Presents three fictional scenarios each based on very different kinds of facts: the very clear data of test scores, the ambiguous data of behaviors, and the concrete but infinitely interpretable data of portfolios. Notes that the data represented by the portfolio is much more appropriate to assessing language competencies than is data represented…

Offers the author's perspective on English education in the 1970s using articles published in "English Journal" while he was editor from 1973 to 1980. (SR)

Argues that, as educators embrace new technology, it is important to look at the tradeoffs. Proposes and discusses five "common denominators" that cut across media and communications technologies, past and future. Offers generalizations about common elements in all language that permit analysis and critique of the new media and help students…

Argues that the English language arts can play a major role in arriving at practical coherence in school curricula because of the unique nature of the discipline and the unique integrative role of language in human experience. Discusses literature in interdisciplinary English and the contributions of English to interdisciplinary curriculum. (SR)

Describes a course for preservice English teachers on descriptive grammar. Discusses definitions and aims and what to do about traditional grammar; transformational-generative grammar; language acquisition; and applied grammar. Presents teaching strategies. (RS)

Discusses "invisible thinking" (responsive critical analysis inseparable from content) and "hypertext" (multilayered multimedia, computer-accessed compilation of data and visual images). Argues that a curriculum focusing on these concepts is more effective in teaching the basics of initial skill mastery and the "higher literacies," such as…

Considers the revolutionary effects of including more interdisciplinary content in English and the idea of teaching English indirectly through a focus on meaning that would result in an "agenda of learning" across the disciplines. (JK)

Offers opposing views on the value of mass testing in English. (JL)

Considers the benefits for kindergarten through college teachers of a two-week interdisciplinary institute called the "Truckee River Community Project." Outlines the objectives and methods of this project, which focused on an intensive study of the Truckee River of the High Sierras in Nevada. Argues for the value of the personal experiences of…

Surveys National Council of Teachers of English Centers of Excellence to learn how good English curricula develop. Discusses the Center of Excellence's origins and development, curriculum approval process, implementation, evaluation and assessment, funding, and obstacles. Concludes that the Centers of Excellence offer a highly professional,…

Argues that English teachers must rediscover and subsequently utilize an interdisciplinary approach to reform the schools. Explores two implications for interdisciplinary study growing from a holistic, process-centered approach to English studies. Suggests that English should become the leader in an interdisciplinary future. (HB)

Describes a cultural exchange program that brought high school writing students to Russia in the spring of 1991 for a writing workshop. Discusses how the writing workshop led to the exchange of folklore, games, social conventions, and ideas between Russian and U.S. students. (PRA)

Explains how teachers may go about planning interdisciplinary units that center on issues concerning the environment. Discusses how to organize units, where to find sources and ideas, and how to negotiate the interdisciplinary terrain. (TB)