A selective view of recent major areas of research into school processes related to language outcomes supports the contention of the Bullock Report and of many educational theorists who say that there is no one best way to improve language and literacy, but that schools and school variables can and do make differences. The research that is reviewed reflects the variations of research into processes and outcomes, and is comprised of (1) integrative studies of school processes and educational outcomes, (2) studies of language learners and language processes, and (3) selected studies relating to individual variables, such as teacher behavior and student achievement. The reported findings suggest that the greatest amount of language development occurs when teaching styles and classroom situations actively engage pupils in using language for purposes that the students see as meaningful. The reviewed research also tends to support the position that in the achievement of language development and basic literacy teachers must rely more heavily than usual on the active, cooperative participation of the child. This implies that the successful teacher uses thought-provoking questions during instruction and challenges students at their levels of ability while providing a great deal of success and positive reinforcement, particularly to the less able student in the lower grades. (RL)