Points out how student understanding of as well as student confusion about reading and word recognition are both functions of teacher behavior. (FL)

Part of a series offering focused, authoritative treatments of subjects of current interest to educators and other readers, this fastback focuses on the topic of humor, particularly its usefulness in instruction. The fastback asserts that humor can increase attention and retention across curricular areas, create a more positive school climate,…

The ideas presented in this brochure are for teachers interested in creating opportunities for students to pose questions during literature-based discussions, in heterogeneous whole group and peer-only discussions. The brochure notes that the method is a highly motivating way to conduct discussions because students of all reading abilities can…

This paper argues that instructors can enhance the effectiveness of oral instruction through attention to both the verbal and nonverbal aspects of their teaching. After defining and offering 2 means of achieving effective speaking, the paper discusses how lecturers should analyze their delivery, and makes 32 recommendations for improving delivery,…

Explains how to interpret signals students send and how to deal with discipline problems by counteracting the harmful and predictable games that students play. (EL)

Reviews research concerning the characteristics and behaviors of teachers who are effective classroom managers. (FL)

Six characteristics of successful writing conferences between teacher and student are discussed. Conferences should: (1) have a predictable structure; (2) focus on a few points; (3) demonstrate solutions to students' problems; (4) permit role reversals; (5) encourage use of a vocabulary appropriate for writing; and (6) stimulate pleasure in…

Describes team-taught courses in which the lectures of each team member are critiqued by other team members. Stresses that the result is a deeper, more critical analysis of each team member's material and of the interrelationship of their presentations. (DB)

Guidelines for teachers on presenting information clearly to students include: maintain fluency and an adequate pace of information flow; use clear, precise, descriptive language; pause briefly (so that students can "digest" information); and reduce the use of amibiguous terms and "avoidance" phrases (such as "and so on"). (CB)

This article describes two types of classroom process research (process-product and descriptive) which are being funded by the National Institute of Education, and it analyzes the trend toward a greater emphasis on descriptive research. (MM)

A teacher's style of communication tells students how to interpret the instructional content and affects students' feelings toward the teacher and the class. A variety of communication styles, style levels, and units of analysis of style are discernable. (Author/MSE)

Curriculum guides can effectively guide practice if the guide writer pays attention to the context in which teachers work and to the language that teachers use in that context. Problems encountered by a curriculum project illustrate what happens in practice when guide writers fail to appreciate teachers' objectives. (RM)

Retreating is a behavior which occurs when a teacher issues a directive intended to influence student behavior, and the students ignore the teacher in such a way as to let it be known that she/he has not influenced their behavior. Discusses this behavior and offers six rules useful in avoiding retreating. (Author/JN)

By applying group dynamic techniques, the health educator can encourage interactive classroom processes instead of the usual pattern of classroom behaviors. The teacher's role should be to facilitate communication and personal expression among all students. (JN)

Teachers tend to give directions that their pupils can follow correctly. Children are better able to process increasingly complex directions as they get older. (Authors/CJ)