Community work is critical pedagogy because it is located at the interface of liberation and domination. Community workers are situated either as perpetuators of the status quo or as agents of transformative change. (Contains 29 references.) (SK)

Describes features of learning communities: they transform themselves, share wisdom and recognition, bring others in, and share results. Provides the case example of the Upper Savannah River Economic Coalition. Discusses actions of learning communities, barriers to their development, and future potential. (SK)

Seeks to justify the educational practice of dialogue and its contributions to community development. Contends that the central element and cause of dialogue is constituted within the non-formal educational process. States that Paulo Freire emphasizes the role of words and its basis as a creative synthesis of theory and practice. (BT)

Inauthentic participation may be limited to providing inputs, giving the community no power. However, even weak participation in the form of utilization, contributions, enlistment, cooperation, and consultation can have benefits. (Author/SK)

A study of participatory evaluation by learning teams at 10 rural sites of the Empowerment Zones/Enterprise Communities program showed the importance of separating indicators of participation from project impacts. Evaluation of three categories was recommended: citizen participation (process indicators), impact of participation on individuals and…

Groupware was used to survey rural development practitioners and policymakers about professional relationships, skills, and expertise. The software created an inventory of the social and knowledge capital of this community of interest but was not enough to sustain ongoing, active participation. (Contains 42 references.) (SK)

To better understand the long-term effects of rapid boom growth, we reexamine four subjective indicators of community satisfaction and social integration in Delta, Utah, which were originally analyzed by Brown, Geertsen, and Krannich in 1989. With 24 years of longitudinal data, we find that within approximately a decade of the boom period three of…

This study of philanthropy donors in Appalachian Ohio was conducted with the purpose of understanding giving within a rural region. The research was initiated with an ultimate goal of increasing endowed assets in communities that are experiencing philanthropic poverty. The data collected from donors utilizing post-positivist qualitative research…

This report sets out to comprehensively analyse major reviews and evaluations of programs relevant to Indigenous labour market outcomes, including national mainstream and Indigenous-specific policies. The main evaluations covered relate to the Aboriginal Employment Development Policy, the Indigenous Employment Policy, the Community Development…

This paper engages with some of the specific issues that challenge critical practice. My argument is related to the Carr and Kemmis debate on "staying critical" and to ideas expressed in my current book, "Community Development: A Critical Approach." I refer to critical practice as any practice that has a transformative social justice intention,…

All too often, a community undergoing a community development process is relegated to the role of audience to outsiders' expertise. Community members are asked to furnish token "representation" of the residents' point of view and once they have been represented are asked to approve what the outsiders say is in their best interest. This dynamic is…

In March 2006, Premier Wen Jiabao acknowledged that the situation in the Chinese countryside is desperate and claimed new resources would be devoted to healthcare and education. This announcement should have pleased architects of the Chinese "learning initiative" who are building learning cities and villages. The authors describe why…

For educators, the anti-globalization movement has created a literature of opposition which offers enhanced opportunities for teaching critical analysis of neo-liberal political economy. The movement also aids those who wish to teach how First World wealth and privilege is functionally related to Third World poverty and underdevelopment. The…

In December 1980, the world's largest beef processing plant opened 10 miles west of Garden City, KS. Three years later another beef plant opened on Garden City's eastern edge. Full employment in the surrounding region meant that most of the 4000 workers needed to run these plants had to come from elsewhere--and they did. Garden City grew by…

Beginning with an overview of historical commitments by AAPI populations to educational advocacy, this article analyzes the current US educational policy context of No Child Left Behind at the national and local level, and argues that both its rhetoric and system of "accountability" have been crafted in ways that are completely…