The focus of this practitioner brief is: How do adult English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students manage their learning? The adult ESL instructor found that his students wanted more opportunities to speak English in class, and to practice actual oral communication skills in English, but felt too much of their time and effort was directed into rote…

Analysis of the relationship between number of published articles and student ratings was undertaken for two large and diverse faculty groups. Elements of teacher effectiveness studied included course value, student-faculty interaction, course organization, communication, materials, course difficulty and workload, and tests. Only in the social…

Bernstein's theory of the relationships among social class, language "codes," family/school social structures, and school success is discussed, as is Labov's rejection of the "verbal deficit" concept. A relevant experiment is described. (Available in microfiche from: Carfax Publishing Company, Haddon House,…

Recommends that college teachers and their students exchange weekly letters, in either paper or electronic form, as a familiar and friendly means of communication. The method increases dialog, suggests rethinking, and encourages rewriting while keeping the stakes low. Students respond well to the assignment. Samples of student letters and comments…

Outlines a series of strategies and approaches to increase undergraduate student participation. Strongly recommends the use of study questions (disseminated prior to the readings) and a classroom management style emphasizing participation and involvement rather than an immediate mastery of the material. Discusses the benefits and limitations of…

Argues that classroom dialogic (structured, open-ended) inquiry, through problem-posing, is a tool for classroom research into second-language instruction, helping teachers develop better understanding of students' backgrounds, motivation, cultures, and strategies for learning English. Outlines steps in dialogic inquiry, and offers examples of its…

Transcripts of the classroom conversations of seven profoundly deaf 13- and 14-year-old students and their teachers were analyzed, using Vygotsky's theories on the social nature of learning and the role of mediation. Results of the study found that conversation builds ideas, facilitates comprehension of text, encourages cognitive development, and…

This article explores the issue of ethical impact of conversation in the classroom, arguing that the experience of critical inquiry conducted through classroom dialog can cultivate precisely those ethical characteristics required of participants in the public life of a deliberative democracy. (SM)

Analyzes the teacher-child talk during art activities conducted by two Australian and two Asian teachers in four Australian child care centers. Discovers differences in the use of the evaluative subcategories repeat and rephrase. Includes transcript samples of the conversations. (MJP)

Explores the benefits and drawbacks of using electronic mail in the classroom. Benefits include improving teacher-student relations, communicating thorough discussion lists, and augmenting information dissemination. The false sense of anonymity, however, encourages students to send abusive messages. Privacy issues and tampered messages are other…

A college teacher describes his approach to student subject-area writing, which includes assignment of several short papers to be written according to carefully prescribed guidelines (appended to the article), clear grading criteria, high expectations, availability for individual conferences, rewards for improvement, encouragement of writing for…

Utilizes a time-series plus control group design to compare the relative effects of a teacher sending home positive, negative, or a combination of the two types of letters for disruptive students. Results showed the negative letter to be most effective in increasing on-task behavior. (MJP)

Evaluated a practice-site learning experience for 55 doctoral pharmacy students, using student logs and written summaries and pre- and post-experience surveys concerning student awareness, understanding, and mastery of desired outcomes. Students indicated increased awareness and understanding of desired outcomes, and found patient interaction…

Summarizes a recent study concerning the impact of age on students' verbal participation in the college classroom. Discovered that age, gender, attendance, week in semester, and time of day were significant determinants. Examines students' reasons for their lack of participation and offers suggestions to increase it. (MJP)

Investigates how classroom traits (interaction norms, emotional climate) and students' traits (comprehension, confidence) impact on students' participation in class. Multiple regression analysis of survey data suggests that faculty members may play a much less direct role than previously assumed. (MJP)