Elitist Practices Research Articles

Never the twain shall meet? Considering an inclusive meritocracy in Singapore

ABSTRACT The concept of meritocracy stands as a fundamental ethos within the governance and educational paradigms in Singapore. This principle, notwithstanding its intrinsic paradoxes – most notably, the juxtaposition of egalitarian ideals against elitist practices – remains steadfastly upheld, with no indications of waning in the foreseeable future. A pertinent issue arising from this meritocratic orientation is the integration of students with special educational needs (SEN) into a system deeply ingrained with meritocratic values, especially considering the obstacles they face regarding accessibility, resource allocation, and prevailing societal attitudes towards disability. This study does not propose dismantling meritocratic frameworks; instead, it proposes the adoption of an inclusive meritocratic model. By exploring how meritocracy and inclusive education have manifested in Singapore, this paper delves into three critical barriers – namely, academic tracking, elitism, and the influence of parentocracy – that concurrently undermine the principles of meritocracy and the ethos of inclusive education. Utilizing Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory as a methodological lens, this paper elucidates the complex interplay among these barriers and their compounded effects across different systemic levels. With a nuanced understanding of the challenges, the paper offers several recommendations for cultivating an inclusive meritocratic system.

Masculinized discourses of STEM interest, performance, and competence that shape university STEM students' recognition of a “STEM person”

AbstractHow individuals come to perceive themselves in STEM is predicated on their understanding of what it means to be a member of the STEM community. This association is consequential when considering the perpetuation of white male ownership of STEM knowledge and power that forces learners identifying with groups systemically marginalized by racial and gender discrimination to adopt particular norms, values, and behaviors to gain recognition. In effect, these expectations help to maintain masculinized Discourses as STEM professionals are encultured to apply the same recognition criteria to which they were judged themselves. We examine how these Discourses are maintained even as learners who identify with groups that carry histories of systemic marginalization by racist, sexist, and elitist practices gain access to STEM communities. Specifically, we explore how university STEM students attending a Hispanic Serving Institution in the United States articulate gendered expectations of STEM membership through their characterization of themselves and others as (not) STEM people. Drawing from theories in Discourse, social identity, and feminist critiques of science, we describe how students implicitly recognize STEM identity in gendered ways. We discuss how our findings illuminate the mechanisms by which STEM recognition is afforded by pointing to its dependence on masculinized displays of STEM performances, competence, and interests, leading to a cycle of marginalization as learners are encultured to perpetuate existing STEM Discourses in their recognition of others. We discuss research implications for measurements of STEM identity that do not account for gendered Discourses and offer practical implications for the design of learning experiences that co‐opt existing Discourses to inoculate gendered perceptions of a STEM person prototype. Lastly, we present a case for elevating the role of maternal caregivers and family immigration histories in STEM identity construction.

Institutional and stakeholder pressures on organisational performance and green human resources management

AbstractGreen human resource management (GHRM) has recently received increasing attention from scholars and practitioners. In addition to environmental management systems, the circular economy has become a primary strategy for tackling environmental issues. Other studies have suggested that more research is required to identify the drivers of GHRM and explore how it is related to performance outcomes. In this study, we aim to investigate the effects of both institutional and stakeholder pressure on environmental and circular economy, economic performance, and environmental reputation of organisations. We also test the mediating roles of performance outcomes on GHRM adoption. Based on data collected from European environmentally certified organisations, we found that both institutional and stakeholder pressures are positively related to organisational performance and GHRM adoption. Performance outcomes also have a positive relationship with GHRM practices. However, our findings also highlight the risk that GHRM can become an elitist practice in high‐performing organisations.

Craving care in refugee camps

Engaging refugees in development projects by the United Nations, or any other international aid organisation, should not be an elitist practice that presumes a hierarchy that places the organisation at the top and refugees at the bottom. For both ethical and pragmatic reasons, such projects and initiatives should take into consideration culture, religion, geography, politics, and social aspects when planning and delivering their services, otherwise their outreach and success will be hindered. This commentary looks at the emotional toll of diaspora on the Somali women interviewed for Bagelman and Gitome’s article, ‘Birthing Across Borders: “Contracting” Reproductive Geographies’, and contemplates the effects that this potentially has on the relationship between these women and health professionals in Dadaab, as well as their relationship with traditional Somali midwives.

Att bli och att vara framgångsrik musiker – socialisation och sortering genom livet

This article concerns learning, socialization and social sorting among successful musicians. The aim is to understand and problematize not only what it means to become a classical musician but also what it entails to be a successful classical musician. In what ways are musicians socialized through life? What approaches are formed among musicians, and what is the meaning of these when it comes to performance of work? Are their specific arenas and rituals of particular importance, when it comes to socializing and sorting among musicians? Interviews and documents about twelve musicians have been analyzed with the aid of Bourdieusian concepts, for example, practical sense and habitus, and research on elitist practices within music, arts and sports. The results indicate that there is a typical and similar career path for successful musicians, where young musicians are socialized into considering their careers in music as natural and given. The musicians are recognized as talented or wonder children at an early age, and they are accepted as students of a master teacher. Their careers are built by merits, such as a spectacular debut leading to an international career. These career steps function as both merits and as an opening of doors. Further, they contribute by strengthening the musicians´ identities and their roles as successful musicians and role models within the field.

Elitist, Inequitable and Exclusionary Practices: A Problem within Ontario French Immersion Programs? A Literature Review

The 2013 Ontario French Second Language (FSL) Curriculum emphasizes inclusivity and bilingualism; however, many students are recommended to opt out of French Immersion (FI). The opting-out of students may support the strengthening of the program by establishing a reputation of success, but how does it affect the withdrawn child? Are FSL programs using best practices to support all learners equitably, or catering to the elite students as a result of misconceptions, lack of resources and professional training? To address these questions, an exploratory and focused literature review of Canadian publications, Ministry of Education documentations and global articles on the topic of bilingualism was conducted, focusing on the works of Genesee (2007) and Baker (2006) on natural language acquisition, Arnett and Mady (2017) on teachers’ and parents’ perspectives, and Gour (2015) and Wise (2012) who report on misconceptions regarding second language education. Emerging trends indicate that elitist practices and unequal access to FSL programs remain a prominent issue in Ontario classrooms. With the understanding that students with learning disabilities (LDs) can succeed in the FI program, removing these learners may in turn, be a disservice to their overall learning. Findings presented in this paper support the need to examine how learners’ abilities are being perceived by educational professionals to provide the necessary tools and supports for success, appropriate training to mitigate misconceptions, as well as retain a reputation for success in FSL programs through equitable means. Acknowledging such discrepancies between what serves as best teaching practice and making it possible in the classroom is necessary to reduce excuses of unpreparedness to meet students’ diverse needs and initiate reflection and training programs that prepare teachers to teach inclusively to all.

Islamic Spirituality: Theology and Practice for the Modern World by Zeki Saritoprak

Reviewed by: Islamic Spirituality: Theology and Practice for the Modern World by Zeki Saritoprak Adnan Aslan (bio) Islamic Spirituality: Theology and Practice for the Modern World. By Zeki Saritoprak. New York: Bloomsbury, 2018. Pp. 231. Paper $34.95, ISBN 978-1-47-257205-9. In the age of technology, when our daily lives are occupied by the unwanted attacks of useless information, when we are helpless in achieving an authentic communication with our close environment, there appears a more pressing need for genuine spirituality as a means of communication. Zeki Sarıtoprak has explored the potentiality of Islamic spirituality in this book. In the first part, he attempts to discover the roots of Islamic spirituality in the Quran as well as in the life of the prophet and he successfully covers it. He names the first part as "theological foundation." In the second part, he exemplifies Islamic spirituality in the life of some great personalities, two of them contemporary, namely, Said Nursi and Fethullah Gülen, and one that is historical, Al-Ghazali. In the third part, he delves into some conceptual and contemporary issues such as ecology and spirituality and the concept of prayer and asceticism. It is unclear, though, why he insists on relating all this to theology, as they seem to have an obvious independence from theology. The "Introduction" identifies the aim of the book as showing that "there is no intrinsic contradiction between spiritual life and modern life" (p. 2). This statement suffices to indicate not only the essence of the book but also its apologetic character. However, the psychology of winning the approval of the modern personalities is prevalent throughout the book and this appears to prevent the author from freely treat modernity. Having said this, however, one of the important characteristics of the book, I believe, is to provide a broad conceptual understanding to the notion of Islamic spirituality, which has been stranded within the confines of Sufism. It achieves this goal by relating Islamic spirituality to the spiritual life reflected in the Quran and the spiritual practice of the Prophet and his companions which have been the ground for the institutional Sufism. Islamic spirituality confined in Sufism is considered as an elitist practice in two ways. First, it is a private practice, taught within the tradition of a master-novice relationship. Secondly, Islamic spirituality in Sufi practice has been initiated by certain spiritual 'technics' that enable the person to enhance their spiritual development. Sarıtoprak wants to free Islamic spirituality from the exclusive hegemony of Sufism. He is after a practice of Islamic spirituality for [End Page 1] every Muslim. That is why he rightly considers prayers and especially five daily prayers as the unavoidable source for any kind of Islamic spirituality. In this context, the chapter on the ideas and concepts plays a significant role. According to Sarıtoprak, concepts and practices such as thankfulness (shukr), repentance (tawba), patience (sabr), and contemplation are part and parcel of the Quranic injunction and the religious life of the Prophet himself. In response to the Quranic teachings and the Prophetic life, a Muslim who takes spirituality seriously can practice such spirituality without engaging in the heavy ceremonial procedure of institutional Sufism. This is a serious positive move recommended by the book to a non-institutional religiosity which is appropriate with modern religiosity. However, although his suggestion of do-it-yourself spirituality seems quite attractive and promising as a concept, it does not work so much in real life. Although this recommendation of non-institutional Sufism has not been explicitly stated in the book, the way Islamic spirituality is examined in the book implies the task that I have indicated. The scholarship in the book is sound; the author relies on the original sources and well-grounded academic studies. He effectively makes historical information and practices available to modern individuals' pressing need for spirituality. His attempt to relate or even synthesize the historical to the contemporary, which has been obviously seen in his treatment of al-Ghazali together with Said Nursi and Fethullah Gülen, is fruitful. However, one of the weakest characteristics is to bless modern technology with some prophetic miracles. His unwarranted claim of...

Accessible luxury fashion brand building via fat discrimination

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate if accessible luxury fashion brands discriminate overweight and obese consumers.Design/methodology/approachThe physical sizes of garments are surveyed in-store and compared to the body sizes of the population. A gap analysis is carried out in order to determine whether the supply of clothes match the demand of each market segment.FindingsThe surveyed accessible luxury garments come in very small sizes compared to the individuals that make up the population.Research limitations/implicationsThe survey is limited to London stores but the garment sizes are compared to the British population. It is therefore possible that the discrepancies between assortments and the population are in part attributable to geographic and demographic factors. The study’s results are, however, so strikingly clear that even if some of the effects were due to extraneous variables, it would be hard to disregard the poor match between overweight and obese women and the clothes offered to them.Practical implicationsFor symbolic/expressive brands that are conspicuously consumed, that narrowly target distinct and homogenous groups of people in industries where elitist practices are acceptable, companies can build brands via customer rejection.Social implicationsThe results highlight ongoing discrimination of overweight and obese fashion consumers.Originality/valueThe study is the first to provide quantitative evidence for brand building via customer rejection, and it delineates under which conditions this may occur. This extends the theory of typical user imagery.

Responsabilidad social empresarial : diagnóstico de la situación actual en República Dominicana

¿La experiencia institucional condiciona la actividad parlamentaria y el tipo de vínculo personalista o programático- que une a los legisladores con los ciudadanos? En este trabajo se analizan los datos de opinión del Proyecto Élites Latinoamericanas de la Universidad de Salamanca (1994-2010) para caracterizar el ejercicio de la representación política en República Dominicana en la última década. Si las instituciones son un valor en sí mismo- lideran los procesos de modernización, generan aspiraciones colectivas y son responsables ultimas de la calidad de la política- habría que esperar que el contacto con las instituciones a lo largo de estos quince años haya limitado el ejercicio particularista de la política, que históricamente ha caracterizado la vida política dominicana.

Afro-Brazilian Literature: Spaces Conquered, Spaces In-between

razilian culture, that offspring of the Black Diaspora, established itself under the yoke of repressive violence, and managed to develop in spite of all the attempts to silence it, during the centuries of slavery and their aftermath. One of its ramifications is a literary form today discussed in academia as the Afro-Brazilian canon, born under circumstances of extreme social tension. It took a long time for this literature to grow in its written form, which was practically nonexistent in colonial times (Domingos Caldas Barbosa [1738-1800] may be seen as its precursor). Only in the course of the nineteenth century were Afro-Brazilian writings published-timidly, often under the cover of anonymity. The aim of this paper is to discuss some basic characteristics that Afro-Brazilian literature has delineated so far. For the present purposes, I consider as constitutive of the AfroBrazilian canon the totality of its written manifestations comprehending different epochs, gender differences, ideological beliefs, aesthetic options. It encompasses the work of a number of authors who, sharing a sense of belonging with their African ancestry, made the option to use and exert that life experience as a creative tool, in their elaboration of the cultural object. Such discourse exhibits the perspective of the black community victimized, first, by the submissive model imposed by the patriarchal slave order; and later, by the frustrating collapse of that order, since abolition of slavery in the country (1888) did not bring about equality but rather a second class citizenship for its immense black population (Brazil is the country with the second largest African-descendant population in the world). Ample as it is in its thematic scope, Afro-Brazilian literature cannot evade the monumental issues that permeated its creation. The African experience, in its roots and developments, moulds a discursive formation that is politically minded, underscores the question of race relations in a Latin-American nation and incorporates the past of slavery and of many diasporas in a complex, turbulent, often dubious present. It is made up of counter-discourses in relation to the dominant canon that arise as a writing back to colonialism and slavery, but it goes beyond the constraints imposed by the colonizer/colonized, master/slave paradigms. Today, it faces and interrogates neoand postcolonialism in their various forms in the world, the phenomenon of globalization, and the still predominant views of literature and its criticism as elitist practices, created by and for the happy few.

National States and International Science: A Comparative History of International Science Congresses in Hitler's Germany, Stalin's Russia, and Cold War United States

Prior studies of modern scientific internationalism have been written primarily from the point of view of scientists, with little regard to the influence of the state. This study examines the state's role in international scientific relations. States sometimes encouraged scientific internationalism; in the mid-twentieth century, they often sought to restrict it. The present study examines state involvement in international scientific congresses, the primary intersection between the national and international dimensions of scientists' activities. Here we examine three comparative instances in which such restrictions affected scientific internationalism: an attempt to bring an international aerodynamics congress to Nazi Germany in the late 1930s, unsuccessful efforts by Soviet geneticists to host the Seventh International Genetics Congress in Moscow in 1937, and efforts by U.S. scientists to host international meetings in 1950s cold war America. These case studies challenge the classical ideology of scientific internationalism, wherein participation by a nation in a scientist's fame spares the scientist conflict between advancing his science and advancing the interests of his nation. In the cases we consider, scientists found it difficult to simultaneously support scientific universalism and elitist practices. Interest in these congresses reached the top levels of the state, and access to patronage beyond state control helped determine their outcomes.

“‘PRACTICAL BEARINGS:’ A PASTORAL THEOLOGY OF RELIGIOUS COPING RESEARCH”

Introduction In his history of pastoral care in North America, E. Brooks Holifield lamented that pastoral theologians in the late twentieth century seemed unable resist the temptation to allow psychological language overwhelm or define religious tradition. Since that lament, however, many pastoral theologians have successfully avoided significant traffic not only with psychology but also with the social sciences in general. They have done so for good cause. After all, pastoral theologians are primarily theologians, not pastoral social scientists, or even pastoral researchers of religion. As theologians, one of their tasks is set captives free from various forms of idolatrous bondage—including Max Weber's dreaded iron-cage of bureaucratic/managerial purposive rationality in which the social sciences are often trapped. Moreover, while psychology may have once been very dear the church and pastoral theologians, many pastoral theologians nowadays eschew its all too often individualistic theory and elitist practice.

Direction of Gifted Education in the First Decade of the 21st Century: A Step Back, Continuity, and New Directions

Beginning an academic career at the dawn of a new millennium offers an excellent opportunity to take stock of education and to think about the future. In the last two decades, educational movements stressing equity have resulted in the elimination or reduction of programs for students in many North American states and school districts (Masse, in press; Richert, 1997). Elitist practices in identification and programming put support for programs in jeopardy (Margolin, 1996; Sapon-Shevin, 1996). If programs are to survive attacks from many quarters, and if education is to advance, it is essential to question some of our paradigms or practices and to develop new directions. I humbly offer a few ideas on five points: gifts or talent as entities, philosophy of education, identification, programs, and challenges that lie ahead. Gifts and Talents as Entities Some advances can be expected in understanding of brain functioning, intellectual processes (problem solving, decision making, meta thinking, and so forth), and their relationship to the development of talents, particularly the developmental processes by which abilities and personality interact with environmental factors to create a individual. Although the role of genetics has been clearly established in the development of giftedness, especially in intellectual development (Plomin & McClearn, 1993), more research is needed to gain a better understanding of the role of environmental settings and culture (educational practices, values, identity, societal rules, and so forth) on talent development. The better understanding of talent development may further redefine what we refer to as gifted or talented individuals, and the instructional methods applied to identify, develop, or enhance their potential. Philosophy and Values Promoted A step backwards might be necessary in regard to philosophy or values promoted in education. We may call into question the star system, or the emphasis put in education on exceptional achievement, unusual success, or leaders of We ought to pay attention to the very high expectations or inaccessible models we expect students to follow. Only a small minority of today's students will become the stars of tomorrow. Without clipping students' wings, we must cultivate realistic expectations. Concurrently, with regard to the effort and commitment required to develop high-level talent (Tannenbaum, 1997), we must promote values of patience and persistence. This is a big challenge in a society where rapid success stories are legion in the media. Identification A great deal of work has been invested in recent years to develop identification procedures and instruments that are culturally and linguistically appropriate. However, as long as the broad spectrum of giftedness is not addressed in our programming or services, multiple assessment procedures will remain a meaningless task. On the other hand, many schools use multiple assessment procedures inappropriately (Richert, 1997). For instance, despite multiple sources of information collected, selection is based mainly on excellent school records or conformity to school expectations. As academic achievement is not related directly to adult giftedness in a broad range of fields (Taylor, Albo, Holland, & Brandt, 1985), administrators may lessen the importance given to this criterion in the identification process. To qualify for many programs, students need to score highly on most of the measures used, instead of on any one of them. Standardized tests also tend to be given disproportionate weight. More energy will be re quired to promote procedures where eligibility is determined via multiple criteria, including aptitude, performance, and interest. Further, the norms for tests of academic achievement and other Instruments used must not exhibit bias against certain cultures or underprivileged social classes. …

Continuing education?

Continuing education and/or training is a fashionable notion nowadays in relation to project management, and this paper looks closely at what is really meant by this term and the implied connotations. In this context, continuing formation requires the support of project managers and the recognition of corporate management. It is suggested that enhancing the project manager's actual performance is clearly an aim of continuing formation, and in view of this the resources available and market demand are considered. Elitist practices are claimed in some quarters to have implications for the career development of everyone in project management at whatever level, but this paper stresses the importance of ‘breadth of experience and of vision’ i.e. an objective scale of performance.

Viewpoint: A Culture of Despair: Reflections on ‘Post-Modern’ Architecture

The Modern Movement in architecture is dead: on this there is consensus from Right to Left. Anti-modernism, a cultural offshoot of anti-socialism, has become decidedly modish. There are, for us, two main strands to this ‘Post-Modern’ thinking – the populist and the patrician. Each, we argue, is a formalism, an elitist practice; above all, each is an avowed refusal of the emancipatory potential of modernism. Our critique of this resignation, this cultural despair, turns on an affirmation of early modernist practice; it turns on the proposition that the social content of design practice is the issue underpinning matters of aesthetic form.