A set of articles presenting a broad base for displaying the thinking of outstanding researchers and scholars on the subjects of English and Reading is given. These articles were drawn from papers read at a series of institutes cosponsored by the University of Illinois and the National Council of Teachers of English. Each paper reflects elements of change in curriculum development and in the teaching of English. The articles are divided into four sections. Articles in the first group express the convictions underlying current efforts to center the teaching of English on individual creativity. The second section consists of articles which focus on changes which have occurred in recent years in the approaches to the teaching of the various aspects of English. The articles in group three are a number of surveys of current practices in the area of children's literature, reading at the elementary and secondary levels, composition at the elementary level, and a case study on curriculum planning. (Author/CK)