A new business is using the Internet to sell compositions written by successful applicants to 60 competitive colleges and schools. Personnel of the service claim the essays are not to encourage plagiarism but to help disadvantaged or underprepared students compete. Admissions counselors disagree, and some are prepared to reject applicants…

Carries out a naturalistic small-scale study involving a class from a senior high school in Spain over two years. Analyzes students' essays on chemical change using text analysis techniques. Reports the development of four conceptual profiles and the implications of research for the process of teaching the concept of chemical change. (Author/KHR)

Studied how performance on a standardized writing assessment might influence graduate admissions decisions if, along with test scores, test takers' essays were made available to admissions committees. Results for 27 test takers(2 essays each) suggest that the availability of examinee essays would have little, if any, influence on admissions…

Examines second language students' perceptions of grammar instruction, with specific reference to writing skill. Discusses issues involved in defining a role for grammar study and presents excerpts from student essays and explanations of classroom lessons. Results indicate that the instruction provided helped to improve students' ability to use…

Describes the journal assignment used in the introductory course, "Geography and Civilization", focusing on each type of journal entry (class entries, course pack entries, novel entries, and current events). Discusses the last two entries as constructed more as finished essays than informal writing. Presents the results from a class survey. (CMK)

Examines the similarity between first and second language writing development and the nature of the developmental path. Analyzes the frequency of two types of causality markers in 5th-8th grade essays written by 189 students in English-as-a-Second-language and 546 students in regular language arts classes. (Author/VWL)

Describes an experiment that looks into the effect of a 90 hour extensive reading program using graded readers on the language development of a group (N=25) of learners of English-as-a-Second-Language in Pakistan. Results show significant gains in both fluency and accuracy of expression, though not in the range of structures used. (21 references)…

Outlines research necessary for determining the validity and reliability of Test of Written English, an essay test that directly measures writing ability and complements Test of English-as-a-Foreign-Language's (TOEFL) indirect assessment of writing skills. Research should cover such aspects as construct, criterion-related, concurrent, content, and…

Examines the information handling ability of the personal computer. Shows how the personal computer can link three learning techniques into a coherent learning strategy appropriate for undergraduate college students. Argues that the personal computer is a powerful tool that can make students' efforts more productive. (RS)

Experiences at Brooklyn College with Russian students who have had some formal English study before emigrating are recounted. Steady progress through a sequence of English-as-a-Second-Language courses is attributed to a student network of jobs, apartments, and English classes. Writing instruction techniques are cited. (Contains eight references.)…

Discusses the components of outdoor education and its potential as an ideal context in which experiential learning can take place. Touches heavily on spirituality, which is seen to be fundamentally concerned with relationships between ourselves and others, the earth, and God. Promotes outdoor education as a vehicle for discovering what life has to…

Presents one teacher's classroom method for helping students to evaluate situations that are not clear-cut and easily answered. The method involves using essays that challenge students' reasoning abilities. Includes six sample essay questions and describes how they are used in the classroom. (LZ)

Paper reviews a collection of essays on the experiences of beginning teachers. The essays were written mainly by English and elementary school teachers after many years of successful teaching. All of the authors became effective career teachers. The authors write about the rewards of affecting and changing lives. (SM)

Describes evaluation activities after a seven-week unit on botany and natural communities in a fifth-grade class. The six tasks designed for multiple learning styles include writing a topical essay, drawing and labeling plant parts, clinical interviews, group discussion, concept mapping, and evaluating questions. (PR)

Critically looks at how colleges review writing in students' application essays. Describes high school personal essay writing course for seniors designed to help students find "voice" suitable for personal essays, select original topic, and avoid some typical subjects that college essay readers may find tiring. Describes course's nine-point…