Australian Journal of Language and Literacy articles from May 1997

Australian Journal of Language and Literacy archives from May 1997

Whole language: are we critical enough?
May 1, 1997... Our colleagues from Indiana University in the USA, Berghoff, Harste and Leland, challenge those critics who suggest that there is not a critical focus in whole language philosophy. Their thoughtful response in this article addresses those critics...

This is literacy: three challenges for teachers of reading and writing. (whole language education)
May 1, 1997... Bloome identifies three challenges facing whole language educators and others interested in education and democracy. He argues that these challenges are part of broader social and economic changes that are occurring in the USA and other...

Defining whole language in a postmodern age.
May 1, 1997... Can whole language be 'defined' in the true sense of the word? Lorraine Wilson believes that while whole language can never be 'defined' in the sense suggested by the word's Latin root (definire = to finish, finalise), certain core principles...

Toward a personal theory of whole language: a teacher-researcher-writer reflects.
May 1, 1997... In this article children's author and university teacher Mem Fox puts on her reflective pratitioner's hat and makes explicit her personal theory of whole language. Most people regard me primarily as an author. I prefer to think of myself as a...

Teaching factual writing: purpose and structure. (factual literacy)
May 1, 1997... These two researchers from the UK remind us of the need to focus on the teaching of factual texts in primary classrooms. They offer one particular teaching strategy, `writing frames', trialed by teachers in the EXEL (Exeter Extending Literacy)...

They don't teach spelling anymore - or do they? (whole language education)
May 1, 1997... Spelling has been a contentious issue for as long as there have been schools. In this article Bouffler argues that whole language teachers do teach spelling. She clearly explains where spelling `fits' within the postmordern whole language...

Generic practice. (language and literacy education)
May 1, 1997... In this article Jo-Anne Reid postulates the benefits of postmodern thinking in language and literacy education. She encourages literacy educators to think about what we are doing, each and every time, without relying on what we might accept...

Whole language and its critics: a New Zealand perspective.
May 1, 1997... Adversaries of whole language claim that it is a `passing fad' without a valid research base. What motivates such claims? Is there any substance to them? In his article Smith examines the validity of the attacks and presents some research-based...

Literacy at the Crossroads: Crucial Talk About Reading, Writing and Other Teaching Dilemmas.
May 1, 1997... Literacy at the Crossroads takes an in-depth look at issues concerning reading and writing in the United States in the light of the `back to basics' campaign. It challenges teachers to take a political stand, suggesting that they have been silent...

The Literacy Labyrinth.
May 1, 1997... The use of `labyrinth' in the title of this well-written and comprehensive reference book is something of a misnomer. While the definition of a labyrinth may be a `complicated irregular structure with many passages hard to find way through or...