In this lesson, each fourth-grade student is asked to choose a famous person who was born in his/her state, research the person's contributions to history, write a monologue, and then perform the monologue using a costume and/or a prop. The lesson offers an overview; suggests lesson length and grade level; lists subjects and subtopics; cites…

When a university educator reflected upon her experience as a teacher of preservice English teachers, she concluded that integrating action research into three courses and an internship assignment can be effective, and perhaps, more effective than a separate, theoretical course in action research itself. Most educators agree that action research…

This paper discusses several applications of technology to facilitate better synchronous and asynchronous communication between faculty members and students and among students at Eastern New Mexico University's College of Business. Topics discussed include: (1) World Wide Web pages, including programming languages, browsers, and hyperlinks; (2)…

Everything changes over time, even languages. Despite language teachers, grammar books, and standardise exams, there's no way to stop languages from changing. One aspect of language change of particular interest to members and supporters of women's rights organisations is the ongoing shift from what some people call "gender-exclusive"…

Offers research topics and three class activities designed to explore the implications of sexism while building reading and writing skills. (RL)

Describes a study which examined through classroom observations of reading and social studies whether elementary schools provide comprehension instruction. Major findings included the fact that almost no comprehension instruction was found. (MKM)

The purpose of assigning writing that will not be formally graded is to assist students in learning subject matter and to create a classroom context that encourages active learning and interactive teaching. Offers three examples of college-level writing-to-learn assignments used in various disciplines, and some ways teachers can respond to such…

Suggests that using the one-minute paper to teach an introductory economics course increases economic knowledge regardless of student ability level and instructor characteristics. The one-minute paper is a form of feedback where the students answer a few basic questions about the lesson at the end of the class. (MJP)

A qualitative study of 15 ninth grade math students required to write a paper showing how math is used in the real world revealed differences in how teachers and students perceive research. Discusses student and teacher interpretations of the project; student reactions to the process, support materials, and grades; and student feelings about the…

Describes CAPA, a software tool to implement a computer-assisted personalized approach for homework assignments and examinations in a large introductory physics class at Michigan State University. Highlights include increased individual attention for students; correlation between homework performance and results of the final exam; feedback for…

Discusses logistics and design of an interactive teaching environment at Nova Southeastern University (Florida). Design elements include preparing instructional materials; monitoring progress; raising teacher awareness; support for learning; questions and answers via e-mail; timeliness of class participation; assessing student readiness; real-time…

Describes "Write Now," a writing-to-learn math and science program promoting academic gains and student involvement. Describes how students begin class by writing an answer to an open-ended question dealing with the previous lesson, noting that monitoring oral and written responses allows for evaluation of understanding. Lists criteria…

This study identified and described the purposes, levels of importance, and self-perceived roles of librarians at Pima Community College (Tucson, Arizona), a large urban multicampus community college. Results suggest that broad strategies aimed at inducing faculty to make student library assignments are not as likely to succeed as strategies…

Discusses some of the issues of choice and diversity in multicultural writing and reading assignments for secondary students. Draws on two research studies, one on high school students and one on middle school students. Notes that both studies found a mixture of desire for and discomfort with plurality in the classroom. (TB)

A study at the University of Transkei (South Africa), a historically black university, examined whether student efforts to work through class assignments promoted academic achievement. Results showed that of 65 subjects, those who completed the assignments regularly were the highest performers. The latter group generally failed in tests but showed…