This article describes the implementation of blogging in ninth-grade pre-advanced placement language arts classes to support strong writing practices. In particular, the writing workshop's elements of student choice, continuing revision, discussion of craft, publication, and process orientation meshed well with digital composition. Blogging in the…

In the authors' experience as teacher educators, many preservice teachers view literacy as a print-bound process. With multimodal literacy becoming more important as many states push for 21st-century learning standards, the authors are always looking for ways to help students break their concepts of literacy away from the printed page. As they…

YouTube, the video sharing website that allows viewers to upload video content ranging from cute dog tricks to rare rock videos, also supports a lively community devoted to the performance of Shakespeare and Shakespearean adaptations. YouTube is also a popular site for student producers of Shakespeare performances, parodies, and other artistic…

Grammar checkers do not claim to teach grammar; they are tools to bring potential problems to the writer's attention. They also offer only formal and Standard English preferences, limiting the freer expression of some literary forms. Without guidance, students may misuse the checker, become frustrated, and feel discouraged. Users must be…

The availability of new technology and a willingness to experiment led Laura Christine Rochette to re-imagine a successful high school English curriculum. A SMART Board, individual laptop computers, and blogs became essential tools to enhance the learning of all students and to renew her excitement about teaching.

It has been almost 30 years since the last systematic look at writing instruction in middle schools and high schools in the United States (Applebee, Writing). Since that report, there have been a number of significant changes in the contexts in which teachers teach and in which their students learn to write. Stretching back to the 1969-70 school…

Offers ideas and activities of teachers who have successfully used computers with high school English students. Shows that (1) extensive equipment is not always required; (2) computers can be used by all students; (3) computers can help show the best sides of students; (4) computers can give access to the world; and (5) there is life beyond word…

Discusses how computerized databases (collected information arranged in categories) can be used successfully in the language arts classroom. (MM)

How can we prepare and encourage new teachers to take on the challenge of changing traditional views of literacy education? Teacher educator William Kist shares a first-year teacher's story of incorporating new literacies within an eighth-grade alternative classroom.

Provides the responses of five practicing English teachers to the question, "What has been the most significant impact of computer technology on your teaching?" (HB)

Describes one teacher's use of a "computer daybook"--an online journal that keeps track of students' progress in learning word processing and in grappling with the problems of writing. Lists several prompts useful for students beginning to learn word processing. (ARH)

Four experienced teachers replaced the traditional classroom dynamics and environment having micromanaged routines with CyberEnglish classroom structure that supports scholars' choices and voices. The lack of voice in students' writing was one of the reasons for the changes in the classrooms and exciting results were achieved with different…

Suggests that in a constructivist setting, the computer must facilitate social interaction among students and provide for independent acquisition of shared knowledge. Considers how to best use computers in the modern classroom. Proposes that it is the function of the arrangement of the computer pod to provide effective small group instruction. (PM)

Describes writing assignments in which students in Pennsylvania, Montana, and South Dakota exchanged writing on BreadNet, an electronic network. Notes that as students wrote within a meaningful and purposeful communication context, they learned to test their stereotypes, to expand their writing skills, and to perceive the computer as an instrument…

A considerable use of technology to supplement classroom instruction could improve student learning. A high school teacher reveals the ways in which the use of online discussions of literature assignments increases student participation by extending dialogue beyond the physical space and time of a single class.