Playing make believe (metaphoric play) with elementary students can promote very real conversations about art. The paper explains how metaphoric play can help teach art. After collecting familiar art (posters, storybook art, etc.), the teacher creates reality-based scenarios to promote talk, then encourages students on to more far-fetched…

Presents the results of a study of two fifth-grade reading groups, one comprised of all girls and the other of mixed gender. Discusses results in a reflective essay format, suggesting that the group of girls was more emotional in their observations and the mixed group was more action and plot oriented. (TB)

Provides a number of reading and discussion exercises on issue-oriented questions (such as "overpopulation") that may be used for just about any level of English-as-a-Second-Language instruction. Suggests a role-play exercise in imitation of the television show "Dating Game." (TB)

The Merit Workshop Calculus Program, based on Treisman-style workshop calculus, was intended to address the problems of low success rates of students from underrepresented populations and the failure to retain these students in mathematics- and science-based majors. Concludes that the program had a positive impact for both genders and several…

Describes how multipoint desktop video conferencing (MDVC) is used in preservice teacher education programs in Singapore to enhance the professional development of student teachers by allowing them to share ideas, experiences, and teaching resources in real time with an audience wider than the schools in which they teach. Summative evaluations…

Discusses a strategy for teaching poetry to middle school students that requires the teacher to step back, listen, and let students talk. Notes the value of poetry as a vehicle for classroom discussion and the teacher's role in this discussion. Provides sample dialog and teaching experiences for several poems. (JPB)

Discusses activities, adaptable for elementary through high school levels, for learning about the people who work in local government and the programs local governments provide. Explains that the activities are useful starting points for project ideas that enlist the involvement of students, teachers, and local government officials. (CMK)

Details a functional and qualitative study of interactive oral and computer-mediated communication (CMC)-generated (Norton "Connect") peer response group talk and its influence on revision. Finds the interactive peer groups in both environments talked primarily about their writing; however, the talk had different qualities when students used…

Addresses the reasons for deciding to implement email discussions in a survey course on U.S. history. Discusses problems with email discussions, how the email discussions were implemented, and students' reactions. Includes the online discussion questions and select student responses. (CMK)

Illustrates that students can discover the impact of effective communication by studying history. Describes how students can identify the communication strategies of historical figures, whether used for good or evil, demonstrating that these figures followed guidelines for effective communication as identified by various philosophers and orators.…

Argues that traditional textbook approaches to teaching literature alienate students from literature. Describes effective alternatives in which students learn interpretive strategies as they analyze and discuss their own important values in life, and then those of characters in a story; and learn to deal with irony. Outlines writing activities…

GoodSport is an after-school program for grades 3-6 that uses traditional and nontraditional sports, adventure activities, reading, writing, and group discussion to promote character development in the areas of teamwork, perseverance, responsibility, respect, and fair play. Two sample activities involving group discussion and problem solving are…

Offers ideas for developing a Web-based course in music education, addressing such issues as the transmission of audio information, real-time communication, and testing and copyright. Provides selected resources for Web-based instruction. (CMK)

Discusses obstacles to discussion in a college class on American slavery. Observes two major problems: many white students, especially women, wanted to avoid confrontation, and many white males were defensive when there was criticism of 19th-century white males. Offers suggestions for improving the classroom atmosphere for discussion periods. (DSK)

Reports an empirical investigation that explored relationships between student perceptions and course design factors in 73 SUNY Learning Network courses in the Spring 1999 semester. Findings indicated that clarity of design, interaction with instructors, and active discussion among course participants significantly influenced students'…