Intended to enable teachers and other school staff members to implement the Responsive Reading Program, a comprehension-centered program for kindergarten to third grade children, this guide is divided into a brief introduction and five major sections. The second chapter discusses the theoretical background of the program and the skills or…

Teachers can develop reflection and evaluation options by keeping a classroom journal. A classroom journal is a record of the teacher's experience within the classroom itself, as well as experience outside the classroom which bears on classroom life. As an observor of one's own actions and reactions to classroom incidents, the teacher opens the…

Part of the Australian "Reading Around Series," this document offers a set of guidelines for fostering cooperative learning in a language arts classroom. The problems with competitive and/or individual learning, and the reasoning behind cooperative learning, are presented in the first section of the document. The second section outlines…

A study examined the effects of intervention strategies on the revisions minority students made in narrative essays in a process-oriented classroom. Thirteen African-American and Latino students enrolled in a private boarding school in New England participated in the research. The effect of teacher interventions was explored through two…

Poor educational performance and the changing nature of work and workers have prompted calls for a major restructuring of American schools. The following broad categories of restructuring options are discussed and supporting research is reviewed: (1) decentralizing authority over schooling through school-based management, more professional…

The organizational characteristics of public schools, the impact of context on people in schools, and the consequences for school reform are examined. Based on the thesis that organizational characteristics of schools constrain most reform efforts, a suggestion is made for restructuring the teaching day, which promotes effective planning and…

This packet of materials from the Wayne County (Michigan) Intermediate School District offers a continuum model of social/sexual curriculum and programming services. Materials include: (1) a copy of a district school board policy giving school districts permission to pursue these curriculum areas; (2) staff guidelines for dealing with students…

This training manual presents information on the relationship between the educational environment and minority student underachievement. The materials presented are designed to assist teachers in establishing positive student-teacher relationships and to create a challenging and friendly classroom climate. The training package, designed to be used…

A course of study was researched, designed, and implemented to improve the writing of fifth-grade students. Objectives of the program were to develop more positive feelings about writing while increasing the quantity, quality, and variety of writing. Cooperative learning and process writing was discussed with the participants, their parents, and…

A study was conducted to determine whether manipulating the classroom environment to be either apprehension producing (AP) or apprehension reducing (AR) could significantly change the level of students' dispositional writing apprehension. Five student teachers and one secondary education supervisor volunteered to participate in the experiment and…

Generally, classroom discourse in foreign language teaching and learning is formalized and does not contain impromptu speech. However, analysis of classroom discourse in a German university foreign language course revealed that teachers' evaluative acts (followups) and "glides" linking one teacher-learner exchange to another do contain…

Based on knowledge gleaned from eight years of research on children's writing development, this book focuses on the teaching of writing to children in the elementary school. The first section of the book deals with the essentials in teaching writing, and the establishment of a classroom that nurtures and supports growth in writing. The second…

The contributions of peer interaction to the development of social competence in kindergarten children are discussed in terms of research findings and implications for teachers. Using naturalistic methodology, social behavior was studied by observing interactions among children in classroom settings without direct adult supervision. In peer…

For many years, educators from kindergarten to twelfth grade have approached the teaching of vocabulary, spelling, grammar, punctuation, and so forth as isolated skills, unconnected with the everyday use of reading, speaking, and writing. Such practices are now viewed with less favor, as researchers and educators approach reading and writing as…

The course in basic Pashto consists of seven units, each containing five lessons. Lesson topics include informatioh about the Pashtuns, classroom communication and behavior, greetings, telephone use, visiting someone's house, giving personal information, conversation skills, giving and getting directions, discussing everyday life, the seasons,…