Reports on the authors' experiences in the Romantic Circles (RC) High School Project. Considers how RC High enables technology to be used as a tool in the study of literature and culture of the past, subjects that often seem dead and remote from a student's concern. (SG)

Offers glimpses into the landscapes of people's lives. Discusses Edith Bruck's "Who Loves You Like This,""Life Stories: Profiles from 'The New Yorker'," and Hugh Sidey's "Portraits of the Presidents: Power and Personality in the Oval Office." (SG)

Considers the reasons Advanced Placement (AP) English teachers might give for their literature selections. Suggests eight works for further reading outside the canon for AP and Honors English Teachers. Lists and gives annotations for 10 "new or overlooked" Young Adult books worth reading. (SG)

Argues, from the author's experience as a Southerner teaching high school English in the South, that since Standard English is more widely accepted and carries more prestige, it is more important to teach it to students who speak other dialects. Argues that to be effective, English teachers must change their own attitudes regarding Standard…

Argues that, in this time of teacher shortage, English educators must all reach out to encourage and help new teachers or struggling veteran teachers. Offers several examples of organized efforts (by professional groups, in districts and as individuals) to address this need. (SR)

Offers brief descriptions from four English teachers of activities they have successfully used with high school English students, dealing with Standard English, cliches and word choice, group vocabulary work, and the love of words. (SR)

Argues that a study of dialects, language attitudes and biases, and issues of power related to language policies should be part of courses for preservice English teachers. Describes class activities that deal with investigating language attitudes, validating linguistic variation, validating all dialects, understanding the politics of language, and…

Describes how the author, teaching at a South Florida high school with many children of Mexican-American migrant workers, shaped his English instruction in scenarios that reflected students' lives and cultures. Shows how class discussions and assignments probed the worthiness of the language used and the reason why it was successful. Argues that…

Discusses what the author has learned in her job at an elementary school in Northeast Mississippi as liaison between English-speaking school personnel and Spanish-speaking students and parents, most of whom are recent immigrants from Mexico. Discusses what the author learned, through extensive talking and questioning of students and parents, about…

Argues that it is important for Black students and for all students to understand that Black English is indeed a language with rules, beauty, and power so that they come to respect it, respect its history, and respect their own bilingualism. (SR)

Describes the Linguistic Affirmation Program (LAP), a comprehensive nonstandard language awareness program for students not proficient in Standard American English, that facilitates the acquisition of Standard American English without devaluing students' home language and culture. Notes its six research-based critical instructional approaches.…

Presents a (fictional) conversation between a college English professor and a graduate student in English who is something of a purist about the language. Shows, in conversations across a semester and a half, her changing attitudes about the rules of good English, "purity" in the language, divided usage, and confusing grammar and usage. (SR)

Discusses the logic, elegance, and history of using they, them, and their as singular indefinite pronouns. Notes that, as a solution to the pronoun problem, the strength of this solution is its vagueness. Offers numerous real-life examples from publications or broadcasts and lists why it is counterproductive for English teachers to exclude this…

Discusses how and why a pedagogy of overt comparison between students' home language (vernacular dialects of English) and school language (standard English) helps students learn the more global features of academic writing and the more sentenced-level features of Standard English. Outlines a pedagogy of overt comparison. Notes it motivates…

Advocates concept-related vocabulary instruction, in which students link individual words with larger literature concepts. Outlines four steps to creating a concept-related vocabulary lesson. Offers examples of how concept-related vocabulary lessons can be conducted while reading, before reading, and after reading. Outlines web, weave, and…