Researchers and teachers often are not privy to the literacy events smuggled into the private lives of urban African-Americans. Yet, these hidden literacies, such as journal writing and reading personal business letters, often reveal deft rhetorical skills as well as intellectual grappling with the social complexities of power, race, and class.…

Recent discussions of teaching composition in the context of cultural studies have begun to consider the condition of the writing subject in society, yet these discussions construct student-writer S(s)ubject(ivitie)s at the poles of modernist-identity and postmodern-difference binary opposition that is politically problematic. The identity of the…

Numerous critics have repeatedly called for the use of curricular materials drawn from the learner's everyday world, and for many of today's students, one valuable source is the lyrics of contemporary rap music. In first-year writing courses at Michigan State University, the words to one rap song, "You Must Learn" by the group Boogie…

This article draws on historical and philosophical lenses and interviews with students to question some fundamental tenets underlying the practice of freshman learning communities (FLCs): that they develop community and improve students' learning experiences. The article brings to the discourse of FLCs some critical questions regarding their value…

Educators have come to recognize the importance of their efforts in building students' social and emotional skills. However, the creation of lasting programming often fails to keep pace with educators' best intentions. In this article, the authors suggest guidelines for ways in which school counselors can be involved in implementing sustained…

Intellectuals lament the disappearance of community, a nostalgia for the small town that has supposedly given way to the anonymous crowds of the city. Likewise, scholars have talked about "discourse communities" in romantic terms, referring to a place where all share the same values. However, a more urban view of social life, in which…

A student's participation on two listserves added new depth and new complexities to her overall learning process. The listserves (one just for her composition class at California State University San Bernardino and one that linked her class to two other composition classes at distant universities) created a community of people who had access to a…

In January 2004, college students from postsecondary institutions across Wisconsin were invited to join US Representatives Tammy Baldwin and Mark Green at The Johnson Foundation's Wingspread Conference Center in Racine, Wisconsin. The purpose of the discussion was to engage students' attitudes regarding politics, and their understanding of…

This paper focuses on the efforts at Gardner-Webb University in North Carolina to extend the writing efforts of a writing across the curriculum (WAC) retreat into a greater matrix of scholarly activity, not only in the classroom but outside as well. Noting that the initial idea was that an intensive year of emphasizing scholastic activity could…

Sees English as the language of power and status, with a gatekeeper role in the economics and political contexts of many countries. Discusses the English classroom as a site that breaks down the barriers between the school discourse and the world discourses. Discusses specific classrooms where teachers, students, or community members take the…

Principles of ethnographic inquiry are used to address professional training needs of English-for-Special-Purpose teachers interacting with clients in a business environment. A course designed for English teachers in Hong Kong that explores "discourse communities" is described. (Contains 25 references.) (Author/LB)

The motion picture "Crash" does not focus on surface realism, but instead provides what appears to be an unbiased portrayal of various races and perspectives. Not only does the movie highlight the idea that all people carry racial baggage, but it also reminds them that often their greatest fear is of the "other." According to this author, it is…

This article describes the meaning of empowerment and collaboration, how they can be instituted, and the benefits that can result from them. Empowerment of teachers is a necessary ingredient of school improvement. Administrators who empower teachers grant them "the autonomy to make decisions about curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment." In this…

The common thread that runs through the activities in a literacy course for undergraduate preservice teachers is text. One such activity is a literacy autobiography in which students focus on themselves as learners and teachers. Students are treated as professionals and make their own decisions about how they want to present themselves to their…

The United States Institute of Peace held a two day workshop titled "Teaching about the Religious Other" on March 3-4, 2005. The sixteen workshop participants were professors experienced in teaching those of one Abrahamic faith about another Abrahamic faith either in U.S. classrooms or abroad. The purpose of the workshop was to enable these…