A practicum was developed which used improvisation and mapping strategies in the teaching of Shakespearean drama to increase comprehension and to develop a more positive attitude toward Shakespeare and drama in general. Subjects were a target group of 15 students enrolled in a ninth grade English class at a preparatory institution. Subjects, who…

The literary theorist Terry Eagleton believes that literary study is the study of human discourse. To build on his idea for use in the classroom, it must first be assumed that literature constitutes a dialogue between the work (and its author) and the reader. The dialogue process can be introduced in a 2- to 4-week unit through a cluster of…

Emphasizing language as a means of communication and as a learning tool, this guide to curriculum planning presents a conceptual framework for a kindergarten through grade twelve language arts program emphasizing the integration of listening, speaking, reading, writing, and media use. The content and skills sections in the guide include a…

Despite a growing trend to split the two areas, literature belongs in the composition class. In responding to literature, students can trace their own developing thought. They acquire, through literary discourse, a tool of discovery. This tool closely resembles expressive discourse, the mode, as James Kinneavy suggests in "A Theory of…

The first of seven related guides, this curriculum guide for seventh grade English outlines opportunities for students to use the skills they have acquired previously, to be involved in well-planned educational experiences in critical thinking and in oral and written expression, and to develop an understanding of others. The first half of the…

The second of seven related guides, this curriculum guide for eighth grade English outlines opportunities for students to use the skills they have acquired previously, to be involved in well-planned educational experiences in critical thinking and in oral and written expression, and to develop an understanding of others. The first half of the…

The third of seven related guides, this curriculum guide for ninth grade English outlines opportunities for students to use the skills they have acquired previously, to be involved in well-planned educational experiences in critical thinking and in oral and written expression, and to develop an understanding of others. The first half of the guide…

Designed to demonstrate a variety of ways in which listening, speaking, reading, and writing activities can be built around the study of the drama in the classroom, this collection of materials, lessons, and activities deals with one of the plays most frequently taught in New York City ninth-grade classrooms. The document begins with a general…

A year-long study designed to create a high school English course entitled "Guided Literature" is described in this report. The described course was intended to provide literature instruction for nonmotivated poor readers at the eleventh and twelfth grade levels, and was structured so that students could read materials they found…

Visual literacy--an increasingly important skill that has lately been added to the wide range of skills that reading/English teachers are expected to teach--can be coupled with lessons in literary appreciation through the medium of the adolescent novel. Since students participate in a great deal of television viewing, it is as important for them…

Essays and reports useful to English teachers are collected under four headings: (1) "Issues and Problems" contains a 1959 report on the basic issues of teaching English, the Report of the Language Committee of the School and College Conference on English (April 1940), and the Report of the Literature Committee of the School and College Conference…

This guide identifies significant language arts objectives and then designates, in terms of the typical or "average" student, the grade level at which each concept or skill should be introduced, then reinforced, and finally mastered. Specific objectives are listed for the following language arts areas: listening, speaking, reading readiness…

In this description of two antithetical opinions concerning freshman English program objectives, cases are presented for the language skills improvement and literature appreciation points of view. Such factors as (1) class size, (2) instructor work load and research potential, and (3) student and teacher interests are considered. A discussion of…

Presents an exchange between two English professors who offer opposing perspectives on the profession of English. Covers arguments on the understanding of theory, literary history, reading, curricular design, and pedagogy through the examination of Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Minister's Black Veil." (MM)

To alleviate current instructional and curricular problems, college English departments should cooperate with secondary schools in such areas as teacher training in writing instruction, reduction of teaching loads, and grading of papers of college-preparatory students. Colleges should also consider establishing admission requirements of four years…