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Teachtng of English Language Art s,Problems and Recommendations A Report of the Connecticut Enghsh and

Reading Advisory Committee.Ccinnecticut Staje Dept. of Education, Hartfcs-d.

Repor t No -BULL -107Pub Date 1681Note -31p.EDRS Price Mr -S0251-1C -$165Descriptors -Admirastrative Policy. Ackyorystrator Responsiblity, Articulation (Program), Composition (Literary),

Course Content. sCurriculum Development, -*Curriculum Problems, *English Instruction. 1nservice Teacher

Education, *Language Arts, Multimedia Instruction, Preservice Education, Teacher Adrninistrator Relationship,

Teacher Attitudes, *Teacher Education, Teactvng Conditions, Teaching Load, Teaching Methods

Nineteen crucial problems that are inhibiting continued improvement of English and

reading education are identified by a committee of the Connecticut State Department

of Education. The problems are grouped under four main headings: (1) content and

method, (2) articu(ation, (3) teachin conditions, k4) teacher education and reeducation.

Some of the problems considered under these headings are the use of multi-media for

instruction, the utilization of resources outside the school community, and the provision

of effective teaching facdnies and supervisory assistance. Following each statement of

a particular problem are recommendations for solving it, and at the conclusion of the

report, six mator recommendations to insure continual strengthening of English arid

reading instruction are formulated. (LH)

A Report of the, Connecticut English

And Reading AdvisoryCommittee ,

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Bulletin No. 107

Connecticut StateDepartment of Education

Box 2219, Hartford, Conn. 06115Telephone: 527-6341 Code: 203

Teaching ofEnglish

LanguageArts

Problems andRecommendations

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, EDUCATION & WELFARE

OFFICE OF EDUCATION

THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRODUCED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROM THE

PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIGINATING IT. POINTS Of VIEW OR OPINIONS

STATED DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT OFFICIAL OFFICE OF EDUCATION

POSITION OR POLICY.

A Report of theConnecticut English

And Reading AdvisoryCommittee

4440

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Connecticut Englishand Reading AdvisoryCommittee

Dr. Joan Kerelejza, Chairman,Coordinator of InstructionFarmington Public Schools

Helen Estes, Recorder ( 1966-67),Lecturer in English EducationUniversity of Hartford

Dr. Robert F. Kinder, Consultant,English and Reading Education ConsultantState Department of Education

Mrs. Julia Benedict (1965-66)Kindergarten TeacherNorth Haven Public Schools

Gary BurgardDirector of EnglishHamden Public Schools

Evelyn CopelandDirector of EnglishFairfield Public Schools

Mrs. Helen Cornett ( 1965-66)Third Grade TeacherGroton Public Schools

Julia FlemingElementary School PrincipalDanbury Public Schools

Dr. Mary Elizabeth FowlerProfessor of EnglishCentral Connecticut State College

Dr. M. Agnella Gunn (1965-66)Visiting Professor, English EducationUniversity of Connecticut

Mrs. Alma Hinman (1966-67)Kindergarten TeacherMiddletown Public Schools

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Mrs. Verna MacMillianJunior High School PrincipalWest Hartford Public Schools

Mrs. Rossalie PinkhamAssistant Professor of EducationSouthern Connecticut State College

John SuttonJunior High English Teacher and ChairmanDarien Public Schools

Janet SproutAssistant Department Head, Language ArtsNorwalk Public Schools

Ralph WadsworthEnglish Curriculum SpecialistGlastonbury Public Schools

Mrs. Dorothy WassFourth Grade TeacherWest Hartford Public Schools

Dr. Charles D. YetmanSenior High School PrincipalHartford Public Schools

The members of the committee sincerelyhope that this report will be read widelyand will serve as a basis for discussion thatstimulates group evaluation, planning, andaction on the changes that need to be madenow if schools are to offer ever-improvingprograms.

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Contents

This Report ..... .... . 5Development 5Content 5Use 6

I. Problems of Content and Method 7Strengthening the ContentOf English Language Arts 7Providing for All Students 11

Using Multi-Media for Instruction 13

II. Problems of Articulation 14

Building Program ContinuityBetween Educational Levels . . 14Utilizing Resources OutsideThe School Community . .. . 16

III. Problems of Teaching Conditions 19

Assigning a Reasonable Teaching Load 19Providing Effective Teaching Facilities 20Supplying Supervisory Assistance 21

IV. Problems of Teacher Education andReeducation . . .... . 23Strengthening UndergraduatePreparation . . . . 23Reshaping Graduate Training 25Vitalizing Inservice Education 26

Major Recommendations 29

DevelopmentIn December, 1966, the Commissioner of Edu-cation appointed a Connecticut English andReading Advisory Committee. The 15 membersof the committee have been, or are, successfulEnglish language arts teachers. They representclassroom teachers, supervisors, and adminis-trators at all levels of education, kindergartenthrough graduate school. The Commissioner'scharge to the committee was

. . to identify problems in the way of con-wd improvement of English and reading

education at all educational levels throughoutthe state and, when possible, to suggest likelysolutions to these problems.

For the next two years, committee memberstalked with hundreds of people employed inand concerned with English and reading edu-cation throughout the state. They studied theprofessional literature and looked closely atschool programs as they are today and as theywill need to be in the near future. They metregularly each month to discuss what they badlearned and to consolidate their findings.

ContentThe committee has identified 19 crucial prob-lemseach containing many sub-problemsthatare inhibiting continued improvement of Eng-lish and reading education in the state. Theseproblems are grouped under four sections of thisreport:

I. Problems of Content and MethodII. Problems of Articulation

III. Problems of Teaching ConditionsIV. Problems of Teacher Education and

Reeducation5

Following each statement of a particular prob-lem are recommendations for resolving itnotall of the recommendations that might be made,but those that seem most feasible in the presentthinking of the committee.

Some of the recommendationssuggestedchanges and innovations in operational pro-cedures and school practicescan be imple-mented w4.th little expense. Others .,re morecostly. Some are too costly for a small schoolsystem to fund completely on its own. Membersof the committee wish to stress, however, thateven these expensive recommendation:, are vital.They suggest that small school systems seeksome bases for supporting them: groups ofschool systems working together, professionalorganizations, private foundations, state andfederal government. The committee urgesscDool systems to do what they can most effec-tively do alone. But it also urges them to searchactively for other means for funding improve-ments too costly for local support.

On the final page of this report, committeemembers have spelled out six major recom-mendations, all of which they believe must beoperative to insure continued strengthening ofEnglish and reading instruction in Connecticut.

Use

While the committee's report originally waswritten at tiro request of and for the Commis-sioner of Education, it carries implications formany others as well. The Commissioner, theState Board of Education, and the State De-pai tment of Education can facilitate the taskof improving English and reading educationthroughout the state. But working alone theycamiot insure it. Such improvement must be acooperative enterprise that also involves localschools, regional groupings within the state, col-leges and universities, professional organizations,publishers of educational materials, the Com-mission on Higher Educationand, most impor-tant, teachers and parents throughout the statewho must actively strive for, support, and secureimprovements in education.

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Problems of Content and Method

Strengthening the ContentOf English Language Arts

What are the English languagearts? The subject of English seemsto lack generally agreed-upr nstructure. What is the content of

an English arts curriculum? Should the structurebe based on process rather than content?

Recommendation

Information concerning what many people feelto be the proper concerns of the subject shouldbe provided to local school staffs. State Depart-ment of Education guidelines that spell out suchinformation can be of inestimable value in givingdirection to local curriculum planners chargedwith the responsibility of defining the structureof the subject.

How can changes in the study oflanguage be made most expedi-tiously? If one aspect of Englishis language, how can teachers be

reeducated, curriculums be changed, and pro-grams be developed to focus attention on theneed to take a total approachincluding earlyand systematic training in the names of lettersand in phonics, syntax, semantics, vocabularydevelopment, history of the language, psycho-logical and cultural effects of languageto thestudy of the English language?

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Recommendations

APart of the solution lies in alerting teachers tonew instructional materials that are currentlyavailable from publishersinstructional materi-als that attend to this total approach to languagestudy. Such materials, and the approach theyembody, could be the subject of a workshopsponsored by a group of schools, the Connect-icut Council of Teachers of English, or the StateDepartment of Education.BA stronger solution would be a series of six-week summer workshops, staffed by creativeteachers familiar with this approach to languagestudy, whose aim would be to develop units ofstudy and detailed, logically sequenced, indi-vidual lesson plans demonstrating how to teachthis "New English." A group of school systems,a college, or the State Department of Educationmight sponsor such workshops.

How can increased attention to the3 development of skill in listeningand speaking be stimulated? Howcan a balance be struck among the

various communication skillsa balance thatwould give more emphasis than is currentlygiven to the skills in listening and speaking?How can teaching these skills be made a vitalelement of English language arts courses in thesecondary grades as well as in the elementaryprogram?

RecommendationsASomeone must identify and define the listen-ing skills and develop a scope and sequence ofthese skills.BHaving identified the listening skills and de-cided on a scope and sequence, a local schoolsystem or a group of local systems should setup a workshop to suggest techniques for teach-ing listening skills.CThe State Department of Education throughits curriculum guidelines should emphasize theneed for developing effective programs, K-12,in the speaking and listening skills.DA group of schools, the Connecticut Councilof Teachers of English, or the State Departmentof Education could sponsor conferences andworkshops at which experts in speech education,

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even in speech therapy, are invited to sharetheir knowledge with classroom teachers, K-12.

EGreater attention to these skills on the partof classroom teachers should in time result inrenewed efforts by publishers to produce ma-terials for teaching speaking and listening betterthan those currently available. Even more pres-sure could be brought to bear on publishers ifgifted teachers were encouraged to producematerials designed to teach these skills effec-tively. Such encouragement might be providedby a summer work session sponsored by a groupof schools or by the State Department of Educa-tion or by a publishing company.

FLocal school staffs should be encouraged tosecure funds to provide speech and listeninglaboratories for both secondary and elementaryschool students. Where local funds are not avail-able, the State Department of Education shouldencourage schools to utilize appropriate stateand federal funds for this purpose.

4How can pupils be taught to doeffective reading in such specificsubject areas as social studies, sci-ence, and mathematics?

Recommendations

ALocal school systems or a group of systemsmight run workshops for teachers in whichreading specialists and teachers, K-12, who havedeveloped successful methods for teaching read-ing in these subjects, could demonstrate anddiscuss their techniques.

BLocal school systems should hire readingspecialists to assist content teachers.

CCollege staffs training teachers of these sub-jects should discuss and implement ideas forstrengthening the attention given to the teach-ing of reading in their subject.

How can departmentalized schoolsbe encouraged to build strongerdevelopmental reading programsthrough grade 12? How can local

staffs be convinced that they must consider suchprograms in planning curricula?

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RecommendationsAStrong recommendations by state professionalorganizations and by the State Department ofEducation should encourage the establishmentand improvement of developmental reading pro-grams in all secondary schools.BLocal school systems should continue stand-ardized and diagnostic testing of student readingabilities throughout the secondary grades. Theresults of these test programs would in them-selves convince teachers of the need for develop-mental work in reading. The State Departmentof Education and professional organizations ofEnglish and reading teachers should join to-gether to encourage such secondary school test-ing programs.CGroups of schools and colleges or universi-ties, the Connecticut Council of Teachers ofEnglish and the Connecticut Association forReading Research, or the State Department ofEducation should plan and sponsor conferencesand workshops on the teaching of developmentalreading in secondary schools.

How can composition programs beimproved? What can be done tohelp local school staffs to establishmore effective programs in the

teaching of composition?

RecommendationsAThe State Department of Education curric-ulum guidelines should recommend that schoolstaffs develop spiral curriculums that give chil-dren early and repeated teaching and practicein writing.BThe Connecticut Council of Teachers of Eng-lish or the State Department of Educationshould compile and distribute annual bookletssimilar to the National Council of Teachers ofEnglish publication Promising Practices in theTeaching of English. They should urge teachers,possibly by offering payment for articles, to con-tribute to such booklets.CA group of school systems or the State De-partment of Education should hire an itinerantconsultant specifically for composition who couldhave frequent contact with local school systemsto analyze existing programs and to recommendimprovements.

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How can the teaching of values beincorporated into the program? Towhat extent is the English languagearts teacher responsible for teach-

ing aesthetic and moral values? To what degreeis the teaching of values the goal of schoolliterature programs? How can schools deal withthe problem of censorship of reading lists?

Recommendations

ALocal schools should establish clear-cut state-ments regarding their responsibility for teachingthe democratic charter, values, and aesthetics.

BThe censorship of school reading lists on thegrounds that the selections offend groups withinthe community might be dealt with by a strong"Right to Teach . . ." statement made by theState Department of Education. Also variousprofessional organizationssuch as the Connect-icut Education Association, Connecticut Federa-tion of Teachers, Connecticut Council of Teach-ers of English, the Connecticut Heads of EnglishDepartments, and the Connecticut School Li-brary Associationcould establish programs toassist teachers and/or school systems under firefrom community pressure groups.

Providing for All Students

How can the needs of all studentsbe provided for? How can specificprograms in the teaching of Eng-lish language arts be developed for

such diverse students as the disadvantaged, theslow learner, the problem reader, the emotion-ally disturbed, the non-native speaker of Eng-lish, the intellectually gifted, the creative child?

Recommendations

AThe State Department of Education shouldencourage the establishment of regional centersstaffed by teachers highly skilled in techniquesof diagnosis and remediation, and equippedwith a wide variety of educational materials toserve students with such special problems asphysical handicaps, perceptual difficulties, emo-tional disturbances, or cultural dislocation.

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BLocal school staffs should be encouraged toinvolve the parents of students with specialproblems or special abilities in their children'sschool programs.

CLocal school systems should cooperate inplanning and offering special programs orcourses for gifted students. Four high schools,for example, might find it feasible to offer acourse in short story writing or literary criticismto classes composed of the very brightest of eachschool's students. Local colleges could also beasked to give Saturday courses to such students.

How can a variety of patterns oforganizing students and teachersfor instruction be encouraged?How can team teaching, individ-

ualized instruction, computer-assisted instruc-tion, educational-television, multi-level teaching,cross-grade grouping, and other ideas be effec-tively brought to the attention of classroomteachers? How can such programs be imple-mented when found desirable?

Recommendations

AThe State Department of Education curricu-lum guidelines should mention these programsand list experiments with them carried out inConnecticut.

13One of the state professional organizationsor the State Department of Education shouldestablish a permanent committee to keep localadministrators, supervisors, and teachers in thestate informed concerning the latest develop-ments in organizational patterns.

COne of the state professional organizationsor the State Department of Education shoulddevelop a bulletin or newsletter to keep localschool staffs informed of state, federal, and pri-vate foundation funds available for experiment-ing with new organizational patterns and themeans for securing such funds.

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Using Multi-Media for Instruction

How can teachers make the best

1.0 use of multi-media materials? Withso little time to preview new mate-rials, how can teachers and super-

visors make intelligent decisions concerningpurchase and use of new commercial materials?

Recommendation

A committee of classroom teachers establishedby a school system or by a group of school sys-tems working together should list and reviewcommercially produced materials, such as re-cordings, film strips, transparencies, motionpictures, video tapes, even textbooks. The com-mittee's work should be widely distributedamong its members.

11 How can money be made availableto purchase multi-media materials?

Recommendations

ALocal school systems, groups of school sys-tems, and the State Department of Educationshould provide consultants in multi-media whowould instruct local school staffs in bow to getfederal and state money available for purchasingthese materials.

BState professional organizations and theState Department of Education should encour-age regional groupings of local school systemsto share the expense of expensive multi-mediamaterials and equipment.

CGroups of school systems, the ConnecticutCouncil of Teachers of English, or the StateDepartment of Education should set up work-shops to train teachers in the development ofmulti-media materials.

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Problems of Articulation

Building Program ContinuityBetween Educational Levels

How can articulation be strength-ened between the programs of theelementary school, the junior highschool, the senior high school, and

the college?Articulation is important whenever a pupil

moves from grade to grade or teacher to teacher,but the problems of articulation are likely to bemore acute as he moves from elementary tojunior high school to senior high school and tocollege. Any of the following problems may beinvolved:

Long-range objectives are not coordinated.Skill building is not correlated.Cognitive skills develop by chance rather thandesign.Materials are not correlated.Some materials and activities are repeated un-necessarily.Some needs of pupils are neglected becauseof the assumption that they have been pro-vided for elsewhere.Some skills that pupils have practiced are lostby default.An individual teacher's good practices or limo-vations are not shared.Some good ventures abort from lack of supportor carry-through.A teacher's natmral resiitanee to change is notchallenged.Absorption in the immediate situation tendsto restrict the teacher's vision of long-rangeplanning beyond that for the immediate classor immediate educational level.

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Recommendations

Means for implementation of these recommen-dations vary from those accomplished by a per-sonal exchange between two teachers to thosethat might be fulfilled by the pooling of re-sources by a group of communities..

AStrive for a sequential curriculum of skills,concepts, cognitive growth, methods, and mate-rials from kindergarten through grade 12 (orgrade 14, where community colleges exist).

Provide a K-12 consultant whose full-timeresponsibility is to develop and coordinatecurriculum with the teachers.Develop an information retrieval center foreasy access to each child's personal and cumu-lative record of reading experiences, writing,independent projects, test scores, etc.Emphasize the importance of diagnosis byproviding teachers with assistance in makingdiagnoses.Involve teachers from various educationallevels (including college) in developingcourses of study.Set up a permanent curriculum committee ofteachers with more vertical than horizontalrepresentation.

BDevise ways of bringing teachers of differentgrade levels together as often as possible in avariety of situations.

Arrange an exchange of visiting days betweenelementary and secondary; secondary and col-lege; teachers and administrators; within oneschool system and between communities.Arrange an exchange of teaching assignmentsbetween junior and senior high schools; be-tween high school and college instructors fora week, or month, or semester.Bring teachers together from different educa-tional levels for inservice programs to shareideas and plan vertically; define the core thatruns through -11 education.Set up a permanent curriculum planning andrevision immittee with representatives fromall levels, including college.Encourage attendance at professional confer-ences and conventions at the state, regional,and national levels.

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CCapitalize on administrative assistance, pre-rogatives, and know-how to improve articulationbetween different educational levels. The ad-ministration of a school system or a group ofschool systems working together might under-take any of the following activities:

Provide time, money, and people o developthe good ideas and utilize the human resourceswithin the school community.Provide for a teacher-in-residence, visitingscholar, poet, or novelist in residencean extraperson on the staff for a month, semester, oryearto move from one educational level toanother, to sit in on a variety of staff andadministrative meetings, to act as a catalyst,academic scavenger, gadfly, or peddler ofideas.Budget for college professors or otber visitinglecturers to be speakers, organizers of work-shops or inservice courses, or part-time con-sultants for curriculum or teacher-training.Supplement permanent K-12 coordinator witha part-time university consultant.Subsidize attendance by teachers at state,regional, and national conferences and con-ventions.When working with a departmentalized staff,devise a time schedule flexible enough topermit more visiting between teachers withoutloss of time in the classroom.

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Utilizing Resources OutsideThe School Community

How can articulation be strength-ened between a school communityand educational facilities outsideits immediate system?

Any of the following problems may exist:

Teachers are often unaware of services thatare available from the State Department ofEducation.Administrators have so many demands ontheir time that curriculum is left to staffmembers.Channels for easy communication betweencommunities do not exist.Teachers do not have the time to keep upwith research, to say nothing of indulging intheir own research.

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Most innovations and improvements make aheavy demand on non-existent time, money,and people.Cnce in the classroom, new teachers too oftenfind that teaching is a process of trial anderror (swim or sink) at a time when theycould most benefit from the assistance of thoseprofessors back at the university.Numerous incidents indicate a willingness,even eagerness, on the part of universities andschools to cooperate. But lack of time, leader-ship, or money leaves the project on the plan-ning table.

Recommendations

AThe State Department of Education mightassist in a number of ways.

Organize teams to go to a school system andgive a one- or two-day workshop on curricu-lum building, problems of censorship, servicesof the State Department of Education, etc.Publish a newsletterconcisely composed forthe busy teacherthat describes services avail-able to schools.Establish one or two demonstration centerswhere teachers from different schools cancome together to observe successful practices,discuss techniques, and shard ideas.Establish several instructional materials cen-ters throughout the state.Compile and keep up-dated a list of all teach-ers of English language arts in the state.Publish an honor rolla la National Councilof Teachers of Englishof schools that makecommendable provisions of time, money, ex-change visits, and other activities for improv-ing articulation or of schools that have beenunusually successful in achieving articulation.Foster additional means of pooling or sharinggood ideas and successful practices, as hasalready been done with such federally sup-ported projects as METRO, SPRED, and theWatertown venture.

BSchools and colleges should work togetherto bridge the gap between school and college.

Explore ways and means for developingteacher training far beyond present practices.Develop a continuous program of exchanginginstructors between school and campus.Encourage schools, colleges, and universitiesto appoint a liaison person responsible forbringing school and campus together.

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CProfessional organizations at the state, re-gional, and national levels provide opportunitiesfor exchanging ideas and resources across dif-ferent educational levels and categories. Suchorganizations can encourage better articulationin several ways.

Encourage classroom teachers to attend andbecome involved in professional organizations.At a professional meeting, even the coffeebreak is valuable for exchange of ideas.Encourage administrators to give curriculuma prominent spot at their professional meetings.Encourage administrators to attend readingand English conferences.

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Problems of Teaching Conditions

Assigning a Reasonable Teaching Load

What is a reasonable teaching load

14 for teachers of English languagearts and reading at various levelsof school, K-12, if effective instruc-

tion is to be insured?

Recommendations

AA teacher's duties should be assigned withappropriate regard for his special talents, gen-eral abilities and preparation, and for the bestinterests of the student and teacher.

BClass size should be scaled according to theabilities and maturity of the students and ac-cording to the type of program being offered.

Low ability :lasses, including classes for theculturally disadvantaged, should be limitedto 15.In innovative and experimental programse.g. large group presentations, seminar groups,etc.class size may vary considerably depend-ing on the purpose of the program.Kindergarten classes should be limited to 15.First grade classes should be limited to 20.Average or above average classes in grades twothrough 12 should be limited to 25.

CIn departmentalized schools, English lan-guage arts and reading teachers should be givenclass assignments that permit effective teaching.

Such teachers should be assigned no morethan four classes, each of which meets fouror five class periods each week,

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Such teachers should be assigned no more thantwo markedly different class preparations aday. A preparation as used here is defined asplanning for one c'Jility level or one gradelevel.

DSince the teaching of composition is a primeresponsibility of the teacher of English languagearts, time must be provided during the schoolday for correction of student writing and forconferences with individual students.

ELocal school systems should employ non-instructional personnel to assume the non-teaching duties of English language arts andreading teachers.

Providing Effective TeachingFacilities

15 What sort of teaching facilitiesstimulate effective teaching ofEnglish language arts and reading?

Recommendations

AClassrooms and department offices for Eng-lish language arts and reading teachers shouldbe located so as to have easy access to theschool's central library or resource center.

BFacilities should be provided for large-grouppresentations, seminar discussions, conferencesand diagnostic testing, teacher work space, andreading laboratories.

CEvery school, elementary and secondary,should have a central library equipped andstaffed according to the standards of the Ameri-can Library Association.

DA classroom properly equipped for teachingEnglish language arts or reading should containthe following:

an adequate supply of up-to-date textbooksperiodicalssupplementary books (classroom libraries)reference books (including an unabridged dic-tionary)

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an overhead projectora tape recorder

record playera projection screenfacilities for darkening the roomadequate book shelvinga filing cabinet or other filing facilities

EEvery classroom should have easy access toadditional audiovisual equipment including filmprojectors, filmstrip projectors, and televisionreceivers.

Supplying Supervisory Assistance

,16 What sort of supervisory assistanceis needed to upgrade English lan-guage arts and reading instruction?

Recommendations

AA local school district should have either asingle English language arts director, K-12, orone director for the elementary and one for thesecondary level. Each district also needs a read-ing director, K-12, or an elementary school read-ing director, plus a secondary school readingdirector. Close articulation is essential whenthere are two directorships.

BSchool districts too small to warrant specialsubject directors should hire specialists in ele-mentary and secondary English instruction andin elementary and secondary reading instructionto work part-time as consultants to directors ofelementary and secondary education, prjncipals,and teachers.

CIn every departmentalized school, a depart-ment chairman who is highly knowledgeable inthe fields of English and English teaching shouldbe appointed. His work schedule should providetime for leadership in supervising teachers andin developing an effective English program.

DThe director, supervisor, and departmenthead should have a strong professional back-ground, including the study of supervision andadministration. His preparation in English and

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in English education should at least equal thatof exceptionally well-qualified teachers. Itshould include studies in linguistics, semantics,speech, educational research, audiovisual pro-cedures and techniques, and methods of teach-ing reading, either as a part of or in addition tothe usual liberal arts program of an Englishmajor and the general program of the educationstudent. It is also highly desirable that the di-rector, supervisor, or department head havesuccessful experience in teaching English atevery level of his supervisory responsibility.

EThe duties of the director, supervisor, ordepartment head should include the following:

designing means for upgrading the curriculumand adapting it to the needs of students ofvarious achievement levels, including the prep-aration, implementation, and evaluation ofcurriculum guides and conducting the initialscreening of new textbooks and other teachingtools before adoptionproviding inservice education programs for thegrowth of all teachersparticipating in the hiring of new teachers andin the evaluation of the work of teachers.interpreting curriculum changes and curricu-lum progress for the school administration andfor the publicestablishing criteria for the grouping of stu-dents and assisting in the scheduling of theassignments of teachers

FAll English language arts teachers should beprovided with consultant services designed toassist them in improving the developmentalreading program in their daily teaching.

GAll personnel charged with the supervision ofany aspect of the English language arts programshould work closely and cooperatively with eachother at all levels to insure articulation and co-ordination of the total program.

HPersonnel charged with supervision shouldwork with principals in establishing criteria forevaluating instructional progress and in execut-ing projects or activities related to the Englishprogram,

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Problems of Teacher EducationAnd Reeducation

Strengthening UndergraduatePreparation

What is crucial in the undergrad-

17 nate training programs for pro-spective teachers of English lan-guage arts? What kinds of training

can colleges provide that English language artsteachers desperately need?

Specific areas in which the prospective teacherneeds training include knowledge of linguistics,contemporary literature, reading skills, socialchanges, and what recent research has discov-ered about how children learn. He needs to beable to recognize a specific teaching situationas a part of a planned sequence of learning, tobe able to recognize the pupil's instructionallevel, and to select instructional material appro-priate for his level of achievement and maturity,to use suggestions for improvement of instruc-tion, to promote student development in oraland written language, to teach writing effec-tively, and to use modern techniques and ma-terials of instruction.

Recommendations

AThe five-year training program for prospec-tive teachers is a promising tend. Colleges areencouraged to explore the feasibility of includingin this program a one-year internship in practiceteachingperhaps during the fourth year.

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BIdeally, prospective teachers will experiencein their college instructors models of good teach-ing as well as sources of information. Collegeinstruction should include:

recognition of individual abilities, needs, andinterests through modification in the mode ofcourse instruction to reach more individualsin each class groupmotivation and opportunity for wide readingencouragement and guidance which wouldlead each prospective teacher toward a strongcommitment to a humanistic approach, bothto his subject and to his future pupilsdevelopment of an inquiring attitude of mind

CLiberal arts courses from all three of theareas listed below should be required for pros-pective teachers of English language arts, K-12:

history of language, syntax, semantics, vocab-ulary development, the psychological and cul-tural effects of languagemajor literary genresEnglish, American, andworld literatureadvanced composition beyond the collegefreshman English course

DProspective teachers who cannot demon-strate competence in writing or speaking shouldbe required to take additional training in theseareas at college.

ECollege faculties should consider each of thefollowing in developing a program for profes-sional competence in teaching:

individualim the future teacher's program tofill in gaps in preparation or backgroundprovide more training in the broad Englishlanguage arts-reading complex, placing equalweight on substantive content and skills de-velopmentpromulgate ideas for interdisciplinary ap-proaches to learninguse a variety of teaching methodsprovide an overview of English language artsteaching, K-12, stressing similarities and dif-ferences at different levelsstress means for articulation, such as cumula-tive records and K-12 participation in develop-ment of curriculum, objectives, programs, andevaluation

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emphasize the teaching of reading by requir-ing courses in: (1) developmental reading(2) assessment of reading needs, and (3) chil-dren's andjor young adult literature

FEighteen to 30 hours should be required incourses which lead to professional competencein teaching, the number of hours being to someextent dependent on the needs of the prospec-tive teacher.

GCourses should be planned sequentially, thesequence to depend on the nature of the subjectand the needs of the prospective teacher.

Reshaping Graduate Training

How can graduate study beplanned and focused so as to havedefinite relation to the study andteaching of English language arts

and yet be flexible enough to meet the individualprofessional needs of teachers?

Recommendations

AAttention should be given to promoting bal-anced graduate programs for preparation ofEnglish language arts teachers, K42. Prepara-tion in substantive content should not be heavilyweighted in favor of literature. Composition,language study, and skills development (partic-ularly reading) are equally important.

BAll English language arts teachers, K-12,should have successfully completed:

a minimum of one course (three semesterhours) in composition beyond freshman Eng-lisha minimum of one course (three semesterhours) in the new grammarsa minimum of one course (three semesterhours) in the teaching of reading

CIn addition to the training specified above,secondary school English language arts teachersshould have successfully completed the follow-ing:

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a second course in advanced compositioncarrying three credits (to total six semesterhours in composition beyond the freshmanyear)

a minimum of one course (three semesterhours) in the history of the English language(either during undergraduate or graduatepreparation)a minimum of two courses (six semesterhours) in literary criticism and/or the teachingof reading (either during undergraduate orgraduate preparation)a concentration or depth study in composition,language or skills development which wouldqualify the prospective teacher as a teachingspecialist.

DEfforts should be made to encourage com-munications between colleges and universitieswhich offer graduate programs and the schoolsthat employ their graduates.

ELocal school systems are urged to encouragegraduate study by establishing sabbatical leavesfor this purpose, perhaps with stipulation thatthe teacher will return to the system.

Vitalizing Inservice Education

19In what ways can inservice educa-tion programs be improved so as tobetter serve the needs of teachers,sclwols, and children?

Although colleges are taking a critical look attheir preparation of teachers, it seems unrealisticto expect that even dramatic changes in collegeprograms will produce teachers who are fullyprepared to cope with the infinite variety ofcurrent problems and practices relating to in-struction in English language arts. Each com-munity has its unique character and problems.Local boards of education must expect to takeon responsibility for inservice training of newteachers and, if the instructional program is toimprove, inservice opportunities for the entireprofessional staff.

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Teachers, particularly elementary teachers, arebombarded from all sides with curriculum in-novation and revision to the point of frustration.Far too many communities rely on after-schoolinservice training as a cure. Little observableimprovement in classroom practices has everresulted from such piecemeal efforts.

Recommendations

AInservice training is most valuable when itinvolves the participants in the identification oftopics to be covered and permits in-depth con-sideration of actual classroom problems facedby teachers.

BReleased time, reduced teaching loads, andpaid summer work are more productive pro-cedures than after-school meetings. But eventhese call for careful planning, sharp focus, andobtainable goals.

CInservice activities that might be undertakenby a school system or by a group of school sys-tems working cooperatively include:

workshops for teachers new to the systempreceding the opening of the school year (Thisorientation should be conducted by thoseresponsible for supervision of the Englishlanguage arts program, assisted by classroomteachers of proven excellence.)a "buddy system" in which an exemplaryexperienced teacher assumes a one-year re-sponsibility for serving as a resource personfor a teacher new to tbe systemconcentrated help for teachers from Englishlanguage arts and reading consultants in theform of classroom observation, followed bydemonstration lessons or individual and smallgroup conferencesplanned visiting days for all teacherssummer remedial reading programs, whereteachers, K-12, learn to work effectively withdisabled readers in the morning, and becomeinvolved in afternoon sessions devoted to thestudy of diagnostic and corrective techniques(The study sessions should be under the super-vision of language arts and reading specialistsand visiting consultants.)"sharing" workshops in which classroom teach-ers are the key figures as they discuss methodsand materials they have developed with eachother

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college or university extension courses broughtto a local community and paid for by theschool system

workshop designed to improve articulationand coordination among auxiliary services thatcontribute to an effective English languagearts programsocial workers, health personnel,speech therapists, psychologists, librariansclosed-circuit television used for demonstra-tion lessons and introduction of instructionalmaterialscurriculum workshops for principalsemployment of teachers during the summer todo curriculum study and revisionreleased time for a series of faculty meetingsdevoted to curriculum improvement within agiven school

consultant services from colleges and universi-ties, publishers, other school systems, and theState Department of Education to work withteachers on special problems

periodic curriculum revision

teacher attendance at conferences and meet-ings outside the school system, with expensespaid by the local school system.

DAll English language arts and reading teach-ers should have easy access to a well-stockedprofessional library containing professional pub-lications and samples of available curriculummaterials.

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MajorRecommendations

In order to strengthen English and readingeducation throughout Connecticut:

1. Local schools must initiate, plan, and executeEnglish and reading education programs thatmore effectively s.xve the needs of students andabilities of teachers.

2. Groups of school systems working togethermust be formed to carry out services and pro-grams too costly for local financing.

3. State professional organizations must plan,implement, and maintain additional programsand services that support improved instructionalprograms in English and reading.

4. Colleges and universities that train Englishlanguage arts teachers must work closely withschools in evaluating present training programsand in developing new programs.

5. The state and its Department of Educationmust provide added services, staff, and fundingthat stimulate and support improved Englishand reading education in local schools.

6. Administrators, boards of education, and tax-payers must cooperate to provide time andmoney for school staffs to develop curriculumand to grow professionally.