Presents a continuum of composition teaching methods ranging from whole-to-part approaches (stressing free writing and developing voice) to part-to-whole approaches (stressing spelling, vocabulary, and usage). Recounts an evaluation of these methods by preservice teachers who favored the part-to-whole approaches. (JG)

Surveys more than 100 "authorities"--writing researchers or officials of the National Writing Project--to determine what they believe teachers should be doing in the writing classroom. (FL)

Examines how four teachers respond to their students' creative writing. Describes how they shape their comments. Analyzes what those comments suggest about their teaching styles and classroom goals. (TB)

Proposes a pedagogy of struggle--a pedagogy which foregrounds the active role students can play in both their education and in the formation of oppositional discourse within the academy. Discusses samples from papers written by a student to explore how educators might enact such a pedagogy when teaching revision. (RS)

Discusses the teaching of imaginative writing in the content area at the middle school level and indicates potential applications for such teaching at all levels. Contains extensive writing examples. (FL)

Offers a rationale for applying the principle of nonjudgmental awareness to the English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) writing class. Presents data demonstrating that a nonjudgmental, expression-oriented approach to ESL writing results in higher student pass rates than does a judgmental, error-oriented approach. (TB)

Compares the rhetorical context of essay exams with that of assignments written outside of class. Reports differences in pedagogical function, prompts, rhetorical function, mechanics, style, and organization. Refutes two common assumptions: that essay exams are not a genre and that they work against students' mastery of writing process skills.…

Analyzes the effect of written assignments on improvement of reading. Describes a study conducted with 40 first-quarter college freshmen in a developmental reading program in which one group had written assignments and the other had none. Concludes that writing has a positive influence on reading. (JG)

Reports on a study that sought to describe and better understand the idea of three high school teachers as writers. Describes the potentials and problems of the idea in practice. Examines how writing teachers' own writing experiences shape their approaches in the classroom. (TB)

Identifies student misunderstanding of teacher criticism and a lack of context for that criticism as problems in composition classes. Describes how an instructor provided taped comments on student papers to make criticisms clearer to students. Details how the procedure was used in guiding one student's successive drafts. (SG)

Three high school students present findings of their survey of professional writers' training, influences, and writing processes conducted to judge whether secondary school writing programs adequately prepare high schoolers for writing in the future. Comments from writers emphasized prewriting, inspiration, reader feedback, and sequential drafts.…