This paper explores some ongoing dilemmas facing literacy educators, employing a combination of fictional accounts and summaries of actual instances during literacy lessons. Noting that the Commonwealth of Australia's recent policy/monograph is entitled "Literacy for All: The Challenge for Australian Schools," the paper points out that…

A study of verbal interaction between mothers and children in 24 poor families in Santiago, Chile, focused on the number and type of conversations, the times they began, their length, the number of subjects discussed, and the mother's role in them. Results indicate that the quality of interaction between mothers and children in poor homes can be…

Discusses the value of setting-specific research for action research in social psychology. Discusses the following concepts: (1) local variation; (2) seeing the general in the specific; (3) connectedness as the fundamental law of ecology; and (4) the value of field stations for community research. (JS)

Presents a corrected and slightly expanded abstract of Alison Preece's doctoral dissertation on the development of young children's productive narrative competence, winner of the International Reading Association's Outstanding Dissertation Award for 1986-1987 (See EJ 378 645). (RS)

Analyzes the way black and white working-class women define and claim knowledge, challenging feminist analyses that have identified a single or universal mode of knowing for women. Contends that women speak to complex gender, racial, and class relations of power that shape how they think about learning and knowing. (Author/SLM)

Ten evaluation models are examined in terms of their applicability to investigative, emergent design programs: Stake's portrayal, Wolf's adversary, Patton's utilization, Guba's investigative journalism, Scriven's goal-free, Scriven's modus operandi, Eisner's connoisseurial, Stufflebeam's CIPP, Tyler's objective based, and Levin's cost…

Describes two chief alternative models of English instruction, critical theory, and constructivism or naturalistic inquiry. Discusses the functions of genre in disciplinary communities. Argues that naturalistic inquiry does not constitute a comprehensive corrective to the legacy of positivism. (HB)

Suggests that experimental studies are valuable in analyzing children's language development. Criticizes the scarcity of experimental and naturalistic investigation into preschool language development. Calls for long-term study of continuity and discontinuity in children's school and home learning and between different school stages. Observes that…

Observers used two Q-sorts to describe mothers' and infants' behavior at home. Mothers of more difficult children were less sensitive than other mothers. There was a strong relation between maternal sensitivity and infant attachment. Mothers of more secure infants noticed and enjoyed their babies more than mothers of less secure infants. (BC)

Discusses a study of systematic observation instruments designed to assess characteristics of children's physical activity related to health. The article identifies 8 instruments designed for children from 20 months to sixth grade and examines the advantages of direct, naturalistic observation. Recommendations for improving the current…

The methodological issue of qualitative versus quantitative research is addressed, and the argumentation of research using interview methods for research is explored. Warrants of the type that are used in arguments generating conclusions from interview data are included. (KR)

Examined inclusion or making all children part of classroom life. Examined underinclusion, in which children remain on the fringe of the classroom community, and overinclusion, in which they are too involved in the social expectations of their classmates. Observations support appropriate amounts and forms of inclusion for optimal results. (DLH)

Discusses student use of computer graphics software and presents documentation from a visualization workshop designed to help learners use computer graphics to construct meaning while they studied science concepts. Describes problems and benefits when delivering visualization workshops in the natural setting of a middle school. (Author/LRW)

A qualitative study of was conducted to have an insight about public school teachers' use of instructional applications and their daily practices. The specific objective of this study was, to explore how teachers apply instructional theories, methodologies, strategies and techniques in their lessons before the implementation of new constructivist…

The article reports phase 1 of a two-year study that focused on seeking and use of information by students at various stages of their secondary education. The project used a large qualitative sample selected from four Australian schools and was undertaken during 2006 as part of a wider project concerned with using information creatively and…