Brief, targeted self-affirmation writing exercises have recently been offered as a way to reduce racial achievement gaps, but evidence about their effects in educational settings is mixed, leaving ambiguity about the likely benefits of these strategies if implemented broadly. A key limitation in interpreting these mixed results is that they come…

In this report, we examine the feasibility of characterizing writing performance using process features derived from a keystroke log. Using data derived from a set of "CBAL"™ writing assessments, we examine the following research questions: (a) How stable are the keystroke timing and process features across testing occasions?; (b) How…

This article proposes closing the academic performance gaps between African American and Latino students and their White counterparts particularly in the line of research that concerns the idea of "stereotype threat." Stereotype threat is predicated on the notion that people often fear behaving in a way that fits the negative cultural…

We used a randomized quasi-experimental design to test the effectiveness of three types of perspective-taking condition in a forgiveness education program. Allport's Contact Hypothesis was used as a framework for the study design. Eighth graders (n?=?132) in an urban Midwestern city were invited to participate. We evaluated the effectiveness of…

Experimental research has demonstrated both the deleterious effects of negative stereotypes about ability on academic performance and the relative ease with which stereotypes can be countered in educational settings. The extent to which stereotypes contribute to the achievement gap between American students from dominant social and economic groups…

Educational reform initiatives of the last decade have focused on the three R's: reading, writing, and arithmetic, with writing receiving the least attention in the research literature (National Commission on Writing, 2003). Studies of writing performance in United States schoolchildren indicate that many are writing only at basic levels. The…

This study examined whether having African-American middle school students write essays affirming their personal values improved their academic performance. The study analyzed data on about 175 African-American and 190 European-American students (the study's term for white students who are non-Latino and non-Asian) at a suburban middle school who…

Studies report that U.S. students rank among the lowest in the area of mathematical knowledge of all industrialized countries. Schools in the United States are producing graduates ill-prepared to be successful at jobs which require mathematical competency. To increase mathematical understanding, this study examined the inclusion of writing in…

In order for students to write like authors they need to read like writers. This requires direct instruction in attending to the writing craft through the use of quality adolescent literature and engagement in reading and writing. This article focuses on writing catchy introductions. The author offers the lesson objective and a teacher script…

Six passages were used in this study to investigate the recoding behavior of eighth and ninth grade students for both increase and decrease in syntactic complexity and thus gain a more accurate picture of their grammar. Each of the two selections used was written in kernel sentences at the eighth grade level of writing and the skilled adult level…

Suggests ways of designing poetry writing assignments so that students are motivated to practice a particular writing skill. (RL)

This resource package has been prepared as a means for distributing not only the results of the 1978 British Columbia Assessment of Written Expression but also to provide educators with clear, well-organized, classroom-ready materials which will assist them in teaching and evaluating the skills of written expression. It contains all of the test…

This study examined the use of story impressions as a prereading writing activity. Students either received story impressions, read a story, then wrote stories using clues; received story impressions and listed predictions about a story; or received no preview activity before story reading. Story impressions produced the highest level of story…

A study investigated the use of story impressions as a prereading writing activity to determine the story comprehension and recall of 96 seventh- and eighth-grade students. Students in the experimental group were given a set of story-relevant "impressions" (clue words) prior to reading a narrative passage and were asked to formulate a…

The two studies reported explored the feasibility of computer assisted composition in helping school-age children handle high-level aspects of the composing process. The results are discussed, and lines for future investigation of computer assisted writing programs for the novice are suggested. Eleven references and two additional sources are…