Despite long-standing recognition of the importance of sociocultural context in meaning making, criticisms have been levelled at communicative language teaching (CLT) for failing to effectively address this at the level of classroom practice. In fact, it has been argued that the way CLT presents content reveals a fundamentally reductionist view of…

This article presents the author's critique on Stephen L. Baird's article in the November 2008 issue of "The Technology Teacher", which describes a contemporary debate about opening more U.S. land and coastal regions to oil and gas exploration and production (E&P). While Baird's thesis epitomizes the goal of a technologically literate citizen, his…

To achieve sufficient pedagogical content knowledge on nature of chemistry related issues, teachers need structured opportunities for reflection and discussion. One way to provide those opportunities is through teacher-scientist interaction. This study is based on reflective essays of thirty prospective teachers who participated in a new course…

Teaching for economic justice can be challenging for upper elementary and middle school teachers. Many teachers may feel uncomfortable with the subject matter and thus avoid addressing sensitive social issues related to economic/financial inequities. This article describes how selected songs and works of visual art, expressions of social protest…

In this article, the author discusses the advantages and the disadvantages of using surprise elements in teaching mathematics. According to the author, there are three key ideas concerning the element of surprise: (1) The ethical aspects of teachers' manipulation of their students in order to construct surprise; (2) Every mathematical task…

Online conversations help teachers engage in constructive criticism and attend more carefully to aligning lesson plans with problem solving. This article describes a strategy for using an online discussion board to help teachers evaluate one another's lesson plans. The online peer-review activity suggests that fostering critical pedagogical…

School administrators across the U.S. are asking literature teachers to become reading teachers, and not surprisingly, many secondary teachers are having difficulty with this transition. The author's transition to reading teacher was hurried by her dissatisfaction with lessons that featured question-answer discussions. Curious about how students…

Author Sue Monk Kidd, who is white, employs stereotypes of African Americans and problematically appropriates features of black writing in her novel "The Secret Life of Bees." Nevertheless, this book is worth teaching, not only because it has acquired much cultural capital but also because it offers students a way to examine relationships between…

The authors provide a review and critique of 82 empirical investigations conducted in the United States on teacher preparation for reading instruction. These studies were chosen from a pool of 298 based on the authors' coding of research quality indicators. Applying an inductive paradigmatic analysis of the 82 studies, this review suggests that in…

Charles Dickens lived during the best and worst of times in 19th century England. His writings were greatly influenced by the ongoing industrial revolution. He described abhorrent environmental conditions, inadequate sanitary practices, child abuse, and other social maladies of the times. By bringing Charles Dickens into the biology classroom,…

As heated as the controversy is and has been, most opponents of homework actually support at least a modest amount of "independent study," and the most ardent advocates are likely to emphasize moderation in the amount of homework and emphasis on the quality of independent assignments. In this article, the author focuses on this troublesome issue…

This descriptive study investigates the bases used to support judgments of artworks by preservice art teachers at two large universities. Bases art teachers might use to judge artwork range from personal preferences, to cultural expectations, to criteria drawn from values of various artworlds. The 26 preservice teachers in this study used a…

There are many talented and creative dance professionals working in academia today, and it can be stifling to an artist to feel that one must give students traditional class assignments to evaluate their progress. Dance is a creative endeavor, and all aspects of the curricula, even non-movement-based classwork, can and should reflect this fact. In…

After 2 years of progress, the literacy initiative at Donaldson Elementary faces challenges because of a disagreement between Principal Joanna Jackson and Literacy Coordinator Loretta Sullivan over whether Sullivan's role should include evaluative classroom observations and whether teachers should be mandated to receive coaching. The case is…

Uses the film version of Bernard Malamud's "The Natural" to show how archetypes and irony make their appeal to a serious audience without in any way making the film less entertaining. (EL)