Discusses both the pedagogical arguments and the psycholinguistic rationale for small-group work in the second language classroom. Claims that the negotiation work possible in group actiity makes it an attractive alternative to the teacher-led discussion. Reviews research findings on interlanguage which generally support the claims made for group…

Strongly confirmed the hypothesis that groups employing an interacting decision procedure would produce better decisions than groups employing procedures that are either nominal (Delphi) or "staticized" (individual judgments statistically pooled). Provides clear and consistent support for the value of social interaction in small group…

A language intervention model for language impaired adolescents is presented which rests on five general principles: (1) theoretical constructs, (2) student motivation, (3) counseling, (4) natural communication settings, and (5) group sessions. (CL)

A roundtable discussion of the issue of seat belts in school buses features United States Representative Peter H. Kostmayer, who has introduced a bill providing incentive grants to states to adopt and enforce laws requiring the use of seat belts in new school buses; three bus manufacturing executives; and two educators. (MLF)

Describes an exercise called "Building Blocks' that demonstrates the risky shift and polarization effects of small group discussion. (PD)

Teenagers discuss their sexual uncertainties and roles parents and television could play in enlightening them on sexuality. From parents, they would like honesty and support, and, from television, portrayals of strong women, emotional attachment, sexual attraction without glamor, connection between sex and pregnancy, and information on…

Describes a small group discussion project involving students and teachers in two large white suburban high schools. The project's intention was to focus discussion on the social quality of the relationship between students and teachers, and to assess the impact of the discussions on student perceptions. (Author/RK)

Use of peer correction of compositions in ESL classes improves writing skills and oral communication and reinforces understanding of principles. Four procedures outlined are whole class correction, immediate feedback and rewriting, seeking specific types of errors, and correction of modified and duplicated essays. (CHK)

This article describes Kid-to-Kid, a group discussion program that gives students a strong voice and lets them connect with their peers in an environment where it is safe to be honest, where feelings and thoughts can be expressed without fear of judgment, and where the teacher talks less than the students. Guidelines for starting such a program…

In "Rhetoric, Discovery and Change" (1970), R. Young, A. Becker, and K. Pike took Carl Rogers' empathetic approach out of the context of one-on-one therapy and put it into the writing classroom. They proposed the now standard formulaic structure of argumentation which emphasizes a strong thesis up front, a detailed account of the…

This paper describes the development of a framework to better understand how teachers think about and approach instructional practices. Over 1 year, researchers worked with teacher groups in 5 schools, exploring their perspectives, experiences, and understanding about teaching through observations, interviews, journals, and dialogues. The…

The focus of this paper is the combination of oral and written response and technology, the components that form electronic feedback, and their possible benefits to business. The paper proposes that Web writing applications can provide numerous benefits to businesses and increase the communication and management of that communication. With the…

Team collaboration is an important part of working in business today. This study in electronic collaboration usage and implications extends what has already been done in groupware and group collaboration systems. The authors produced an experiment in which students were given the opportunity to use many different collaborative tools. A pre-test…

Considered the need for honest religious dialogue in secondary schools and teacher responsibility in sparking discussion modes. (Author/RK)