The ability to infuse language with qualities of the human voice in the act of speaking is what distinguishes autobiography as a genre and makes it most suited to teaching students subtle features inherent in the complex act of writing. When students write from personal experience, they consciously begin to shape their identities in one direction…

The case approach to academic writing requires a student to use subjects in an active way while writing. This approach, appropriate in content courses as well as in composition classes, improves a writer's logic more quickly and effectively than concentrating on logic alone. In the case approach, a student is given a body of information about a…

Recognizing the differences between reading and writing is as important as recognizing their similarities for improving current methods of teaching composition. Environment and motivation are two areas in which these differences are most noticeable. Since motivation is a preexisting quality that can only be fostered and not implanted, environment…

In integrating word processors into the structure of a freshman writing class, the instructor has two alternatives: to teach the course specifically as a word processing course, or to offer a word processing option to students on a volunteer basis, either in substitution for some other activity or as extra credit. The first method is good if one…

A study investigated the writing processes of four fourth grade students--two girls and two boys--as they participated in an 18-session writing workshop. The sessions were held three times a week for 6 weeks, each lasting 45-minutes. Data were collected through (1) observations of the children as they interacted and composed, revised, edited,…

Despite a growing trend to split the two areas, literature belongs in the composition class. In responding to literature, students can trace their own developing thought. They acquire, through literary discourse, a tool of discovery. This tool closely resembles expressive discourse, the mode, as James Kinneavy suggests in "A Theory of…

Although writing today generally is perceived as process, college English departments are still deeply rooted in the concept of writing as product. Hiring depends upon product in terms of letters of inquiry, vitae, and credentials; retention, promotion, and merit raises rest on product in the form of publications, grants, awards, and teacher…

Twenty-two reports of research focusing on the composing processes of college students of English as a Second Language are reviewed. The research, reported between 1982 and 1989, consists of case studies of various issues: (1) general accounts of the second language composing process; (2) revision; (3) attention to rhetorical form; (4) monitor…

This collection of papers, from a conference on reading and writing connections held at the University of Illinois in October 1986, reflects the value of demonstrating connections between reading instruction and writing. The book shows practitioners how writing can be blended with reading instruction and how writing activities can be used not just…

A study investigated the effects of specific guidelines in the taking and rating of tests of summarizing ability. The subjects were 63 native-Hebrew-speaking students enrolled in English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) courses at the Seminar Hakibbutzim Teacher Training College in Tel Aviv (Israel). The subjects were given two sets of instructions…

Viewing writing as both a form of language learning and an intellectual skill, this book presents essays on how writers acquire trusted inner voices and the roles schools and teachers can play in helping student writers in the learning process. The essays in the book focus on one of three topics: the language of instruction and how response and…

The focus of this paper is on how children use print, or literate language, in school and how teachers can respond and work with children. Beginning with a literature review, the paper discusses language use and literate language development in young children, pointing out that children construct their experiences through using language, and that…

The nine articles in this guide discuss the problems involved in teaching writing and offer suggestions for improving writing instruction. The first article presents responses given by educators to a nationwide survey concerning the causes of writing problems, concluding that until recently the biggest problems were untrained teachers and a lack…

Intended to help writing teachers create a classroom climate where real writing can be inspired, valued, and enjoyed, the WEDGE (Writing Every Day Generates Excellence) manual addresses first the problem of motivating students to communicate in writing, next, finding words and structures appropriate for clarity and eloquence, and finally, the…

Intended to provide South Carolina educators with a tool for curriculum and instructional development that complements the assessment of the state writing objectives, this guide focuses on that part of the curriculum reflected in the state basic writing skills objectives. The various sections in the first part of the guide: (1) discuss the…