This article addresses the issue of assessment and how it is becoming such a critical problem for higher education, especially for teachers of the liberal arts. While the common-sense goals of assessment are laudable, the actual consequences of the process are far from beneficial. It is suggested that ongoing assessment diverts teachers from…

Students learn mathematics more effectively and more deeply when reading and writing is directed at learning mathematics. Although reading and writing in mathematics may necessitate more skills and practice to master, the mathematical learning derived from reading and writing mathematics far outweighs the burden it places on teachers and students.…

Using interviews and 10 weeks of consecutive lesson plans with supporting documentation, the author analyzes four first-year teachers' assigned in-class and out-of-class reading assignments and their choices and uses of reading strategies they learned in their preservice program. (Contains 2 tables.)

This study is aimed at investigating students' annotation behaviors and their effects on learning achievement with pre-reading (reading before class) exercises and Web-based sharing mechanisms. An 8-week quasi-experiment was conducted with 125 sixth-grade elementary school students. The study shows the following results. First, a significant…

GeoJourney is an interdisciplinary field trip in geology, Native American studies, and environmental studies designed for introductory-level undergraduates. The program travels 23,345 kilometers by van to national parks, industrial sites, museums, and Indian reservations in 24 of the United States. During the day, students carry out hands-on…

An expense account book report encourages students to be creative and doesn't penalize students with reading and writing disabilities. Pie graphs showing expenditures a character from a book might make reveal divergent thinking skills and with a minimum of words. A reproducible worksheet is included. (MT)

Advocates a course-specific electronic reserve for timely, simplified distribution of course readings. Provides guidelines for the copyright and fair use implications of electronic reserve, suggesting a password-protected site. Explains the logistics of file creation, software, and hardware. (Contains 14 references.) (SK)

Weddings are unique and dynamic--each flavored differently and each with a life of its own. They celebrate specific customs, rituals, and the importance of family and culture. Always, they stir up emotions, and, on occasion, they may spin and whirl, looping out of control. For children, they may inspire romantic dreams, and provide new roles to…

The ways to proceed with the summer reading list, which will be able to locate some of the books at the public library during the summer months, are presented. The task of creating a reading list is considered to be difficult as there are thousands of books on the market based on reading for pleasure.

History teachers are frequently frustrated in their efforts to promote class discussion. Class discussion is useful to deliver or reinforce content and to explore or share ideas. Yet teachers learn quickly that they cannot expect good discussion, especially good whole-class discussion, to take place when they want it to. One approach to the…

Author offers a balm of sweet reading for adolescents jaded by too much gore, social significance and solemnity. (Editor)

Assignment sheets that structure reading activities can be helpful in reading instruction for gifted children. The guides include activity suggestions before the reading (mostly vocabulary), during the reading (questions at the literal and inferential level), and after the reading (questions focusing on analysis, synthesis, and other higher mental…

Presents the responses of five professional leaders in young-adult literature in response to Edwin Greenlee's problem with recommending books which may contain sexually explicit text. (PRA)

This study explores two approaches to directly measuring the quality of instruction: teachers' assignments with student work and focused lesson observations. The technical quality and potential feasibility of these approaches for measuring instruction in large numbers of classrooms are compared within two different content areas (reading…

Educators are often frustrated when students appear not to have completed reading assignments carefully or attentively and seem unwilling or unable to give a fair and balanced critique of what they have read. This essay suggests that incorporating the practice of reading aloud may help both to point out where students are stumbling and to create…