Responds to an earlier article that discusses six new "literacy crises." Discusses explanations provided for these literacy crises with respect to the current crisis in the United Kingdom and also with reference to cross-national comparisons that are adopting the same discourse. (Adjunct ERIC Clearinghouse for ESL Literacy Education) (Author/VWL)

Examines use of the term "whole language" by the mass media, scholarly journals, and interested parties in a college town. Argues disputes about "whole language" have as much to do with cultural, political, and economic issues confronting the United States, and in particular the Southwest, as they do with any conversation about the "best way" to…

Analyzes 13 "published" stories written by young writers during 1 month in a multicultural, mixed-age primary classroom. Finds numerous stereotypical images of dominant males and passive females, but there were also disruptions of gender stereotypes. Suggests teachers need to increase their awareness of how children take up positions as gendered…

Investigates the practice of critical literacy through asynchronous computer networking as students in a school-college collaboration examined assumptions relating to gender issues. Finds the medium proved to be an apt environment--students named experiences relating to gender issues that touched their lives, and students felt free to share ideas…

Reviews 14 studies investigating approaches for teaching children to learn words from context. Finds nearly all treatments were effective compared to a no-treatment control; however, in the 4 studies that included a practice-only treatment, no significant differences were found. Suggests effects of treatments were due to the practice rather than…

Offers a view of the scholarly review process for manuscripts submitted to this journal. Presents an introduction, a manuscript submitted for publication, three reviews of the manuscript, and the author's response. Notes that the rich scholarly dialogue that goes on during the review process is rarely glimpsed in its entirety by most researchers.…

Explores the implications of literacy instruction aimed at "nourishing conversations" about life experiences in literacy classrooms. Emphasizes the sense that students made of their lives when they were allowed to raise their voices through literacy. Argues that curriculum in which adolescents are encouraged to investigate their life experiences…

Focuses on the role of multiple literacies in the lives of Lakota and Dakota (Sioux) young adolescents who lived and attended school in a predominantly White, rural, upper Midwest community. Explores ways they constructed meaning through music, dance, and art. Finds the students explored and expressed their sense of identity and examined critical…

Examines three significant moments in a weekly reading and writing workshop to reflect on the problematic notion of "coming to voice" for African Caribbean girls aged 14 to 15. Concludes by sharing how the inquiry taught the author some salient lessons in listening to research participants' voices and on the politics and ethics of participatory…

Examines the role of cultural background knowledge on the reading comprehension of third graders acquiring literacy in Dutch as a first and second language while reading noncontrived texts from the reading curricula. Finds a facilitating effect of cultural familiarity for both reading comprehension and reading efficiency. Notes that this effect…

Examines two urban 10th-grade English classes of ethnically diverse students in which the teachers diversified literature selections for newly designed ethnic literature curricula. Reports the texts students found most memorable and meaningful, and analyzes the values students found in their encounters with these literary works. (RS)

Suggests social constructivism offers implications for reshaping schooling to correct the gap between the literacy achievement of students of diverse backgrounds and that of mainstream students. Proposes a conceptual framework. Suggests students' literacy will improve as educators address the goal of instruction, home language role, instructional…

Shows that motivation research is generally compatible with and supportive of the whole language philosophy of instruction. Provides explicit motivational reasons why whole language practices might be effective. Suggests whole language classrooms provide settings where motivation researchers can investigate the success of motivation principles,…

Observes, for a school year, a first grader's spontaneous utterances and actions while composing. Identifies seven shifts in the composing process, and identifies four factors that influenced these shifts. Suggests that during the transitional period, a child's ownership of the process is set in a complex relationship with the teacher and peers,…

Investigates first graders' use of analogy in word decoding. Finds students read more words correctly after exposure to analogous clue words, and a dictation task accounted for large proportion of variance on decoding of analogous words. Suggests results clarify previous research, specifically, the helpfulness of clue words in decoding by analogy…