Ethnic Neighborhoods Study, which is a six-week course developed for eighth graders at Ruffing Montessori School East, offers students an opportunity to research their own ethnicity, observe the social and cultural diversity of other people, and study one of the many nationality settlements in Cleveland. (MDM)

Contends that qualitative research in geography can be conducted within the constraints of a research methods course. Provides suggestions for using qualitative research fieldwork in a college course. Includes student reactions to the course and constraints on broader use of this methodology. (CFR)

Presents guidelines used by a first-grade teacher to teach students to write fictional stories based on things they know and using children's literature as models. Describes the benefits of writing workshops and outlines a method for teaching techniques that professional writers use. (SM)

Presents two elementary level activities designed to make math more meaningful with the help of technology. One activity involves learning about banking using computer spreadsheets and stock programs; the other uses computers and calculators to help students integrate mathematics into the study of world cultures. (SM)

A series of articles provides suggestions on using classroom libraries. One article suggests filling the library with genre books to inspire critical reading, critical thinking, and learning across the curriculum (folktales, fairy tales, tall tales, historical fiction, biographies, and autobiographies). Another article presents information on…

An approach to evaluation initiated by the Kellogg Foundation called cluster evaluation (not to be confused with cluster sampling) is described. Cluster evaluation provides a skilled, credible evaluator to work with a cluster of projects to assure that useful and defensible information is obtained for program evaluation. (SLD)

Outlines the current situation in critical pedagogy, and examines the relation of language to formation of subjectivity and praxis. How language works to construct and mediate reality and interacts with experience is explored, and provisional elements of a critical pedagogy that has the potential to create active learners are presented. (SLD)

Assigned 106 low-income African-American women to view 1 of 3 videotapes: standard public health service tape on prevention of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), same tape but matching presenter and participant ethnicity and gender, or tape including same content but framed in context specifically intended to increase cultural relevance.…

Examines recent debates on the teaching of reading from the standpoint of science, art, and ideology, focusing on the reading theories, research, and practice of the past two decades. The analysis emphasizes the issue of whole language versus phonics, noting the effects of whole language and phonics on reading achievement. (SM)

Clarifies the meaning of alternative teacher certification (AC), appraises its value relative to other forms of teacher preparation, examines the tension between current initiatives to professionalize teaching and initiatives aimed at more firmly establishing AC programs, and explores how teacher education policies might unfold over the next…

The limits to increased teacher participation in their own evaluation are discussed, and steps are proposed to turn evaluation from an activity done to teachers to an activity done by teachers. A developmental approach is suggested to move from current practice to more sophisticated levels of evaluation. (SLD)

Six English articles and one French article define feminist pedagogy in Canada and point to what it might become. The articles deal primarily with postsecondary education and more particularly with women's studies, areas in which most debates about feminist pedagogy are occurring. Common themes are identified. (SLD)

Project "vita" (similar to the individual's professional vita) is proposed as a documentation technique for providing detailed but manageable descriptions of large research and development projects. Two field trials, projects to develop new evaluation methods and technology for storage and retrieval of full-text material, illustrate use…

Describes an innovative approach to teaching William Shakespeare's "Hamlet" utilizing various film versions of the play. Outlines a method of showing several versions of the same scene from different film adaptations. Describes student reaction to the variations among the different films. (HB)

Notes the absence of teacher participation in debates over reading instruction in Great Britain. Discusses results of studies that surveyed preservice and inservice teachers. Finds that teachers used a mixture of approaches to teach reading; all teachers used some form of assessment; and most felt their initial teacher training was inadequate. (RS)