Carol Pope

Writing proficiency and student use of prewriting/invention strategies

Abstract The preferred prewriting Invention strategies of advanced, average, and basic ability 11th grade writers were compared. Students (n =212) in classes of teachers trained in a writing workshop were instructed in the use of eight prewriting heuristics suggested as useful by theorists in the field of composition. The students were surveyed as to usefulness of the respective strategies. Preferences were compared by level of student and relative rankings of the strategies were compiled. Implications for classroom instruction are stated.

Voices in Videoconferencing: Technology Integration in Teacher Education Courses.

Abstract This manuscript describes the efforts of several instructors who incorporated videoconferencing in their teacher education courses at two large universities in the southeastern United States. Professors preparing teachers to teach elementary and middle school examined their interactive videoconference experiences linking preservice teachers with students in real classroom settings. Three projects are described. The first project involved “teleobservation” whereby professors co-taught with K-6 classroom teachers while preservice teachers observed. The second project focused on a middle-grades English Language Arts professor whose preservice teachers observed middle school students in real time. In the third project, a university professor served as a live audience for an elementary Reader’s Theatre performance. The lessons learned through the evaluation of these three projects are discussed.

Creating Pathways of Change One School Begins the Journey

In this article, the authors explore community members’ perceptions of change at an elementary school during the 1st year of implementing the Accelerated Schools Project. After conducting 23 interviews with a representative sample of the school community, three themes emerged: creating a school identity, experiencing a community of mind, and developing a sense of human agency. Despite critics who say that organizational reform efforts rarely influence instructional practices, First Way Elementary may have defied the odds, based on participants’ perceptions, by making instruction their primary focus within the context of creating a new school organizational structure. The discussion focuses on how the school community made this happen in such a short period of time and the challenges they face as they continue to make changes.

Reculturing Teacher Education: One College Begins the Journey

Abstract In this paper we document the first year of a reculturation process of the middle-years teacher education program at North Carolina State University. Employing Henry Levins Accelerated Schools process as a vehicle for change, we illustrate the beginning signs of reculturation in our College as we moved from separation to connection, from individual to collective vision, and from inquiry to action. We provide examples of the kinds of progress we made in our inquiry groups and outline what we think needs to happen in order to sustain our momentum for continued progress.

A Flexible Formula: Indirect Teaching and Assessment: Are They Mutually Exclusive?

Principals may wonder how to evaluate teachers who use student-centered, indirect teaching strategies when their assessment instrument is one that appears to reward a more teacher-centered, direct teaching strategy. Some suggestions are offered here.