Describes how one English teacher used experience as a professional writer to change how she approached writing instruction in a seventh-grade English class. Outlines a method centered on extensive revision and the submission of writing portfolios. (HB)

Defines the concept of deconstruction as a theory of language and reading. Discusses its relationship to the teaching of English. (HB)

Reviews five sets of thematically related books with the intent of helping instructors make connections between children's literature and real living. Investigates five areas, all broadly speaking to the issue of "security": (1) unsettling experiences; (2) nature study; (3) overcoming evil; (4) exploring adolescent angst; (5) journeying for…

Describes one teacher's insights into the fictional works, and especially the characters, created by the British novelist Jane Austen. (HB)

Defines five areas of proficiency that students who join the work force of the early twenty-first century will need. Considers the implications of these seen in the context of the English curriculum. (HB)

Discusses the thinking of the Greek Sophist philosophers, particularly Gorgias and Protagoras, and their importance and relevance for contemporary English instructors. Considers the problem of language as signs of reality in the context of Sophist philosophy. (HB)

Describes the methods by which one teacher breaks the rules in the writing classroom. Claims that bending procedures often makes students more likely to reason for themselves, find their own voices, and respond as thinkers and creators. (HB)

Describes how the writing lives of professional authors can provide excellent models of writing for both teachers and students. Shows how different writers use very different processes in producing their texts. Considers how writers choose topics for writing and how they utilize childhood and teenage memories. (HB)

Introduces an interchange that considers the increasing use of the authorial "I" in scholarly writing. Provides a "give and take" critique of an article on the topic by James Raymond published in a previous issue of the same journal. Presents Raymond's response. (HB)

Describes the problem readers have in spending quality time in works of literature. Advocates trying to "dwell" in literature, rather than simply "touring" it. Shows how spending time in texts enhances an understanding and appreciation of the work. (HB)

Describes how teachers might invite their students to become more creative and riskier in their own poetry by examining cartoons in Gary Larsen's series, "The Far Side." Claims that the finished products were often authentic and daring. Includes eight examples of students' poems. (HB)

Responds to the Pacesetter English program by nominating it for the 1995 National Council of Teachers of English's "Doublespeak" Award. Criticizes the Pacesetter program as faulty and a "mind-numbing manipulation of teachers, texts, and students." (HB)

Gives an overview of how curriculum design might best be undertaken. Provides unconventional suggestions for developing curriculum. (HB)

Gives suggestions for fostering critical thinking skills among English students. Summarizes the views and theories of several educators, all of whom participated in a critical thinking conference in Boston in the summer of 1994. (HB)

Discusses the career and achievement of the British writer Matthew Arnold. Focuses on Arnold's status as a symbol of conservatism in the current culture wars. Argues for a recuperation of a true representation of Arnold's achievement. Illustrates the dangers of misrepresenting major literary figures invoked in cultural disputes. (HB)