Focus group interviewing is presented as an interactive method of conducting qualitative research with potential applications in early intervention. A six-component process to guide focus group research involves formulate research questions, select participants, develop protocol, conduct focus groups, analyze data, and report the findings.…

Offers a two-tiered approach to fielding unusual responses that pop up during open-ended class discussions of literary texts. Describes how to prepare high school students to view reading comprehension as making meaning, and suggests a way to support students in taking responsibility for their actions as meaning makers. (SR)

Suggests that early childhood professionals need effective communication tools for individual conversations with colleagues, staff meetings, conversations with parents, and parent meetings. Describes ORID, a focused discussion method involving objective, reflective, interpretive, and decisional questions, that heighten the participants' awareness…

Previously collected data on "incoherent" episodes of pupil-pupil discussion are examined in a study of mathematical learning. They raise general points about mathematics classroom discourse and indicate the importance of understanding children's ostensibly incoherent exchanges. (28 references) (Author/LB)

Presents a review of the research on questioning skills. Discusses possible reasons why these skills are not being used in the classroom as often as they could or should be used. Explores various questioning strategies and how they can be used in the classroom to develop higher quality student thinking. (SR)

Describes how showing a film version of a novel, short story, or play after a class has read and talked about the text can be an interesting way to encourage students to think about the text and develop a critical stance. Offers examples from two texts and their film versions. (SR)

Describes a strategy in which students develop their own questions about a piece of literature and then discuss the questions in groups, helping them to construct meaning and therefore comprehend literature. (SR)

Presents some key concerns that are frequently raised by parents in parent education groups. Discusses several themes that are relevant in laying a common ground that crosses most of these parent issues. Includes examples of parent concerns and suggestions for the group leader. (Author/PVV)

Describes how students can help evaluate each other in discussion groups and how this improves their writing. Asserts that students appreciate the scrutiny of the conferences and take their own writing much more seriously as a result. Describes this technique in the context of a high school writing workshop. (PRA)

Examines Robert Zoellner's talk-write pedagogy in the context of what composition researchers and theorists are saying, with the aim of showing the cogency of Zoellner's ideas. Examines his application of the tenets of behavioral science as the basis for his talk-write pedagogy. Discusses modeling and the question-and-answer of the pedagogy. (PRA)

Describes how a class of seventh graders learned to use diplomacy and effective interpersonal communication to let their teachers know how they feel. (PRA)

Discusses reader-response theory and forces that mitigate against a reading-centered classroom. Asserts that the issues of authority and freedom are crucial but advises against demanding too much at this stage. Focuses on current practice, and suggests beginning with the routines, the "business as usual," of the literature classroom.…

Defines four kinds of poetry readers: paraphrasers, thematizers, allegorizers, and problem solvers. Recommends an approach to reading a poem that treats the poem as an expansive space in which to romp and play, to explore and travel. Illustrates problem making and lists questions for students. Discusses how to respond by questioning. (PRA)

Examines the shared cognitive dimensions of cultural institutions like museums, libraries, and parks, suggesting they make similar situations for transmitting information. The article encourages a critical understanding of public cultural institutions to enlarge the potential for discourse about their analysis and criticism. Heuristic questions…

Describes the evolution of a course concerning the role of Spain in the Americas. Suggests that Spain has had a strong influence on the region. Explains that students participated unexpectedly well within the course's discussion seminar format. Includes an appendix setting out assigned readings and a course syllabus. (SG)