As Dane Peters witnesses the struggles of Middle Eastern countries dealing with violence inflicted by radical groups like the Taliban, al-Qaeda, and ISIS, he asks himself, How can this be happening? How can anyone justify this heartless, inhumane treatment? Is this behavior learned in certain cultures? Perhaps, he considers, for some people it is…

The author came to the United States when she was seven years old from Amman, Jordan. She entered public school and within two years had mastered the language and excelled in school, as did all her siblings. When she was in the third grade her teacher told her she was spelling and pronouncing her name wrong. Her name is "Laila" and that is how it…

Examined name calling and bullying of Gypsy and Show Travellers in Scotland and the schools' response. Found that teachers viewed Gypsy Traveller students as having and presenting more difficulties in school than Show Travellers. Both groups of students experienced frequent bullying and name calling, often not acknowledged by their school.…

In this article, the author discusses students' disrespectful behavior towards their teachers. However, his larger concern is not just that students behave disrespectfully toward their professors. It is that they are increasingly disrespectful to one another, to the point that a serious student has more trouble coping with the behavior of his or…

In this article, the author addresses the concern of a teacher with students who exhibit discipline problems. She presents several suggestions to help make children obey and respect the teacher. Some of her suggestions include: (1) greeting each child by name at the door as they arrive; (2) standing tall and using a firm voice to convey authority;…

In 1984, the Salt Lake City (Utah) school district was one of the first in the nation to set up a public school classroom in a homeless shelter. This book describes one teacher's experiences teaching kindergarten through sixth grade in this "school with no name." Through poignant stories, the book illustrates some lessons learned over 6…

By modulating course requirements, effective classroom management is able to sustain respectable academic standards while making flexible concessions to student petitions. The author's name is a pseudonynm. (MLW)

Appalled by the 47 percent Hispanic dropout rate at South Houston (Texas) High School, one teacher heeds these students' silent bid for attention. Teachers can help Hispanic students participate fully by believing in them, challenging them academically, respecting their names, encouraging them to reach out, appreciating family ties, and boosting…

Advises teachers trying to understand the whole-language approach to not expect to become a whole-language expert immediately; make learning real; make students responsible for daily routines; talk to parents about their children; beware of publishers and workshops that are whole language in name only; and develop a community of readers and…

A deliberation is a discussion aimed at making a decision. In elementary and middle school classrooms, problems that can be tackled with deliberation are, among others, contemplating a new classroom rule, writing a "classroom constitution," and deciding how to share toys fairly. In this article, the author discusses the interactions of students…

Offering glimpses into an English teacher's unorthodox teaching style, this book presents the story of one woman's dedication to her energetic, unruly students and challenges teachers to find their own unique genius within personal and institutional limitations. The book discusses how the teacher (who has spent her entire career at one school)…

Too often, many adult educators are unaware of the problems resulting from failing to maintain an appropriate "professional distance" from their adult basic education (ABE) or English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students when those students encounter personal problems or crises that appear to be interfering with their learning. ABE…

This paper reviews ways in which teachers inadvertently reinforce negative behavior of elementary school students through negative verbal or nonverbal communication. Discussion first points out differences between nonverbal and verbal communication, and then focuses on consequences of negative communication for children. Special attention is given…

This is a fictional dialogue intended to honor Jim Kingman and David Leary, both professors of history who retired after long careers at Pasadena City College in California (PCC). The dialogue hypothesizes the observations of both men as they look on the honorary gold plates of previous retirees that decorate the wall of a PCC public dining hall.…

The efforts of communication scholars to reduce the apprehension or anxiety that the person feels about communication should be undertaken after considering the ethical, legal, and practical issues such efforts involve. The ethical question is whether or not an instructor has the obligation to intrude into a central feature of a person's life,…