Since high school students are failing to master writing proficiency, developmental writing programs at the college level have become increasingly necessary. This article explains the lack of readiness with which students are entering college and the workplace, examines the reasons students are having trouble writing, and describes elements of…

In order to better understand how to use assessment productively in the basic writing classroom, I asked the question "How do basic writers perceive the assessment process?" The research reported on in this dissertation led to the conclusion that basic writers at Dona Ana Community College perceive and value each part of the assessment…

Focuses on two endeavors to improve basic writing: the statement on writing assessment adopted by the Conference on College Composition and Communication and the reauthorization of Chapter 1 funds of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to support educational remediation. (RS)

While the roots of students' fear of writing go deep, students fear most the surface of writing. They fear that a person's language indicates the state not only of the mind but of the soul--thus their writing can make them look stupid and morally depraved. This fear of error and lack of confidence prevent students from developing a command of the…

A study evaluated a new freshman writing course offered to students at the University of Minnesota who were underprepared for study at a major research university. In the fall of 1997 it was proposed that all freshmen be placed in for-credit, strengthened, basic writing courses rather than placing certain students in non-credit, pre-college-level…

Contends that student writing compositions and instructor feedback offer special benefits when rendered orally via audiocassette. Promotes a "reader-based" writing sensibility in students, who read their work onto cassette tape, and allows greater flexibility in grading and critiquing for instructors, who return the tape with detailed comments.…