This article presents an interview with two experts in whole-language instruction (Patricia Tefft Cousin and Margaret Richeck) and then offers a commentary section that provides another perspective of the whole-language method, concluding that children with learning disabilities need many types of instruction. (JDD)

A study of 14 adolescents with learning disabilities and 7 low-achieving adolescents was conducted to evaluate a writing strategy designed to enhance the quality of compare-and-contrast essays. Results indicate the students improved substantially in the clarity of writing, appropriateness, and organization of ideas in their essays, but not in…

Seven students with language and learning disabilities in fourth through eighth grades were interviewed to determine their understanding of and attitudes toward a writing-process instructional approach. Students' attitudes toward this approach were positive but their understanding of prewriting elements and of revising and editing were quite…

The complex nature of written expression presents difficulty for many students, particularly those with learning disabilities (LD). The literature in the area of written expression and students with learning disabilities indicates that explicit, rule-based instruction can enhance the writing skills of struggling students. Research in Direct…

Two studies are reported which investigated the efficacy of an interactive approach to teaching writing revision skills for 11 adolescents with learning disabilities. Results from both studies indicated that interactive teaching successfully taught students to identify ambiguities and make their writing more salient. (Author/PB)

A system is presented for advancing writing assessment beyond simple summative statements into a procedure for planning and evaluating instruction for all students, particularly those with learning disabilities. Case studies are presented in which writing samples are analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively for story idea,…

The effectiveness of writing process instruction in the regular classroom with three second grade students (one learning-disabled, one low-achieving, and one gifted student) is described. All three students demonstrated significant growth in punctuation, spelling, capitalization, and fluency during the six-month period. (Author/JDD)

A process approach to writing instruction for students with learning disabilities is presented. The approach involves students sharing their work with each other, receiving frequent response to their writing, using word processing to support fluent text production and ease revision, conferencing with teachers to develop writing strategies, and…

This article provides specific recommendations for teaching students with learning disabilities how to use a story grammar cueing system for improving writing. The article emphasizes the importance of individualizing instruction and teaching for generalization, and discusses the purpose of the system and methods of assessment. (JDD)

Middle-school students with (n=6) and without (n=16) learning disabilities were taught a strategy for planning and writing expository essays using the Self-Regulated Strategy Development approach to instruction. Positive results were found for students with and without learning disabilities. Students' papers became longer, more complete, and…

This article describes the Cognitive Strategy in Writing program (originally intended for elementary-age students), and adaptation and application of the social constructivist approach with seven junior high and high school students with learning disabilities. Pretest-posttest assessment indicated dramatic improvements in overall quality and…

Intermediate grade students with learning disabilities learned to work in pairs to help each other with editing and revising of their compositions. The 13 subjects made more revisions and produced papers of higher quality when revising with peer support than did 16 students in a process-approach control group. (Author/JDD)

Interactive dialogues between teacher and student or between student and student were used to teach revision skills to 18 adolescents with learning disabilities or English as a Second language. Both intervention conditions were equally effective in promoting clarity and thematic salience in trainees' reportive essays. (Author/JDD)

This article presents an empirical basis for the relationship between reading and writing, a theoretical socio-historical model of teaching and learning that highlights the purposeful nature of both reading and writing as creating meaning, and instructional strategies for creating literacy events that promote learning-disabled students'…

A special education teacher and a reading specialist who team taught fourth-grade students with learning disabilities were observed to determine the ways in which the teachers' beliefs and practices influenced their decisions about strategy instruction. The effects of strategy instruction on their reading and writing workshops are examined. (CR)