Classroom second language instruction can be characterized as one of the following: focus-on-formS, focus-on-meaning, or focus-on-form. The book titled "Focus on Form in Classroom Second Language Acquisition" (Doughty & Williams, 1998) argues for the desirability of focus-on-form over focus-on-formS and focus-on-meaning, discussing the efficacy…

This study is about engagement in adult literacy education. Engagement is mental effort focused on learning. It is important to understand how and why adult learners engage in literacy instruction because engagement is a precondition to learning progress. Researchers who study engagement conceive of it in different ways. Some focus on engagement…

Discusses the work and planning requisite to the success of an ambitious, developmental, computer-assisted instruction project. (JF)

Strategies for informing teachers about academic learning time, the major concept of the Beginning Teacher Evaluation Study, are described. Recommendations include: (1) encouraging a stance of reflection and self-study among teachers; (2) teacher involvement in research, (3) staff development efforts; and (4) appreciation of the complexities of…

Investigators observed time usage and teacher statements in 26 Chicago high schools and found a lower rate of time loss and a higher rate of positive comments by teachers in higher achieving schools. (Editor)

A formula for a rotation plan and eleven steps for individualizing programs for student assignment on office machines or other individualized units are presented. Illustrating the plan are a worksheet showing time allotments for the students and machines and the rotation units for the same students and machines. (MF)

Teachers'"inflight" decisions were investigated by recording those cues in the classroom to which teachers responded. Through stimulated recall interviews, it was found that the cues teachers noticed and based decisions upon were global and tended to adhere closely to the traditional recitation model of teaching. (Author/JKS)

Describes a teacher's experiences in a multigrade intermediate grade mountain schoolhouse. Notes that teaching difficulties were overcome by (1) organizing time and contracting with students; (2) learning from students about what to teach; and (3) using language that invites and includes students. Explains how these techniques aid reading and…

The nine articles included in this feature emphasize how leisure, recreation, health and physical activities make winter cities more livable. Specific topics include techniques for teaching about cold weather safety and cold related injuries, Arctic Winter Games, and results of a study on winter recreation in large North American communities. (IAH)

A videotape was shown to 648 eighth and ninth grade technology education students. Eight groups of classes received different treatments: test announcements before or after viewing and administration of tests or review of material. Scores on teacher-made tests improved only when announcement was followed by time-on-task learning or the promised…

This paper examines the teacher-student relationship in the foreign language classroom, focusing on how the teacher runs the class, the kinds of control required, and the rules governing the delegation of control. It reviews research on teacher talk, error correction, questioning of students, and wait time for student responses. (MDM)

Information from the 1987-1988 National Survey of Postsecondary Faculty are used to produce a model of teaching and the faculty role that examines two teaching-related outcomes: (1) percentage of time spent on teaching and instruction and (2) preferred amount of teaching. Policy implications are discussed. (SLD)

Studies of long-term retention of what is taught in the classroom (62 articles) were reviewed. It is concluded that students retain much of what they are taught, that retention decreases over time, and that increasing original learning affects retention. Effects of instructional strategy and ability are discussed. (SLD)

A five-second constant time delay procedure was used to teach three chained vocational tasks (filling a soda machine, using a duplicating machine, and using a photocopier) to four high school students with mild or moderate disabilities. All students acquired the skills with a low percentage of errors. Maintenance and generalization data were…

Two blending strategies for decoding words (pausing and not pausing between successive sounds) were compared with nine preschool children. Once mastered, segmenting by not pausing engendered high and sustained levels of word identification. Other findings indicated that sound identification abilities were necessary but not sufficient for decoding.…