When scholars write about their research in writing programs' archives, they often face the ethical question of whether to name the administrators who were involved in documents. The author identifies and provides examples of three basic orientations to this issue, which he calls overt-historical, covert-qualitative, and hybrid-institutional.…

Examines the informal and formal measures of assessing developmental students' writing. Puts forth implications for classroom guidelines, making suggestions based on research results of composition scholars. Discusses paper grading and management of paperwork load. Contains 17 references. (VWC)

A study examined the growth in basic writing and grammar skills of 14 developmental English students. The study determined whether a traditional rule-based, form-centered mode of instruction, combined with a limited writing-process approach, had any significant impact on overall writing quality and grammar skills. It used a quantitative,…

Reviews definitions of basic writers and basic writing over the last 20 years. Argues that basic writers are not defined only in terms of institutional convenience. Offers future directions for basic writing research, suggesting that to learn more about basic writers, researchers must return to studies of error informed by basic writing's rich…