Reports and discusses results of a survey of French students in Middlebury College's summer language school concerning their knowledge about and interest in French newpapers and magazines and data on the circulation and readership of those publications, with emphasis on the importance of regional newspapers. (MSE)

Reports the results of a poll of southeastern Iowa tenth through twelfth graders to find the most popular of 250 recently published books. Genres include fantasy, war stories, contemporary realism, romance, science fiction, horror, and supernatural. Reviews of the readers' choices are included. (RBW)

Argues that the essential discipline in literature is neither learning to write essays for an exam nor keeping up with the latest scholarship but giving close attention to the words on the page and learning to respond to them. (MM)

Attempts to verify or identify a valid operational definition of literary response by determining its constituents through the use of a refined version of the Response Preference Measure. (HOD)

A study examined whether students' reading ability affected their level of aesthetic reading response when reading level-appropriate literature. During the study, 28 fifth graders read books and wrote responses to what they read. Responses were scored on a rubric valuing aesthetic responses that demonstrated personal experiences. Students' reading…

Describes Body Parts Writing, an activity which focuses on the reader's own text-based and self-based interpretations of literature. Notes that the purpose of this activity is to invite and support readers' personal responses and give them a forum to discuss their individual interpretations. Concludes that it provides readers with another way to…

Considers the ways in which the discourses available to children influence their responses to children's literature. Examines boys' and girls' responses after reading to questions focusing on major characteristics of a nontraditional protagonist. Concludes that change will occur gradually as an apathetic attitude is reduced if educators…

Explores how students constructed their own texts and meanings when they were required to read, interpret, and critique unfamiliar text written about underrepresented people. Presents the concepts "conditions,""concessions," and many "tender mercies" of learning through multicultural literature when presented as new literature to a heterogeneous…

Examines reading interests and reading responses to American young adult fiction among students from the multiracial culture of Singapore. Finds that Singapore teenagers need little motivation in reading American young adult fiction because of their positive attitude towards language acquisition. Notes that the teenagers can be sidetracked by the…

Argues that most college students do not enjoy tragedy in literature because they cannot accept the constraints of a tragic world view. Examines the cultural, institutional, and literary trends responsible for students' bored, indifferent, and impatient attitudes toward the teachings of tragedy. (DMM)

Studies the relationship between a teenager's current reading strategies and that same person's reading history. Shows how this investigation was carried out with a single teenager named Derek. Considers the difficulties and complex questions regarding attempts to define and analyze adolescent readers. (HB)

Develops strategies for encouraging students to read a variety of genres and authors. Shows how a program was organized with this end in mind. Discusses what students chose to read and their attitudes and perceptions of their reading and themselves as readers. (HB)

Describes a project conducted by a classroom teacher to examine the effects of children's literature on students' existing attitudes and beliefs toward environmental issues. Outlines instructional procedures used in a unit for sixth grade science students who reexamined their beliefs about endangered species. Describes assessment procedures and…

Argues that instructional activities in teacher education programs can assist preservice teachers in identifying their beliefs. Identifies eight beliefs preservice teachers formulated about reading and literature following one part of a language arts education course in which they designed literature-based learning units. (NH)

Describes the various definitions, characteristics, and aims that educators and researchers have considered when promoting the use of multicultural literature in classrooms. Considers the kinds of knowledge and understanding that adolescent students attain when they read such literature. Proposes a different way of understanding the term…