Geography instructors have a role to play in helping their students to become more information literate. This is especially important today, given the complex and dynamic nature of our informational landscape, and given the evidence that young people lack much of the knowledge that is needed to engage with information critically. This paper…

Numerous studies have tested the effects of extensive reading (ER) on L2 acquisition, while limited research has investigated the implementation of ER, especially in secondary L2 teaching contexts. In line with the advocacy of integrating ER into L2 curriculum, this qualitative case study explores a veteran EFL teacher's perceptions of ER…

The writing across the curriculum movement has rightfully gained recognition as a transformative force in how teachers conceive of, use, and assign writing in their classes throughout various disciplines. Drawing on data from the first three years of an ongoing study of faculty "WAC fellows" at a large, comprehensive state university,…

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has created tools and supports intended to help teachers adapt to the Common Core State Standards in English language arts and mathematics. The tools seek to find the right balance between encouraging teachers' creativity and giving them enough guidance to ensure quality. They are the product of two years of…

The "flipped classroom" is a learning model in which content attainment is shifted forward to outside of class, then followed by instructor-facilitated concept application activities in class. Current studies on the flipped model are limited. Our goal was to provide quantitative and controlled data about the effectiveness of this model.…

This digest considers the one thing that all English teachers do--make reading and writing assignments. It addresses 4 questions whose answers should determine the nature of the reading and writing assignments given by teachers: (1) who are the students? (2) why are the students in college? (3) what is the nature of the course in which the…

This paper outlines the following seven characteristics of effective literature assignments: Simplicity; Relevance; Workability; Capitalizing on Student Interest and Background; Providing Explanations and Modeling; Incorporating Collaboration; and Presenting to Students Meaningful Work. Each characteristic listed in the paper contains a brief…

Provides practical examples of assignments that increase the effectiveness of foreign language reading instruction. It is suggested that, by restructuring reading instruction, the role of the teacher will also be restructured. (12 references) (JL)

To succeed in today's information-driven economy, young people need to know how to write and communicate effectively. Writing is important for both academic and workplace success. Most National Writing Project (NWP) teachers who were surveyed in May 2001 stated that the NWP helped them become more up-to-date on the latest research, more familiar…

This paper describes a campus survey designed to enhance student learning while generating high-quality data for research and evaluation. Students enrolled in a research methods course pretest a draft interview schedule and interview randomly selected students; then, drawing on their interview experience, they write a paper that addresses…

An extensive body of knowledge is showing that the links between how teachers think and feel about themselves affects their performance. One coordinator of a new teacher program, comprised of teachers from preschool to high school, asks her new teachers to reflect by writing biography poetry. The coordinator used the poem framework at the…

Examines the role of the teacher in enhancing students' reading comprehension. Finds that the teacher is a more significant factor in the comprehension of lengthy natural texts than is the ease of the text itself. (MG)

This collection of 45 lesson plans contributed by English language arts scholars and practitioners provides activities that have been tested and proven effective with all levels of learners in middle school and high school classrooms. The activities in the collection advocate using unconventional strategies, competitive games, art and multimedia,…

One approach to helping children to become literate is to use good children's literature in the classroom. Children's trade books are now available on a variety of topics. Many of them are traditional stories, but more authors are also writing historical fiction, biographies, and science books. This variety of materials allows the teacher to use…

Requiring students in one introductory college course on weather/climate to keep logs with articles from popular media was found to produce three types of log topics with three kinds of relationship to course content. The technique helped students think more actively and provided the teacher with new course material. (MSE)