Aspects of communication, particularly in the language classroom, that contribute to or inhibit communicative interaction are discussed in this 11-chapter book. The first chapter offers a general discussion of the elements of interpersonal communication. Chapters 2 and 3 outline strategies that language teachers might adopt to engage and sustain…

This pilot study examined the treatment of kindergarten children by one student teacher to determine whether there were differences in the teacher's treatment of male and female children. Data were collected by observing and tape recording a kindergarten classroom in which a student teacher interacted with 10 male and 10 female students for a…

A discussion of classroom research on language teaching looks at what researchers have learned so far from attempts to study what happens in the language classroom. The discussion is based on the idea that it is not the currency of instructional method used that matters most, but rather a fuller understanding of classroom interaction. The first…

This book reviews alternative assessment. Suggestions include portfolios, interviews, observations, journals, and tests utilizing various rubrics. This book contains suggestions and materials that teachers can use to assess students' progress in problem solving, reasoning, and communication. Many performance tasks and problem-specific rubrics for…

This paper suggests that for students to become accustomed to democratic habits of thought and conduct, they must continually practice them throughout the course of their school career. The daily interaction between the teacher and the pupil can influence the formation of attitudes and habits essential to democratic citizenship. For teachers, the…

A group of three studies investigated sources of learning difficulty in 18 current or former foreign graduate students with limited English skills whose native language was Chinese, and compared the findings with those for a similar group of 14 native English-speaking graduate students. Students were asked seven questions about their first year of…

Major areas of inquiry found in this paper pertain to: (1) the current status of critical thinking in curriculums; (2) critical thinking as working with knowledge that is open to question and creative response; (3) descriptions of situations where critical thinking is enacted through classroom discourse techniques; (4) the need to wean students…

This paper presents the findings of a study comparing the amount of interactivity generated in three different instructional settings: face-to-face instruction in a television classroom, real time instruction via microwave (two-way interactive video), and audioteleconference instruction supplemented with prerecorded videos. The study was conducted…

This book is about managing a responsive classroom and teaching children to care. The aim of every chapter and technique is the creation of self-controls and community, defined as the capacity to care about oneself, others, and the world. The 16 chapter topics are: (1) goals of self-control and community; (2) techniques of the first 6 weeks of…

Recent reforms in mathematics education suggest that classroom teachers ought to shift away from the traditional concentration on arithmetical computation and adopt goals of mathematical confidence, problem solving, communication, reasoning, and appreciation. To understand how students are thinking in a given situation, teachers need to make their…

Combining the theoretical with the practical, this book discusses what whole language is and how it can be used in the high school and college classroom. The book suggests that whole language is not grade specific, but rather a philosophy that can help teachers at any level formulate a perspective about teaching and learning based on current…

The ways in which second language learners and teachers together can develop learners' ability to carry on conversation in the target language are examined. The discussion is based on the idea that practicing language skills, therefore creating opportunities to gain additional knowledge, is essential to continued learning, whereas using such…

Social solidarity, the need to relate to significant others, has been identified as a goal that motivates students in classrooms. A study examined a specific instance of social solidarity: the relationship between influential teachers and students they have influenced. One hundred ninety present and former students (from diverse grade levels) and…

A set of recorded teacher-child interactions in a successful kindergarten classroom was analyzed using the Mehan interactional model for analyzing the sequential organization of speech acts within classroom lessons. The study identified aspects of teacher-student interaction during formal instruction time at micro-interactional levels. The class…

This study sought to develop theoretical propositions for the institutional, course, instructor, and student characteristics of the learning environment where interactive learning techniques are used in college-level business courses. Using an interpretive case study method with examination of documents, observations of instructors and students,…