This paper describes our experiences with implementing an innovative approach to decoding our discipline, which involves writing dialogue-driven stories that explore authentic, context-rich problems within introductory business statistics. Our paper begins by introducing the decoding model created by Middendorf and Pace (2004). We then explain why…

In this article, I explore practical implications of the theories of language of M.M. Bakhtin within university second language writing classrooms. Specifically, I examine the presence of Bakhtinian intertextuality within online intercultural exchanges involving the use of Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) technology. I describe a CMC exchange…

This article reports on the results of a literature review addressing the research questions: What strategies for writing instruction have proven to be effective in promoting writing development in preschool-primary aged children? What research on writing instruction has been conducted within Canada on preschool-primary aged children? An…

Students often express surprise at their grades on papers. This gap between expectation and achievement may stem in part from lack of facility with revision strategies. How, then, can teachers work with their students to foster more effective revisions? This question in teaching and learning has inspired an interdisciplinary collaboration: one of…

The purpose of this article is to discuss the process of teaching graduate students in school psychology to write psychological reports that teachers and parents find readable and that guide intervention. The consensus from studies across four decades of research is that effective psychological reports connect to the client's context; have clear…

This article examines a grade one teacher's support for her students' writing development through formal peer and teacher feedback. The teacher modelled and provided examples of effective feedback and good writing in whole-class and small-group lessons and in her own one-on-one verbal feedback on student writing. She allocated time for the…

Traditional teaching methods often fail to engage male students in learning. The purpose of this research was to increase student engagement in the story writing process and increase self-confidence in boys at risk. A qualitative approach included student surveys as well as teacher journaling and portfolios (including e-portfolios). The student…

For a number of years, Rebecca Luce-Kapler and Dennis Sumara have been investigating the ways in which literary practices of close reading can help change how we think and how we remember. They have also considered how such practices might help make us more critical of normative representations of remembered experience. More recently, they have…

Trickster tales, with their teachings on how to behave in the world, are a powerful means for transmitting social knowledge and cultural mores to children. In this study we compared two approaches to teaching fourth-grade students to write trickster tales. Although both instructional methods incorporated aspects of the writing process approach,…

This narrative inquiry reveals some behavior of digital-era students learning writing in a new digital classroom. The teaching methods, the physical design of the classroom, and the impact of the new technology are observed, along with the pedagogical theories in use. I suggest that a basic and significant change in students' writing behavior has…

This paper considers some of the benefits of reading and writing e-literature, including its influences on prints texts, challenges to the imagination, and attention to metafictive devices and processes. The less cohesive, more fragmented quality of e-literature creates a subjunctive space for creation where writers can consider interesting…

Discusses first grade students' writing experiences and processes. Demonstrates, using student writing samples, how simple expression can lead to greater complexity with appropriate teacher guidance. Asserts that teachers must observe and take cues from students to determine what learning context and hints to provide. (MM)

Presents the first year findings of a three-year longitudinal collaborative research project which focuses on one teacher's professional growth as he moves from a product-oriented to a process-oriented approach to teaching writing. (JK)

Directed towards elementary teachers interested in improving their writing programs, this guide focuses on motivating teachers to involve themselves and their students in the writing process. Each of the 12 chapters contains practical step-by-step procedures on implementing the writing process, and sample activities are illustrated. The first…

A study investigated how a teaching approach that emphasized literature would affect children's writings and help them to apply elements of form and content. Six first grade classes in a rural Newfoundland school district participated in the study; the students performed similarly on overall readiness. The class randomly selected as the…