This article traces a decline in CCCC sessions on language along with a shift toward more reductive definitions. It analyzes early CCCC treatment of language issues, the Students' Right document, changes in demographics and linguistics, and shifts within English departments that have left us overdue for professional reexamination of our role as…

While the knowledge economy has reshaped the world, schools lag behind in producing appropriate learning for this social change. Science education needs to prepare students for a future world in which multiple representations are the norm and adults are required to "think like scientists." Location-based augmented reality games offer an…

This report describes the development of grade norms for timed-writing performance in two modes of writing: persuasive and descriptive. These norms are based on objective and automatically computed measures of writing quality in grammar, usage, mechanics, style, vocabulary, organization, and development. These measures are also used in the…

Students are well served by course simulations that employ active learning styles and student-driven interaction. For debate on political issues, particular public policies are quite effective in stimulating that discussion. We developed an in-class simulation of political debate on the issue of Social Security. We describe the simulation itself,…

For several years a number of instructors at the University of Cincinnati have experimented with the concept of problem-based learning (PBL) in their composition courses. The concept, rooted as it is in Socratic method and the hands-on problem-solving advocated by John Dewey, is not new, and though some of its applications may call for adjustments…

The purpose of this research was to examine the effects of implementation of argumentation in a physics classroom on students' reasoning. This research is both quantitative and qualitative in nature. Experimental design was used for the study. For the quantitative aspect of the research, students' prior knowledge in the beginning of the…

Schmoker asserts that the kinds of skills students need to succeed in college--skills like clear thinking, effective writing, and the ability to analyze international and policy issues--are equally needed for non-college-bound youth. He maintains it is possible--and necessary--to provide an intellectually challenging and culturally enriching…

This study examined the effects of message constraints and labels on collaborative argumentation in asynchronous online discussions. Thirty-eight undergraduate students in an introductory educational technology course were assigned to one of three groups. In one group, students posted specific types of messages using a prescribed set of message…

Since becoming president of the Alliance for Excellent Education in February 2005, the author has learned a great deal about the vital role that high-quality literacy research plays in improving teaching. Education researchers know how critical it is that they serve the needs of educators. As a former governor of West Virginia and member of the…

This study clarifies whether secondary school students develop their argumentation skills through reading and collaboration. The students first constructed an individual argument diagram on genetically modified organisms, read three articles, and improved their diagrams. Next, they engaged in a chat debate, reflected on their debate by…

This article reports on two Mideast-themed schools which have attracted fierce controversy amplified in the news media and the blogosphere. A new public school with a focus on Arabic language and culture is set to open in New York City this week, after being assailed for months by opponents who claim it will be a taxpayer-funded Islamic school…

To meet the sustainability challenge, colleges and universities will have to reorient their educational programs. Institutional research (IR) can help assess and demonstrate the success of such initiatives. The change that is required in the way people view the world and their place in it is what the author calls a "sustainable mindset." A…

It is important, when writing opinion essays, for students to consider and integrate both arguments and counterarguments to develop a final conclusion. In this article, the authors explored the effect of criteria instruction and a graphic organizer to promote integration of arguments and counterarguments. The researchers randomly assigned 84…

Noting that grammar is alive, changing, and controversial, this book offers a combination of guidelines and creative language use for people who have already been exposed to the rules of grammar to help them start building their own style of speaking and writing. The first part of the book "Recalling the Parts of Speech," provides a…

A study described college student writers as they constructed arguments, creating a picture of school-based argument drawn not from ideal models of arguments as envisioned by educators, but from experiences of students themselves. A three-part framework that synthesizes rhetorical perspectives on argument with a social-cognitive view of the…