Humanity's Ingenuity on Display.

NCOLCTL 6-24-08

Most of my interns in foreign language education choose to major in one of the three languages identified in current jargon as a "Commonly Taught Language" (CTL). These are the languages most commonly taught in high school and post-secondary institutions in the USA: Spanish, French, and German....

An Afternoon with the First People.

The Fancy Dancers 4-7-08

A few weeks ago I took my mama, DeLean Jones Alexander, to the Fayetteville Public Library to see the Oklahoma Intertribal Fancy Dancers as part of the library's month-long series of events to celebrate American Indian culture. Steve Littleman, emcee and storyteller for the dancers, opened the performance with a thought-provoking comment....

Air Misadventures, Ground Rewards.

ATE New Orleans 3-7-08

It's nice to be back home and engaged in a familiar routine after nearly a week of rewarding conferencing and exasperating travel. In America's post 9/11 travel culture, getting to and from an academic conference via airplane is likely to take-up as much time as the conference itself. Do any of you see what I'm seeing, that our air passenger system is showing signs of deep fracture?

In Memoriam on Epiphany.

Nicole Hatfield 1-6-08

On this last day of the holiday season in the new year of 2008, I sit before the flat screen of my laptop and allow my mind to wander through a maze of memories, dioramas of faded events, and hazy recollections of friends and mentors. It is Epiphany, the twelfth day of Christmas, when the three Wise Men, Balthasar, Melchior, and Gaspar, offered their gifts to the Christ child. It seems fitting to share a vivid recollection about a very special gift that was given to a few of us as young students at the University of Central Arkansas (UCA) in the seventh decade of the last century.

The Opportunity for Collaboration.

Accreditation 12-4-07

Many of my travels have led to familiar places with common themes: teacher education, teaching English as foreign or second language, research in teacher education — but this was my first time to attend the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). An organization of 9,000-plus educators, ACTFL promotes and supports the teaching of common and less commonly taught foreign languages across the vast land of the United States.

Mae West by the Alamo.

The Menger 11-17-07

Staying at a historic hotel conjures memories of aging grand dames in a city center of eroding renown. In the historic Riverwalk center in San Antonio, however, the Menger, which opened twenty-three years after the fall of the Alamo, presides elegantly over Alamo Plaza with grace, pride, and honor....

Scaffold for Success.

Foreign Language 11-07-07

On Thursday, November 1, at the University of Arkansas Fort Smith, 82 students, teachers, professors, and administrators convened in the Smith-Pendergraft Center with a common purpose: professional development in the teaching of foreign languages....

Show What You Know.

Assessment 10-23-07

Greetings to all cyber surfers!  In our little corner of the world, the MAT (Master of Arts in Teaching) interns at the University of Arkansas have created alternative assessments to "Show What You Know" about the first three chapters of the course text....

Summer of the Red Wasps.

Acceptance 8-27-07

To coexist, or not to coexist? That was the question when I opened the bathroom curtain to raise the window on a luscious morning early last spring. In the far left corner of the north-facing pane, a lone red wasp....

The Fluency of Silence.

Morton Feldman 1-14-07

I pause in the day's order of business — reading journalism and scholarly pieces, preparing breakfast and sharing the repast with husband and son — to pick up The New Yorker and continue a piece about Morton Feldman....

To Be a Leader.

ATE Philadelphia 8-3-06

What is leadership? If you were to answer that question, what qualities would appear on your list? Can you identify an exemplary leader? Are you one?

Dining with Jefferson.

ATE Philadelphia 7-31-06

On Friday afternoon I joined other members of the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE) Leadership Academy to tour a few famous sites in old Philadelphia....

On the Waterfront.

ATE Philadelphia 7-28-06

I've crossed into the mysterious midnight hour here in our room beside the Delaware River, so another day by tick and tock has begun in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....

A Memorable Day.

Time and Teaching 2-12-06

The new year 2006 steadfastly progresses. On this cold Sunday in the hills, it's already February. Another holiday (Valentine's Day in the USA) approaches....

Reality in Little-People Land.

Tutoring ELLs 10-31-05

One assignment for my Second Language Methodologies course requires that I tutor an English Language Learner for two hours each week. I contacted a fellow grad student, an ESL instructor....

Dreams of Domains.

Praxis III Revisited 9-18-05

In the last days of a pleasant summer, shortly before the start of another academic year, I traveled to the state capital, Little Rock, for one more in a series of Praxis III commitments. I checked into the Legacy....

Can We Be Bilingual and Diverse?

Teacher Education 8-23-05

The luxury of summertime contemplation disappears in the approaching rush of a new semester's beginning. It's time to put away my reflections on the sojourn at the ATE conference....

When Words Count.

Convergence 8-14-05

Back home from the ATE conference in the former Dakota Territories, I realize that many of the ideas and reflections gathered there aren't going away....

Delights and Discoveries.

ATE Conference 8-1-05

As I pack in preparation for Tuesday's departure, I also reflect on the past four days of novelty and excitement. At first mention, one might consider the novelty to originate from the delights and discoveries of experiencing a new place....

Restless Feet in the North Country.

ATE Conference 7-30-05

Once again I'm in a capital city. This trip brings me to the North Country, a far (and fair) piece from the south central state of Arkansas. Bismarck, North Dakota, lies barely over a hundred miles from the Canadian border states of Saskatchewan and Manitoba.....

Of Chameleons and Champagne.

Praxis III 7-25-05

An added bonus to my Praxis III training last week in the capital city was the opportunity to visit old friends, especially two former colleagues at Little Rock Parkview Performing Arts Magnet High School. On Wednesday and Thursday evenings....

Praxis III Assessor Training.

Pathwise 7-19-05

So you want to be a teacher. How does one become a part of such a noble and demanding profession? Some of us had "the calling" as children. I set up my first classroom in the cool, subterranean basement of my childhood home in Eastern Arkansas....

Anecdotes, Opinions, Commentary.

Sharing 7-13-05

With pleasure and gratitude, I extend a hearty "thank you" to each one of you who has taken the time to respond to the missives on Planet Gnosis. For everyone's edification, allow me to share the responses from near and far....

Teachers and Other Languages.

A Quest 7-7-05

I'm on a quest, and not for sang real (my holiday reading was The Da Vinci Code), but for something just as enigmatic and rare. I seek teacher education programs that require preservice teachers to take a foreign language. I haven't found many. If you work in such a program, please send me the details....

A Single-Minded Tongue.

Monolingualism 6-30-05

I ponder the underlying meaning of monolingualism, the import of living in a nation that insists upon remaining single-tongued and doggedly so — despite the heritage of many tongues and the future of many more. Is the pursuit of "English Only" simply another symptom of xenophobia? ....

Can't We All Just Speak English?

Languages 6-27-05

Our host and hostess graciously offered us first choice in tasting an aromatic dish of regional specialty. We nodded appreciatively and proceeded to voraciously praise the delicious dish and gesture profusely to emphasize our delight in sharing a meal with them during our stay in Oberammergau, Germany. They nodded, smiled, and responded in kind....

How Many Valid Gateways Lead
To the Public School Classroom?

Dispatch Three

Association of Teacher Educators
February 15, 2005

The second day of the conference began inauspiciously. The combination of excitement, intense intellectual engagement, social repartee, and minimal sleep prevented me from wakening at my intended hour. Added to my subdued physical state was a technological breakdown — the alarm clock's refusal to jangle at the appointed minute. I dressed in record time, missed breakfast, and managed to get to my first session just before it ended. What a disappointment — not the presentation, which was great, but....

No (ATE) Session Is Left Behind
In the Metropolis of Smoky Blues.

Dispatch Two

Association of Teacher Educators
February 13 and 14, 2005

The conference officially opened on Sunday, February 13, in the International Ballroom of the Hilton Towers on Michigan Avenue when the keynote speaker, Harry Wong, stepped to the podium. He was introduced by Nathanael Pultorak, son of the conference President, Ed Pultorak. Dr. Wong lived up to his reputation. He was humorous, passionate, and intense. He addressed the issues of classroom management and effective teaching....

A Mozart Concerto Inspires Writers.

Dispatch One

Association of Teacher Educators
February 13, 2005

Greetings from the Windy City. I've just returned from my first presentation about using music to teach literacy. Anne Schultz and Glenda Cosenza co-presented their Action Research Project in the Chicago Public Schools as an effective strategy to teach writing skills to primary school-aged bilingual children. Ms Schultz told about her frustration trying to teach these children writing. After an especially challenging class with a group of second graders, she jumped in her car and loaded a Mozart CD to create a mood of serenity. It was during this interlude that she experienced that Aha! moment....

Horror Stories from the Ivory Tower.

Vignettes 1-25-05

A new transfer student, a close relative to a fellow Ph.D candidate, visited the university on the mountain yesterday. She called on us at the GA (Graduate Assistant) office and offered two vignettes from her first day of classes.

Christening a Portfolio with a Postcard.

Portfolios 1-20-05

The first class of the new semester took place at a small rural Arkansas high school, not at the university as would be supposed. I was invited to teach portfolio writing by Novice Teacher to a group of eleventh grades who are academically at risk. Novice teacher was pondering the best way to engage these learners, so I offered my experience using portfolios for the ESL (English as a Second Language) writing classes I had taught in the Intensive English Program at the University of Central Arkansas. He conferred with the head of the English Department at his school, and she agreed that it would be a worthwhile endeavor.

Relentless, Ubiquitous "School Days."

Confinement 12-27-04

The third day of Christmas arrives in the restive, expansive northwest corner of Arkansas. For those of us in the teaching profession, we enter the second week of respite from an intensive semester of instruction, study, preparation, assessment, and academic juggling. The demands of administration and classroom management can be intense and fierce.

Special
Methods
of Instruction

Classroom
Management
Concepts

Multicultural
Issues

Language
Development
for Educators

Classroom
Learning
Theory

Essays and Reports
by Dr. Bowles

The Association
of Teacher Educators

National Council
of Less Commonly
Taught Languages

LitTunes

Multicultural
Education
Resource Center

American Council
on the Teaching
of Foreign Languages

University of Arkansas
Curriculum and Instruction

Ron Fritze

Planet IEP

Teachers of English
to Speakers
of Other Languages

Planet Deutsch

American Association
of Teachers of German

Teaching People
of Other Cultures

C O R N D A N C E R