In writing science summaries, student writers frequently borrow language fragments from source texts. While taking a text's ideas verbatim is commonly considered a failure in writers' expected use of their own words or even plagiarism, imitating "linguistic chunks" from skilled speakers is also an effective practice in language…

In writing science summaries, student writers frequently borrow language fragments from source texts. While taking a text's ideas verbatim is commonly considered a failure in writers' expected use of their own words or even plagiarism, imitating "linguistic chunks" from skilled speakers is also an effective practice in language…

This study tested whether writing skills, knowledge, motivation, and strategic behaviors (within the context of robust writing instruction) each made a statistically unique contribution to predicting fifth-grade students' (123 girls, 104 boys) composition quality and length on a persuasive writing task involving source material, after variance due…

A core tenet of the model of domain learning is that learning is shaped by cognitive and motivational forces. In writing, these catalysts include learners' knowledge, motivation, strategic behaviors, and skills. This study tested this proposition at two time points (Fall and Spring) with 179 fifth-grade students (52% were girls), examining if…

This document presents the proceedings of the 28th Annual Research Forum held June 27, 2024, at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Included are the following eight action research papers: (1) College Athletics and the High School Athlete: Perspectives of High School Coaches (Michael Goehrig); (2) The Influence of Blogging on…

Learning to compose texts adequate for different purposes is crucial for becoming literate. We examined developmental changes in the rhetorical structure of written texts produced by Spanish children throughout the early years of elementary school in the light of descriptive writing purposes. Children had also performed tasks to test…

This study, using a mixed methods design, examined the use of a photograph-based model to improve students' language and writing skills. Classes were assigned to receive the photograph-based intervention (experimental) or to receive the regular language-based curriculum (control). Both second and fifth grade students in the experimental group…

Research shows that cognitively demanding text-based writing assignments increase students' reading comprehension skills and analytic writing competencies. In this article, we describe the steps that upper-elementary grade teachers can take to develop cognitively demanding assignments that build these higher-level literacy skills and put students…

D. Elkonin's thesis that thinking is much more closely related to writing than to oral speech formed the basis of our three-year formative experiment at the elementary school level. In order to test this idea, second-graders through fourth-graders were given a few assignments in which they were asked to exchange thoughts in writing with their…

In this experimental study, 151 middle school students explored 3 historical controversies, first reading and discussing primary source documents in groups, then writing arguments on their own. Students were either randomly assigned to an experimental condition, using argumentative schemes and critical questions as guides during discussions, or to…

This article documents the experiences of a diverse group of second grade students during a nine week unit of study focused on graphic stories. The project begins as the class is immersed in reading graphic stories designed for young readers. Images, written text, and dialog are utilized to scaffold reading comprehension and to practice fluency.…

Problem: The problem of this study was to determine the difference in Bible comprehension scores among gender-based groups of older children using selected passages from three Bible translations: the Children's Bible, the Easy Bible, and the New Revised Korean Bible. Procedures: A total of 288 older children in three churches (Beautiful Baptist…

The purpose of this research was to seek evidence of awareness of metacognitive processes and intertextuality in the reading comprehension of students in an adult basic education class. Its purpose was to interweave several strands of research investigation and theory to explain the reading and writing capabilities of a representative population…

This study focuses, from a bilingual perspective, on how a Swedish national test is intended to promote critical literacy and language development in line with related aims in syllabuses for Swedish and Swedish as a second language. The material consists of reading and writing assignments and prescribed classroom preparations (including…

Authentic learning experiences are those in which students engage with texts as well as the behaviors of reading and writing within contexts of real-world use beyond traditional academic use. This study provides quantitative analysis of how students (n = 200) engaged with an adult pen pal in a shared literacy experience. Findings indicate that…