This paper focuses on the experiences of one beginning teacher, studying the ways issues of race and ethnicity are dealt with in a predominately white elementary school. Faced with issues of racism in the classroom, the teacher had no strategies to handle either overt or covert racism, both of which appeared to be condoned by those responsible for…

Recounts author's experiences over a two-year period in addressing the emotions and actions of nondisabled children in an after-school program toward a child with Downs syndrome. Discusses efforts to enhance children's understanding and compassion, share their feelings about their disabled peer, and encourage the child's participation. (KB)

Describes the experiences of three American librarians who had temporary assignments in other countries: one in New Zealand, in an urban primary school library; one in South Africa at a small polytechnic college bringing telecommunications into the library; and one in Laos to classify and catalog a polytechnic institute library's backlog. (LRW)

Personal narratives of California teachers in linguistically diverse classrooms portray four models of bilingual education: ESL, sheltered English, and peer tutors; ESL, sheltered English, and some or adequate first-language support; and bilingual education including native-language instruction. Reflects on negative teacher attitudes, hidden…

This autobiographical reflection on 40 years of teaching uses various accounts of schooling and teacher education practice against personal experience to explore continuities of teaching, progressive teaching practice, racial bias, teaching for understanding, teacher education, knowing the students, learning communities, teaching as a moral and…

Describes how the personal narratives of Vivian Paley led one early childhood specialist to surprising insights about the ways young children and adults learn. Focuses on the role of children's storytelling and playacting in supporting thinking, classroom discipline techniques, and using children's thinking to improve one's teaching skills. (KB)

Describes a two-year Technology for Teaching Project linking high school students on Montana's Crow Indian Reservation with other students in the United States and abroad through AT&T Learning Network's Learning Circles. Topics include project organization, materials exchanged with other schools, issues covered in online student discussions,…

The nature, uniqueness, and value of testimonials in English-as-a-Second-Language courses are described. Oral narratives, collected from people from developing countries who cannot write, are edited and translated by a recorder/collector. Examples are cited and their use in the classroom is reported. (Contains 12 references.) (LB)

Relates the experiences of an African-American woman who won an ALA (American Library Association) scholarship to attend library school. Topics discussed include leadership programs; changing careers; finances; ALA conference experiences; ALA's Black Caucus; and working part-time while attending school part-time. (LRW)

Provides a fictitious journal from an ideal technology-enhanced student activity in the future based on existing network-based projects developed over the last five years. Illustrates how technology can enhance learning in ways such as encouraging reform, providing tools for thinking, expanding educational possibilities, and supporting classroom…

A teacher describes his experiences during an outdoor expedition with urban students from the Free School in Albany, New York. Time spent at the school's camp is intended to narrow the gap between experience and learning, promote principles of "self-regulation" and "work democracy" encouraging students to manage their own behavior and make…

This narrative of a graduate student with deafness describes her experiences in various educational environments including oral communication, total communication, and mainstreamed. The article emphasizes the role of parents as the child's best advocates and advises parents to trust their own instincts and not accept the authority of professionals…

A retired library administrator discusses contemporary reference service based on his experience as a volunteer at the reference desk of an academic library. Narrative includes education; experience; work setting; training; impressions of users; knowledge acquired from fellow reference librarians; and print and electronic resources. (AEF)

The author relates his experiences as a participant of Outward Bound in 1965 and discusses how these learning experiences influenced his later work as a special education teacher at a youth residential treatment center in The Netherlands. Describes experiential outdoor programs for Netherlands youth including Outward Bound, Elan-training, Centre…

Describes, from one teacher's experiences, the difficulties of teaching Shakespeare in a Chelsea (Massachusetts) high school and how these problems were eventually overcome. The narrative presents students' reactions. (GR)