Advocates the use of story journals--written reactions to books that children have either read themselves or heard--in primary grades. Asserts that story and literary journals provide an excellent link between literature and writing. (MM)

Reviews research related to teaching and learning higher cognitive level objectives from a constructivist perspective. Examines several factors including the cognitive demands of academic work, classroom management, delivery of instruction, formal reasoning ability, grouping of students, and motivation to learn. Concludes that an active teaching…

An approach for increasing active student responding in special education classrooms calls for paraprofessionals to work with small groups to review and practice skills recently introduced. Through techniques such as choral responding, student response cards, timed trials, and academic games, each student in the group responds to every question.…

Regular-education, third-grade teachers (n=91) in Indiana reviewed one of two psychological reports, identical except that one reported a diagnosis of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and one reported a diagnosis of rheumatic fever. AIDS was not found to be a biasing factor in teachers' judgments regarding special education placement.…

Reviews the growing body of work that examines reading as a process occurring within a social context and having social consequences. Three categories within this literature are examined: studies of literacy and its sociocultural role; the history of the book; and the meaning of reading as an activity. Notes and a bibliography is appended. (15…

Wrestles with the questions of how teachers might understand and respond to the risk of exposing children to graphic historical narratives. Focuses on picture books and novels intended to help children remember, understand, and confront the implications of the Nazi genocide of European Jewry and the use of nuclear weapons on the people of…

Listening is an important part of presenting. An optimum learning environment is one in which individuals participate fully without pretense in the presentation experience. The article explores why listening is so important, offers tips for the best ways to listen to audience members, and examines how not to listen. (SM)

Effects of reviewing items and altering responses on examinee ability estimates, test precision, test information, decision confidence, and pass/fail status were studied for 376 examinees taking 2 certification tests. Test precision is only slightly affected by review, and average information loss can be recovered by addition of one item. (SLD)

Using an adjusted cumulative grade point average (GPA), the item response theory-based GPA improved the predictability of college performance for ethnic minorities according to some statistical criteria but was found equivalent to cumulative GPA for others. The population was 1,462 college freshmen from 4 ethnic groups. (SLD)

Data from a vocabulary test were used to assess the congruence between the signed area measure, unsigned area measure, Lord' chi-square statistics, and the Mantel-Haenszel technique in identifying items with significant differential item functioning. The three item response theory-based methods identified the same items as biased. (SLD)

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)

Narrative features of the life stories of child abuse survivors (n=23) and nonvictimized college student respondents (n=23) were compared. Narratives of survivors differed from the comparison group in both relative emphasis on the past versus present/future and on others rather than self. An emphasis on others by child abuse survivors emerged as…

Reviews research concerning barriers to and benefits of integrating young children with disabilities into regular preschool programs. Discusses the effects of integrated programs on children without disabilities, critical integration issues, activity-based intervention, and implications of integrated programs. (BB)

Investigated overextensions in comprehension and production, using the preferential-looking model, in 99 children (ages 1;9 to 2;3) who were asked to find the referent that matched the label they were given in real and anomalous trials. Results confirm that overextensions in production are not diagnostic of children's underlying semantic…

Describes public and private online networks and the characteristics of electronic mail. Reviews the literature on survey research conducted via electronic mail, and examines the issues of design, implementation, and response. A table displays advantages and disadvantages of electronic mail surveys. (AEF)