I aim to problematize the construction of the "researcher," researcher identities, and the…

This paper is a preliminary investigation into how the context of student life influences student writing. Specifically, activity theory is drawn upon to explore how the role of assessment affects students' attempts to participate in knowledge-producing communities, a relatively under-researched aspect of student writing. To identify rhetorical…

Mergers are part of the historical fabric of US higher education. However, the current economic recession and other policy issues have experts and academicians predicting an increase in higher education mergers in the USA. Consequently, this study analysed the discursive "policy logics" surrounding merger negotiations in US higher…

One of the more complex and premeditated acts of covert violence during World War II concerns the American surveillance, arrest, and incarceration of thousands of resident Japanese immigrants prior to and upon the outbreak of the Pacific War. While briefly outlining the historical and political context of this mass incarceration, specifically…

This paper explores the ways in which policy discourses have constructed rationales for addressing adult literacy over the last 50 years. In particular, we examine how policy positions the literacy learner as citizen within discourses of rights and equity. Taking the case of the UK, we compare two key documents produced at different historical…

This study examines interactions from trials in the Syariah court in Malaysia. It focuses on the types of questioning, the choice of language and the linguistic resources employed in this particular context. In the discourse of law, questioning has been a prominent concern particularly in cross-examination and can be considered one of the key…

Human dignity is a grand concept that is assumed to play an important role in education. However, no widely accepted universal definition of human dignity exists. The aim of this study was to examine the Discourse of Human Dignity within teacher education, especially with respect to how Swedish teacher educators make meaning of the concept of…

Understanding the ways in which teachers make sense of what they do and why is critical to a broader understanding of pedagogy. Historically, teachers have been understood through the thematic and content analysis of their beliefs or philosophies. In this paper, we argue that discourse analysis (DA) involves a much finer-grained analysis of the…

This article uses a conversation analytic framework to explore reproaches in classroom interaction. The data used is naturally occurring Finnish classroom interaction (students aged 13-15). The analysis focuses on reproaches that are used in order to silence students and in which gendered address terms are included. In the data occurrences, the…

Women's Campaign School (WCS) is a non-partisan, non-formal three-day educational programme held annually in Vancouver, to empower and inspire women to enter politics and as a means towards socio-political change. Our findings show the WCS provides excellent practical and tactical skills and an experiential learning opportunity that is highly…

Fat talk (women speaking negatively about the size and shape of their bodies) is a phenomenon that both reflects and creates body dissatisfaction. Our study investigated the content, frequency, and impact of fat talk among college women. Participants (168 female students at a Midwestern U.S. university) completed online surveys containing fat…

Relatively little attention has been paid to questions of how language acts in and through the interactions of language in situations where people are encouraged to learn to be active in contexts of work. This paper argues that detailed analysis is needed to understand how activation through language acts in the shaping and governing of workers.…

The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) of the World Trade Organization has generated an intense and passionate debate about the relationship between free-trade and education and, specifically, about the effects of trade liberalization in national education systems. This article explores in detail this debate from a critical discourse…