Describes the art of effective English departmental administration in a difficult time of budget constraints, calls for accountability, and intellectual turbulence. Considers the effect on departmental management of sustained scholarly interest in oppositional stances, powerlessness, and marginality. (HB)

Describes how the task of leading an English department has changed over the past 25 years. Considers the delicate yet essential task of the department head to provide leadership and vision for an entire department. Relates the general problems of English departments and specific problems in graduate education with diversity and difference gone…

Uses a case study to explore the concept of academic authority and how it manifests itself in written arguments. Investigates how differences in authority are played out in the academic environment. Examines how the lack of authority shapes the reading and writing practices adopted by students. (HB)

Describes methods and strategies for building the relationships between beginning English teachers and those who serve as their mentors. Offers practical advice for cooperating and student teachers. (HB)

Gives an overview of how one English teacher uses students' inherent understanding of film by asking them to write movie scripts. Advocates the use of screenwriting in the classroom. Details numerous reasons for such methods, and describes eight specific suggested class activities employing script writing. (HB)

Gives an overview of English educational practices in the United Kingdom. Focuses on the changes in the assessment of student achievement in English, with particular attention to high school English in England and Wales. (HB)

Examines the issue of breaking administration rules against certain kinds of school assemblies. Describes how one teacher was able to perform an original play under such restrictions. Presents the responses of students, the teacher, and administrators after the play was successfully performed. (HB)

Details some of the current critical arguments concerning Mark Twain's depiction of the runaway slave Jim in the novel "Huckleberry Finn." Describes classroom experiences teaching the novel and how a reader's cultural background influences reactions to it. Provides principles and caveats for teaching the novel. Lists works about slavery…

Considers one location involving complex language skills, the offices of professional architects. Analyzes written and spoken texts in such an environment and the context of working relationships in which they are produced. Broadens a view of language competencies required by professional communicators. (HB)

Considers the role of story and narrative genres in early years classrooms. Studies the reading, writing, and role-playing activities of students. Argues that the children observed developed an understanding of the nature of genre, genre differentiation, and power relationships in a sophisticated and integrated manner. (HB)

Considers the benefits of a multicultural anthology entitled "Braided Lives." Outlines how one ninth-grade English teacher used the anthology to develop student personal writing concerning the texts read. Uses student responses in journals to generate essays on multicultural topics. (HB)

Describes the pros and cons of using small groups in the English classroom. Considers why some teachers succeed while others fail when trying to use small groups. Provides and illustrates four discussion-leading techniques which facilitate small group interaction. (HB)

Describes the way four teachers utilize and foster small group discussion in the English classroom. Provides numerous experiences that practicing English teachers have encountered in using small groups. Gives specific classroom techniques and advice for small group discussion administration. (HB)

Describes the findings of the National Assessment of Educational Progress's "Reading Report Card" issued in September 1993. Critiques the report for methodological reasons. Argues that the report is virtually worthless regarding the reading skills of American students and should receive a failing mark. (HB)

Reports on ways in which an undergraduate English course can be structured to invite wide-ranging forms of response. Describes how this was done through an expository reading and writing course based on rhetorical modes and noncanonical texts. Claims that student satisfaction and achievement were excellent. (HB)