The difficulties and obstacles encountered in research in the analysis and interpretation of writing conference talk are theoretically important. These dilemmas may serve as markers to help researchers see how the routines of research and the interpretations of findings are integrally related. The ways in which talk "rearranges" problems…

This paper explores the ways in which inner-city students' social, cultural, and political relationships and their thinking and behavior patterns that stem from the range of different situations outside the classroom can shape the classroom roles that they develop with their peers as thinkers and learners of English and writing. It presents a case…

As part of a larger study of teacher-student conferences, a study examined naturally occurring one-to-one writing conference conversations between a ninth-grade English teacher (recommended as an excellent writing teacher) and three markedly different students. The study examined students' grapplings with the structure as well as the content of…

A case study examined the brief conversations about writing that took place between a high school English teacher and two of his students. One illustrative writing conference conversation lasting 1 minute and 19 seconds shows how, through the push and pull of their short exchange, student and teacher simultaneously read the book, read the writing…

A study examined autobiographical narratives written by preservice English teachers who described their new experiences in student teaching. Subjects, 18 young men and women enrolled in a one-year combination teaching credential and masters degree program at Stanford University, described in writing a major classroom experience. Fourteen of the 18…

When students are learning to write, one-to-one teacher-student conversations taking place around the students' writing and writing processes are especially important. Two examples illustrate the multiple and connected processes of reading and writing that are associated with composing in a high school English class. The first conversation, in a…

To gain insight into why students frequently misunderstand their teachers' written responses to compositions, this paper looks in depth at one promising ninth grade student's processing of teacher written comments in a response-rich classroom, considering the larger learning contexts that impinge on the student's interpretations. The various…

Discusses one student's persistence in misunderstanding her teacher's written comments on her papers. Notes that student and teacher bring different sets of information, skills, and values to each written response episode, and that mismatched expectations can occur even with high-achieving students. (SKC)