Discusses six professional resources and three classroom resources that can help practitioners decide what they should be doing and what they need to understand to function in a literature-based language arts classroom. (RS)

Suggests ways in which teachers may plan and incorporate effectively whole-language theory into existing programs in which basal materials are established and accepted. (RS)

Describes how the whole-language philosophy undergirds the teaching approaches used in a nontraditional special education program designed for students with language and learning disabilities. (SR)

Describes a phonetic spelling scheme called "Rational Spelling" that is claimed to be easy to learn and use and that could be used to encourage students to read and write freely at an early age. (SR)

Describes the Reader's Workshop and the Focused Study Reading Workshop. Offers them as a way to accommodate the characteristics of individuals, to respect the knowledge of readers who are at earlier stages of reading development, to establish a system which teaches problem solving, and to provide for active child involvement and ownership in the…

Explores four misconceptions about the whole-language approach and attempts to replace them by grounded realities associated with whole language. (MG)

Reviews "Great Debate" over code emphasis versus meaning emphasis in reading instruction, concluding incidental instruction provided by writing activities of whole language do not guarantee alphabetic understanding. Attempts to disassociate instruction in alphabetic coding from criticism of components of whole-language instruction and challenges…

Considers "what didn't work" in literature-based reading programs. Analyzes messages to teachers in teachers' guides for such programs published between 1990 and 1995. Follows M. Foucault's interpretations of historical, social, and cultural constructions of discourses. Finds the literature-based visions become blurred as the mixed…

This article examines recent research and developments relating to the role of phonemic awareness and phonics in early literacy education and the relevance of these findings for school counsellors and teachers. It defines and reviews the role of phonemic awareness and phonics in theoretical models of reading processes, including whole-language,…

Whole language is a dynamic and generative philosophy of education that started as a grass roots teacher movement. Throughout its history it has been lauded worldwide as well as being attacked. This article explores whole language through two lenses. First it examines the history of whole language through the eyes of someone who participated in…

The writer reminds readers that the polemics of reform frequently portray the realm of teaching and learning in more extreme terms than is really necessary. Likening calls for educational reform to scientific revolutions sparked by Kuhn, Darwin and Copernicus, that jettison completely the assumptions and premises of the theories they replace, Bond…

Presents an in-depth interview with Ken and Yetta Goodman, awarded the second National Council of Teachers of English award for outstanding educator in the language arts. (SR)

Describes how children's picture books with musical themes explore the world of music and how the use of these books can enrich a whole language curriculum. Shares how picture books with musical themes can be integrated into various curriculum plans. (MG)

This study compared 18 high-ability and average-ability secondary level deaf readers on 5 indicators of cognitive processes used during reading. Results indicated significant differences between groups on measures of fluency. However, intergroup similarities in processes suggest that these components do not determine reading superiority.…

Shows, in one teacher's autobiographical account, that understanding connections between teachers' lives outside of school and themselves as teachers helps them to see how to link the worlds of home and school for their students. (SR)