Where English Allsorts and Spotlight on Literacy both offer practical classroom ideas, bringing together key EMC approaches to teaching English, What Matters in English Teaching has a different purpose. Addressed to teachers, it gives an informed, principled - sometimes unashamedly polemical - account of the most important issues in English teaching today, reflecting on and arguing for a particular vision of the subject - its pedagogies, practices and curriculum content. Drawing and expanding on Barbara Bleiman's thought-provoking and highly influential blogs, this collection addresses the most important issues and concerns facing English teachers, including: Versions of English - What Is It? Thinking Big - Big Picture English Group Work and Dialogic Learning Teaching the Class Novel What Do We Mean by Knowledge in English? Vocabulary Creativity and Criticality - Reading as a Writer, Writing as a Reader What's Important in Teaching Poetry The Responsive English Teacher