Description
Book SynopsisTo be successful, teachers of English in grades 6â12 need more than basic content knowledge and classroom management skills. They need a deep understanding of the goals and principles of teaching literature, writing, oral discourse, and language in order to make sound instructional decisions. This engaging book explores the pedagogical foundations of the discipline and gives novice and future teachers specific guidance for creating effective, interesting learning experiences. The authors consider such questions as what makes a literary text worth studying, what students gain from literary analysis, how to make writing meaningful, and how to weave listening and speaking into every class meeting. Professional learning and course use are facilitated by end-of-chapter reflection questions, text boxes, and appendices showcasing exemplary learning activities.
Trade Review"What do secondary school English teachers need to know in order to teach effectively? With so much contradictory information and advice available, a beginning (or veteran) teacher can be pulled in many directions simultaneously. This volume provides a coherent knowledge base for the teaching of English, one grounded in assumptions of constructivist learning, inductive in conception, based in activity, collaborative in design, and driven by student inquiry. This book should have tremendous value for any English teacher looking for both a theoretical framework to motivate instruction and practical ideas through which to realize it with kids."--Peter Smagorinsky, PhD, Department of Language and Literacy Education, University of Georgia
"Pedagogical content knowledge, or knowing how to teach students to read, compose, problem-solve, and learn like experts, is unquestionably the centerpiece of expert teaching. McCann and Knapp have achieved something monumental and unprecedented by describing what this kind of knowledge might look like in each of the language arts. This book will surely be a touchstone of conversation and an informing guide for teachers, staff developers, and teacher educators for years to come."--Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, PhD, Distinguished Professor of English Education, Boise State University
"Teaching on Solid Ground provides great swaths of history, perspective, and good ideas for high school and middle school English teachers, from two veterans with many decades of experience between them. The book focuses on what teachers should know about literature, writing, oral discourse, and language. It identifies key goals and offers lesson-planning suggestions and fascinating case studies that are attuned to the contemporary English classroom."--Ken Lindblom, PhD, Department of English, Stony Brook University
"An audacious project. McCann and Knapp take on the huge question of what teachers of English language arts need to know in order to be effective practitioners. I don’t agree with everything the authors have written, but that’s not the point--indeed, they don't always agree with each other! The book made me think hard about what knowledge matters most. It is sure to provoke important professional conversations among both inservice and preservice teachers about what stands at the heart of their important work."--Michael W. Smith, PhD, Associate Dean for Graduate Programs and Faculty Affairs, College of Education, Temple University -Teaching on Solid Ground: Knowledge Foundations for the Teacher of English…is a call to English teachers and teacher educators to deeply consider what English teachers should know and be able to do….This book is based on McCann and Knapp's extensive experience as U.S.-based classroom teachers, researchers, and teacher educators who have witnessed many teacher candidates in action. Therefore, a real strength of the book is how McCann and Knapp, over seven chapters, uncover the complexity of an English teacher's job: the significant responsibility for knowledge and expertise across the territory of literature, writing, oral discourse, and language demands.--Journal of Language and Literacy Education, 10/17/2019
Table of ContentsForeword, Carol D. Lee
Introduction: The Importance of Pedagogical Content for the Teaching of English
1. Knowing the Territory of Literature
2. Teaching in the Territory of Literature
3. The Territory of Writing: What Makes for Good Writing?
4. The Territory of Writing: How Can We Facilitate Growth?
5. The Territory of Oral Discourse
6. The Territory of Language: What Do We Teach When We Teach Language?
7. What English Teachers Should Know
Appendix A. What is the “Business” of Teaching English?: Profiles of English Teachers in Action
Appendix B. Knowledge about Mode and Form: What Is a Tragedy?
Appendix C. Practice with Rules of Notice and Rules of Significance
Appendix D. Applying Rules of Notice and Signification
Appendix E. Discovering Rules of Configuration
Appendix F. A Case for Discussion and Written Response
Appendix G. Drawing on Knowledge about Drama: Reading a Shakespeare Play as Performance
Appendix H. Using Language Analysis to “Open” a Novel
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