THE FOLLOWING IS THE FULL TEXT OF THIS DOCUMENT: LEVEL: High school and college. AUTHOR'S COMMENT: I used this mini-unit to initiate the class in working effectively as a peer group. Moreover, the task I assigned demands that students develop an awareness of their audience's needs by providing an immediate and concrete response. THE APPROACH: (1)…

Hypothesizing that students choosing their own topics would produce significantly more writing, a study examined the writing sample length of 42 sixth grade students who had been divided equally into two treatment groups. Treatments were counterbalanced so that during the first writing period students in one group wrote on topics they had selected…

An approach to using a student's own birthday as the basis of a library research project for college and high school students is described in this brief article. AUTHOR'S COMMENT (excerpt): I found my students became very excited about a topic that introduced them to the library while exciting their curiosity and interest: to investigate events…

Responding to students' needs for systematic advice about their writing, a city university developed a voluntary test using student writing samples to evaluate punctuation and grammar, diction, sentence structure, and organization and development. Evaluation of 100 test results revealed that these students, all working adults, showed more control…

Recent theoretical advances in text analysis and reading comprehension research are discussed and some implications for the related domain of textual interaction in composition in English as a second language (ESL) are suggested. The reading comprehension research reviewed is research from the perspective of written text as communicative…

The experimental evidence on the value of a sentence-combining approach to improving reading comprehension is still sparse, but the possibilities seem rich.

A composition course is described in which students are encouraged to explore metaphorical expressions in a variety of media. (JH)

Correction and discussion of student papers in small teacher-led groups is an effective alternative to the teacher's reading and correcting all papers. (JH)

This article describes several types of native American nonspeech communications systems, including the Plains sign language, distance signaling of various kinds, picture writing and whistle speech. See FL 508 188 for availability. (CLK)

There are many physical and emotional demands that are required in the professional training and socialization of a physician. Writing for self-expression and awareness has been shown to improve personal growth and decrease stress levels. Using writing as a tool in residency training as a forum for exchange and self-expression can foster a…

(Text is in French.)

Most English teachers are as ill-prepared to teach writing as to teach reading. (JH)

There are particular theories and concepts that teachers of writing use to inform pedagogical practice--outcomes and understandings that teachers hope students will carry with them into their academic and professional lives, as well as their civic involvements. The field of composition has theorized the term "community" in relation to…