Love,Loss and Magic: Connecting Author and Story1

The themes of love, loss and magic have been enduring themes in fairytales, myths, legends and fantasy within the genre of children's literature. These stories frequently depict young protagonists who have been ‘orphaned’ in some way—for example, through death, betrayal, absence, rejection or unexplained disappearance. In many of these narratives an important feature is the power of the story to grip and hold its readers through the intervention of magic in its most sinister and beneficent form as well as the love and loyalty of friends and creatures drawn from the world of fantasy. What is seldom examined is the way in which the author's own biography of loss and love both informs and provides a major impetus to the stories they have written. This article explores the way in which the themes of love, loss and magic interconnect with two phenomenally successful contemporary children's writers. Using selected extracts from the work of Philip Pullman and Michael Morpurgo, the article suggests a dynamic synergy with the authors and their stories.     

The new library building at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio

The new University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio Library opened in June 1983, replacing the 1968 library building. Planning a new library building provides an opportunity for the staff to rethink their philosophy of service. Of paramount concern and importance is the need to convey this philosophy to the architects. This paper describes the planning process and the building's external features, interior layouts, and accommodations for technology. Details of the move to the building are considered and various aspects of the building are reviewed.     

An analysis of the PPCF as a theoretical framework for an instrument to examine teacher priorities for selecting curriculum content

The purpose of the research was to develop an instrument to examine physical education teachers' priorities for curricular decision-making. The purpose dimension of the Purpose Process Curriculum Framework (PPCF) was used as the theoretical structure for content decisions. Three studies are reported that investigate the reliability and validity of the proposed instrument. Items were evaluated for relevance and validity of the proposed instrument. They were evaluated for relevance and theoretical consistency by physical education teachers (Study 1) and curriculum specialists (Study 2). Acceptable items were then placed in a ranking format and field tested with physical educators in three school districts (Study 3). Results from Study 1 indicated that secondary level physical education teachers supported the relevance of items to reflect the educational setting in their classes. In Study 2, mean ratings of curriculum specialists established that 19 of the 22 categories were theoretically consistent with the PPCF. However, internal consistency coefficients (alpha) for 10 of the 22 purposes were less than .70. Follow-up field tests with physical educators in Study 3 indicated that only one category, joy of movement, had a coefficient above .70. In this research internal consistency coefficients were too low to make a claim for the reliability of the concept scales of the instrument. The multidimensionality of the purpose concepts raised questions regarding the validity of the PPCF and prohibited the use of the framework as a theoretical basis for instrument development.     

Female adolescent subjectivities in Las Vegas: poststructural thoughts on the intersections of gender,sexuality, consumer logic and curriculum

In this article, data collected from an ethnographic study of adolescent girls growing up in the city of Las Vegas in the US is used to further our understanding of the role of mediated sex and consumer culture and in relationship to emerging adolescent female identities. Girls in this study articulated a clear sense of their abilities to make choices; however the ubiquitous visual of women as the body subject and object of the male gaze in this landscape, the accepted discourse of liberal feminism and certain acquiescence to the pervasive consumer logic complicate resistance among girls. Resistance, although apparent through forms of post‐punk representation, depicts the futility of challenge. The fluidity of postmodern theories helps explain and respond to the specificity of this context in ways that facilitate greater understanding of gender oppression in many western societies. The author argues for a curriculum that deconstructs cultural practices and illuminates multiple discourses to problematize issues of power and identity in the lives of young people that might provide avenues for emancipatory possibilities.