In the light of the fact that the activity of writing as a basic and generic educational ability is of paramount importance for lifelong learning, i.e. for life and work of each individual, and bearing in mind the notion that writing as a complex activity requires a whole corpus of knowledge and skills necessary for successful realization, we…

This study investigated the effect of group size and personality types in collaborative writing on students' writing ability. It employed a quasi-experimental design with non-randomized pre-test and post-test groups. Three classes consisting of 88 undergraduate students of Mathematics department at one of public universities in Malang, Indonesia…

Writing in a second language is complex, and complicated, mainly because of by the addition of new resources and norms (new structural elements of the new language, new rhetorical conventions, and some other things). Teachers therefore, whether they like it or not, have to select the most appropriate teaching methods and strategies in their…

The instruction of metadiscourse markers to L2 writers has been recommended by some scholars to assist them in employing a certain tone in persuading readers. Nonetheless, there is a dearth of research investigating the effect of process-based instruction on hedging and boosting devices to L2 learners. To fill this gap, the present study aimed at…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of an approach to teaching opinion writing in the primary grades that combined collaborative reasoning with strategy instruction. Four teachers and 80 students were randomly assigned to treatment and control conditions for 10 days of instruction in opinion writing. Students wrote opinion essays…

The present study sought to investigate the effect of portfolio assessment on idiom competence of Iranian EFL learners. For the purpose of this study, 30 students from upper-intermediate level of English proficiency took part in this study. They were chosen through convenience sampling from a language institute in Rasht, Iran. They were randomly…

Background: When writing a text, students are required to do several things simultaneously. They have to plan, translate and review, which involve demanding cognitive processes. In order to handle this complexity, writers need to develop a writing strategy. The two most well-defined writing strategies that have been identified, are those of a…

This article describes how one U.S. school district created a planned writing curriculum to provide strong, cohesive instruction for all students. Because of teacher preferences, some children received little instruction in expository writing, and scores on the state writing assessment fluctuated widely. The authors focus on how all teachers came…

There is considerable concern that the majority of adolescents do not develop the competence in writing they need to be successful in school, the workplace, or their personal lives. A common explanation for why youngsters do not write well is that schools do not do a good job of teaching this complex skill. In an effort to identify effective…

Offers a supplementary approach to teaching literacy narratives that builds on the work of M. Soliday and others but is centered in student production. Outlines specific strategies for teaching the literacy narrative in the first-year composition classroom. Discusses possible benefits of teaching the student production of literacy narratives.…

Examines the effectiveness of imbedding strategy instruction in the context of a process approach to writing. Finds that the strategy instructional procedures had a positive effect on the fourth- and fifth-grade students' writing, for both students with and without a learning disability. Shows that, overall, improvements in story quality were…

Describes how a group of third graders had an opportunity to write fairy tales using process writing techniques to assist them in overcoming their anxiety and dislike for writing. Indicates that writing strategies introduced through focused mini-lessons and feedback that valued children's writing choices were critical for the positive influences…

This is the description of a teacher using the creation of a class newspaper as a vehicle to improve the writing ability of Grade 3 students. In this instance, there was the added benefit of creating a community of learners who worked and supported each other in their classroom. Notes from parents, comments from students and teacher observations…

This project was implemented and developed to assist low-achieving tenth grade students' essay writing skills. According to examinations administered during the first part of the 2002 school term, many tenth-grade students were not performing on their grade level in regards to the writing process. The overall goal was to have students be able to…

This paper describes a simple instructional approach which social science professors can use to teach the fundamentals of academic essay writing to their students. The paper discusses the evolution of this alternative writing approach--the instructional problems leading to its development as well as the process by which a solution was identified.…