Investigates the effectiveness of the story impression method--a prewriting activity that develops a schema for ideas found in the story. Suggests that students enjoy using the story clues to write a prestory. Finds that story impressions are a powerful tool for helping all readers (including remedial readers) improve their comprehension. Appends…

Describes the evaluation practices and concerns of secondary home economics teachers who participated in a series of university writing workshops on incorporating the writing process into their subject areas. Notes that some of the teachers implemented some of the evaluation methods presented in the workshops but that they continued to struggle…

Presents preliminary findings of a study of the language practices of two undergraduate asynchronous English conferences. Examines briefly the roles of the teachers in the conferences. Suggests what questions must be addressed if teachers are to create learning environments to support students. (RS)

Examines contexts for writing and response in a graduate education seminar including native and nonnative English speakers. Considers how the instructor communicated expectations for writing assignments, how students performed, and how students' writing was evaluated. Argues that student writing occurs in a multidimensional context where…

Provides a review of some of the main issues covered in research on writing, and indicates where this research may be found. Discusses the nature of writing, learning to write, computers and writing, and evaluating written products. (PRA)

Compares essays by college students from Mali and from the United States, exploring cross-culturally the influence of orality and audience or written discourse. Finds that the "other-directed," group-directed dimension of the Malians' writing contrasts with the overwhelming by self-referential dimension of the U.S. students. (SR)

Discusses research on home literacy environments, the values of reading aloud, independent reading, literature and writing, and literature in the language arts curriculum. (RS)

Analysis of 19 language features in impromptu essays written by 96 students (half males, half females) from grades 4, 8, and 12 enabled researchers to identify the gender of the writer 84-87 percent of the time. Further analyses established a relationship between this "gender-linked language effect" and subjective attributional ratings by…

Tests whether nominal compounds, the juxtaposition of three or more nouns, retain sufficient semantic information to justify their use for brevity. Finds that respondents often misidentified at least one out of five given headwords. Recommends reminding students of headwords' importance and employing nominal compounds only after their fuller…

Compares the effectiveness of computer-assisted instruction with information on paper for teaching rewriting as a newswriting skill to college journalism students. Finds that students using the computer version produced better leads and believed they had learned more but that this apparent advantage did not carry over to their initial handling of…

Investigates K-7 teachers' attitudes, beliefs, and instructional decisions about process writing. Finds that most teachers (1) understand that writing is primarily a communication act; (2) received instruction in process writing and use strategies associated with process writing for instruction; and (3) are progressing toward a level of…

Extends earlier studies that surveyed educators about their use of and reaction to classroom literacy portfolios. Finds that a growing number of professionals are actually using portfolios. Finds also that educators agree that portfolios should be used for assessment purposes in the language arts and to help place individual students in special…

Reports briefly on three recent summaries dealing with word processing and the teaching of writing. Notes that the first two are bibliographies compiled by the ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading and Communication Skills and the third is a synthesis and review conducted by a graduate student. (MG)

Explores first graders' written responses to literature in dialogue journals, particularly what functions student and teacher responses serve, and what patterns of student response develop over time. Finds that journal writing offers potential for a wide variety of reader response functions. Notes an overemphasis on teacher questioning. (SR)

Provides an update and expansion of an earlier "Delphi Study" which predicted changes that might occur resulting from the impact of technology on the teaching of writing. Provides comments based on recent research. Discusses two books that focus specifically on technology and writing. (MG)