Describes three main uses of computers for writing as a social activity: networking, telecommunications, and project work. Examines advantages and disadvantages of teaching writing on a network. Argues that reports in the literature and the example of an English as a foreign language writing class show that project work shares most of the…

Notes that Interdisciplinary Studies Program faculty at Wayne State University devised courses and assignments using computer conferencing to create a collaborative, democratic, and nonauthoritarian learning community. Discusses an assignment based on the film "Grand Canyon" that encouraged students to take on roles of their racial and…

Describes how using conferencing software in a computer-assisted writing environment became a catalyst for a distinctive learning ecology that interrelated prosocial student behaviors, learner-centered teaching, and assessment. Argues that the conferencing class not only helped students apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills in…

Describes how an online conference was used in a graduate poetry class with students not accustomed to using technology in their coursework. Suggests that it extended the depth and quality of discussion, opening up new areas of discourse; and that students went beyond assigned topics to create and engage in their own discourse enriched by their…