Finds that joking in computer-mediated communication constitutes a hybrid form of discourse, mingling the conventions of print and speech. Notes that students use typography and space to better capture the rhythms and inflections of oral joking, but such joking instantly organizes participants into hierarchically differentiated groups, creating…

Examines ways that issues of sexual orientation can successfully be taught in the computer-assisted composition classroom. Shows how both gay and straight students can benefit from online and networked discussions of sexual orientation. Suggests that computerized learning-spaces offer possibilities for open discussion not available in conventional…

Uses a control class to compare student attitudes about writing and performance as writers. Finds that students in the Internet-based classes contributed to their journals more frequently, reported a greater increase in their enjoyment of writing, and demonstrated greater improvement on initial and final timed writing samples as compared with the…