Articles presented include: "Introducing the New Literacy" (John Willinsky); "The Emergence of Literacy" (Nigel Hall); "Media Education: The Limits of a Discourse" (David Buckingham); "Extracts from 'Thought and Language' and 'Mind in Society'" (L. S. Vygotsky); "From Communicating to Talking" (Jerome Bruner); "What Does It Mean To Be Bilingual?"…

A study of biliteracy focuses on discourse as the unit of analysis needed to understand the task facing bilingual students. It investigated the way in which 22 high school students representing six different language groups in a bilingual basic skills course struggled with scientific language in an experiment on the community's drinking water.…

Originally developed for the Department of Defense Schools (DoDDS) system, this learning package on language diversity and reading instruction is designed for teachers who wish to upgrade or expand their teaching skills on their own. The package includes a comprehensive search of the ERIC database; a lecture giving an overview on the topic; the…

To determine how children develop schema for text that include increasing sensitivity to text types, text categories, orthographic conventions in words, conventional story beginnings and endings, and text cohesive ties, a study examined the writing of four kindergarten children. The kindergarten had adopted a process-conference approach to writing…

Teacher-student classroom relationships and behaviors at the University of Alaska's Fairbanks campus are compared with instruction by audioconference and computer conference, with attention to instruction of Native Alaskan students. Classroom behaviors of Natives and non-Natives are contrasted, particularly with regard to participation and signs…

A study examined the extent to which perceived teacher status differentials influenced students' perceptions of teacher self-disclosure. This study involved a two-step procedure. Initially 30 students in a basic speech section were asked to recall examples of teacher self-disclosure that had occurred in classes in which they were enrolled. Then 13…

A guide to help instructors improve or review their questioning skills is presented, with a focus on devising appropriate questions and interpersonal skills that maximize student responses. Questions that entail knowledge, comprehension, and simple application levels are distinguished from questions requiring complex application (e.g., analysis…

Intended for use in preservice or inservice training of regular secondary educators, the module examines principles of communication, assessment, teaching methods, and classroom management through text, an annotated bibliography, and overhead masters. The first section covers communicating with handicapped students, their parents, and other…

Three major studies on English and native language use in the classrooms of limited-English-proficient (LEP) students are reviewed for the insights they provide on effective teaching practices and special services for this population. The bilingual education profession misunderstands and misuses what the literature says about instruction for LEP…

Cross-school observation, which is part of a joint project involving a college education department and two large suburban high schools, is described. The Collaborative Project for School Improvement (CPSI) involves a joint steering committee and joint inservice sessions, as well as shared resources and a student teaching center. Program planning…

The Significant Bilingual Instructional Features (SBIF) study identified, described, and verified features of bilingual instruction of a wide variety of limited English proficient (LEP) students. It collected data on instructional organization, time allocation, classroom language use, active teaching behaviors, academic learning time, student…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 13 titles deal with the following topics: (1) collective bargaining in higher education; (2) decoding nonverbal communication and clinical effectiveness; (3) the need for interpersonal communication training for Texas peace…

The guide presents content and techniques for teaching conversational Italian in the elementary grades. It contains an introductory section and 20 units for classroom instruction. The introduction includes notes on the overall objectives of the course, general guidelines on classroom procedure, and specific techniques for use of the materials…

Findings from 10 projects, sponsored by the National Institute of Education, which focused on teaching as a linguistic process, are examined in this paper, along with findings from related studies. The projects constitute first-generation indepth studies of selected classrooms and are discussed in relation to two aspects of the linguistics of…

A collection of papers on humanistic approaches to instruction in English as a second language includes: an introduction (Patrick Early); "Humanism" (Earl W. Stevick); "Some Humanistic Doubts about Humanistic Language Teaching" (Christopher Brumfit); "Self-Confidence Through Self-Disclosure: The Pursuit of Meaningful…