A study of two teachers and four secondary level English classes examined how traditional methods of teaching literature were replaced by more interactive and integrated approaches to text, based primarily upon a whole language philosophy. Intervention aspects purposely remained open-ended to accommodate each teacher's understandings and…

A study analyzed in detail one 37-minute classroom literature discussion to better understand how to foster students' critical reasoning. It investigated the characteristics of classroom interactions that support students in the process of responding to literature, the roles of the participants, and how the teacher can structure the tasks and use…

Because students often come to a literary text without the prerequisite knowledge to understand or explicate it fully, they can be thought of as outsiders, needing the help of insiders, or experts in literature, to "learn the text's secrets." Moreover, students often do not fully comprehend how much of literature rests on symbolism that demands…

Articles in this yearbook address the issue of emphasizing the basics in reading development, and also focus on the literary experience. Articles, listed by their authors, include: (1) "A Second Helping" (Myra Cohn Livingston); (2) "Not Only a New Curriculum but a New Teacher" (Marilyn Hanf Buckley); (3) "Reading--A…

Focusing on the need to offer and encourage the experience of reading literature in elementary schools, the essays in this book (1) explicate the range of theory known as reader-response criticism; (2) argue its distinctive relevance to the needs of young, developing readers; and (3) indicate how classroom practices might be changed to accommodate…

This preliminary report sets the Folktale project, an interdisciplinary cooperative effort involving literary criticism, linguistics, the craft of translation, psychology, and statistics, in the context of reading and reading research in the modern world, and discusses experimental reader response research in Denmark as well as in other countries.…

This report, the second of seven, part of an interdisciplinary project on the context of reading and reading research that explores similarities and dissimilarities in the response to literature in readers from different cultures, describes the way in which potentially useful texts, i.e. folktales, were selected by team members. The report first…

A study investigated the role that writing plays in eleventh grade students' understanding of literary texts. Classroom observations, collected student writing, interviews with the teacher, and interviews with six case study students--two from each of three classes--provided a portrait of teaching methods, writing tasks, and student responses to…

Argues that the cultivation of the imagination in schools and colleges is largely ignored because of utilitarian biases in the education system, where achievement is determined by quantitative measures of cognitive skills. Discusses Williams' view that acts of the imagination transform reality and applies view to English education. (JG)

Considers the ramifications of four basic issues that must be resolved in K-12 literary education programs. Points out that teachers of literature need to join current efforts to seek quality in the English curriculum by examining again the content of their programs as well as the methods used to teach. (EL)

Discusses ways in which personal and digressive talk can develop young readers' responses to literature. (HOD)

Argues that it is not enough to teach students the techniques of interpreting literature, but that it is necessary to demand that students develop cultural literacy. States that college teachers need to show students that they too read literature for its bearing on the common life. (MM)

Fables and trickster stories are short narratives that use animal characters with human features to convey folk wisdom and to help people understand human nature and human behavior. These stories were originally passed down through oral tradition and were eventually written down. These lesson plans are intended for students in grades 3-5 and…

This paper presents descriptions of the 10 best young adult novels (and teaching suggestions) appropriate for studying the Holocaust in the middle school. Each description begins with a summary and "hook" that can be used with students, and then ends with discussion for the teacher about reading abilities and applications in the…

This guide to the best books for children published in Australia in 2001 represents the choice of the judges of the Children's Book Council of Australia. The guide presents a shortlist of books in all award categories except that of Older Readers. It provides discussion points for exploring each book, enabling teachers and learners to focus on…