bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Effectiveness of The Family Mentoring Model in Improving the PENSIKU (Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviour) of Clients and Families in Treating Hypertension
Authors: Ibnu Faisal , Zainuri Imam , Hidayati Rina Nur , Yulianti Indra , Wahab Abdillah Fatkhul
Published: March 2024

Background: Hypertension is the most common disease experienced by the community and usually appears without complaints so that many clients do not know that they have suffered from hypertension. Until now Hypertension is still a major problem and is the first cause of death in the world. Purpose: This study aims to determine the effectiveness of the family assistance model in improving the PENSIKU (knowledge, attitudes and behavior) of clients and families in treating hypertensive hypertension. Methods: The study design used quasi-experimental Non-Randomized Control Group Pre-Test Post Test Design on 120 hypertensive clients and 120 families. The instrument used in this study was the PENSIKU questionnaire. Equality analysis before intervention and control group models was performed with an independent t-test with α = 0.05. To determine the change in the average value of the intervention and control groups using the dependent t-test. Results: The results showed that the Family Assistance Model was effective in improving the PENSIKU (knowledge, attitudes and behavior) of clients and families in treating hypertensive hypertension. This is shown by the increase in client PENSIKU (knowledge, attitudes and behavior) by 7.1% and family PENSIKU (knowledge, attitudes and behavior) by 5.8%.  Conclusions: This model is recommended to be implemented in all community health center areas as an effort to control hypertension.
Study and Analysis of Some Real Life Applications of Exponential Function
Authors: Mahato Suraj Kumar , Sahani Suresh Kumar , Sahani Kameshwar , Sah Binod Kumar , Karna Santosh Kumar
Published: March 2024

The exponential function as a mathematical concept plays an important role in the Corpus of mathematical knowledge, but unfortunately Students have problems grasping it. Paper exposes examples of exponential function application in a real-world (life).One of the most prevalent applications of exponential functions Involves growth and decay models. Exponential growth and decay show up in a host of natural applications. From population growth and continuously compounded Interest to radioactive decay and Newton's law of cooling, exponential functions are ubiquitous in nature. In this section, we examine exponential grown and decay in the context of some of the applications. In the preceding section, we examined a population growth problem in which the population grew at a fixed percentage each year. In that case, we found that the population can be described by an exponential function. A similar analysis will show that any process in which a quantity grows by a fixed percentage each year (or each day, hour etc.) can be modeled by an exponential function. Compound Interest is a good example of such a process. Other applications of exponential function are bacterial growth, bacterial decay, population decline, are obtained in this project.
Social Dynamics, Internet and the Survival of Broadcast Journalism in the 21st Century
Authors: Akpan Uwem , Udoudom Uduak , Nwokeocha Ifeanyi , John Innocent
Published: March 2024

This study looks at how broadcast news on TV and radio is changing in the 21st century because of the internet. The study used a theory that says technology shapes how we use media to see how social things affect how people consume news. Social media is changing how news is spread, and this paper is studying how regular people's content, online groups, and the quick spread of information play a big role. The paper looks at how the internet is changing traditional TV and radio news. The study is checking out challenges and chances that come with everything going digital, from online streaming to regular people reporting news. The paper looks at how old media and new online platforms work together and how they need to be flexible to survive. The study also looks at how people trust and believe in the news, especially with so much information online. Understanding how social things mix with online stories helps us get a better idea of what influences how the public sees and interacts with broadcast news. The study found that broadcast news needs to use social things and the internet to reach more people, but it also needs to keep its integrity and trustworthiness, especially in a time where false information can spread quickly. The study suggests that TV and radio stations should use online platforms to connect with people.
Interplay of Ethical Leadership and Openness to Experience on Readiness for Change and Outcomes
Authors: Iqra Yasmin  , Rafia Yasmin  , Ahmad Din  , Ansar Abbas  , Muhammad Yasir Idrees
Published: March 2024

Ethical leadership influences employee outcomes (creativity) through their readiness to adapt, according to the current study model, which draws inspiration from social learning theory. An ethically led workforce, according to the idea, encourages high levels of innovation and flexibility among workers. This study also provided support for the hypothesis that leaders with high levels of openness to experience are more likely to be ethical leaders, and that this correlation is stronger in leaders with low levels of openness to experience. A quantitative research methodology was used to assess the results. Due to the adoption of a time-lag research strategy, 317 participants were included in the sample. The data came from a variety of sectors in Pakistan. The findings lend support to the idea that employees' flexibility mediates the relationship between moral leadership and creativity. Another noteworthy link between change readiness and ethical leadership is moderated by openness to experience, according to the research. This is the result of the present study's analysis of its theoretical and methodological merits, as well as its implications and future research limitations.
Themes for Two Voices: Children’s Fiction and Nonfiction as “Whole Literature”
Authors: Crook Tricia R. , Lehman Barbara A.
Published: March 2024

Enjoy both the connections and the resources in this article about how to build literature-based curriculum that goes beyond just the use of fiction.
“It was The Worst Of Times”: Learning About the Holocaust Through Literature
Authors: Zack Vicki
Published: March 2024

Literature helps children deal with an issue for our times and for future generations.
Classroom Organization: Thematic Centers Revisited
Authors: Staab Claire
Published: March 2024

The business-as-usual, skill-centered ap- proach can go on even if a classroom has thematic centers. This article discusses the characteristics of centers that are truly thematic.
Shouting from the Tops of Buildings: Teachers as Learners and Change in Schools
Authors: Wollman-Bonilla Julie E.
Published: March 2024

What goes on in classrooms results from a combination of many factors. This article describes how staff developers and teachers learn from one another.
Grading and Evaluation Techniques for Whole Language Teachers
Authors: Linek Wayne M.
Published: March 2024

Classroom organization and evaluation are often treated as distinct topics. But they are inseparable in thinking about a classroom that works well.
Learning about Phonics in a Whole Language Classroom
Authors: Freppon Penny A. , Dahl Karin L.
Published: March 2024

The debate in this article is not about the usefulness of phonics in reading but about how phonics is learned and taught
The Code, Connectionism, and Basals
Authors: Murphy Sharon
Published: March 2024

Sharon Murphy believes that Marilyn Adams is fundamentally wrong in Beginning to Read. In this article she explains why.
Understanding Nonfiction: Purpose, Classification, Response
Authors: Hess Mary Lou
Published: March 2024

Here are some ways to get children reading, understanding, and responding to nonfiction materials.
The Teacher’s Role in Whole Language
Authors: Sumara Dennis , Walker Laurie
Published: March 2024

An analysis of two teachers presents conclusions about roles whole language teachers adopt in their classrooms.
Transforming Deficit Myths About Learning, Language, and Culture
Authors: Flores Barbara , Cousin Patricia Tefft , Díaz Esteban
Published: March 2024

Too often it is assumed that children who come from non-mainstream backgrounds are at risk just because they are from non-mainstream backgrounds. This article puts to rest the deficit myths about such children and proposes alternative ways of seeing the strengths they bring to the language arts classroom.
A Critique of the Concept of At Risk as Applied to Emergent Literacy
Authors: Pellegrini Anthony D.
Published: March 2024

Being at risk implies something is wrong—either with children and their families or with the school. But Pellegrini sees it differently. He suggests that the reason children fail is because they are not familiar with the contexts in which they are expected to learn in school.
Following the Trail of Story
Authors: Wolf Shelby Anne
Published: March 2024

Children follow different trails into literacy. This case study shows one young child’s trail—her responses to Hansel and Gretei over a period of 4 years.
Fostering Full Access to Literacy by Including Information Books
Authors: Pappas Christine C.
Published: March 2024

This analysis of a kindergartnet’s “readings” shows that young children can process nonfiction texts very well—if they’re given the chance.
A New “Picture of the World”: The NCTE Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children
Authors: Vardell Sylvia
Published: March 2024

NCTE’s Orbis Pictus Award celebrates nonfiction works for children. In this article we learn about the award and about what makes good nonfiction books.
The Language of Whole Language
Authors: Dudley-Marling Curt , Dippo Don
Published: March 2024

The authors discuss some of the pitfalls to be avoided in the rhetoric and classroom practices of whole language so that whole language itself doesn’t become another dinosaur in the graveyard of educational innovations.
Learning to Read in New Zealand: The Balance of Skills and Meaning
Authors: Goldenberg Claude
Published: March 2024

Goldenberg’s analysis of reading instruction in New Zealand prompts us to reexamine our thinking about the role of skills in literacy instruction.
Worksheets Anonymous: On the Road to Recovery
Authors: Ford Michael P.
Published: March 2024

Here’s help for all those compulsive worksheet users in language arts classrooms.
“I Just Watched”: Family Influences on One Child’s Learning
Authors: Voss Margaret M.
Published: March 2024

This teacher-research study clearly shows that we must understand children’s families if we are to afford them the best opportunities for learning in the language arts classroom.
Emerging Biliteracy and Cross-Cultural Sensitivity in a Language Arts Classroom
Authors: De la Luz Reyes María , Lalibert Eloise Andrade , Orbanosky Judith M.
Published: March 2024

Very positive and somewhat surprising things happen when a teacher makes both English and Spanish prestige languages in the language arts classroom.
Like Happy Dreams- Integrating Visual Arts, Writing, and Reading
Authors: Alejandro Ann
Published: March 2024

Not only are the arts not a fringe in the curriculum, but they may also represent a unique hope for getting beyond the skill-and-drill curriculum that is so often imposed on children from poor and “non-mainstream” backgrounds.
Lessons from Douglas: Expanding Our Visions of What It Means to “Know”
Authors: Clyde Jean Anne
Published: March 2024

The story of Douglas shows us how important it is not to limit children to what is spoken or written in their efforts to make and share meaning.
“Bad Examples” as Interpretive Opportunities: On the Need for Whole Language to Own Its Shadow
Authors: Field James C. , Jardine David W.
Published: March 2024

If whole language doesn’t own up to its bad examples, will monsters come out of the shadows?
Hypertext Literacy: Observations from the ElectroText Project
Authors: Anderson-Inman Lynne , Horney Mark A. , Chen Der-Thanq , Lewin Larry
Published: March 2024

Reading hypertext materials offers interesting possibilities and new challenges for language arts instruction.
Multiple Ways of Knowing: Curriculum in a New Key
Authors: Leland Christine H. , Harste Jerome C.
Published: March 2024

A critical insight for language arts educators is that knowing and learning are not merely language processes, nor are they merely cognitive processes.
Hearing Voices, Telling Tales: Finding the Power of Reading Aloud
Authors: Wood Katie
Published: March 2024

The importance of reading aloud to children has been demonstrated in the results of over 75 years of educational research. This article convincingly shows that the power of reading aloud applies to adults also.
Changing Portfolio Process: One Journey toward Authentic Assessment
Authors: Kieffer Ronald D. , Morrison Linda S.
Published: March 2024

A teacher and a university professor collaborate in an ongoing attempt to integrate assessment with classroom instruction.
From Teacher-Led to Peer Discussions about Literature: Suggestions for Making the Shift
Authors: Wiencek Joyce , O’Flahavan John F.
Published: March 2024

Teachers always have important questions as they move toward using peer discussions in their classrooms. This article addresses many of these questions.
Discussing Our Questions and Questioning Our Discussions: Growing into Literature Study
Authors: Gilles Carol , Dickinson Jean , McBride Cheryl , Vandover Marc
Published: March 2024

Getting those “grand conversations” about literature going in the classroom takes persistence, reflection, and an ability to adapt, as these three teachers’ stories show.
Cultural Identity and Response to Literature: Running Lessons from Maniac Magee
Authors: Enciso Patricia E.
Published: March 2024

This story of a classroom discussion of Maniac Magee lets us see how literature discussions can help both teachers and students understand their own and others’ cultural and social identities.
Using Oral and Written Language to Increase Understanding of Math Concepts
Authors: Fortescue Chelsea M.
Published: March 2024

The language arts come together with mathematics in this third-grade teacher’s efforts to help her students understand math concepts better.
Students’ Understandings of Metaphors in Teachers’ Talk about Writing
Authors: Mccarthey Sarah J.
Published: March 2024

Observations of students’ and teachers’ use of metaphors in process writing instruction shed light on the role of talk in writing development.
The Double-Edged Sword: Fantasy And Censorship
Authors: Tunnell Michael O.
Published: March 2024

Fantasy and fairy tales are frequent targets of censorship attempts. This article provides a defense against such attacks.
Guiding Bilingual Students “Through” the Literacy Process
Authors: Kucer Stephen B.
Published: March 2024

Helping children whose native language is not English develop proficiency in the language arts remains one of the biggest challenges to educators in the United States. Kucer’s research gives insight into how to help children develop useful reading and writing strategies.
Literature, the Disciplines, and the Lives of Elementary School Children
Authors: Barone Tom , Eeds Maryann , Mason Kathleen
Published: March 2024

The roles of literature in the curriculum and in the lives of children is a central issue for language arts educators. The children’s words in this article help us understand those roles much better.
Teaching and Learning about Student Goal Setting in a Fifth-Grade Classroom
Authors: Carroll Jacquelin H. , Christenson Charlene Noelani-Kahuanui
Published: March 2024

Giving children more of a role in determin- ing their learning goals is an important aspect of curriculum that language arts educators continue to strive for as we move into the 21st century. Based on classroom research, this article gives practical, well-grounded suggestions for making it happen.
A-X-Y-N-T Means Grandma’s Eyes Are Getting Better
Authors: Bintz William P.
Published: March 2024

Texts as meaning potentials: an idea to keep in mind as we conceptualize reading instruction for the 21st century.
Learning Contracts and Transaction: A Natural Marriage in the Middle
Authors: Greenwood Scott C.
Published: March 2024

Contracting with middle school students can be a way of building community and language arts skill at the same time.
The Mr. and Mrs. Club: The Value of Collaboration in Writers’ Workshop
Authors: Freedman Ruth Ann
Published: March 2024

In the context of writing workshop, another kind of community develops, a club in which children write with and for each other.
Yet Another Story: Writers’ Workshop Revisited
Authors: Sudol David , Sudol Peg
Published: March 2024

In a continuation of an exchange begun by their previous LA article about a writers’ workshop in Peg’s elementary school classroom, the Sudols revisit Peg’s classroom in a different school.
Detours and Destinations: One Teacher’s Journey into an Environmental Writing Workshop
Authors: Kucera Cheryl A.
Published: March 2024

By systematically reflecting on their writing instruction, teachers can make their classroom practice better, as this teacher-research project shows.
A Vygotsky-Based Curriculum for Teaching Persuasive Writing in the Elementary Grades
Authors: Burkhalter Nancy
Published: March 2024

Persuasive writing is difficult to learn and teach in elementary schooly but this research gives us insight into how it can be done.
Teaching Writing for Today’s Demands
Authors: Downing Shannon O’Hearn
Published: March 2024

Sometimes we have deadlines that must be met Here is a way of helping students meet writing deadlines.
Teacher Reflection as a Cure for Tunnel Vision
Authors: Evans Karen S.
Published: March 2024

The importance of not getting caught within one’s own narrow vision when reflecting on classroom practice is well illustrated in this teacher’s account of one year of writing instruction in her fifth-grade class.
Sharing Lives: Reading, Writing, Talking, and Living in a First-Grade Classroom
Authors: Galda Lee , Bisplinghoff Betty Shockley , Pellegrini A. D. , Stahl Steven
Published: March 2024

classroom teacher and university researchers talk about how new relationships were built in a first-grade classroom to enhance the literacy and living taking place.
A Process Approach to Literacy Using Dialogue Journals and Literature Logs with Second Language Learners
Authors: de la Luz Reyes María
Published: March 2024

The study was conducted in a classroom that used a process approach to literacy. Ten case studies examined the ability of 6th grade Hispanic bilingual students to construct meaning in dialogue journals and literature logs in first and second language. Journals and literature logs were coded and analyzed for language code (L1/L2), topic, codeswitching, sensitivity to audience, writer’s voice, spelling, and grammatical structures. Findings indicate that students were more effective in constructing meaning in dialogue journals than in literature logs. Success in the journals revealed positive self-images while failure with literature logs evoked poor self-concepts. Findings also suggest that implementation of process approaches can pose its own set of instructional problems that need to be addressed, especially when effectiveness is judged in terms of the particular students involved. For example, although the students in this study were able to write in English before having complete control of the language, their development of complex ideas and the construction of meaning suffered considerably. The length and quality of the writing also degenerated when the topic was imposed, when students found no relevance in the literacy activity, and when they were not assisted in contextualizing writing tasks in their own terms. Overall, mere exposure to standard writing conventions did not improve the students’ use of them. The practice of implementing popular instructional programs without incorporating appropriate social, cultural, and linguistic adaptations appears to be ineffective with L2 learners.
The Writer’s Knowledge and the Writing Process: A Protocol Analysis
Authors: Smagorinsky Peter
Published: March 2024

This study used on-line protocol analysis to contrast the effects on the writing process of knowledge taught in three instructional treatments: Models (declarative knowledge of form), General Procedures (declarative knowledge of form plus general procedural knowledge related to content plus procedural knowledge related to form), and Task-Specific Procedures (declarative knowledge of form plus task-specific procedural knowledge related to content plus procedural knowledge related to form). Pretest and posttest protocols from six students in each treatment measured treatment effects on the processes of students writing essays involving extended definition. Students in the Models treatment made weak improvements in relating the elements of definition and did not think critically about the concepts being defined. Students in the General Procedures treatment made gains in linking ideas according to particular task constraints and improved their critical thinking skills. Students in the Task-Specific Procedures integrated their ideas purposefully, thought critically about the concepts being defined, and appeared to establish a conversational voice to anticipate composing needs.
Reading, Writing, and Knowing: The Role of Disciplinary Knowledge in Comprehension and Composing
Authors: Ackerman John M.
Published: March 2024

To explore how writers with extensive experience and learning in an academic discipline used both topical and rhetorical knowledge to construct synthesis essays, 40 graduate students equally representing the two disciplines of psychology and business wrote synthesis essays on either supply-side economics or rehearsal in memory. Half of the writers completed think-aloud protocols, and their composing processes were analyzed for different qualities and frequencies of elaborations and rhetorical awareness and for task representation. Their written products (40 essays) were analyzed for the importance and origin of information and for the quality of key rhetorical moves. Analyses of variance revealed that high-knowledge writers evidenced more local and evaluative elaborations as well as an awareness of rhetorical contexts. They also included more new information in their essays in the top levels of essay organizations. Low-knowledge writers elaborated less but did rely on structural and content-based awareness to compose, factors which also were influenced by specific topics and disciplines, and they included comparable amounts of borrowedimplicit information in their essays. Intercorrelations of process and product features revealed that evaluative elaborations and awareness of rhetorical context corresponded with the presence of new information in essays for all 40 writers, suggesting that prior knowledge of an academic topic may take the form of a complex, situational strategy for composing. The findings confirm the interrelatedness of comprehension and composing processes and illustrate how writers, with varying levels of topic familiarity, use both their knowledge of disciplinary topics and their experience as readers and writers to compose synthesis essays.
Conceptualizing and Measuring Knowledge Change Due to Writing
Authors: Schumacher Gary M. , Nash Jane Gradwohl
Published: March 2024

This article reviews the recent complex and somewhatc onfusing evidence on writing-to-learn and discusses why this lack of clarity exists. It then draws on the field of cognitive psychology to offer a way to reconceptualize how researchers might approach the study of the impact of writing on learning. This reconceptualization involves a modification in both how researchers select writing tasks and conditions in writing-to-learni nvestigationsa nd how they assess the possible knowledge changes due to writing. In the selection of writing tasks and conditions, it is suggested that researchers draw on theories of knowledge change to guide their selections. Four basic theoretical mechanisms potentially related to knowledge change due to writing are discussed. In the measurement of knowledge change, it is argued that writing may more likely influence structural than reproductive aspects of knowledge. Five methods for assessing structural changes in knowledge due to writing are considered.
Viewpoints: The Word and the World—Reconceptualizing Written Language Development Or Do Rainbows Mean a Lot to Little Girls?
Authors: Dyson Anne Haas
Published: March 2024

Arguing that current research has fragmented educators’ vision of both written language and development, this article aims to contribute to a more integrative vision, one that preserves the integrity of written language as a symbol system. Based on a critical consideration of literature both on written language growth and on the role of symbols in human experience, the article suggests five principles that would seem to characterize written language development: the establishment of equivalences, exploration and orchestration of the system, reliance on shifting relationships of form and function, differentiation and integration of symbolic functions, and participation in social dialogue. These principles highlight the dialectical relationship between function and form, between child construction and adult guidance. The articulated vision of development differs in fundamental ways from most current viewpoints, as it does not consider written language as simply an extension of the child’s oral language but as the evolution of a distinct symbolic option with links to the child’s entire symbolic repertoire. The implications of this viewpoint for both sociopolitical and pedagogical issues of literacy construction in early schooling are discussed.
Exploring the Meaning-Making Process through the Content of Literature Response Journals: A Case Study Investigation
Authors: Hancock Marjorie R.
Published: March 2024

This investigation sought to determine how the active meaning-making process of 10 sixth-grade students with above average reading and writing ability was reflected in their written responses to four books of realistic fiction. Students kept literature response journals to record their ongoing thoughts and reflections during the reading process. The nine-point categorization scheme that emerged from the content of students’ responses was used to analyze the journals of 4 of these students in order to determine individual response styles. Further analysis revealed the sequence of response for these 4 students during each quarter of their reading and writing. The study suggests how complex and unique response to literature is for even upper elementary and middle school students
Selected Writing Behaviors of Fifth Graders As They Composed Original Mathematics Story Problems
Authors: Winograd Ken
Published: March 2024

This five-month study examined the writing behavior of 8 fifth-grade students as they composed original mathematics story problems. An analysis of observations indicated that students developed three strategies for writing story problems. First, students usually engaged in question-directed behavior during problem writing. After they identified the general problem topic, students generated the culminating question that they then used to guide composition of the problem text. At other times, students used a free association strategy: They generated their information by making associations with the general topic, wrote the problem text, and then identified the culminating question. Finally, all students developed techniques to make their problems more difficult. Overall, the analysis of students, problem writing behavior contributes to an understanding of the story-problem writing process. The study further suggests that students may be able to collaborate effectively with teachers in writing the mathematics curriculum.
The Role of Task in the Development of Academic Thinking through Reading and Writing in a College History Course
Authors: Greene Stuart
Published: March 2024

The purpose of this study was to examine how different writing tasks influence students’ thinking in reading and writing. The tasks used in this study, writing either a report or a problem-based essay, required students to integrate prior knowledge with information from six sources in order to create their own texts. The 15 undergraduates, enrolled in a seminar on European history, were randomly assigned to one of two task conditions, report or problem. Analyses focused on students’ acquisition of topic knowledge and the ways writers structured meaning as they organized and selected information. For insights into how writers approached these two tasks, all students provided think-aloud protocols and kept reading-writing logs. Classroom observations also provided information about contextual factors that can influence the strategies students use in reading to create their own texts. Comparisons made between the two groups revealed that they differed significantly in their interpretations of the two tasks and in their approaches to restructuring information from sources. However, there was no difference between the amount of prior knowledge that students writing reports and problem-based essays included in their essays, nor were there differences in learning. Both groups of students improved their understanding of a given historical event. Possible directions for future research are discussed.
A Peer Editor Strategy: Guiding Learning-Disabled Students in Response and Revision
Authors: Stoddard Barbra , MacArthur Charles A.
Published: March 2024

This study investigated the effectiveness of an approach to improving revising skills that integrated strategy instruction, peer response, and word processing. Seventh and eighth grade students with learning disabilities were taught a systematic strategy for working in pairs to help each other revise their writing. The strategy was designed to guide students in both the social and cognitive aspects of response and revision. Cognitive support included a set of evaluation criteria, specific revision strategies, and an overall strategy for regulating the revision process. Social interaction was guided by a predictable structure for listening and responding to each others’ writing. A multiple probe design across pairs was used to assess instruction. On the pretests, students made few substantive revisions and did not improve the quality of their papers by revising them. Following instruction, all students made more substantive revisions, the proportion of revisions rated as improvements increased from 47% to 83%, and second drafts were rated as significantly better than first drafts. Furthermore, the overall quality of final drafts increased substantially from pretests to posttests. The gains were maintained at one and two-month maintenance testing and generalized to handwritten compositions.
The Effects of Sentence Combining on the Reading Comprehension of Fourth Grade Students
Authors: Wilkinson Phyllis A. , Patty Del
Published: March 2024

Researchers have frequently examined the effects of sentence combining (SC) practice upon writing and found positive results. Researchersh ave also investigatedt he effects of writing practice on reading comprehension. But these results have been mixed because of problems in design, the measures used, instructional variables, and the lack of a theoretical base to explain divergent outcomes. The purpose of the current study was to identify effects of SC practice upon reading comprehension and to determine whether cohesion knowledge would be augmented and, if so, whether enhanced cohesion knowledge would affect comprehension. Sixty- five grade 4 students met with a researcherf or 16 instructional sessions. Students in the experimental group devised narratives from sets of cued and uncued kernel sentences, while the control group read compiled narratives developed by the experimental group and then completed crossword puzzles, a “placebo” treatment. The study found statistically significant results on the Stanford Reading Test, positive results approaching significance on cloze passages with structure /function word deletions, but no positive results on passages with content word deletions. These results indicate that SC practice may have enhanced cohesion knowledge and general comprehension. They also suggest that children may effectively learn to attend to semantic and syntactic repetitions that form “chains of cohesion” following SC practice but not after merely reading the same texts.
Educational Criticism as a Form of Qualitative Inquiry
Authors: Flinders David J. , Eisner Elliot W.
Published: March 2024

This essay describes some of the primary features of educational criticism, an arts-based approach to qualitative inquiry. We first examine the aims of this approach, focusing on its potential to heighten our perceptions of the classroom. We next discuss four dimensions of educational criticism: descriptive (intended to vividly render the qualities that constitute an educational performance or product); interpretative (represented in the conceptual frameworks that allow critics to account for the attributes and patterns of interaction they have observed); normative (involving a process of articulating those values that inform conceptions of goodness within a given domain); and thematic (concerned with the utility of extracting some type of general understanding, image, principle, or lesson that transcends the particular of an individual case). Finally, we address questions of rigor as they apply to educational criticism and other forms of qualitative research. Specifically, we identify three criteria (consensual validation, structural corroboration, and referential adequacy) appropriate for assessing the credibility of such work. In suggesting criticism as one potential model for educational inquiry, we hope to encourage those researchers who seek to create compelling and richly textured accounts of current classroom practice.
A Comparison of Children’s Development of Alphabetic Knowledge in a Skills-Based and a Whole Language Classroom
Authors: Mclntyre Ellen , Freppon Penny A.
Published: March 2024

This study examined how 6 low-income children developed alphabetic knowledge in two different instructional settings, skills-based and whole language. Three learners from each setting were matched on their level of literacy experience at the beginning of kindergarten and on their level of achievement at the end of first grade. They were observed twice a week in their regular kindergarten and first grade classroom contexts. All 6 children learned alphabetic concepts and skills necessary for successful reading and writing, and the pattern of acquisition was similar across the two year period in both instructional settings despite differences in the pace of the children’s acquisition of alphabetic knowledge. The learners in the skills-based classroom acquired alphabetic knowledge primarily through reading basals and writing from teacher prompts. The children in the whole language classroom acquired the same knowledge reading self-selected literature and writing texts with self-selected topics. Both instructional settings provided explicit phonics instruction (albeit contextualized differently), and both settings provided time for children to read self-selected books and to write. These common components may be necessary in beginning literacy instructional programs.
Annotated Bibliography of Research in the Teaching of English
Authors: Saks A. L. , Larson Richard L.
Published: March 2024

Editor’s Note: Selected, annotated bibliographies of research in the teaching of English appear in the May and December issues of RTE. In general, the items selected for inclusion in each bibliography are drawn from the dissertation abstracts in DAI and from articles or books published from July to December preceding the May issue and from January to June preceding the December issue. Annotations of items from DAI are based on the abstracts; annotations of other items are based on the full texts of those items.

We ask readers to call our attention to published research we may have overlooked inadvertently or to notify us of newly published books containing research in the areas covered by the bibliography for possible inclusion in the review. Please direct questions or comments to Richard L. Larson, 30 Greenridge Ave., 5-H, White Plains, NY 10605-1237.
Why Don’t They “Just Speak?” Attempting Literature Discussion with More and Less Able Readers
Authors: Wollman-Bonilla Julie E.
Published: March 2024

This study analyzes two literature discussion groups in a sixth-grade classroom. The analyses investigate the purpose for discussion as constructed by the members of each group and the kind of discussions that took place. The students were placed in these groups on the basis of reading ability. Collected over the course of a school year, data include audiotapes and transcripts of group meetings, field notes describing observations of meetings and other classroom interactions, and interviews with students and the teacher. Although the teacher wanted both groups to engage in informal discussion, only the group composed of more able readers constructed a conversation in which students participated eagerly and valued each others’ contributions. In contrast, the group composed of less able readers constructed a more teacher-dominated activity in which students seemed reluctant to participate voluntarily, display their knowledge, or construct meaning collaboratively. This study suggests several possible reasons why the less able readers did not respond to the teacher’s invitation to participate in informal discussions of literature
The Importance of Classroom Context: Literacy Development of Children Prenatally Exposed to Crack/Cocaine — Year Two
Authors: Barone Diane
Published: March 2024

This article describes the patterns of literacy development in children froms table home environments who were prenatally exposed to crack or cocaine. The article includes a brief overview of observations from the first year of study followed by a focus on patterns of development observed during Year Two. During the second year, the children continued to develop in what is considered to be an age appropriate manner, with onlys even children receiving special education support. A few children experienced setbacks in their learning, but there seemed to be reasonable causes for these setbacks. During this secondy ear, the importance of classroom context, as established by the teacher, became an important aspect in the literacy developmeont this group of children. The article concludes with one case study highlighting the importance of classroom context in a child’s literacy development.
Confidence and Competence in Writing: The Role of Self-Efficacy, Outcome Expectancy, and Apprehension
Authors: Pajares Frank , Johnson Margaret J.
Published: March 2024

This study investigated the relationships among self-confidence about writing, expected outcomes, writing apprehension, general self-confidence, and writing performance in 30 undergraduate preservice teachers over one semester. Results supported social cognitive theory and prior findings reporting a relationship between confidence in one’s writing abilities and subsequentw riting performance. A regression model consisting of the variables noted above and a pre-performance measure accounted for 68% of the variance in writing performance. Students’ beliefs about their own composition skills and the pre-performance measure were the only significant predictors. Writing apprehension was negatively correlated with writing self-confidence but was not predictive of writing performance. General self-confidence was correlated with writing self-confidence, expected outcomes, apprehension, and performance but was not predictive of writing performance in the regression model. Results and implications are discussed, especially as they relate to the need for context-specific assessments of confidence in one’s own capabilities and to pedagogical obligations.
Responding to Ninth-Grade Students via Telecommunications: College Mentor Strategies and Development over Time
Authors: Duin Ann Hill , Lammers Elizabeth , Mason Lisa D. , Graves Michael F.
Published: March 2024

The goal of this study was to expand our understanding of mentoring situated within electronic exchanges. Focusing on three graduate and five undergraduate mentors’ responses via telecommunications, we explored the strategies mentors used to make their reading and understanding of the texts explicit to their students, the responses mentors provided to demonstrate how students might revise, and mentors’ perceptions toward mentoring. Mentors responded to eight drafts from 24 ninth-grade students over an eight-week period, generating an average of 20 comments per student draft. Data collected included response grids of each mentor’s comments to students, interviews with mentors midway and at the end of the study, and journals kept by the mentors. Results showed that mentor pre-project expectations about responses they might make to students did not correspond to their actual responses, and that as the project progressed, mentor responses formed patterns corresponding to the draft of the students’ writing assignment. Additional differences were found based on mentors’ previous teaching experience, gender, and requests for feedback. Mentors expressed as their greatest difficulty not knowing which comments were perceived by students as most helpful
Prose Modeling and Metacognition: The Effect of Modeling on Developing a Metacognitive Stance toward Writing
Authors: Stolarek Elizabeth A.
Published: March 2024

Modeling of exemplary samples of prose has been a commonly used method of teaching composition skills. But little research has been done on the effectiveness of using prose modeling in the composition classroom, and even instructors who use prose modeling in their instruction often question its value. This study examines the differences in response between expert and novice writers who were asked to write essays in an unfamiliar prose form after having been given different sets of instructions, some of which included a model of the unfamiliar prose form. The results of the study indicate that novice writers who are given a model of an unfamiliar prose form to imitate respond in a manner which is more introspective and evaluative and far more similar to the responses of expert writers than do novice writers who are not given a model.
Rhetorical Strategies in Student Persuasive Writing: Differences between Native and Non-Native English Speakers
Authors: Ferris Dana R.
Published: March 2024

Persuasive/argumentativew riting is an importanta nd difficult mode of discourse for student writers. It is particularly problematic for non-native speakers, who often bring both linguistic and rhetorical deficits to the task of persuasion in English. This study analyzed 60 persuasive texts by university freshman composition students, half of whom were native speakers and half of whom were non-native speakers of English for 33 quantitative, topical structure, and rhetorical variables. The results showed clear differences between the essays of native and non-native speakers. These results and their implications for second language composition instruction are discussed.
Writing About and Learning from History Texts: The Effects of Task and Academic Ability
Authors: Newell George E. , Winograd Peter
Published: March 2024

This study examined the effects of three study conditions (review only, study questions, and analytic essay writing) on high school students writing and learning from text (concept application, immediate recall, delayed recall, and recall of manipulated content). An experienced social studies teacher and two levels (general and academic) of her eleventh grade U.S. history course participated in the research. Observational and case study techniques were employed to describe the teacher’s pedagogy, and then a volunteer group of students from each class read, reviewed or wrote about their reading, and were tested on learning from selected history passages. Analyses of the students’ writings indicated their varying approaches to studying and writing about the passages. Both forms of writing enabled both groups to perform better on all learning measures, with the academic students consistently outperforming the general students. Analytic writing was associated with higher scores on concept application, while study questions led to better general recall in the immediate and delayed conditions. When recall was further analyzed for the number of content units contained in the written responses to the two writing tasks, more content units appeared in the analytic writing in both the immediatea nd delayedc onditions. Although the general students’ performanceso n this posttest measure were not as strong as the academic students’ performances, they benefited more from analytic writing than from answering study questions about the history passages. Because both instructional context and academic ability seem to influence students’ performances on writing-to-learn tasks, the study suggests the need for research that will disentangle these influences to identify the effects of pedagogy and student ability on learning from writing.
The Writing Conference as Performance
Authors: Newkirk Thomas
Published: March 2024

This study uses the performative theory of Erving Goffman to understand the conversational roles taken on by students and teachers during college-level writing conferences. According to Goffman, both teacher and student are engaged in the performance of roles, and they cooperate so that discrepant information (revelations that might undermine these roles) are not revealed. Some of that information can come out, however, in what Goffmanc alls “backstage” areas. This study creates two “backstage” areas where both an instructor and the two students involved can listen to tapes of their conferences and provide commentary about tensions and miscommunications in the conferences. The study particularly examines confusions about terminology concerning unity in writing and the negotiation of roles in the conference. The perspective taken in this study illuminates the specific performative demands of a writing conference, suggesting that because these demands are new to some students, their teachers may need to engage in considerable role-shifting to ease the conversational burden and help the students “save face.”
The Role of Classroom Context in the Revision Strategies of Student Writers
Authors: Yaqelski Robert P.
Published: March 2024

This article reports on a study of the relationship between classroom context and the revisions of student writers. Specifically, the study examined the nature of the instructional context of the writing in one senior high school classroom and explored potential connections between particular features of the teacher’s approach to writing instruction and the frequency and types of revisions students in that class made to their essays. Drafts of students’ essays were coded for revisions, and results of the coding were examined with reference to specific features of the instructional method and related features of classroom context. Results of the study indicate that students in the present study, like students in some previous studies of revision, focused their revisions on surface and stylistic concerns. The study suggests that specific features of the classroom context, particularly the workshopstyle structure of the course, the interactions among students and the teacher regarding the students’ writing, and the nature of the teacher’s strategies for responding to and evaluating students’ writing, may have reinforced the teacher’s and students’ traditional views of writing quality and revision and may have thus contributed to the students’ focus on lower-level concerns in revision.