This article explores the potential and limitations of Louise Rosenblatt's account of aesthetic reading as a basis for understanding the relationship between literary experience and spiritual development. It does so by examining a particular act of reading involving a poem by Ernst Jandl in the light of Rosenblatt's account of "aesthetic reading"…

Probes William Wordsworth's relationship to the young reader. Concludes that although many young people today cannot have the direct, immediate experience of nature that overawed Wordsworth, they can, in a room where they sit down together and read a poem, "learn a contemplative solitude--and respond to [a] poem in their individual…

Describes a teacher's personal memories which, when shared with students, helped make the poetry of Wordsworth and Whitman more meaningful. Suggests that for true comprehension of poetry to occur--Romantic or otherwise--teachers must lead students and model from within their own personal connections. (NH)

Describes teaching poetry to fifth-grade students, who are immigrants from 20 countries and who speak 11 languages. Discusses the students' responses to the poetry of Wallace Stevens and attempts at writing their own poetry. (CR)

Discusses the negative impact of poetry instruction based on scansion, biography, genre theory and formal principles. Describes three alternative lesson plans using imagist poetry, specifically that of Williams, because it rejects formal traditional rules and provokes student response. Concludes that students appreciate stylistic traits and that…

Argues that the cultivation of the imagination in schools and colleges is largely ignored because of utilitarian biases in the education system, where achievement is determined by quantitative measures of cognitive skills. Discusses Williams' view that acts of the imagination transform reality and applies view to English education. (JG)

Describes a course that integrates U.S. literature and history around key social issues to sensitize students to the need for a more just society and a higher quality of life for all citizens. Discusses the poetry unit that focused on contemporary U.S. poets of color, the teaching methods, and examples of the students' poetry. (PRA)

Although modern readers often find the interpretation of medieval literature difficult, they should be encouraged to use their imagination to resolve the dilemmas they encounter. Often, these are the same issues with which medieval audiences had to wrestle and which the poets intended to raise. W. Iser's and H. R. Jauss's principles of…