A model based on Vroom's expectancy theory of employee motivation posits that instructors can prevent plagiarism by ensuring that students understand the rules of ethical writing, expect assignments to be manageable and have personal benefits, and expect plagiarism to be difficult and have important personal costs. (SK)

Following the Oklahoma City bombing, fifth graders at a nearby elementary school coped with ensuing uncertainty, pain, and loss. They wrote appreciative letters to fire and rescue workers; shared personal stories with classmates; compiled an anthology of poems, prayers, and stories; attended an assembly to honor parents participating in rescue…

Encourages students to attempt to capture the voice of established poets in parodies. Notes that this close interaction with literature allows the students to gain a deeper appreciation and understanding of literary styles. Presents two student parodies of William Wordsworth's "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud." (RS)

Describes how the author addresses his independent study students. Suggests that teachers who write study guides and "teach" independent-study courses in literature should try to invent effective instructional aids that will mitigate the disadvantages of not having the everyday-classroom experience and provide maximum opportunity for freedom of…

Describes an eight-step writing assignment that is a novel way to test students' writing skills in a way that is intriguing, interactive, and team-oriented, with built-in multiple deadlines requiring quick creativity and cognitive knowledge. Presents a poetry writing exercise in which the student is asked to write a short poem in the voice of…

Considers how over 10 years of teaching first-year composition, more than two-thirds of the authors' students have elected to write about things that have caused them sorrow, about the deaths of loved ones, about the deaths of neighbors, even of hope itself. Composes a set of "meditations" - brief essays in which the authors try to understand…

Describes several writing activities in a writing program for fourth and fifth grade students using stimuli from the media. Notes that each theme was designed to increase students' ability to create original compositions from familiar material (such as advertisements and magazine photographs) using persuasive, narrative, or descriptive techniques.…

Describes a successful use of portfolios to assess the development of eleventh grade students' writing skills by inviting self-reflection and encouraging students to assume control over their writing. (KEH)

Outlines a set of terms which can be used (in sequencing writing assignments from simple to complex) to make distinctions between kinds of sequences and notions of complexity. Shows how these terms allow teachers to understand the logic of various sequences, compare and contrast related sequences, and evaluate the concept of assignment sequence.…

Argues the need for additional experience in language for social action in contexts where English teachers can provide scaffolding, monitoring and intervention. Concludes that students must have experiences in real writing contexts that lead them to face the linguistic and other demands which will enable them to develop the competencies they need.…

Argues that basic writing teachers should think of their students as seekers who are coming from different places and going different directions, each carrying different burdens and needing different tools. Presents a series of writing assignments using the process approach to writing. (RS)

Finds that case assignments used in a college business composition course generally produced more effective writing products than did traditional model assignments. Suggests that the writing processes and attitudes involved in the case assignments were highly sensitive to audience and context, whereas those involved in the traditional assignments…

Describes an exercise designed for K-6 grade levels based on books where the characters undergo transformation. Explains that students should write a story in which the main character goes through a transformation, and then act out the story. Emphasizes that younger students may not pay attention to the "why" or "how" of the…

Discusses a literacy-enhancement program for undereducated university staff members tutored by college students taking a composition course on literacy. Focuses on the essays of one college student to illustrate how the sequence of writing assignments in the course fostered the reading and writing processes of academic literacy. (SR)

Describes an assignment that provides an alternative to the end of the chapter test. Students instead are asked to write a chapter of the text clarifying their ideas and explaining the material in a manner that a student unfamiliar with the subject of the chapter could understand. (ZWH)