This study examined the effects on performance of online access to peer-generated questions during question-generation activities. Two eighth grade classes (N = 63) participated in six weekly question-generation sessions to support English learning. An online student question-generation learning system was adopted. In contrast to expectations…

This article is based upon a larger study that considered three high school literature units in the US. Through a close analysis of one classroom discussion between a teacher and a provocative 8th grade student named Fish, I argue that it is not only ethically responsible to position the Fishes of this world as laudable, but that doing so is…

An effective American History-English course, emphasizing acting, interviewing, and writing skills, is described. (JH)

The English curriculum described in this document emphasizes the use of the following methods for implementing performance objectives: the integrated approach to language arts, the student-centered approach, the activity-oriented approach, the small-group process, the large-group process, and individualized instruction. This document outlines the…

This paper challenges notions of gendered game playing practice implicit in much research into young women's involvement with the computer gaming culture. It draws on a study of Australian teenagers playing "The Sims Deluxe" as part of an English curriculum unit and insights from feminist media studies to explore relationships between…

Describes a project involving cooperative learning and learning centers with eighth grade students. Outlines the procedures used and describes the learning centers that were implemented. Discusses how these approaches provide a balance of individual and teacher-directed learning with interactive and activity-based experiences. (MG)

This unit for the eighth grade is intended to develop, through an inductive approach, the students' understanding of the reasons for the irregularities and difficulties of English spelling. Exercises and lectures on historical background are provided to help students realize that our spelling system is based on late Middle English spelling, that…

These two units of the Minnesota Project English curriculum employ transformational grammar in an attempt to make eighth-grade students aware of fundamental facts about their language. Concepts taught in the first unit are (1) that an infinite number of English sentences exists, (2) that a few basic transformations are the basis for a large number…

This eighth-grade language unit stresses developing the student's sensitivity to variations in language, primarily the similarities and differences between spoken and written language. Through sample lectures and discussion questions, the students are helped to form generalizations about language: that speech is the primary form of language; that…

A poetry unit was developed for a practicum project in a regular eighth-grade English class to improve student participation and to decrease speech anxiety for students. Methods employed within this unit included the use of clarity and structure, classroom environment, student-chosen seating, praise and success, small group activities, share time,…

TWO CURRICULUM SEQUENCES, DESIGNED FOR A GROUP OF PREDOMINANTLY NEGRO SIXTH- AND SEVENTH-GRADERS AND FOR A GROUP OF WHITE SECOND-GENERATION AMERICAN EIGHTH-GRADERS, ARE PRESENTED HERE AS INSTRUCTIONAL GUIDELINES FOR TEACHERS OF DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS. THE SIXTH- AND SEVENTH-GRADE CURRICULUM UNIT ON THE "FAMILY OF MAN" STRESSES INSIGHTS INTO THE…