This guide is designed as a reference for District and School personnel working with English learners (ELs). The content of the guide represents a compilation of information, examples, and resources. This guide is a living document and subject to frequent updates. It is recommended to review the document online rather than printing a hard copy.

Deciding on the units to be taught in physical education can often be challenging, and many different factors or influences can impact teachers' decisions. The philosophy of the program, the interest and motivation levels of the students, facilities and equipment needs, and the content knowledge or competence of the physical education teacher…

The basic goals of most fundamental schools include mastering basic skills; knowing and understanding one's history, heritage, and governmental structure, and reasoning in a logical and objective manner; challenging each child to do his best; ensuring accountability; and reinforcing parental teaching of citizenship, respect, discipline, and…

The author suggests that handicapped students should be instructed in functional vocational skills integrated into the academic curriculum and allowed to use whatever "extensions" (such as calculators) that may help them learn. (CL)

In this transcript of "Options in Education," a weekly feature on National Public Radio, a group of experts--George Weber, Reed Whittemore, Goodman Ace, Herbert O. Reid, Albert Shanker, Harold Hodgkinson, Zachary Clements, Joseph Cronin, John Pittenger, and Richard King--interpret the back-to-basics movement. (IRT)

Cites some examples of programs in which students develop basic skills in connection with meaningful activities. (Author/MLF)

Results of a survey of Texas school administrators asked to rank courses of instruction in order of importance. (Author/M LF)

Discusses the pros and cons of national competency testing. (JMB)

Stephen Tchudi, the author of the critique of Hirsch's article on cultural literacy, responds to Hirsch's reponse to his critique and asks: Who gets to define traditional content? (MD)

Suggestions are offered for reteaching basic arithmetic facts to older students who have not mastered them. Suggestions deal with thinking strategies and generalizations and remediation is based on students' understanding of the operation under consideration. (CL)

This book shares the author's experiences implementing the Core Knowledge Sequence in a small town, offering an understanding of why Core Knowledge has been such a positive experience for learners. As the book describes reasons for using the Core Knowledge Sequence, it substantiates them with authentic experiences from administrators, teachers,…

Compares outcomes of the 1970 and 1977 weighted standardization samples for the subtests of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills. On the whole, achievement appears to be consistent between tests for the fourth- and eighth-grade students and no one basic skill shows marked gains or losses. (Author/IRT)

In 1979, the Education Department's steering committee for basic skills coordination worked toward institutionalizing the coordination of basic skills programs at the federal level. This report discusses the committee's objectives and activities during that year in the areas of communication, regulations, organization, monitoring, technical…

The author uses samples of his and his father's college writing to suggest that spelling and punctuation were not taught quite so well in the past as people would have us believe. (IRT)