Based on questions asked by teachers in classes, workshops, and conference sessions, this paper provides brief answers to eight of the most frequently asked questions about portfolio assessment. The questions answered in the paper are: (1) What is a portfolio?; (2) What should be put in the portfolio?; (3) How much should be put in the portfolio?;…

Originally presented at the second annual Whole Language Umbrella Conference, the 18 essays in this book address the three related themes of identity, responsibility, and practice. The essays in the book discuss how whole language is defined, and how its practitioners come to define themselves; how whole language teachers act upon their identities…

Recognizing that increasing pressure for greater accountability has accompanied recent economic changes, this book presents 11 articles on literacy evaluation and assessment. They are: (1) "Evaluation: A Political Issue" (Wendy Crebbin); (2) "Understanding Evaluation" (Kaye Lowe and Bill Bintz); (3) "A Difficult Balance:…

An ongoing investigation on the nature of literature-based instruction in schools that serve large numbers of economically disadvantaged children is in the process of describing various aspects of literacy teaching and learning in four schools, two rural, one urban, and one semi-urban. The investigation is qualitative in nature, longitudinal, and…

Designed to be a resource to help educational practitioners, researchers, and other interested persons in the national and international community to understand terms used in contemporary and historical writings about literacy, this dictionary provides authenticated definitions of the technical terminology of the nature, study, and practice of…

The purpose of this book is to consider early literacy education and whole language from the perspective of constructivist theory (which states that human beings acquire knowledge by building it from the inside in interaction with the environment) and research. More specifically, the book intends to show that the whole language movement is part of…

Describes a literacy training program for adults with deafness, along with pre- and posttraining results of assessments of 10 adults enrolled in the program. The results indicated that the computerized drill and practice items used in the program were effective in increasing the English literacy of program participants. (23 references) (MDM)

Developed with practicing teachers in mind, this book presents reprints of 22 articles and excerpts from longer works that deal with the most significant trends and issues facing literacy educators--whole language, phonics, literacy materials, emergent literacy, spelling, assessment, content literacy, vocabulary instruction, national standards,…

Making a case for the value of literature-based instruction, this book presents an overview of the extensive knowledge base supporting literature-based approaches to literacy instruction. It notes that literature-based instruction goes beyond simply changing the kinds of texts children read--also required in literature-based instruction are an…

Designed for workshops or college courses focusing on professional development and inservice teacher training, this book presents over 200 reproducibles (including transparencies, brochures, and fact sheets) to help parents and administrators understand how reading and writing flourish in whole language classrooms. The book addresses the need to…

Noting that reading instruction in the last years of the 20th century is still characterized by controversy, this book presents 18 essays that examine the best available research evidence about what is known--and what needs to be learned--about the teaching of reading and how children learn to read. Topics of the essays include whole language,…

This 173-item annotated bibliography contains books on literacy primarily published in 1996 in the United Kingdom, although some books are included which were omitted from the guide for the previous year. In addition to an annotation, each entry provides author's name, full title, number of pages, place of publication and publisher, and ISBN…

Discusses the development and implementation of an instructional unit that applies selected whole language strategies to teach reading and writing in the beginning stages of literacy in French. The unit shows how an authentic folktale can be used for integrating topics from the elementary curriculum to form a second-language curriculum for an…

This book describes a whole language program that has as its ultimate goal the creation of students who read competently, critically, and joyfully, far beyond the classroom door. The book urges teachers to move beyond the skills-based approach and to embrace a philosophy that begins with the heart--rather than the head--of the learner. The book…

This 1991 yearbook contains five sections: (1) Knowing about College and Adult Literacy; (2) Knowing about Home and Community Literacy; (3) Knowing about Literacy Instruction; (4) Knowing about Teacher Education in Literacy; (5) and Knowing about Teacher Education in the Content Areas. The following articles are included: "Program Evaluation:…