Boredom has traditionally been associated with a range of negative outcomes, both within the workplace and outside it. More recently, however, it has been suggested that boredom can have positive outcomes, one of which might be increased creativity. This study addressed this proposition by examining the relationship between boredom and creative…

Describes the power of adult writing groups to stimulate learning and encourage language development, personal development, and writing skill development. (CRH)

A book of writings by adult students in the Hartford, Connecticut, area is presented. The book represents a celebration of the students and their tutors, whose writings about the students' work are also included. For many of the writings, the prompt is provided as an aid to other teachers who may want to talk and write about similar subjects.…

Based on a series of clear lines workshops, this guide about clear language in the workplace was written for people concerned about literacy and clear communication at work. The materials and activities help not only people with reading problems to design documents, memos, letters, and bulletins, but help, also, people who read well. The guide's…

Describes 11 classroom activities used in an adult French program that emphasize the development of linguistic skills, knowledge, and communicative skills. The activities include games, simulation, storytelling, writing of a pastiche based on a Prevert poem, a question-asking exercise, and conversation improvisation. (MSE)

A program of carefully controlled and guided writing can be an effective tool to help English as a second language (ESL) students overcome the difficulties they still have with basic English structure, as well as to expand their linguistic boundaries. Tailored to the needs and problems of adult immigrants reading at a level between grades 4 and 6,…

Describes the currently advocated "process approach to writing," its advantages over traditional instruction, and the potential of the computer to simplify the process. Three word processing software programs designed to teach writing to elementary school children and a package of programs to teach writing to adults are reviewed. (MBR)

Acknowledging that ordering, spatial orientation, and synthesis are important properties in achieving clarity in writing, a study investigated the biological influences on students' writing processes and ways to help writers produce more coherent written products. Subjects, two males and four females ranging in age from 19 to 40, were tested using…

Intended for teachers, students, and writers, this guide provides exercises for improving writing techniques and using literary devices. Following an introduction, the six chapters deal with the following techniques: (1) describing place, including observation and exaggeration; (2) describing people, including "inside/outside" portraits and…

An illustrated workbook containing exercises in speaking and writing skills designed for a beginning learner of English as a second language is presented. The workbook includes material on greetings, giving personal information, numbers, time, days of the week, holidays, body parts, health information, states of being, food, colors, clothing,…

Three ideas for class activities are described: comprehension of newspaper and magazine headlines and titles; the pronunciation, formation, and use of acronyms; and the extraction and elaboration of a story from a popular song. (MSE)

A case study investigated the writing processes of an adult native speaker of Portuguese in a number of writing tasks in his native language (L1) and in English, his second language (L2). Writing samples over a 14-month period were examined. Most data were collected in thinking aloud protocols for 10 written tasks of varying degrees of familiarity…

The occurance of aphasia in adults and children is discussed along with therapeutic measures. An orientation of what aphasia is and the problems it presents for adults is followed by a statement of present methods of retraining. Consideration is given to an evaluation of defects, attitudes and techniques in retraining, group therapy, and…