This experiment explores the effectiveness of retrieving the listing of a known-item book from the 3.6 million entry online catalog at the library of the University of Michigan using various combinations of author's name plus first and last title words. Discusses implications for the design of OPAC (online public access catalog) screens.…

Tabulation of first authors in 16 selected educational journals between 1986-96 revealed a total of 1,530 individuals who wrote two or more articles in at least one publication. The top 31 authors published in a few journals; 10 of these are independent writers or consultants, the rest faculty. (Contains 23 references.) (MLH)

In undertaking an analysis of the work of Camus in the context of the learning environment, this paper examines the breadth of Camus's writing with particular emphasis on the writer's final major work: "Exile and the Kingdom" (1958). It is proposed that "Exile and the Kingdom" could and should be read as an attempt by Camus to explicate in full…

We investigated expectations regarding a writer's responsibility to proofread text for spelling errors when using a word processor. Undergraduate students read an essay and completed a questionnaire regarding their perceptions of the author and the quality of the essay. They then manipulated type of spelling error (no error, homophone error,…

This article reports the results of a factorial experiment that investigated the reactions of male and female students to a hypothetical English course offered at the community college level. The participants (N=136) consisted of students enrolled in English 101 courses at four community colleges in a southeastern state. The independent variables…

In the small ex-mining village of Langold, North Nottinghamshire, no one could have predicted the disruption a discovery of bats would cause, halting building work on the new Sure Start centre in West Bassetlaw. Further uproar ensued when it became clear that re-housing the bats would be an expensive--and, for many, a pointless--exercise. At the…

In Osage writer Carter Revard's short story, "Report to the Nation: Claiming Europe," the narrator claims much of England, France, Spain, Italy, and Greece for the Osage Nation. After asserting his claim, the narrator questions whether or not the French actually understood that their country therefore belonged to the Osage Nation. When…

Exciting stories about African Americans in recently published historical fiction books for children concern Pea Island Life-Station, a private school for African American girls, a biracial slave, a black woman who homesteads for land in 1889, and an orphan who travels on his own to Flint, Michigan, during the Depression. Much of this history…

This article describes the task of creating a list of books that will awaken in readers a desire to know more about the world and those who share it. The author was part of a committee assigned this task in 2005 at the Children's Book Council (CBC) and the United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY) to compile the first annual…

The purpose of writing is to communicate with an audience. Teachers need to move heaven and earth to be sure that every child knows what it is to become a published author. Criteria for selecting a piece is important. In this article, the author explores why the criteria that children use for selecting poetry to share with an audience differ from…

The 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s were an exciting time for black artists and writers in the United States. Much of the historical literature highlights the so-called Harlem Renaissance or its successor, the Black Chicago Renaissance. Few studies, however, document the influence of these artistic movements outside major urban cities such as New York,…

This article evaluates the utility of the Early Authors Program, a 12-month early literacy intervention emphasizing highly meaningful language interactions that was implemented in childcare facilities in an ethnically and linguistically diverse, urban, low-income community. Children learn to be writers and readers by creating their own…

This unannotated bibliography features 99 listings of books and articles on, among other topics, language, linguistics, conversation, and gender, all written by the influential sociolinguist, Deborah Tannen. It also offers 10 listings of works co-authored or co-edited by Tannen. Although the bibliography focuses on written works published in…

Historically, among American Indians, the respect for the power of language has been expressed through the oral tradition: stories, myths, folklore, poetry, and song. As life experience has changed for American Indians, they continue to value these stories, recording tribal oral tradition as well as personal biography and life history. The status…

Three famous writers--Eudora Welty, Madeleine L'Engle, and Jack London--used their silent reading experiences to survive not only their childhoods, but also to become adult chroniclers of human lives. Pulitzer-prize winning author Eudora Welty credits an extended period of silent reading when she was 7 years old (and home from school for nearly a…