CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: Kansas English

 (The journal of the Kansas Association of Teachers of English-an NCTE
affiliate)

Spring Issue Theme

The Evolution of Language Arts Teaching

Submission deadline for the spring issue: May 1, 2006

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Articles, essays, research studies, and revised conference presentations
are welcome for the spring 2006 issue of Kansas English. Your work on
the theme "the evolution of language arts teaching" could include
personal teaching histories, case studies, and archival research. We
are interested in learning more from experienced teachers on the ways
their teaching has evolved over time, how new practices and theories of
language arts instruction inform and change us. Other forms of writing,
including book reviews, interviews and poetry are also welcome. Poetry
submitted in the past to this publication has proven to be some of the
finest contemporary poetic work written by English teachers. It is our
desire to continue publishing more of the same.=20

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We are particularly interested in the way the concept or metaphor of
evolution can generate new ideas and teaching strategies in the English
classroom, as we consider how student writers develop, for example. One
researcher, Philip Lieberman, finds the idea of evolution useful in
describing how language and the human brain have changed us. His work
might provide an interesting starting point for readers and writers of
Kansas English. A review of Lieberman's book Uniquely Human: The
Evolution of Speech, Thought, and Selfless Behavior describes his
theory:

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How and why arc human beings so different from other species? Can the
Darwinian theory of evolution explain human linguistic and cognitive
ability? How do our processes of language and thought differ from those
of Homo erectus 500,000 years ago, or of the Neanderthals 35,000 years
ago? Lieberman believes that evolution for rapid, efficient vocal
communication forged modern human beings by creating the modern human
brain. Earlier hominids lacked fully human speech and syntax, which
together allow us to convey complex thoughts rapidly. The author
discusses how natural selection acted on older brain mechanisms to
produce a structure that can regulate the motor activity necessary for
speech and command the complex syntax that enhances the creativity of
human language. [http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog/LIEUNI.html]

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And from a review of Lieberman's book Toward an Evolutionary Biology of
Language:

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In this forcefully argued book, the leading evolutionary theorist of
language draws on evidence from evolutionary biology, genetics, physical
anthropology, anatomy, and neuroscience, to provide a framework for
studying the evolution of human language and cognition.
[http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog/LIETOW.html]

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We invite submissions from English teachers from all over the Wheat
State and the world from all cultures and backgrounds, and from those
who teach at any grade level from pre- Kindergarten through Graduate
school. Inquiries and submissions may be sent via email to one or both
of the editors:=20

kday_at_jccc.net or michele_at_ku.edu

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For a copy of the current issue, contact Andy Anderson:=20
http://web.jccc.net/kate/

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Michele Eodice

Director, KU Writing Center

University of Kansas

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Received on Sat Jan 14 2006 - 09:47:31 EST