Describes and presents examples of work from the Western Michigan school of bad versemakers, a group of nineteenth century poets who strove to give their frontier experiences high seriousness, but achieved, at best, unintentional humor. (MM)

Examines both ineffective and effective fiction about adolescent runaways. (RL)

Proposes that English teachers have an obligation to give more attention to how language can be used in politics. Examines the characteristics of the basic political message. Offers eight suggestions for classroom exercises. (RL)

Describes how a teacher used the novella as a writing project to help students appreciate literature during their junior year. Explains how the teacher introduces the idea of the writing project and how he instructs them in the task. (TB)

Explains a research paper assignment in which students design their own thesis and link an original theory to an article found in a popular magazine. Provides three example assignments. Concludes the students then feel comfortable during later classroom discussions when introduced to the views of literary critics. (PM)

Compares Roman Polanski's film adaptation of "Tess of the D'Urbervilles" with the original novel by Thomas Hardy. Suggests that a comparative analysis of the two works enhances students' awareness of Hardy's artistry and sharpens their ability to respond critically to literature. (MM)

Asserts that literary criticism and scholarly analyses provide a broad and enriching resource with which to inform instruction and discussion in a pluralistic classroom. Offers examples of a postreading activity based on seven major interpretations of Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." Presents follow-up and extension…

Some of the most popular teenage novels perpetuate the sexual double stanard. (JH)

Discusses the need for standardized tests in literature, compares norm-referenced and criterion-referenced tests, and lists crucial background documents on the subject. (DD)

Teachers can increase students' involvement in literature and improve their skills in research and literary analysis by assigning each student to report on an author born the same day the student was. (DD)

Asserts that ethnic studies are interdisciplinary, and should be incorporated into all areas of learning to expand the students' world view. States that students must learn to judge the works of Black artists using an Afrocentric, not Eurocentric, model. Suggests ways of implementing the "Black aesthetic." (MM)

Presents three strategies for teaching the personal, operational, and cultural dimensions of literary response. (MM)