Discusses puzzling statements by second graders in a classroom literature discussion. Argues that, by considering children's sociocultural backgrounds in examining their responses to stories, teachers can better understand and appreciate their students' critical thinking dispositions and abilities in the classroom setting. (SR)

Explores links between science education and current developments in environmental education that take account of the concept of sustainability and the impact of local action on global issues. Uses the greenhouse effect as a case-study example with 16-year-old students. Reports that students learned more effectively using a discussion-based…

Examines the influence of conversational interaction on language change. Described two experiments that contrast language coordination between speakers who interacted with the same partner and speakers who interacted with different partners in a maze game context. Suggests that the experiments illustrate how a community affects language change as…

This paper explores the role of voice quality in the teaching of pronunciation and argues that, since voice quality encompasses many aspects of phonology, it provides a useful point of departure for pronunciation work. (11 references) (JL)

Total Quality uses group methods to identify and collectively prevent or solve specific problems related to consumer satisfaction and quality issues in business. This article integrates social influencing strategies with developmental group processes for facilitating consumer satisfaction and problem-solving in total quality groups. A case study…

Managing the psychological depth of responses to adventure activities calls for the leader to attend to own language and language of group participants. Describes eight levels of psychological depth occurring during group discussion and interaction. Addresses the need to stay at or above the agreed-upon level and avoid moving into psychotherapy.…

Presents a lesson plan that enables children to identify their community as a nodal region. Includes field trips, map tracing and comparison, discussion, and observation. Emphasizes children's analysis of the effect of rail transportation on their community. Suggests using the students' community as a geographic laboratory for hands-on experience.…

Analysis of focus group discussions, involving 21 family members (having young children with disabilities) and 19 professionals, identified issues associated with families' use of time in the area of needed supports and time as a constraint. Implications are discussed in relation to developing early intervention programs. (DB)

Examines taped small-group student discussions of "To Kill a Mockingbird" in two tenth grade classes. Explores various discussion skills, including getting started, overcoming tension, deciding who begins, keeping the discussion moving, supporting one another in groups, and dealing with conflict. (MM)

This introduction to the Internet with examples for Macintosh computer users demonstrates the ease of using e-mail, participating on discussion group listservs, logging in to remote sites using Telnet, and obtaining resources using the File Transfer Protocol (FTP). Included are lists of discussion groups, Telnet sites, and FTP Archive sites. (EA)

Examined the language used by teachers and children during small group discussion in two preschools. Found associations between teachers' questions and children's verbal responses, children's questions to classmates and peers' immediate responses, and teachers' questions about learning processes and children's verbal references to their mental…

Task-related talk, reading comprehension, and metacognition of 219 third grade students were examined over a 4-week period in classrooms assigned to reward (encouragement through team recognition) or strategy (discussions directed toward task content) conditions. The role of task related talk and efficacy of focusing strategies are discussed. (SLD)

Provides illustrations and activities to help students at all grade levels understand how artists look at the world and how each artwork is a result of that personal vision. Suggests questions based on an art criticism model that moves from stages of impulse, description, analysis, interpretation, and information to personalization. (KM)

This article defines bibliotherapy, offers guidelines for selecting appropriate materials to use to assist gifted students to grow emotionally and socially, notes the crucial nature of teacher-led discussion in helping students interact with the literature, and provides discussion questions and suggested activities for each of six books.…

This article explores ways to enhance oral discussions to increase the written language abilities of students with learning disabilities. It discusses oral and written language differences, and offers specific strategies for improving oral narrative skills within the Language Experience Approach (LEA), such as using semantic maps and teaching…