In this article, Jorge Arredondo begins by describing an experience he had in his Houston, Texas high school where his teacher and a librarian via a collaborative unit made literature come alive for him. His experience later influenced his English language arts (ELA) career in public education and inspired him to do the same for his students. Now…

Today, pedagogical stakes are high for students who experience incidents connected to their safety and privacy. Unfortunately, students live in an age when Code Red drills, or the more current Active Shooter drills, are a fact of life. In this article, the author argues that dystopian texts are not only positioned to enhance the complexity of…

This article raises the reality of English as a naturally variant and fluid language inseparable from culture. The author addresses the tensions teachers face in the classroom when they make decisions about how African American students should use their language.

The author argues that English teachers are in a unique position to respond to death through writing, reading, and speaking. She describes four experiences and offers specific, language-based responses guided by experience and literature.

American adolescents are experiencing an epidemic of anxiety and depression. In this article, Eric Piotrowski explores how regular writing practice and conscious conversations help students struggling with loss, grief, trauma, and myriad associated difficulties including anxiety and self-harm. Students in his classroom use fictionalized…

During English class on January 18, 2007, Santo and his tenth-grade classmates were invited to evaluate a set of published, youth-authored texts. Inside one of these texts was a sex advice column. In this article, the author is concerned with the ways conceptions of adolescence and sexuality take hold in and beyond the English curriculum. Through…

This article considers how relationships in the English classroom are influenced by the types of literacy activities, the role of the teacher, the tone of oral comments, and the types of writing students share with peers.

In this series of candid reflective writings, a former high school teacher interrogates her teaching practice, students' identity development, the giftedness label, and differentiated instruction.

Because drama is no new thing to English teachers, perhaps they could benefit from a different perspective on it. What if English teachers thought of each lesson as an unfolding drama with the students and teacher playing major roles? Each lesson becomes an improvisation, a unique opportunity for the curtain to rise on an unexpected scene. The…

This article recounts significant moments from online interviews these authors conducted with Young Adult (YA) authors concerning the teachers who left a lasting impression on them and assisted them in finding their voice and unique writing abilities. S. E. Hinton, Walter Dean Myers, Erin Gruwell, Chris Crutcher, and other popular YA authors…

The Bechdel test, the author's student Marley explained, is named for the US graphic novelist and cartoonist Alison Bechdel. To pass the test, a work of fiction must contain at least one scene in which two or more women (preferably named characters) discuss something other than a male. Students who read from the canon of works regularly encounter…

Most of the Common Core State Standards found within English ask students to demonstrate mastery of skills that are tangible, that are measurable, and that can serve them in the marketplace of the commons. While educating students for future entrance into the democratic commons is a needed and noble endeavor, the English classroom, more than any…

This article reports on the challenges teachers face when working with juveniles who are incarcerated. For example, they must devise an English curriculum that can help students develop reading and writing skills while also becoming literate about the prison industrial complex and the ways that it governs their lives. Teachers struggle to find…

Deborah Appleman's recent research has focused on teaching college-level language and literature courses for incarcerated men. In this article, she discusses using creative writing as a way to unlock creative potential, to foster students' love of language, and to offer a powerful outlet for self-expression in a class she teaches with…

This article provides readers with five lessons the author has learned over the years as a mentor teacher to several preservice teachers: (1) Build confidence; (2) Be patient, flexible, and honest; (3) Listen and learn; (4) Be ready for extra work; and (5) Embrace the experience. Included in her reflective thoughts are comments from two of her…