Learning to label: socialisation,gender, and the hidden curriculum of high‐stakes testing

Although high‐stakes tests play an increasing role in students’ schooling experiences, scholars have not examined these tests as sites for socialisation. Drawing on qualitative data collected at an American urban primary school, this study explores what educators teach students about motivation and effort through high‐stakes testing, how students interpret and internalise these messages, and how student hierarchies develop as a result. I found that teachers located boys’ failure in their poor behavior and attitudes, while arguing that girls simply needed more self‐esteem to pass the test. Most boys accepted their teachers’ diagnosis of the problem. However, the boys who felt that they were already ‘doing their best’ and ‘working hard’ began to doubt that educational success is a function of merit and effort. I conclude that students learn about much more than the three Rs through their experiences with high‐stakes testing, and argue that future research should attend to the social dimensions of these experiences.     

当有家人患癌症

去年,我接受了前列腺癌的治疗,这个过程让我感觉如同一座房子的分崩离析。而且,很长一段时间,我能否康复都不甚明朗。但是在这个我逼视自己内心的过程中,我认识到了最重要的一件事情——不光是我一个人,而是我的整个家庭都因为这个病而发生变化。     

The librarian stereotype: How librarians are damaging their image and profession

Every profession has a stereotype, and librarians are no stranger to this phenomenon. This article discusses the stereotype, how librarians have responded to its use in the public sphere, and reasons why the author sees the profession's reaction as problematic.     

Word‐art for people: Toward a future of user‐friendly poetry and interactive fiction

Throughout history, word‐art has been valued as a source of magic, wisdom, and delight. The author argues that genre fiction, advertising, popular song lyrics, and greeting card verse all fulfill these traditional social roles, and that current definitions of “serious literature”; are far too narrow. The true importance of word‐art in daily life cannot be assessed without including such “genre”; work along with “speculative”; writing. The future significance of literature for society, though dependent to some degree on developments in computers and telecommunications, would be enhanced if critics, publishers, and writers adopted a more “user‐friendly”; attitude—helping genre readers to find satisfying material more easily, and respecting speculative readers for the additional time and effort they expend in seeking out the unpredictable and unfamiliar in word‐art.     

Exploring the Stability and Variability of Impact Factors and Associated Rankings in Criminology and Criminal Justice Journals, 1998–2007

This study sought to explore the impact factors and associated rankings of criminology and criminal justice journals that have been ranked in the top 20 over the past 10 years (1998–2007). The results from this study suggested a considerable degree of similarity in the rankings of criminology and criminal justice journals compared to other known methods insofar as the rankings of the top journals such as CRIM and JRCD. However, further analyses revealed a noticeable amount of stability and variability in the journals that make the top 20 list over time and stability and variability in the rankings of specific journals themselves over time. Study limitations and suggestions for future research ranking criminology and criminal justice journals are also discussed.     

Sex stereotypes and school adolescents' sexual behaviour in Osun State,Nigeria

This study investigated the association between sex stereotypes and the sexual behaviour of Nigerian school-going adolescents. It also ascertained the effects of age and sex on adolescents' beliefs about sex stereotypes. The study sample consisted of 658 (male = 287, female = 371) adolescents from nine randomly selected secondary schools in three urban towns in Osun State, Nigeria. A survey questionnaire consisting of items describing various misconceptions about sexuality to which respondents were to indicate their levels of agreement on a five-point Likert scale was used to collect data. The instrument measured the extent to which respondents engaged in risky sexual behaviour such as casual sex, multiple sexual partners and unprotected sexual intercourse. Data were analysed using simple percentages and chi-squared statistics. The results showed that Nigerian adolescent students strongly believed in sex stereotypes and demonstrate a tendency to engage in risky sexual behaviours. Results also indicated that respondents who reported a level of sex stereotypes showed a tendency to engage in risky sexual behaviour and that respondents' sex had a significant relationship with their belief in sex stereotypes. A large majority of respondents who reported a high level of stereotypes were males.     

Radio and Television

Ralph M. Jennings and Pamela Richard's How to Protect Your Rights in Television and Radio (Office of Communication, United Church of Christ, 289 Park Ave. South, New York 10010—price not given, paper)

Ted C. Smythe and George A. Mastroianni's Issues in Broadcasting: Radio, Television, and Cable (Palo Alto, Calif.: Mayfield Publishing Co., 1975—price not given but around $7.00 we learned from editors, paper)

James D. Secrest's Electronic Industries Association: The First 50 Years (Washington: EIA, 1974—price not given)

Ann M. Velia's KOB: Goddard's Magic Mast, Fifty Years of Pioneer Broadcasting (Las Cruces, N.M.: New Mexico State University Press, 1972—$6.95)

Harold Niven's Broadcast Education 1975: 14th Report (Washington: National Association of Broadcasters, 1975—$5.00, paper)

Broadcast Programming and Production (bimonthly/$7.00 per year, with first three issues free on request)

Joel L. Efrein, Cablecasting Production Handbook (Blue Ridge Summit, Pa.: TAB Books, 1975—$12.95)

NCTA is Over the Cable (Washington: National Cable Television Association, 1975—free on request, paper)

Community Antenna Television Journal (4209 N.W. 23rd St., Suite 106, Oklahoma City 73107)     

The Effect of Teacher–Child Race/Ethnicity Matching and Classroom Diversity on Children's Socioemotional and Academic Skills

Mounting evidence suggests teacher–child race/ethnicity matching and classroom diversity benefit Black and Latinx children's academic and socioemotional development. However, less is known about whether the effects of teacher–child matching differ across levels of classroom diversity. This study examined effects of matching on teacher-reported child outcomes in a racially/ethnically diverse sample of teachers and children, and classroom diversity moderation using multilevel models. Data were drawn from a professional learning study involving 224 teachers (M_age = 41.5) and 5,200 children (M_age = 7.7) in 36 New York City elementary schools. Teacher–child race/ethnicity matching was associated with higher child engagement in learning, motivation, social skills, and fewer absences. Classroom diversity moderated matching such that teacher–child mismatch was related to lower engagement, motivation, social skills, math and reading scores in low-diversity classrooms, but not in high-diversity classrooms. Implications for practice and policy are discussed.     

Rooted in resistance: women teachers constructing counter‐pedagogies in post‐authoritarian Brazil

This study focuses upon the narratives of women educators (educadoras) who contributed to radical democratic school reforms in post‐authoritarian Brazil. We illustrate through three of the teachers’ narratives how their professional identities and actions were shaped partly by their experiences of resisting the military regime and by their participation in professional development opportunities that grew from liberatory social movements. Our analysis focuses on their efforts to construct counter‐pedagogies in their disciplines of history, mathematics, and physical education that resisted colonizing, authoritative practices and moved toward more liberatory, humanizing pedagogies. We consider how these counter‐pedagogies reflect both women’s ways of knowing that emphasize dialogue, collaboration, community, and the value of personal knowledge and relationships, as well as feminist principles of consciousness‐raising and social action. This analysis highlights possibilities and challenges of radical democratic reform in education by focusing on the work, experience, and identities of women educators engaged in the day‐to‐day efforts to bring about lasting change.