Tocqueville in Miami: Political culture and political organizing in Miami's Cuban community

This study examines the effectiveness of civic organizations focusing on leadership and the role of culture in politics. The study is based on a quasi-experimental research design and relies primarily on qualitative data. The study focuses on Miami's Cuban community in order to examine the role of public initiative in grassroots civic and community organizations. ^ The Miami Cuban community is a large, institutionally complex and cohesive ethnic community with dense networks of community organizations. The political and economic success of the community makes it an opportune setting for a study of civic organizing. The sheer number of civic organizations to be found in Miami's Cuban community suggests that the community's civic organizations have something to do with the considerable vibrancy and civic capacity of the community. How have the organizations managed to be so successful over so many years and what can be learned about successful civic organizing from their experience?^ Civic organizations in Miami's Cuban community are overwhelmingly ethnic-based organizations. The organizations recreate collective symbols that come from community members' memories of and attachments to the place of origin they hold dear as ethnic Cubans. They recreate a collective Cuban past that community members remember and that is the very basis of the community to which they belong.^ Cuban Miami's ethnically based civic organizations have generally performed better than the literature on civic organizations says they should. They gained greater access to community ties and social capital, and they exhibited greater organizational longevity. The fit between the political culture of civic organizations and that of the broader political community helps to explain this success. Yet they do not perform in the same way or in support of the same social purposes. Some stress individual agency rather than community agency, and some pursue an externally-oriented social purpose, whereas others focus on building an internal community.^

Impact of a comprehensive nutrition and lifestyle education intervention on body weight and health-related outcomes in morbidly-obese Hispanic-Americans following laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass

As morbid obesity increasingly affects Hispanic-Americans, the incidence of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass procedures (RYGB) among this population rises. Prospective research on the impact of postoperative educational interventions focused on Hispanic- Americans is needed to prevent premature weight loss plateau, weight regain, nutritional deficiencies, and relapse of obesity-related comorbidities. This randomized-controlled study evaluated the impact of a comprehensive nutrition and lifestyle education intervention (6 biweekly postoperative sessions that incorporated motivational strategies for behavioral change) as compared to a non-comprehensive approach (printed guidelines for healthy lifestyle). The variables to consider are body weight, obesity-related comorbidities (depression, diabetes, dyslipidemia, and others), nutrient status, physical activity, and eating habits in 144 morbidly-obese adult Hispanic-Americans 6 to 12 months following RYGB. Patients were randomly assigned to either the comprehensive intervention (n=72) or the comparison group (n=72). Participants (mean age 44.5 ± 13.5 years) were mainly Cuban-born females (83.3%). Intervention sessions attendance was 64%. At 12 months, both groups lost weight significantly, but those in the comprehensive intervention experienced greater excess weight loss than those in the comparison group (80% vs. 64% from preoperative excess weight, P<.001). Intervention participants were significantly more involved in physical activity (+ 14 min/week vs. – 4 min/week), had decreased depression, joint illness, and required less medication for comorbidities than comparison participants. Additionally, those in the comprehensive intervention had sustained supplement intake experiencing less folate deficiency (P=.014). The non-comprehensive intervention group significantly decreased their protein and supplement intake compared to the intervention group. Patients in the comprehensive intervention had significantly better eating habits reflected by fewer episodes of dumping syndrome, constipation, and night eating, than those in the comparison group who reported greater eating in response to negative emotions (P=.003). These findings support the importance of a comprehensive educational approach to achieve more effective weight reduction and health-related outcomes to prevent relapse of obesity-related comorbidities and nutritional deficiencies in Hispanic-Americans 6 to 12 months following RYGB.

Diversity and knowledge in the age of nation-building: Space and time in the thought of Yanagita Kunio

The study examines the thought of Yanagita Kunio (1875–1962), an influential Japanese nationalist thinker and a founder of an academic discipline named minzokugaku. The purpose of the study is to bring into light an unredeemed potential of his intellectual and political project as a critique of the way in which modern politics and knowledge systematically suppresses global diversity. The study reads his texts against the backdrop of the modern understanding of space and time and its political and moral implications and traces the historical evolution of his thought that culminates in the establishment of minzokugaku. My reading of Yanagita’s texts draws on three interpretive hypotheses. First, his thought can be interpreted as a critical engagement with John Stuart Mill’s philosophy of history, as he turns Mill’s defense of diversity against Mill’s justification of enlightened despotism in non-Western societies. Second, to counter Mill’s individualistic notion of progressive agency, he turns to a Marxian notion of anthropological space, in which a laboring class makes history by continuously transforming nature, and rehabilitates the common people (jomin) as progressive agents. Third, in addition to the common people, Yanagita integrates wandering people as a countervailing force to the innate parochialism and conservatism of agrarian civilization. To excavate the unrecorded history of ordinary farmers and wandering people and promote the formation of national consciousness, his minzokugaku adopts travel as an alternative method for knowledge production and political education. In light of this interpretation, the aim of Yanagita’s intellectual and political project can be understood as defense and critique of the Enlightenment tradition. Intellectually, he attempts to navigate between spurious universalism and reactionary particularism by revaluing diversity as a necessary condition for universal knowledge and human progress. Politically, his minzokugaku aims at nation-building/globalization from below by tracing back the history of a migratory process cutting across the existing boundaries. His project is opposed to nation-building from above that aims to integrate the world population into international society at the expense of global diversity.

Critical Race Theory and Adult Education: Critique of the Literature in Adult Education Quarterly

This paper examines the assumptions and paradigms used to discuss diversity and equity in adult education literature using critical race theory as a lens. Five themes emerged from the critique that may initiate an innovative dialogue about the realities and subjectivities singling out racial and ethnic minorities in the USA.

Women in Nontraditional Career and Technical Education

The purpose of this research is to outline several of the issues that serve as barriers to women participating in nontraditional career and technical education in an effort to prompt solution based strategies on the part of career and technical instructors, adult education practitioners, and administrators.

Better Spanish, Better English: Native Language Literacy and Adult Education

Characteristics of the predominantly Hispanic community and native language usage in Miami are discussed in relation to poverty and common adult education programs. Native language literacy instruction is considered as an alternative offering to meet learners’ needs.

Retention and special education referral practices before and after the implementation of high -stakes testing

The rewards and sanctions associated with high-stakes testing may induce educators to participate in practices that will ensure the elimination of the scores of low-achieving students from the testing pool. Two ways in which scores may be eliminated is through retention or referral to special education. ^ This study examined the use of these practices at 179 elementary schools in Miami-Dade County Public Schools, the 4th largest school district in the country. Between- and within-subjects designs were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance to compare retention and referral to special education practices over a five-year period of time, two years prior to and two years after the implementation of Florida's high-stakes test, the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, FCAT. ^ Significant main effects for referral and retention over time were demonstrated. The use of retention steadily increased over the first three years, with its usage maintained during the fourth year. While the use of referral actually decreased from the first to second years, a significant change occurred after the implementation of the FCAT. ^ Examination of the use of these practices according to student and school characteristics revealed significant differences. Increases in the use of referral across time was significant for Black, non-Hispanic and Hispanic students, all limited English proficiency population categories, medium and low socioeconomic status category schools, all grade levels, and for schools with accountability grades of A. C, D and F with the most striking absolute increase occurring for F schools. Increases in the use of retention across time were significant for all ethnic groups, limited English proficiency categories, and socioeconomic status categories, for grades kindergarten through four and by gender. Significant increases occurred for schools with accountability performance grades of C, D and F; however the most dramatic increase occurred for the F schools. A direct relationship between performance category grade of school and their use of retention was demonstrated. The results suggest that schools changed their use of referral and retention in response to the implementation of the FCAT. ^

Patriarchal ideology and frequency of partner abuse among men in batterer treatment groups

This research examined the relative influence of a number of factors, patriarchal ideology, age, socio-economic status, partner relationship, and problem behaviors on the frequency of partner abuse. Patriarchal ideology as measured by the Attitudes Toward Women Scale (AWS), and the Inventory of Beliefs about Wife Beating (IBWB) among men in batterer treatment programs did not have the strong influence expected on whether men in treatment are more frequent abusers of their partners. Instead, having a criminal record and having been identified as having a substance abuse problem stood out as being the most influential factors associated with frequent partner abuse. Questionnaires were administered to 283 men in batterer treatment programs in Dade County Florida who volunteered to participate in the study. Specifically, men in batterer groups who scored low on the AWS or high on the IBWB indicating an adherence to patriarchal ideology were predicted to report more frequent abuse of their partners. Conversely, men in treatment who scored high on the AWS or low on the IBWB indicating a tendency towards a non-patriarchal ideology were predicted to report less frequent abuse. ^

Teacher perception of self -determination skills in the inclusive and special education classroom

It has been proposed that special education teachers, who promote self-determination and link it to educational standards, help students with a disability succeed in school. The current school reform movement has focused on accountability through mandates such as the No Child Left Behind Act, 2001, and has emphasized participation in the general curriculum through amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 1997 and 2004. This study informs educators if educational setting, students' type of disability, and subject area taught, influence teachers' opinions about the importance of teaching components leading to self-determination and self-management. ^ The research questions that drive this study are: (1) do secondary school teachers who instruct students with a disability think that self-determination components taught in the classroom will make an important difference in students' school and later postsecondary achievements? and (2) does the type of classroom setting, students' type of disability, or specific subject matter influence teachers' opinions regarding the importance of teaching components related to self-determination and self-management? The collection and interpretation of data were done using descriptive and quantitative methods employing a teacher survey. The survey was administered to secondary teachers who instruct students with disabilities. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The sample consisted of 97 special education teachers currently teaching at the secondary level. ^ The results of the study indicated that teachers believe that self-determination is important for both school life and post school life. However teachers thought these skills to be more important for post school success. Teachers believe that self-determination is more important than self-management skills. Type of disability, educational environment, and subject area were not significant factors. ^