Investigates the standards mothers use to evaluate four types of children's television programs: (1) cartoons; (2) news programs for children; (3) educational children's programs; and (4) dramatic children's programs. Three quality standards considered most important were comprehensibility, aesthetic quality, and elicitation of involvement.…

Presents a 90-item annotated bibliography that supplements Teresa McKenna's bibliographic essay "Immigrants in Our Own Land: A Chicano Literature Review and Pedagogical Assessment" (published in this journal in 1988). Includes sections on anthologies, prose fiction, poetry, drama, nonfiction, criticism, and journals. (RS)

Presents a 108-item annotated bibliography of works by Puerto Ricans born and raised in the United States to complement and update Edna Acosta-Belen's "The Literature of Puerto Rican Migration in the United States: An Annotated Bibliography." Includes sections on anthologies, prose fiction, poetry, drama, autobiographies, criticism, and…

A teacher describes using melodrama as a way to combine the elements of humor and drama to engage the imaginations of young gifted children. Techniques for use with elementary through junior high students are presented along with the script of a play for first or second graders, with the last lines left blank for students to supply their own…

Notes that the pursuit of meaning in drama is part of a larger pursuit of the means by which meaning is created and shared. Explains that a systems analysis allows researchers to step back from the subject, to imagine, and construct connections more clearly. Concludes that systems analysis is a useful tool in finding a language appropriate to a…

Surveys relevant literature on the question of how people learn through doing drama. Proposes a construct to describe this learning process. Concludes that drama, even more than other storytelling and other fictional processes, employs the world-creating and hypothetical processes some have attributed to basic learning processes, which permeate…

Responds to an article in the previous issue of this journal discussing Howard Gardner's work and its relation to drama education. Suggests that when Gardner's multiple intelligences theory is applied in teaching, differences are valued and communities are strengthened. Concludes that Gardner's theory helps to validate the practice and place of…

Shares results from five interpretive studies that examined young children's writing in response to process drama. Focuses on composing in role and complexity of stance. Suggests that writing in response to drama can provide insights into the complexities of children's literacy processes by explicitly revealing the connections between children's…

Studies low income special education students decided on a theme/story line/subject for an improvisational drama and developed it into a radio play. Concludes that drama is one effective way to find out what quiet people may have to tell educators about themselves and about complex situations and problems that need to be heard and analyzed before…

Three tips for the classroom include the use of literature circles, integrating reading and writing through literature response; and teaching critical challenges via dramatic arts. (Author/VWL)

Presents an award-winning essay about a teacher's relationship with a troubled student placed in his alternative classroom. Shows how the two worked together on science, math, and "Romeo and Juliet." (TB)

Describes a range of responses by elementary and middle school students to educational attempts to provide culturally diverse perspectives, and examines possible reasons. Notes that drama is an effective way to introduce new cultures and ideas. Discusses dilemmas educators face in this endeavor, such as finding and selecting materials. (SR)

Outlines the author's experience of teaching David Mamet's play "Oleanna" in an introductory college drama class. Proposes that "Oleanna" in the classroom becomes a powerfully reflexive text, framing the student-teacher relationship. Concludes this work confronts teachers and students with the relationships of power and…

Proposes that theatre teachers should teach students to enter participatory democracy as artists and scholars with the skills to be competent, engaged, and thoughtful citizens. Encourages artists to claim their places as political agents. Advocates the teaching of the artistry of theatre, as well as its history, theory, criticism, and literature…

Explains how the author's father taught her about theatre in their everyday life. Discusses artistic sensibilities such as the use of voice, body, mind, and values. Explains the following theatre specifics: pacing; language; telling the story; relaxation and humor; participation; the audience's job; inflation of titles; history; subtext; and…