To illustrate the principles of partial specification in writing research, six emerging paradigms of writing research are considered. It is shown that each of these paradigms makes contradictory claims as to what constitutes the principal causative context of classroom writing competence. The sociopolitical implications for these paradigms are…

To evaluate the writing ability of Colorado students, a study collected writing samples from third, sixth, ninth, and eleventh grade students in 127 public school districts and 27 private schools during October 7-11, 1985. Samples were scored in a two-day scoring session using two rating procedures--a general impression of writing characteristics,…

Discusses the results of research that suggest there are two distinct "schools of thought" or predilections that influence teachers' judgments in evaluating compositions. (AEA)

While research papers may hold unique challenges for all writers, they are especially daunting for "less experienced" writers because these students often come to college without ever having written a research paper. A study examined several research papers written by students who took part in the Summer Bridge program at California…

Investigates eighth-graders' summarizations of a scientific article used in their science class. Presents an analytic coding system developed to describe and detail structural and semantic strengths and weaknesses of students' expository summary essays. (SR)

This study examined the teaching and learning of writing for secondary school students as it occurred in the interactive context of teacher-student writing conferences in the form of private teacher-student conversations about the students' writing or writing process. Following ethnographic procedures, the study examined naturally occurring…

The purpose of this report is to provide information about the level of student performance in the area of writing based on results for 1998-99 from the annual on-demand writing sample of the North Carolina Writing Assessment at grades 4, 7, and 10 (English II). It notes student performance increased at grades 4 and 7 when compared to student…

To examine "bluffing"--ways in which conflicts in classrooms and evaluation procedures influence the styles of student writing and teachers' responses to different styles, a study analyzed the placement-test essays of 99 undergraduates entering Temple University (Pennsylvania) in the fall of 1982. Analysis of the texts was based on a…

Contrasts a recent collection of "best" student essays with a report reviewing a 1929 test in English that was used for making college admissions decisions. Concludes that writing teachers have been as much or more interested in who they want their students to be as in what they want their students to write. (RS)

Writing research has long attempted to define and assess coherence in written prose; however the researchers have often ignored or inadequately met the needs of writing students who require a simple definition of coherence that they can use to revise their own prose. One exception is Joseph Williams, author of "Style: Ten Lessons in Clarity…

To evaluate the writing skills of Colorado students under the Educational Quality Act of 1985 (commonly known as the 2 + 2 project), a study administered writing tasks to a statewide sample of third, sixth, ninth, and eleventh grade students in the spring of 1987. A narrative or story-telling writing task was administered to 2,000 grade 3 students…

A study examined student writing portfolios to determine improvement of student writing due to instructional changes under the guidelines and standards established for the Kentucky Writing Program. A random sample of 1991-92 and 1994-95 fourth-grade portfolios were analyzed, 10% from each of the 8 elementary schools in the Muhlenberg County school…

This paper analyzes two student papers, "Pygmalion" and "Waiting to Inhale," in terms of the type of thinking demonstrated in them. It examines the difference between higher order patterns of thinking evident in advanced or adult writers and patterns of thinking in young writers or students. The study reported in the paper…

Based on a survey conducted in 1992 by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a study examined the types of writing students performed in school, the quality of their classroom writing, and the relationship between their classroom writing and their performance on the NAEP writing assessment. A nationally representative subgroup of…

Reporting on the work of a task force formed for the purpose of improving writing skills in the Memphis (Tennessee) City Schools, grades K-12, this paper identifies the efforts of the task force and its recommendations and traces the development and implementation of the Writing Across the Curriculum Project. An introduction notes the importance…