Discusses the architectonics of four essays: John McPhee's "Travels in Georgia," Richard Rhodes'"Death All Day," and two by student writers. Diagrams each essay, showing how these writers built bridges of words over experiences. (SR)

Argues that an understanding of developments in the 1890s (when disparate strands were brought together as one discipline--English--along with a movement toward uniform standards) can inform responses to current movements and initiatives. Outlines 5 significant initiatives that came to the author's attention during his editorship of "English…

Offers remarks on English teaching published in professional journals from 1886 to 1917, discussing the following questions: "Do I teach students or English or both?"; "Under what circumstances is English teaching done well?"; "What are the consequences of focused attention on English teaching?"; "With what challenges is the English teacher…

Presents reflections of six teacher-researchers who participated in the Center for the Study of Writing and Literacy's M-CLASS, a project that focuses on understanding literacy in multicultural urban English and social studies classrooms. Notes that one issue the group raised is that teacher research often leads to teacher change. (PA)

This paper discusses the objectives for the writing programs for Department of Defense Office of Dependents Schools (DoDDS). Assessment results for 1978-79 writing samples of eighth and eleventh grade students are also presented, along with a summary of students' responses to questions about their writing habits. Test results reported in the paper…

Presents the history of prison education in the state of Utah from its beginning in 1853 at a territorial prison. Includes stories from "The Penwiper," a paper published in the 1930s by students of an English class of the Utah State Prison School. Describes Utah's current philosophy on inmate education and the present status of its…

Argues that literature from other countries, taught as multicultural literature, must be taught in the context of its own literary tradition in order to provide high-quality academic instruction. Offers an example with Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "One-Hundred Years of Solitude" to show how teaching multicultural literature can live up to…

Traces perspectives on gender and gender discrimination over the last several decades, as they affect schools and English classrooms. Discusses feminism/feminisms, "add women and stir," sex differences, resistance and backlash, intersections of identity categories, and multiculturalism. Argues that English teachers can be powerful agents in the…

The average worker spends 2.5 hours per day in occupational reading or writing, yet most classrooms fail to teach the reading and writing competencies required in skilled and semi-skilled job contexts. Occupational reading requires use of external references and following of directions, with a heavy dependence on prior knowledge and on insight.…