Abstract:
The problem. The purpose of the report was to determine the extent and nature of english electives programs being offered or planned in selected Iowa high schools.
Procedure. Fifty schools were selected through the use of the Iowa School District Directory, and were of three general enrollment sizes. Responses were received from forty-two of those originally selected. The returned surveys included brief descriptions of the elective courses, intended student clientele, and enrollment patterns or trends. The surveys were then tabulated and combined to form an overall list of coursss (i.e., similar courses under varying titles were combined). Related literature dealing with high school English electives was consulted for similar reports and criticisms.
Findings. The survey responses shared an extensive use of electives programs in all sizes of schools, in all areas of the state. Only three of the forty-two responding schools did not have electives proqrams. The combined list of courses fell into seven study areas: literature, composition, usage, journalism, speech and dramatics, communications, and humanities. Courses for advanced or mixed groupings tended to predominate over basic or remedial courses. The report was concluded with a list of ten recommendations for electives
program development.
