Although secondary school teachers have long been aware of the pedagogical possibilities of Louise Rosenblatt's Reader Response (articulated first in "Literature as Exploration," 1938) and I. A. Richards' Close Reading (first broached in "The Meaning of Meaning: A Study of the Influence of Language upon Thought and of the Science of…

What is the hold of literature on a reader's imagination, on my imagination? I remember many hours spent with books in a kind of romantic entanglement, and heartful obsession, and joyful reverie. I certainly remember being lost with words, lost in enthusiastic abandonment. I loved the sounds of words, and the images they conjured, and the…

Place: what a great theme for an English teacher's conference, in this official Year of Reading. It's such a conceptually rich and emotionally resonant topic through which to explore the many pleasures and challenges of reading; for teachers, and for students. For place is not only a physical location; it is also a powerful idea and a powerfully…

In this article, the author shares her experience during the final semester of Year 11 Theatre Studies when she performed a monologue about Hermione from "The Winter's Tale". This experience was extremely significant to her because it nearly made her lose faith in one of the most important parts of her life, drama. She believes this…

As the tectonic plates of technology shift across human networks, dedicated and determined educators understand that the integration of digital mediated texts and the new literacies competencies they engender, amount to little without pedagogical ingenuity, innovative adaptation, and creative application. This article is a response to the rapidly…

The documentary text, a relative newcomer to the textual armoury of subject English, has received remarkably limited theoretical discussion. It therefore provides an interesting opportunity for the contemporary researcher concerned with the reading/viewing practices that constitute modern textual study. This paper first presents an historical…

Reminds readers what a deeply problematical exercise teaching Shakespeare can be. Describes teaching "Romeo and Juliet" to a mixed ability year 10 class. Argues that Shakespeare should not be obligatory in the secondary classroom; that there is no excuse for the elitist attitudes around Shakespeare; and that Shakespeare should be treated…