This report synthesizes the findings of a week of focused group discussions during which Australian health care workers currently caring for people with human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) and tertiary educators involved in designing/delivering curricula in various health and social disciplines shared their…

This paper describes an academic assistance program designed to help ethnic minority students adjust to the demands of university life and succeed both academically and personally. The Excel program has three major components: a two-semester, two-credit core seminar; weekly instructional support groups; and peer led tutorial/discussion groups. The…

A discussion about the meaning of time that took place in a combined grade 3 and 4 classroom in Toronto, Ontario, Canada is described and analyzed. The paper begins by explaining how a failed classroom demonstration of a water clock resulted in an animated class discussion that led to the successful redesign of the clock. Next, recent work in…

This document proposes a case study approach to U.S. history instruction. The method which the document suggests arises from an actual class discussion of the My Lai massacre that occurred during the Vietnam War. A sample class discussion concerns the setting of standards to guide national and international affairs and the particular standards…

Peer action groups generally begin with adults who form a peer group because they are participating in the education or parenting of a common group of teenagers. This paper contains seven sections which address questions connected with establishing peer outreach groups for junior and senior high school students: (1) Who are "at-risk…

A 3-month unit on folktales with two sixth-grade classes proved to be a highly motivating means of developing critical reading skills. Lessons, which generally occupied from four to six class periods each, involved four steps: (1) the teacher stated the skills to be learned and told students what was planned for the reading period each day; (2)…

There are compelling reasons to use talk in the writing classroom to improve both expressive and expository writing. First, speaking is natural, and students come to the writing classroom linguistically well-developed and confident. Second, talking encourages exploration of words by slowing down the thought process without completely stopping it.…

This activity unit on human and medical genetics for junior high and middle school students emphasizes variability and diversity in genetics. Twenty-five activities are organized into five sections: (1) individual differences among human beings; (2) causes of similarities and differences among humans and between generations; (3) variety in living…

A follow-up study was conducted, using a sample of 10 teachers from two of five school districts that participated in an original project on wait time and classroom interaction. A workshop was conducted focusing on the elements of classroom discussions. In this workshop, transcripts containing short wait times were contrasted with ones with longer…

Presenting a portrait of a high school literature classroom, this paper gives a detailed, evocative characterization of what one particular and well-regarded high school literature teacher actually does in her classroom. The paper describes how the teacher-researcher chose a colleague whose experience and expertise were generally thought to be…

This manual is designed to assist coordinators of an English-as-a-Second-Language discussion group program in program planning and administration. The program uses volunteers to conduct discussions on topics of interest to limited English speaking community members. The introductory section of the manual describes the program, outlines the…

This collection of essays, which evolved from the Professional Lecture Series on Teaching and Learning and Instructional Workshops on Teaching and Learning held at the University of Colorado (Boulder), addresses a variety of styles and situations for teaching and learning. The following essays are included: (1) "Teaching as Architecture:…

The six editions of the newsletter provide a forum for the sharing of research findings and instructional strategies by faculty of Western Michigan University. Topics addressed include: active learning; lecture variations; lecture techniques; grading student participation; leading discussions; overcoming silence; discussion challenges; course…

Intended for practitioners involved in working with groups in basic education, this book provides some ideas on suitable approaches. An introduction addresses where group work takes place and why a group approach is used. A discussion of starting points covers first meetings, planning and preparing, and teaching aids. A description of a group…

The literary theorist Terry Eagleton believes that literary study is the study of human discourse. To build on his idea for use in the classroom, it must first be assumed that literature constitutes a dialogue between the work (and its author) and the reader. The dialogue process can be introduced in a 2- to 4-week unit through a cluster of…