NCTE Inbox

July 6, 2005
...news
News links are provided for informational purposes, do not imply endorsement by NCTE, and were live when this issue was published.
Poor Writing Costs Taxpayers Millions (Business Week, July 4)
According to a report released by The National Commission on Writing, states spend nearly a quarter of a billion dollars a year on remedial writing instruction for their employees. However, the report says the indirect costs of sloppy writing probably hurt taxpayers even more.
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D8B4KS0G3.htm


Read the report Writing: A Powerful Message from State Government at http://www.writingcommission.org/prod_downloads/
writingcom/powerful-message-from-state.pdf
More and More E-Savvy Educators Using Blogs (Palm Beach Post, July 5)
Self-reflection is a hallmark of many teachers' blogs, according to the creator of weblogg-ed.com -- the first stop for most teachers who want to try blogging. But thinking of them only as online journals shortchanges the medium, said Will Richardson, the nationally known lecturer on the topic who runs the site. "More and more teachers now are finally starting to wrap their brains around the idea that you can do some really interesting things" with them, Richardson said.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/search/content/local_news/
epaper/2005/07/05/s1b_skblog_0705.html

For more on blogging from Will Richardson and other teachers, read "Reading, Blogging, and 'Rithmetic" at
http://www.ncte.org/pubs/chron/highlights/119861.htm

 

 

 

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J.N. Hook, Former NCTE Executive Secretary, Dies at the Age of 91
Julius N. Hook, professor emeritus of English at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, died on June 26, 2005, at the age of 91. Hook was Executive Secretary of NCTE from 1953 to 1960. Read about his tenure with NCTE, quotes from Council leaders at the time of his retirement, an obituary from the Champaign, Illinois, News-Gazette, and more.
http://www.ncte.org/about/over/inbox/news/121133.htm

Some Teachers Practicing Zero Intolerance (The Virginian-Pilot, June 29)
Some teachers, aware of the devastating effects that one zero can have on a student's final grade and recognizing the string of perfect scores necessary to negate it, have simply stopped logging zeros. Instead, at some schools, the lowest score students can receive is as high as 50 or 60 -- even if they don't turn in assignments.
http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=88476&ran=243193


Student Gets F Grade for Mentioning God (WorldNetDaily.com, June 30)
A college in southern California is now investigating the case of a student who says she was given an F for mentioning "God" against the expressed wishes of her atheist instructor. 
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=45058

 One FCAT Reading Test Shy of Earning Their Diplomas (St. Petersburg Times, July 3)
Ashley Dean passed all the required courses, earning a 2.5 grade point average and 24 credits -- six more than the state's minimum. But because she failed the reading portion of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test three years in a row, she received only a certification of completion instead of a diploma at her May graduation. So now, in the middle of summer, the 18-year-old prepares again for a test she was supposed to pass in the 10th grade.
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/07/03/Tampabay/1_FCAT_reading_test_s.shtml


Studies Back Evidence Linking Lots of TV with Poor Academics (The Boston Globe, July 5) (free registration required)
Too much television-watching can harm the ability of children to learn and even reduce their chances of getting a college degree, three studies published in the July issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine suggest in the latest effort to examine how television affects children.
http://www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2005/07/05/
studies_back_evidence_linking_lots_of_tv_with_poor_academics/

 

Read Association of Television Viewing During Childhood With Poor Educational Achievement at
http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/159/7/614
...views
Teachers Can Help Students Become Better Writers
The NCTE Beliefs about the Teaching of Writing offer sound principles for effective writing instruction. Read the document at http://www.ncte.org/about/over/positions/category/write/118876.htm
...ideas
Free access to journal articles mentioned in this INBOX is provided for 21 days. After this free access period expires, articles are available to journal subscribers only. Initials in annotations indicate academic level of the resource (E=Elementary, M=Middle, S=Secondary, C=College, G=General).

Placing a Premium on Writing Skills
The National Commission on Writing report released Tuesday (linked in the News section above) asserts that state employers put a high premium on the writing abilities of their employees. How can we as teachers help ensure that the students in our classrooms meet the needs of such future employers? We must encourage authentic writing activities and foster literacy communities that support all writers! Here are some resources to get the process started:
http://www.ncte.org/about/over/inbox/ideas/121136.htm

...announcements

Learn Strategies for Effective Writing Instruction!
Discover strategies and techniques for effective writing instruction in a series of two-day workshops from NCTE. You'll learn what quality writing programs look like at the secondary level, how to create a supportive context for writing, methods for assessing quality writing in a time of testing, and much more. For more information, visit
http://www.ncte.org/profdev/conv/workshops/writing/


Keynote Speaker -- Peter H. Johnston
Peter H. Johnston, author of Choice Words: How Our Language Affects Children’s Learning, will be the keynote speaker at the Closing Session of the Literacies for All Summer Institute, "Teaching for Change: Creating Democratic, Inclusive, Holistic Classrooms," in San Diego on July 14-17, 2005. For details, visit

http://www.ncte.org/profdev/conv/wlu


Attend the NCTE Literacy Leaders Institute August 11-12
Join a community of learners in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where nationally acclaimed consultants come together with emerging literacy leaders to share insights, strategies, and field-tested practices for building success in the often-complex world of consulting. For more information, visit
http://www.ncte.org/profdev/conv/workshops/literacy/


Join TAWL for Lunch!
Join us for lunch at the Literacies for All Summer Institute, "Teaching for Change: Creating Democratic, Inclusive, Holistic Classrooms," in San Diego on July 14-17, 2005. Saturday's luncheon will give you the opportunity to talk with those who have formed Teachers Applying Whole Language (TAWL) support groups. Tickets may be ordered on the registration form. For more information, visit

http://www.ncte.org/profdev/conv/wlu

Fellowship and Grant Funding Opportunity

The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) has as its goal to advance humanistic studies in all fields of learning in the humanities. ACLS is perhaps best known as a funder of humanities research through fellowships and grants awarded to individuals and, on occasion, to groups and institutions. In recent years, a programmatic exploration of the forms of support appropriate to the different stages of an academic career has resulted in the development of three grant programs that target faculty at specific stages of their careers.

To learn more about ACLS fellowships and grants, visit
http://www.ncte.org/about/grants/comp/112760.htm

 

For a complete listing of grant opportunities, visit

http://www.ncte.org/about/grants

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Copyright 2005 National Council of Teachers of English
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