Provides five fully developed library media activities that are designed for use with specific curriculum units in reading, language arts, science, social studies, and mathematics. Library media skills, curriculum objectives, grade levels, resources, instructional roles, procedures, evaluation, and follow-up are describes for each activity. (LRW)

Looks at how technology has changed an eighth-grade teacher's world of teaching and learning in a variety of ways, including: professional growth; connecting the writing process with word processing; presentation of information (such as short story elements or parts of speech); research on and access to the Internet; electronic literary magazines…

Seven teachers, part of an Arts Integration Community of Practice, used rubrics to measure student learning and artistic skills. Examples from five sites, across a variety of academic content areas and age levels, and with students of varying disabilities, are included in this article. Results suggest that rubrics may be a useful tool for…

The author learned that the book "The Catcher in the Rye," so important to him as a young man, had been challenged by adults and could easily have been barred from his school's reading list. He started thinking about who had the power to tell him what he could and could not read as a teenager and as a high school student. What were the…

This article describes a teacher-as-researcher project conducted by Karen Shelton (second author), a hard-working middle school teacher. This project focused on using written conversation as an instructional strategy to integrate reading, writing, and social studies. The authors begin with a classroom vignette to describe how William Bintz (first…

The use of constructivism and its various manifestations in education has been a topic of much interest in recent years. Inquiry into this theoretical framework has resulted in teacher educators' attempts to help their teacher candidates apply constructivist pedagogy in university classrooms, field experiences and student teaching at two US…

This article is a summary of our working group's continued discourse from the Conference on English Education (CEE) Summit, where our discussions focused on English teacher candidate competencies, program assessment, the Standards and Guidelines, and National Council of Teachers of English's (NCTE's) roles and responsibilities. For the purpose of…

This appendix accompanies "Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades: Why Some Schools Do Better. A Large-Scale Study of Middle Grades Practices and Student Outcomes. Initial Research Report." This appendix focuses on the findings and domain comparisons of the study. This appendix contains the following: (1) Decision Rules; (2) Full Set of…

The State of Florida Department of Education provides pre-and-post-graduation data for public high school graduates throughout Florida. These data were used for the present report to produce data sets for all M-DCPS regular high schools and charter high schools graduating students in 2007 and 2008. Summary data for the district are also provided.…

The integrated learning system (ILS) was developed as a technology application that provides a teacher-proof, self-sufficient curriculum. However, there has been increased recognition of the need for teacher involvement in the implementation process and greater integration with existing curricula. The Colonial School District of Plymouth Meeting…

This report summarizes and compares findings of researchers' and teachers' opinions in six subject areas (literature, social studies, science, mathematics, music, and art) about ideal and actual elementary school curricula. Three researchers and three teachers participated in each subject area. Participants were asked to write detailed responses…

This elementary-level thematic unit on India was designed to serve as a stepping stone toward the goal of mutual respect among children of different backgrounds. This unit may take one to four weeks depending on the class time. To expand children's awareness of the Indian culture, many hands-on activities are included. This unit was developed with…

The American College Testing Program (ACT) is field testing a portfolio assessment model. The field test is designed to determine whether it is possible to implement a portfolio assessment model on a national level that will result in scores that are of sufficient reliability and validity that they can be used for decisions at the student level.…

This paper focuses on how social studies content and concepts can be explored through literature in which grandparents and grandchildren interact. The paper emphasizes that, through the intergenerational relationship, children can encounter and explore life in general, increasing their understanding of their own portion of the world and of…

This Digest reviews some ideas and suggestions about parental involvement in middle school education, focusing on the language arts. The Digest reviews the research on how to increase parental involvement in middle schools and presents several programs already in use at various middle schools. The diverse programs outlined in the Digest feature…