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National Concern (national + concern)

Distribution by Scientific Domains
Humanities and Social Sciences75%

Selected Abstracts

Writing: Crafting and Creating

ENGLISH IN EDUCATION, Issue 3 2001
Debra Myhill
Abstract This article argues, in the context of national concern about standards in writing, for a reconceptualisation of the teaching of writing that acknowledges both the significance of the writer's voice and the need to teach about how written texts create meaning. The teaching of writing requires the dual activities of creating and crafting: young writers need opportunities to express their ideas and support in developing understanding of how best to shape those ideas. [source]

For the Good of The Nation: ,Strategic Egalitarianism' in the Singapore Context

NATIONS AND NATIONALISM, Issue 1 2001
Michelle M. Lazar
In this article, I introduce the concept of ,strategic egalitarianism' in relation to women's co-optation into nationalist projects in Singapore. By strategic egalitarianism, I mean the granting of equality to women that is contingent upon meeting particular pragmatic nationalist objectives. For example, the granting of equal educational and employment opportunities by the government in the 1960s was necessitated by Singapore's economic survival as a newly emerging nation. By the 1980s, another pragmatic national concern dealing with rapid decline in population growth emerged, requiring that women prioritise the role of motherhood. A complicating factor in the procreationist discourse is the government's eugenic policy that favours the ,right' kind of women, in particular, to bear the ,right' kind of babies for the continued vitality of the nation. In the course of this article, I examine the problem with strategic egalitarianism, which shifts its ground depending on the nationalist goals of the day, and the implications this has for Singapore women. [source]

An emergent cosmopolitan paradigm?

THE BRITISH JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY, Issue 2 2009
Asylum, human rights, welfare
Abstract This paper addresses the recognition in cosmopolitan debate of a possible disjuncture between the normative ideal of cosmopolitanism and its realization in practice. Taking as its focus the potential conflict between human rights commitments and national concern about immigration control, it reflects on a series of legal challenges to UK government attempts to withdraw support from asylum seekers who do not claim on entry into the country. Set in the context of socio-legal theory, these cases are analysed for signs of a ,national' or ,cosmopolitan' paradigm in judicial interpretation, and considered as a possible instance of reflexive judgment, espoused as a feature of cosmopolitanism. [source]

The French Riots: Questioning Spaces of Surveillance and Sovereignty

INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, Issue 2 2006
Susan Ossman
ABSTRACT This paper examines the riots in France in late 2005 in terms of how they lead to a reconceptualization of the spaces of danger, culture, territory, and sovereignty. It traces a brief history of danger zones and immigration, noting how these two terms have increasingly overlapped. We analyse key discursive formations - legal, political, social scientific, and media - whose explanation for the emergence of the "immigrant" delinquent is linked to what is identified as a culture of poverty. They provide a sustained examination of recent legal reforms of juvenile law as well as judicial practices within the juvenile justice system to show the systematic exclusionary practices of what is claimed to be a colour blind republican system. They reveal a consensus across the political spectrum and among police, prosecutors, investigating magistrates, and new security experts on the need to privilege accountability, restitution, and retribution in the treatment of juvenile offenders. We present evidence from interviews and ethnographic observation among youths of all backgrounds. Ironically, while the children of immigrants seek to claim a voice in the national community, their peers from more privileged social milieu express increasing distance from national concerns, seeking to lead lives as Europeans or global citizens. We end by arguing that this needs to be taken into account in any analysis of frustrated and disenfranchised suburban youths. A transnational or supra-national sociology that accounts for the itineraries of immigrants of all kinds must be developed. LES ÉMEUTES EN FRANCE: QU'EN EST-IL DES ESPACES DE SURVEILLANCE ET DE LA SOUVERAINETÉ? Les émeutes qui ont éclaté en France fin 2005 conduisent à une reconceptualisation des notions de danger, de culture, de territoire et de souveraineté. Cet article, qui présente un bref historique des zones de danger et de l'immigration, montre combien ces deux concepts ont tendance à se rejoindre. Nous analysons les principales formations discursives - juridique, politique, sociale, scientifique et médiatique - qui expliquent l'émergence du délinquant « immigré » en l'associant à ce qui est décrit comme une culture de la pauvreté. Elles nous offrent un examen soutenu des réformes récentes du droit des mineurs et des pratiques judiciaires au sein du système de justice des mineurs, et montrent les pratiques d'exclusion systématiques d'un système républicain prétendant ignorer les préjugés raciaux. Elles montrent que, d'un bout à l'autre de l'échiquier politique, dans la police, chez les procureurs, les juges d'instruction et les nouveaux spécialistes de la sécurité, il existe un consensus sur la nécessité de privilégier l'obligation de rendre des comptes, la réparation et le châtiment dans le traitement des mineurs délinquants. Nous étayons cet argument à partir d'entretiens et d'observations ethnographiques de jeunes de tous les milieux. De façon assez ironique, alors que les enfants d'immigrés veulent avoir leur mot à dire au sein de la communauté nationale, les enfants de milieux plus privilégiés se disent de moins en moins concernés par les préoccupations nationales et cherchent à mener une vie d'Européen ou de citoyen du monde. En conclusion, nous avançons que cette situation doit être prise en compte dans toute analyse des jeunes des banlieues frustrés et privés de droits. Une sociologie transnationale ou supranationale qui rendrait compte des itinéraires des immigrés, tous milieux sociaux confondus, serait une bonne chose. LAS REVUELTAS FRANCESAS: CUESTIONAMIENTO DE LOS ESPACIOS DE VIGILANCIA Y SOBERANÍA En este artículo se examinan las revueltas de Francia a finales de 2005 en la medida en que conducen a una reconceptualización de los espacios de peligro, cultura, territorio y soberanía. Se traza una breve historia de las zonas de peligro y de la inmigración, señalando a la atención cómo estos dos conceptos han ido solapándose crecientemente. Se analizan formaciones discursivas clave -jurídicas, políticas, propias de las ciencias sociales y mediáticas - cuyas explicaciones de la aparición del delincuente "inmigrante" se vinculan con lo que se ha descrito como una cultura de la pobreza. Se ofrece un examen sostenido de las recientes reformas jurídicas de las leyes sobre los menores, así como de las prácticas judiciales dentro del sistema de justicia de menores para mostrar las prácticas de exclusión sistemática de lo que se considera que es un sistema republicano daltónico. Se revela un consenso entre los políticos y entre la policía, los fiscales, los jueces de instrucción y los nuevos expertos en seguridad sobre la necesidad de dar prelación a la asunción de responsabilidades, la restitución y la retribución en el tratamiento de los menores delincuentes. Se presentan pruebas extraídas de entrevistas y de la observación etnográfica de los jóvenes de todos los ambientes. Irónicamente, mientras los hijos de inmigrantes tienden a reclamar una voz en la comunidad nacional, sus iguales de medios sociales más privilegiados expresan un creciente distanciamiento de las preocupaciones nacionales y prefieren vivir como europeos o ciudadanos del mundo. Se termina arguyendo que es preciso tener en cuenta este factor en cualquier análisis de los jóvenes frustrados y privados de voto que viven en los barrios periféricos. Será preciso desarrollar una sociología transnacional o supranacional que explique los itinerarios de todo tipo de inmigrantes. [source]