The purpose of this study was twofold. First, it aimed to determine whether the application of backward design model has any significant effect on improving the writing ability of Iranian intermediate EFL learners. Second, the study sought to evaluate the superiority of backward design to conventional forward models in the improvement of the…

In this article, we discuss what it means to learn troublesome "threshold concepts" about writing that cannot be adequately grappled with in a single course or assignment. Here, two faculty members and a graduate of a writing major reflect on elements of the writing curriculum, the writing center practicum, and the learning dispositions…

This design research project developed and evaluated curriculum for developmental writing classes in community colleges. The core of the curriculum was self-regulated strategy instruction, which has been shown to be effective with adolescents who are struggling as writers. In the curriculum, students learned strategies for planning, drafting, and…

This profile describes a new WPA's choice to work incrementally to assess an inherited, fledgling First-Year Writing curriculum at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and change it over a three-year period with continual stakeholder involvement. The methods used for assessment were two rounds of instructor surveys and three rounds of direct…

English 1311: Expository English Composition is the first semester course in a two-semester first-year composition (FYC) sequence. Both ENG 1311 and its second-semester counterpart, ENG 1312, are required for all students unless they have transfer credit covering this requirement or place out of one or both of the courses via the College-Level…

This article presents an interview with Greg Bowe, a research fellow at the Center for Urban Education and Innovation in the College of Education at Florida International University (FIU) where he directed the Undergraduate Writing Program for seven years. Founded in 1972, FIU is a large public urban university in Miami. In this interview, Bowe…

Introduces writing instructors to theories of instructional design that form the foundation to support effective student learning. Discusses how best to support students in online environments. Concludes with suggestions for faculty support and training for online course delivery. (SG)

Practical and engaging, this book contains 21 case studies that help students apply curriculum theory to classroom reality. Each case is authored by an in-service teacher, reflecting on ways to improve instruction by making changes to various aspects of the curriculum. These real-life examples investigate up-to-date curricular issues ranging from…

The Collaborative Probing Model (CPM) is a heuristic approach to writing across the disciplines that stresses discovery, process, and assessment. Faculty input will help the English department design an oral and written communication block that will be unified by a series of interdisciplinary videotaped presentations. CPM also uses flow charting…

Curriculum development efforts for English instruction over the past 20 years are reviewed, and an "inside-outside" approach that uses the structure of the discipline, or its inner core, to guide curriculum development is suggested. Three principles--metaphoric thinking, writing as reconstruction of experience, and language in context--would…

The New Center for Learning is an experimental program at East Texas State University which offers students an alternative, interdisciplinary general education curriculum which can improve student writing more than traditional programs do. Students in the program take 36 hours of courses throughout their college careers which are offered by a…

A sequential writing program is described that has adapted James Moffett's ideas in "Teaching the Universe of Discourse" to suit the needs of a seventh and eighth grade school system that emphasizes expository writing instruction. The introductory chapter explains Moffett's ideas and how they were adapted for this program. Subsequent…

A basic writing course at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, serves students underprepared for first-year composition. The student population is culturally diverse, varying widely in ability and background. The course has evolved from a basic syllabus designed to teach writing skills to a more comprehensive, student-centered curriculum…

This 27-item bibliography represent the diversity of articles added to the ERIC database from 1983 to 1988 on the uses of ethnography and personal narrative in education. Included are conflicting opinions concerning the appropriateness of using this form of qualitative research to describe accurately problems within the classroom and to prescribe…

A description of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement's standards and curriculum for its Mainstream English Language Training (MELT) program, first designed in 1983, outlines the principles on which the curriculum is based, its structure, and development over its first 15 years. An introductory section gives background information on the…