To examine the relationship between student writer and audience, five volunteers from a college freshman composition class were asked to think aloud on tape as they revised three out-of-class drafts of a paper. The subjects gave one protocol after getting feedback on an early draft from their own writing group, another after a student-teacher…

For several years an interdisciplinary course called "Healing and the Arts" has been offered to undergraduates and medical students in a BA/MD program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Its stated purpose is to give students a theoretical and practical understanding of how the arts can be a healing force in people's lives.…

In higher education, online discussions are an integral part of collaborative based e-Learning systems. However, there can be problems associated with current online discussion models. For example, it can be easy to set open-ended discussions which attract little participation and assessing contributions can be difficult or time-consuming.…

A content-analysis examined the discussion practices recommended in postprimary reading methods textbooks published in the United States before and after 1970. Fifteen textbooks were selected and 37 topics related to discussion were eventually grouped into three categories--(1) functions of textbooks, (2) functions of questions, and (3) roles of…

The purpose of this report is to explore an analysis of discussions, among groups of elementary school children, of a social problem. The intent of the research is to contribute to the advancement of methods for program and student assessment, particularly toward goals not usually evaluated by traditional testing programs. The analysis method used…

One of a series of six portraits of high school literature classrooms, this paper gives a detailed, evocative characterization of how one "master teacher" introduced, undertook, and guided the study of literature, focusing in particular on how the teacher interacted with students in the context of discussion of a literary work in class.…

One of a series of six portraits of high school literature classrooms, this paper gives a detailed, evocative characterization of how one "master teacher" introduced, undertook, and guided the study of literature, focusing in particular on how the teacher interacted with students in the context of discussion of a literary work in class.…

This study was conducted at John Abbott College to determine the preferences of psychology students among five styles of classroom instruction: films, group discussions, lectures, teacher-led questions and answers, or videos. Questionnaires were distributed in four psychology teachers' upper-level courses, lower-level courses, and continuing…

A teacher describes the use of closed-caption decoding of television melodramas to teach English as a second language (ESL). The approach uses evening soap operas that afford a range of English usage and accents, realistic dialogue, entertainment, and coverage of current social issues and are closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired. The programs…

A study examined the impact of oral language competence on the writing behavior of secondary students of English as a second language (ESL). Samples of student writing in both the native Spanish and English were analyzed along five dimensions (topic of the composition, internal organization of thoughts, conveying meaning, sentence construction,…

Intended as an aid for English teachers in planning a senior-year composition program that takes into account both the strengths and the weaknesses in the writing of their students, an analysis of teacher evaluations of student writings (the Early English Composition Assessment Program--EECAP) is conducted annually by the Ohio Writing Project.…

Before students are able to write fairly original, successful, critical essays on literature, they need to become experienced members of the audience for whom they will write, sharing fully the social context of critical writing by becoming part of an interactive, interpretive community. This reader-response technique appears to be the best…

In traditional education, the teacher is responsible for the students' learning. The teacher lectures to the students who take notes and then regurgitate the material for examinations to earn grades and diplomas. This type of learning situation may not be appropriate in a community college, where many students are adults who bring life skills and…

Analyzed was the effectiveness of communications practices used between a sample of 141 directors of special education in Tennessee and "involved others," which included 141 school board chairpersons, 141 superintendents, 48 other central office program directors, 48 principals, 48 regular education teachers, 48 special education teachers, 48…

The study describes ten discussion activities designed to improve the communicative abilities of Japanese learners of English based on cultural instruction goals. The activities target intermediate and advanced students, but teachers can modify the lessons for false beginners. All exercises stress speaking and listening. They focus on topics…