Elizabeth Dutro and Kathleen Collins have written a fascinating and broad-ranging review that captures the richness of perspectives and findings in elementary literacy research, based on an examination of roughly 7,700 titles published in NCTE journals. This daunting figure provides an indication of the productivity and extensive contributions of…

This article critiques the articles by Connor et al., Croninger and Valli, Pianta and Hamre, and Rowan and Correnti, which appeared in the March 2009 issue of "Educational Researcher," by taking a cultural-historical perspective on reading and reading instruction. In this paradigm a number of those authors' assumptions are seen as questionable,…

Discusses four definitions of literacy: literacy as a skill comprised of a set of subskills to be mastered; being literate is a way of thinking that is more abstract and analytical; literacy is a set of social practices; and literacy is a body of knowledge. (RS)

Reflects on some of the issues that have been raised in this column over the past six years, including readability formulae, reading assessment, and the use of basal readers. (MM)

Argues that authorship, in the sense of creation and re-creation of meaning, should be a central focus in any model of literacy instruction. Examines the elements of the "traditional" model of literacy development. Discusses the place of text within that model. Discusses implications for classroom literacy instruction. (SR)

Highlights three areas of technology that may have an impact on the future of teaching, especially as it relates to reading: nanotechnology, hypertext, and telecommunications. (MG)

Describes children's use of social conversation to not only understand a story's character, point of view, time, and setting, but to make connections between the stories and real life. Recommends a variety of specific literature-based "conversational" activities that effectively reduce problems of differential discourse styles and…

Considers ways to describe complex learning that teachers would find useful, especially with respect to the teaching of reading. Identifies a generic set of ecological factors that seem to support such complex learning. Refers to these factors as "conditions of learning." (SG)

A parent of a first-grade student shares examples of her daughter's written compositions and makes a plea for teaching handwriting skills in the context of real communication (letters and stories) and not as a separate activity. (RH)

Defines metacognition, discusses its importance in reading, and provides suggestions for its development. (FL)

Indicates that theoretical models describing the flow of information when reading takes place can be categorized as outside-in or as inside-out; suggests that the latter fit the evidence of reading research better. Supports the idea that practice should flow from theory. (TJ)

Presents interviews of six prominent researchers (Ira Aaron, Harold Herber, Wayne Otto, Robert Ruddell, Roselmina Indrisano, and Olive Niles), which focused on the dynamics constituting effective staff development experiences. (HOD)

Analyzes two important characteristics of a traditional reading environment: the amount of time the student focuses on written text during the school day, and the degree of continuity or consistency in the reading instruction the student receives. (DD)

Responds to an earlier essay that made claims about the origins of written language as the basis for advocating a particular method of teaching reading, clarifying: the origins of the alphabet, the "flimsy" nature of the alphabetic principle, and the implications of both for teaching reading. After examining the origins of written…

Responds to a critique of an earlier article on alphabetic writing that made claims about the origins of written language as the basis for advocating a particular method of teaching reading, suggesting that the critique actually supports the original article's position, and nothing in the critique justifies its conclusion that children need…