Showing papers in "International Journal of Research in 2004"

Cultural change in the governance of security

Abstract: Issues of cultural change typically plague advocates of policing reform. Scholars often argue that due to their defining capacity to exercise coercion, the police possess occupational sensibilities that tend to undermine new ways of thinking and acting introduced in reform programmes. A notable exception to this pessimism is found in the work of Janet Chan, who argues that cultural transformation can and does take place through iterative changes at the levels of “field” (structures) and “habitus” (practical dispositions) of the police. Extending the work of Brogden and Shearing, this article argues that further optimism can be reached by explicitly acknowledging the plural nature of security governance. Not only do different “nodes” of governance possess different ways of thinking and acting, they also take on the sensibilities of other nodes to maintain or improve their position in the security field. The normative possibilities raised by this explanatory line of inquiry will be examined.

Thoughts on sovereignty

Abstract: These introductory remarks canvas some of the debates over shifts in the governance of security that prompted the development of this Special Issue of Policing & Society. They show how while there is an Anglo‐American/Continental European focus to these debates, they draw attention to issues that extend beyond this particular context. At the heart of these, and the wider debates of which they are a part, are questions about the nature of contemporary sovereignty.

Choral Sight-Singing Practices: Revisiting a Web-Based Survey

Abstract: The survey reported here was originally created for the book Building Choral Excellence: Teaching Sight-singing in the Choral Rehearsal. However, that book presented results in a limited form from a smaller sample of participants. This report includes responses from an additional 94 participants, limits the sample to only middle and high school choral directors, and presents the findings in much more detail. The survey asked choral directors who were active sight-singing teachers to identify how much time they spend teaching sight-singing, the methods or materials they prefer, and how they assess student progress. Results indicated some significant differences based on whether or not sight-singing was a part of contest participation, preferences for certain pitch and rhythm reading systems, and a varied approach to assessment. Such findings could help beginning teachers decide how to organize their curriculum and might guide decisions by state organizations regarding the role of music reading in contest and all-state events

The fading of a teaching profession? reforms of early childhood teacher education in Sweden

Abstract: In Sweden, working with young children in institutions outside the home dates back to the late nineteenth century when public child care provision developed in a context of industrialization, urbanization and democratization. Out of the charitable work of unmarried women in these early institutions, pre‐schools and teacher education programmes developed. Over the years, pre‐school teacher education has undergone major changes, the most recent reform being the move into a system within which the previous eight distinctive teacher education programmes, pre‐school teacher education being one of them, have been replaced by one integrated teaching degree. This article addresses some major features of the development of pre‐school teacher education and concludes with a discussion of the most recent reform and its consequences for the early childhood teaching profession.