Examines the composition of the faculty and instructional staff in English, 1996-97 and examines the average percentage of undergraduate course sections taught. Analyzes the staffing of undergraduate courses in baccalaureate-, master's-, and doctorate-granting institutions. Considers the use of full-and part-time adjunct faculty members and the…

Surveys English department chairs nationwide, examining the status of full-time non-tenure-track teachers in English departments of PhD-granting institutions. Finds that universities commonly hire short-term lecturers to teach when regular faculty members are "too expensive" for the job. Reports a plan adopted by Texas Tech University to deal with…

Discusses some of the responses to a questionnaire survey of the English Department at the University of Michigan regarding governance, constituency, scholarship, faculty, and curriculum and pedagogy. (DD)

Describes the results of a survey of English teachers and their administrators in fifty American high schools regarding college entrance scores. (DD)

Proposes a formula that can be used in hiring members of an English department. (FL)

Discusses a study designed to determine the extent to which film study is considered in the English curricula and concludes that it is presently a respectable sub-division of a majority of college English departments. (MH)

Asserts that William Wordsworth's poetry influenced teacher training for British educators and promoted the development of the English Department. Notes several legislative measures that played a role in English curricula. Concludes that current pedagogic studies make academic practice assumptions based on historic precedence dating back to…

Discusses the findings of an extensive research study of the authors and writing most frequently assigned in college-level English survey courses. Finds that similar historical periods and authors are considered in the survey courses offered by college and university English departments. Finds that traditional authors continue to be taught in…

Undertakes research into tension between structural planning and individual autonomy in the teaching of English and the dynamics of English departmental work in secondary schools. Examines the nature of constraints to individuals' autonomy, such as the British National Curriculum, to arrive at tentative conclusions as to whether they constitute a…

Considers how decisions about curriculum, hiring, and institutional policies have changed due to increasing regulatory, legal, and financial pressures conflicting with ever-magnifying and multiplying sense of need. Identifies three dominant models of institutional governance--models that represent different emphases and that, for the purposes of…

Adequate grading of student compositions in large classes makes inordinate demands on the English teacher's time. To convince administrators to reduce teaching loads, teachers need familiarity with research supporting the instructional advantages of smaller classes and closer attention, and with opposing research. (An extensive annotated research…

Examines early impact upon secondary English departments of the primary National Literacy Strategy (NLS). Examines shifts over time in departmental policy and practice across the primary/secondary transfer that may relate to the impact of the primary NLS. Reports findings from interviews in four secondary English departments. (BT)

Examines what kinds of jobs English major graduates of Lehigh University were actually doing in the real world, how they felt about having majored in English, and what benefits they saw from their degree. Finds that the alums were by and large delighted that they majored in English and would strongly recommend it to others. (SG)

Investigates writing instruction trends by surveying university English departments and examining the types of writing courses offered and the enrollments in these courses over a 10-year period. Finds that most writing instruction remains in "service" courses, particularly freshman composition, but that the kinds of writing taught are more diverse…

Discusses the results of the Modern Language Association's 1990 survey of doctorate-granting departments in English and other languages regarding doctoral study. (HB)