Presents a classroom discussion episode broken into narrative segments with the teacher's reflective commentary on each. Uses this narrative to help understand the nature of student response to literature and the demands that response-centered teaching makes on teachers. (SR)

Argues that teachers should encourage critical thinking among primary school students. Asserts that readiness exercises can help students develop the mental reasoning skills necessary for critical thinking. Suggests (1) posing questions that elicit reflective responses; (2) encouraging students to ask questions to obtain information; and (3)…

Describes literature study groups where students select the novels they wish to read, engage in discussions of the novels in heterogeneous groups, and interact with the teacher through literature logs. (MG)

Describes a college literature course that focuses on Leslie Silko's "Storyteller" as its core, uses other authors' related readings as dialog to Silko's multilayered text, and requires weekly informal writing assignments as preparation for discussion. Discusses five assignments and resultant student insights into American Indian…

The effects of a task-based vocabulary learning technique that focuses learners' attention on the underlying meaning of a word were investigated. The words came from Xue and Nation's University Word List. The experimental exercises encouraged high quality discussion and increased utilization of context clues to determine word meaning. (26…

Investigated the use of the pronoun "it" by a nine-year-old girl as a concept variable conveying the message that she had something in mind that she believed the listener understood. (MDH)

Suggests that the essence of whole language is students developing literate voices. Discusses a seven-month partnership in which the authors participated in and reflected on literature discussions with small groups of fourth graders. Explores how literate voices are developed in real classrooms. (RS)

Critiques an elementary social studies program by analyzing commercially available curriculum materials. Discusses goals, content selection, organization and sequencing, and explication in the text. Suggests that publishers should (1) shift from content coverage objectives to more general social education purposes; (2) connect information in…

Describes the attempts of one school district to extend the "grand conversation" (engaging in mutual discussion of ideas) of literature study groups to students with reading difficulties. Suggests that the program successfully provided at-risk students with opportunities to read and discuss quality children's literature. (RS)

Presents a class activity on the demise of the Hellenic period and the factors responsible for the domination of Greece by Macedonia. Asks students to decide whether the Persian and Peloponnesian Wars were justified. Focuses on the role of Demosthenes and his championing of Greek liberty. (RW)

Reflective questioning creates opportunities for individuals to reflect aloud, be heard by one or more colleagues, and be prompted to expand and extend thinking through follow-up questions. The article examines the origin of reflective questioning, explains how to develop reflective questioning skills, and discusses outcomes associated with…

Describes Critical Dialogues, an instructional approach based on the background knowledge and experiences of at-risk middle school students. Critical Dialogues can be used to help teach students the interactive processes vital to learning. Students grasp the importance of using their own knowledge to interpret situations, make decisions, and solve…

Studies the effectiveness of discussion techniques (in particular a course component called an "expert panel") on students' comfort with learning and the development of skills needed to learn in a large introductory lecture class in mass communication. (SR)

Describes a theoretical framework of distributed representations to explore the representational properties in group problem solving. The experiment shows that different distributed representations across two individuals produced dramatically different group problem-solving behaviors; and two minds could be better than one mind, depending on how…

Discusses why many nonnative-English-speaking students have difficulty participating in academic group discussions and explores culturally based perceptions of silence and reticence and the nature of group discussion. Pedagogical directions are offered that course planners, academic advisors, and language teachers can follow to help students to…