Public universities and the neoliberal common sense: seven iconoclastic theses

Neoliberalism has utterly failed as a viable model of economic development, yet the politics of culture associated with neoliberalism is still in force, becoming the new common sense shaping the role of government and education. This ‘common sense’ has become an ideology playing a major role in constructing hegemony as moral and intellectual leadership in contemporary societies. Neoliberal globalisation, predicated on the dominance of the market over the state and on deregulatory models of governance, has deeply affected the university in the context of ‘academic capitalism’. The resulting reforms, rationalised as advancing international competitiveness, have affected public universities in four primary areas: efficiency and accountability, accreditation and universalisation, international competitiveness and privatisation. There is also growing resistance to globalisation as top-down-imposed reforms reflected in the public debates about schooling reform, curriculum and instruction, teacher training and school governance. Many question whether neoliberal reforms attempt to limit the effectiveness of universities as sites of contestation of the national and global order and thus undermine the broader goals of education. Neoliberal reforms have limited access and opportunity along class and racial lines, including limiting access to higher education through the imposition of higher tuition and reduced government support to institutions and individuals.     

2012年马列文论研究的回眸与思考

2012年我国文学理论界对马列文论“中国化”的建构做出了新贡献,突破了传统研究的理论视阈,将毛泽东《在延安文艺座谈会上的讲话》的精神与建设社会主义文化强国相联系,公认《讲话》蕴涵的马克思主义文化思想的变革力和推动力,对于当前建设文化强国来说至关重要,影响深远;《文艺科学发展论》是当代文艺理论建构的创新成果。应以科学态度对待“西马文论”,克服对马克思主义本源解释中存在的“泛化”和“窄化”问题;既要避免将“西马文论”“神圣化”,也要避免将其“虚无化”。应在注重理论指导实践、植根中国现实土壤的“接地性”和立足中国语境基础上,不断推进我国马列文论体系的建构。     

屏性视觉媒介的自身特质及其伦理价值反思

分析视觉主导的文化,分析异彩纷呈的图形图像,离不开它的主流承载媒介——屏性媒介。与传统纸质媒介不同,屏性媒介具有混合性、整合性、技术性、直观性、浅白性、新感性等多项视觉特质。由此引发的价值建构、人的主体性合理关照、文化隐喻的深度考量和伦理价值的设计与规范等问题亟待我们对其进行深度反思。屏性媒介主导下的视觉艺术形式只有超越现实的功利境界和审美境界,在媒介素养教育中将技术理性和人文理性结合起来,寻求功利审美伦理和谐统一,才能使屏性媒介为人类和社会发挥应有的作用。     

利用阅读层次理论提升国民阅读素养

随着九年义务教育的普及和大学扩招政策的实施,我国国民的文化素质得到了很大的提高,但是网络时代“知识碎片化”和“信息超载”导致的“阅读综合症”是我国建构学习型社会的重大障碍。如何有效提升国民阅读素养成为广大普通读者面临的巨大挑战,极大地制约着我国建构学习型社会进程,也成为我国广大教育工作者必须解决的重大教育问题。文章试图从艾德勒的阅读层次理论角度以不同读者群体阅读童话故事《小马过河》为例探索现阶段国民阅读素养提高的有效途径。     

从信息论的角度看欠额翻译与超额翻译现象

翻译是语际间的信息转换。本文依据信息论的基本理论分析翻译中的欠额与超额现象,并从信息论的角度去探析欠额翻译与超额翻译的规避问题,即调整平衡源语的冗余度,从而使译语适应目的语信息接受者的信道容量,促使交际的成功。     

Re-Learning American History: Understanding the Assumptions Underlying Intercultural Communication

Course: Intercultural Communication

Objectives: Students will challenge their assumptions about other cultures and question ethnocentric understandings of other cultures     

Media criticism group speech

Objective: To integrate speaking practice with rhetorical theory Type of speech: Persuasive Point value: 100 points (i.e., 30 points based on peer evaluations, 30 points based on individual performance, 40 points based on the group presentation), which is 25% of course grade Requirements: (a) References: 7–10; (b) Length: 20–30 minutes; (c) Visual aid: Yes; (d) Outline: Yes; (e) Prerequisite reading: The appropriate chapter (e.g., generic, feminist, metaphoric, fantasy theme, pentadic criticism, neo-Aristotelian) in Foss (1996); (f) Additional requirements: Each group member should be given an equal amount of time to speak and an equal amount of work in preparing the final presentation This assignment gives students a chance to engage in the study of popular culture as public address, giving them insight into their own worlds and the ways popular culture may help shape/instruct that world. This assignment also allows students to engage in critical analysis, which not only means that students can learn about rhetorical theory, but they also get to engage in the types of analysis used by their instructor during the course.     

Political Participation,Efficacy and the 2008 Minnesota Presidential Caucuses

The purpose of this study was to learn why Minnesota residents participated in the presidential caucus on Super Tuesday, February 5, 2008. The research team interviewed a total of 37 registered Republican (n = 15) and Democrat (n = 22) Minnesota voters from a mid-sized Midwestern community on caucus night. Open-ended, semi-structured interviews elicited the reasons voters said they participated in the caucus. Using grounded theory, several categories of responses emerged from data including duty and responsibility, making a difference, special election, participation, supporting a candidate, and concern for the country. The results show the majority of participants were motivated to take part because they viewed it as a duty and a responsibility as citizens of a democracy. Participants did not use the caucus as a forum for discussion and dialogue surrounding the election, but as an outlet to achieve political efficacy.     

College Students' Sexual Health: Investigating the Role of Peer Communication

This study used the Theory of Planned Behavior as a guide to investigate college students' discussions with their peers about sexual health-related topics. Two hundred thirty-one undergraduates from a large university completed a questionnaire that assessed their comfort level discussing sexual health-related issues, the topics discussed, and the sex of the discussion partners. Some of the topics most frequently discussed included birth control, condoms, sexually transmitted diseases, and resources. Although a majority of the participants felt comfortable talking with both males and females, participants felt more comfortable discussing with their own gender than the opposite gender, and were in general more comfortable talking with females than males. Results showed that most students felt comfortable discussing sexual health-related topics with their peers, with females reporting a slightly higher comfort level than males.     

An Examination of Women's Decision-Making Processes During Unplanned Pregnancy

Through the current study the author sought to analyze discourses of women who have experienced an unplanned pregnancy. A qualitative approach was used to gather responses regarding the decision-making process women undergo during this phenomenon. Data showed that persuasive messages from outside sources frequently had a reported impact on the pregnancy option women chose. Often, women would plan on carrying their pregnancy to term initially, yet the persuasive messages they received caused them to change their mind. Women's speculations about the assumed reactions they would receive from others also had an impact on their decision. Implications from this research suggest that women experiencing an unplanned pregnancy may benefit from their family members, significant others, and friends' awareness of the strong impact opinions can have on this decision-making process.