This volume consists of ten lessons covering the fundamentals of the phonological and the writing systems of Modern Standard Arabic (MSA). Objectives include the ability to: (1) read fully vocalized Arabic script; (2) write in an intelligible manner; and (3) distinguish and produce the sounds of MSA. The phonological system used is that of the…

An experimental study compared the instructional effectiveness of Logo programming, commercially available software designed to aid composition and problem solving, and traditional teaching methods for low socioeconomic status first-grade students. Both software environments enhanced problem solving performance for a novel task, but Logo was most…

English writing ability of Hispanic college candidates taking the College Board's English Composition Test (ECT) was studied. The performance of three groups on essay and multiple choice portions of the ECT were compared with each other and with performance on the same measures by ECT test takers as a whole. (Author/DWH)

Describes a successful English writing program for Navajo kindergarten children in Ganado Primary School (Arizona), which encourages children to draw and write in journals. Indicates that many Navajo students enter school with the capacity to move directly into daily writing and have already formed strong concepts about written language. (MH)

The authors describe the journey they undertook integrating the arts into the summer institute. The central reason for their focus on the arts in the summer institute is the desire to support education reform--with a particular eye to social justice in schools. The authors believe that when the field is open wide enough to allow everyone's ideas…

Journals can be valuable tools for fostering adult learning and experience. Research has supported the following assumptions about learning from journals: (1) articulating connections between new and existing knowledge improves learning; (2) writing about learning is a way of demonstrating what has been learned; (3) journal writing accentuates…

According to 1995 data collected by the National Center for Educational Statistics, first-year students at public community colleges were twice as likely to be enrolled in a remedial education course than their public four-year counterparts. Ninety-five percent of community colleges offer remedial instruction, yet critics of the community college…

This final report describes the activities and accomplishments of a 3-year study on the compensatory effectiveness of three assistive technologies, optical character recognition, speech synthesis, and speech recognition, on postsecondary students (N=140) with learning disabilities. These technologies were investigated relative to: (1) immediate…

This paper analyses the influence of age on the acquisition of English as a third language by focusing on the development of general proficiency in English by school children. Participants were 60 secondary school students who had studied English for 6 years but started learning it at different ages. All participants completed a battery of tests…

Provides a brief overview of the uses of rhetoric in the history of writing about music. Discusses Aristotle's topology of the three different kinds of rhetoric: deliberative, judicial, and epideictic (demonstrative). Includes excerpts from past music criticism, copious notes, and a 27-item bibliography. (MJP)

This article reviews ways that computers can support writing by students with learning disabilities. It discusses research on word processing, software for transcription and sentence generation, spelling checkers, speech synthesizers, word prediction programs, grammar and style checkers, prompting programs, outlining and semantic mapping software,…

Studied Spanish-speaking students in Puerto Rico to determine the resulting interaction process when two second language (L2) students are involved in peer revision of written texts. Results reveal a complex interactive process and highlight the importance of activating cognitive processes through social interaction in the second-language writing…

Describes the use of Daedalus Integrated Writing Environment in the networked computer classroom to teach Spanish grammar and composition. Notes that second language teachers can benefit from advances made in Writing-Across-the-Curriculum programs and that incorporating writing in all disciplines develops critical-thinking skills. (nine…

Teaching techniques and the use of grammar checking programs are described. Assignments using these programs are suggested. Four specific packages are reviewed. The importance of the revision process in writing is stressed. (CW)

Reviews three computer software programs: (1) "The Children's Writing and Publishing Center"--writing and creative arts, grades 2-8, Apple II; (2) "Slide Shop"--graphics and desktop presentations, grades 4-12, Apple II and IBM; and (3) "Solve It"--problem solving and language arts, grades 4-12, Apple II. (MVL)