We investigated direct and indirect effects of component skills on writing (DIEW) using data from 193 children in Grade 1. In this model, working memory was hypothesized to be a foundational cognitive ability for language and cognitive skills as well as transcription skills, which, in turn, contribute to writing. Foundational oral language skills…

This study examined the effects of similarity in competence between model and observer on the effectiveness of observational learning in argumentative writing. Results are consistent with the similarity hypothesis: weak learners learn more from focusing their observations on weak models, whereas better learners learn more from focusing on good…

This study investigated the possibility that direct instruction in story constituents and their interrelations could enhance children's organization in story writing. It also investigated whether the special instruction might affect quality, coherence, use of temporal and casual relations, and creativity in writing. (Author/JAZ)

Writing instruction featuring pedagogical principles based on a sociocognitive model was investigated with 26 fourth-grade and 16 sixth-grade classrooms (1,123 students). More than 40% of the variance in posttest writing quality scores was accounted for by adherence to the model. (SLD)