Describing a teacher's struggle to help her seventh-grade students reach their full potential, this book is about girls--their learning, their social dilemmas, and their dreams, hopes, and fears. The book reveals the obstacles the teacher faced and how her students collaborated with her to become curriculum builders as they explored issues such as…

An ethnographic study explored how small groups of student readers interacted in a classroom over time to interpret short stories assigned by a teacher. For five weeks, eight sixth-grade volunteers met on consecutive Fridays in two separate face-to-face discussion groups to read, discuss, rewrite, and perform a short story as a play. Primary data…

A study developed a valid and reliable instrument to measure learner empowerment and tested a model in which learner empowerment was caused by teacher communication behaviors and students' self-esteem. The model tested hypothesized teacher communication behaviors (relevance, verbal immediacy, and nonverbal immediacy) and student self-esteem as…

A study looked into what classroom communication behaviors adult learners and traditional undergraduate students associate with teacher effectiveness. Subjects for the study were 155 traditional and 95 adult learners at a large midwestern university. They were administered one of two questionnaires which differed on only one question: some were…

This paper explores the symbolic representation of the teaching situation as a triangle involving teacher, student, and content. The paper explores what is meant by didactic communication, and then studies the meaning of the semiotic triangle in the light of two lines of research: the patterns used to analyze communication situations and ongoing…

The empowerment paradigm with roots in the literature of education and management (both applied and theoretical) can guide faculty to help prepare students to make the transition from the classroom to the boardroom. While numerous faculty leaders have joined corporate leaders in espousing the virtues of empowerment, most classes in business…

Although "flaming" (language and behavior considered outrageous in a classroom context) is a rupture of teacher authority, it can be used in the classroom as a viable pedagogical tool. A student in a basic literature course read a long and sexually explicit narrative in rhymed couplets. The rupture in the normal classroom environment…

This document consists of short reviews of 13 Ohio schools. The goal is to illustrate each school's atmosphere and members through a report made by an education expert who actually visited the school, as opposed to a statistical report. Interviews of students and teachers are included, as are impressions of reform methods being used in the school,…

Three specific classroom techniques for teaching vocational English as a Second Language to adults are discussed. They are three items on the SCANS (Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills) list of "easy things" to do to integrate workplace basics into the classroom, designed to encourage a student-focused classroom. They…

This study examined the effect of classroom climate on the mathematics achievement of fourth-grade students in Tennessee public schools. The investigation used data obtained from 875 fourth-grade students enrolled in 42 classes in 13 public schools. In the first phase of the inquiry, four class-climate factors were identified by exploratory factor…

A study investigated student involvement in large-group discussion. A high school sophomore American literature class and a world literature class for juniors and seniors were each observed for a semester. Students were asked to provide their definitions of knowledge and learning in a survey. From the 36 responses received, four perspectives…

An ethnographic study of a linguistics classroom produced insights into student perceptions of in-class speech that can contribute to the ongoing debate about the place of student participation in academic classrooms. The study was conducted in an elective undergraduate linguistics course at Michigan Technological University. Fifteen classroom…

Emphasizing the complex relationships among story, ethnicity, and gender, this book explores the nature of story--the basic functions it serves, its connections to the diverse sociocultural landscape of society, and its power in the classroom. In addressing concerns about how to most effectively serve increasingly diverse student populations, the…

A companion to "The Reading Environment," this book is concerned with getting groups of children to talk openly and confidently about their readings of particular books. Using a generous selection of transcripts of classroom discussions, the book shows how children can be encouraged to share their enthusiasms and difficulties and the…

This presentation focuses on the qualities of effective teaching. It offers thoughts on the teacher/learner relationship, focusing on the challenge of teaching and the importance of caring about students and connecting with them. Professors' attention to their research over their teaching and the impact of their rigorous workloads is felt to cause…