The act of essay writing itself can serve to formulate thought and shape ideas. In the English as a Second Language classroom, this translates into an approach which places composition revision in a central position between content and written form. This approach more closely reflects the writing process. (Author/PJM)

Considering the complicating effect of cultural differences in writing conventions, this study examines discourse tradition as influenced by Confucian/Taoist precepts and those of U.S. academic environments, the latter requiring rational argumentation, justification, and proof. Pedagogical implications of native-speaker and nonnative-speaker…