Every year the author and his colleagues take their grade 12 English students to see four plays at one of Canada's major theaters. Chatting about the series on the last day of class, his students asked him if he had seen "the blue glow from the back row." Laughing at his bewilderment, they told him that during the performances so many…

During his own student experience, it was an especially gifted teacher that moved the author, and gave him a sense of direction, a direction which he refers to as self-discovery that would characterize his own pursuit of an education. What motivated him to postphone retirement, is the freedom to teach in ways that he feels are effective and that…

Examines tasks provided for students in most literature textbooks used in the United States, noting that these tasks typically control students' responses to literature. Relates these tasks to current theory and research on the reading process. Describes activities from literature texts used in Canada that facilitate literary response. (MM)