Since "English Journal's" (EJ's) founding in 1912, contributors have asked how literature shapes students' ethics, or morals. Ethics, on this account, is about people's ways of imagining and leading good lives. EJ authors explore how reading literature can help students see themselves and the wider world in light of visions of the good…

Teachers of writing strive for authenticity. When they ask students to write, they want it to be for authentic purposes. When they engage students in writing processes, they want those to be authentic processes. When they ask students to compose a particular kind of text, thye want those texts to be authentic genres reflecting authentic writing…

On a February morning, Ms. Nelson (all names pseudonyms) was preparing her eleventh-grade class for a new unit with the goal of crafting arguments about the people and issues present in the classic novel "Things Fall Apart" by Chinua Achebe. As, teacher educators Eileen Shanahan and Min-Young Kim were observing in the classroom, it was…

In this article, the authors contend that high school English classes are a critical place for teaching democratic ways with words, and they call on and extend the tools of intercultural inquiry for the purposes of teaching democratic deliberation. The authors describe their collaborative engagement with an inventive data-driven genre--the…

The implementation of Common Core State Standards (CCSS) across the country necessitates revising the English curriculum, asking teachers to incorporate and analyze more perspectives in the classroom as society becomes more diverse. The authors wondered if this reform might provide an opportunity to examine social equity by studying an anchor…

Movies are a part of social discourse, and they may show "life the way people would like to make it." As educators look at society's changing views of knowledge, learning, teaching, and success, they can engage in that discourse and consider ways it does--or does not--reflect and affect pedagogies and daily lives. As Hollywood directs society's…

"Sight Unseen" by Mary Ann Beggs and "Language and Values" by Victoria J. Heland are provided to suggest techniques for exploring language through the five senses and through making ethical choices. (DD)

Describes how Bradbury's work can be used in the classroom. Indicates how attitudes towards technology can be found in the work and how these may be used to stimulate mature students. (CRH)

Three hundred seventh and eighth grade students used music and drama to assess and change their personal values. (DD)

Nine suggestions on how to teach pop culture. (DD)

Addresses two misunderstandings about science fiction and fantasy: that fantastic literature is not serious; and that modern scientific civilization neither has nor needs mythology. Argues that values can be transmitted through science fiction and fantasy, which are modern-day forms of mythology. (RS)

Suggests that democratic principles regarding competence, independence, cooperation, and rational authority should guide English teachers' work. (DD)

The question of how "teachers and students [can] connect their learning to the broader society" drives Jeraldine R. Kraver's search for ways to use critical pedagogy in secondary school and university classrooms. Focusing on the topic of gender equity, she shows how teachers can use literature to create critical classrooms. In addition, she offers…

Describes a writing assignment in which students wrote letters from their seventeen-year-old selves addressed and directed to their selves of the year 2000. (Author/MB)

Describes a course on values in twentieth-century literature. Discusses the teaching of James Joyce's "Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man" and other works. Describes the students' reactions. Asserts that twentieth-century literature should be addressed in a way that encourages students to grow and develop. (PRA)