Preservice teachers' (PSTs) writing attitudes have been well formed through countless positive and negative interactions by the time they enter higher education. The present study examined 17 PSTs' beliefs about teaching writing, confidence levels, and plans for future instruction, before and after a semester-long language arts methods course.…

Writing has always been subjected as a difficult task for students taking English language subjects during their first two semesters studying in tertiary education. For these students, writing a composition has been a task they would prefer to avoid doing. One of many reasons is the inability to first generate and organize their ideas for writing…

This study investigates EFL Saudi male and female learners' and tutors' attitudes and practices in the Writing Centers at the College of Languages and Translation (CLTWCs) at Al-Imam Muhammad Ibn Saud Islamic University to determine the effectiveness of such centers. In fact, understanding EFL learners' needs is believed to eliminate some of the…

The purpose of this study was to design and develop a theory-based summary writing online tool, named Summary Writing-Pal (SW-PAL), to assist English as a second language students in improving their summary writing. It also evaluates the effectiveness of SW-PAL in enhancing the students' summary writing performance and examines their perceptions…

This chapter tells a story of course reform, describing in a fresh and candid way the steps taken toward change and the results achieved. The authors emphasize that instructors need considerable support in order to teach differently, as well as underscore the need to consider scalability of reform even at the pilot stage.

The four-week university-sponsored summer Computer-based Writing (CBW) Program directed by the head of a special education initial teacher licensure program gave teaching interns opportunities to work with young struggling writers in a supervised clinical setting to address keyboarding skills, writing conventions and knowledge and application of…

This investigation explored the use of strategic instruction to improve the essay-test taking skills of young adults who were enrolled in a campus-based, post-secondary education program for individuals with developmental disabilities. A random assignment to treatment or control groups and a pre- and posttest design was used. The participants…

The number of native Arabic-speaking students coming to America to study English in university programs has grown over the past few years, and continues to be substantial. It has also been noticed by the English Language Institute (ELI) at Sam Houston State University (SHSU) that these students often struggle more with reading activities in class,…

This article describes a cognitive argumentation schema for written arguments and presents three empirical studies on the "myside" bias--the tendency to ignore or exclude evidence against one's position. Study 1 examined the consequences of conceding, rebutting, and denying other-side information. Rebuttal led to higher ratings of…

We are delighted to welcome you to the International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends 2013, taking place in Madrid, Spain, from 26 to 28 of April. Our efforts and active engagement can now be rewarded with these three days of exciting new developments about what we are passionate about: Psychology and its connections. We take pride…