Looks at reading as a transaction between the reader, the text, and the reading situation that leads to the construction of meaning that is particular to that reading. Describes L. Rosenblatt's ideas about reading stances, efferent and aesthetic. Discusses instructional implications of aiding children in their creation of individual meanings in…

Asks why students read essays as if their meanings are simple, univocal, and transparent. Suggests that students grow up practicing "essayist literacy," a view of the text as a self-sufficient communication vehicle. Argues that a rhetoric of deproduction conceals the social process of writing behind the apparent artlessness of the plain…

Compared the responses of four Pacific-islander readers and four non-Pacific-islander readers of Alan Duff's 1990 novel "Once Were Warriors," about the lives of indigenous Maori people in New Zealand. Non-Pacific-islanders saw parallels in the novel between the Maori and other downtrodden peoples, such as South African blacks, while…

Describes the responses of children in kindergarten through second grade to reading aloud. Finds a proclivity toward a wide range of play with the action, sound, and rhythm of language related to the book's content. Suggests that verbal exclamations such as laughter, changing facial expressions, and imitative gestures are legitimate features of…

Discusses reader-response theory and forces that mitigate against a reading-centered classroom. Asserts that the issues of authority and freedom are crucial but advises against demanding too much at this stage. Focuses on current practice, and suggests beginning with the routines, the "business as usual," of the literature classroom.…

Asserts that the act of writing can create surprising, experimental, supple forms of written discourse. Argues for exploring more mobile, heteroglot, polyphonic forms of writing. Suggests that attempting roles that produce fragmentary texts might lead toward approaching the challenges of composing unified texts from a more enlivening perspective.…

Claims that computer games have little educational value, are antisocial, and classroom time should be spent on more worthwhile pursuits. Argues that computer games are not literary texts in that they cannot inform students of their cultural heritage, provide an opportunity to respond to ethical questions, or deal with significant and lasting…

Reviews perspectives on how children's literature is used in the classroom, and how literature contributes to a broader conception of literacy. Deals with literature as a tool for the development of various sorts of literate abilities, and literature as the enabler of literary understanding. Offers a concrete example involving first and second…

Clarifies the "efferent" and "aesthetic" stance on Louise Rosenblatt's theoretical continuum by relating her model to the plot, characters, and scenes in Lois Lowry's "The Giver." Shows that Rosenblatt's view applies to the ways readers read texts and to the way characters in the texts read their text-worlds. Presents…

Problematizes the word "experience" as it is currently being used by researchers and teachers who want to reform literature instruction in schools and colleges. Discusses how a fresh look at Dewey and Rosenblatt can reconstruct the courtroom and marketplace metaphors as sound alternatives to theories that perpetuate dualistic assumptions…

Attempts to represent the complexity of the web of literary relationships and their transformational space using fragmentary texts that circle around the novel "The English Patient": self as relationship and the dialogic engagement with a book by the patient himself; and the relationship and engagement with this book and with each other of a group…

Presents an overview of critical theory to show how the method of Reader Response evolved. Discusses theories of reading and the reader; variations within reader response; and implementing reader response in literacy programs. Includes a brief response by Robert E. Probst. (RS)

Notes that the author was struck by the "self-centered" readers she encountered in her classroom and at professional conferences--readers who respond to reading by thinking of their own life and experiences. Argues that reading is so much more than a trip into the self. Presents two brief responses, by Lauren L. Wohl and Daniel Hade. (RS)

Concludes that the author's study of the once-popular but now largely forgotten periodical "The Youth's Companion" shows how children's literature can call forth in readers a powerful response--a personal, literary, critical and active response that is shaped by a text's purpose, promise, positioning of readers, and the enduring passion it…

Despite the fact that students are an important component of the educational process, their preferences for instruction are not typically a consideration for classroom practices. The purpose of this survey study was to determine high school students' preferences for methods used in the instruction of literary works of art. Students expressed…