The classroom-tested ideas for teaching writing described in this booklet are based on the beliefs that writing is a teachable skill, that it is a process with constituent steps, and that students need evaluation at each stage of writing. Following an introduction that identifies eight steps in the writing process and discusses class organization,…

This is one in a series of eight discussion pamphlets produced by the Writing Across the Curriculum Project dealing with some of the issues connected with writing in the schools and their relation to learning. This pamphlet explores differences between students' talk and their writing in school contexts. It notes the value of expressive…

Provides a rationale for content area writing, and suggests ways it can be used for social studies instruction. (JC)

Offers guidelines for instructors designing computer labs to support existing writing programs, based on three main suggestions: (1) design computer-supported writing labs around writers, not around computers; (2) ground lab operations and instruction in current writing theory and pedagogy; and (3) use labs to support research on writing…

Teaching organizational strategies to language-disordered children can improve comprehension and formulation of written language. The semantic organizer approach involves activating and organizing prior knowledge, understanding text structure, and developing organizational strategies with both a verbal component and a graphic-structure component.…

Focuses on how children learn different written registers. Asserts that teachers must immerse children in a variety of texts to experience different registers of language and make explicit the purpose of registers, the role audience plays, and how information is organized in different registers. (MM)

Shows how to help students shape their self-selected writings into reports. In a class of students with learning and/or attitude problems, follows the development of one student's report writing through the processes of clarifying a purpose and audience, generating information with a word map activity, and organizing the information effectively by…

Lists possible "writing-as-performance" course objectives, all of which emphasize vocalization and movement while writing to encourage the fullest range of somatic response; describes four sample class assignments; notes that these courses bring students to a fuller appreciation of the reader/writer relationship in literary experience.…

The Newspaper section of the Proceedings contains the following 16 papers: "Reader-Friendly Journalism's Lasting Impact: A Study of Reporters and Editors Involved in Knight-Ridder's 25/43 Project" (Kris Kodrich); "An Analysis of Online Sites Produced by U.S. Newspapers: Are the Critics Right?" (Jon Gubman and Jennifer Greer);…

This document comprises the entire output for the journal for 1998. The first article is in the form of a modified excerpt from an article by Donna I. Ali of the University of Calgary on "Multiple Intelligences and the Writing Process: Some Implications for Teaching." The article investigates why writing is difficult for some and easy for others,…

Notes that students often distrust the discussion method of instruction. Outlines three strategies along with examples designed to empower, engage, and instruct students utilizing the discussion method including the dramatic moment; validation of student expression; and integration of reading, writing, and talking. (MJP)

This study evaluates a self-management procedure for teaching adolescents with learning and behavior problems (BP) to improve completeness, accuracy, and neatness of creative writing homework assignments. Students were taught behavior change fundamentals, self-instruction, and how to set and work toward goals. Results from two BP high school…

Discusses the recommendations made by compositionists from 1950 to 1980 to apply the findings of linguists to composition instruction. Argues that the noncontextual orientation of modern linguistics renders it insufficient as a comprehensive source of theoretical or practical assistance in composition instruction. (MG)

Examined the effectiveness of the showcase portfolio process as an instructional strategy to enhance the quality and quantity of students' writing and to motivate them to participate in the writing process. Findings supported claims that portfolios are not only an authentic evaluative procedure, but an equally powerful motivational approach and an…

Recounts the story of one portfolio project in a large midwestern university and considers the process of the teachers and administrators initiating and adjusting to the changes implied by such shifts in assessment strategies. Argues that the implementation of such assessment represents more sweeping change than may be apparent at the onset. (MG)