The Nicaraguan Literacy Crusade — How lasting were its benefits?

In 1981, Nicaragua was awarded a UNESCO prize in recognition of the success of the 1980 National Literacy Crusade (CNA) through which, it was claimed, three quarters of the country's illiterate had been taught to read and write. This article reports the follow-up of several women graduates of the CNA. It finds that, a decade later, a significant proportion of them are no longer able to read or write; and that of those who can, many had previously attended formal schooling as children for several years. An assessment of national census and survey figures suggests that about 9 per cent of the population became literate solely as a consequence of Nicaragua's ambitious adult-education interventions in the 1980s. Other benefits, such as the impact on child health and survival, have yet to be quantified.     

The rules of the road, a universal visual semiotics

The rules of the road form part an international willingness to simplify the understanding of road regulations worldwide. There is still an attempt to harmonise all regulations, but some countries are reluctant to do so as they fear a loss of their domestic sovereignty. Indeed, with the increase in car use for private or professional reasons, accidents have become one the central issue in international politics; and one way to curb accidents is said to have a universal visual road semiotics. However as this cultural discernment of road signs in civil society (i.e. visual encoding) has become popular, many other forms of use have derived from it for other purposes than road regulations.     

Nationalism and Cultural Memory in Poland: The European Union Turns East

The eastern expansion of the European Union confronts the process of European integration with the phenomenon of cultural and ethnic nationalism. This paper examines the situation of Poland, using Jan Assmann's theory of cultural memory to reconstruct the historical dimension of Polish nationalism which underlies the current constructions of the Polish nation. Understanding itself as the antemurale Europae christianiae, Poland owns an old tradition of resistance. This tradition allowed this country to survive times of division and oppression but now turns against the European Union.     

Judges,juries, and the decision to convict

The bureaucratic context of criminal prosecution emphasizes efficiency; its legal context emphasizes due process and procedural fairness. This paper focuses on the trial stage of prosecution where both concerns are central. It empirically examines the bench trial, an alternative to the more commonly used plea of guilty and the more traditional trial by jury. A comparison between trial by judge and trial by jury reveals striking differences in determinations of guilt. These differences have implications for commonly held assumptions about both jury and judicial behavior.     

Cognitive Dissonance in Social Work

Cognitive dissonance is a state of tension occurring when a person holds two psychologically inconsistent cognitions. For this study, 21 social workers who facilitate transracial adoption plans for Aboriginal children in British Columbia were interviewed: 1) Do social workers who facilitate transracial adoption plans for Aboriginal children experience cognitive dissonance? If so, in what ways? 2) How does cognitive dissonance impact them? 3) In what ways do social workers reconcile a sense of dissonance? Findings suggest that social workers do experience cognitive dissonance, that they are adversely impacted, and that they find ways to reconcile the cognitive dissonance.