Without a change in grading practices, elective English programs can become simply old programs with new names. (JH)

Sharing explicit grading criteria with students does much to facilitate both student and teacher growth. (JH)

This curriculum guide presents syllabi for seventeen ten-week "midi-courses" for juniors and seniors in high school. For each course, the syllabi contain a course description, goals, subject matter, materials, an annotated list of audio-visual aids, a list of behavioral objectives, some suggested activities, a glossary of terms, and a…

This dissertation examines the basis for adoption and development of elective English programs in the school district of Philadelphia's 21 comprehensive senior high schools. Personal, structured, executive interviews conducted in the work setting with English department heads were the source of data for the study. It was hypothesized that elective…

Discusses curriculum planning and improvement with the focus on the needs of the individual student. (RK)

Discusses an English elective course entitled Supernatural Literature and Communication'' in terms of its literary value, course content, and improvement of basic language skills. (RB)

Samples of elective units are given and the advantages of the system are described. (SP)

Author describes how, without hiring additional teachers, the teaching load was lowered, the language arts curriculum was completely changed, and students and teachers taught and took what they wanted, while teaching and taking what they should" (Author/SP)

Non-college bound seniors in high school were enrolled in a new program that consisted of 20 units of work. Grades were based upon accumulated points. Student interest and motivation were high because they were allowed to work in areas they found interesting while working at their own speed. (Author/LF)

A chart illustrating features of the program at Gonzales (California) High School and a list of basic language skills required for graduation are included. (RD)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the processes and procedures utilized in designing and maintaining the teaching of communication skills in English elective programs. A systematic case-study description was made of skills components in the elective English programs in four public secondary schools in Massachusetts. The informational…

This curriculum guide for junior and senior high school courses is divided into two sections. The first section, on seventh to tenth grade English, discusses such topics as grammar, sentence patterns, linguistics, proofreading, spelling, limericks, haiku, vocabulary, interpretation skills, word perception skills, ballads, newspapers, speech,…

This curriculum guide outlines a multiphased elective English program for juniors and seniors in the Wilmington (Massachusetts) high schools. The alternative elective English courses are designed to increase academic achievement while allowing students to select courses on the basis of personal needs, interests, and future expectations. The five…

The essays contained in this issue discuss some of the recent changes in the English curriculum (including the move toward accountability), the increase in the number of elective courses, and the effect of recent innovations on the future of English as a staple of the high school curriculum. Contents include "The English Curriculum: Fossil, Amoeba…

This guide for pre-registration in English classes in 1974-75 outlines the steps for selecting courses from both the required and elective offerings and describes each of the elective subjects. Some of the elective courses available from the total list of 36 include "Writer's Workshop,""Reading Improvement,""Newspaper Production,""Literature of…