A study compared the English language proficiency levels of three groups of non-native English-speakers who teach English as a second language (ESL) in Egypt. The three groups were: (1) graduates of a department that was not an English department; (2) graduates of English departments; and (3) seniors in one Egyptian university's English…

Five papers on the assessment of writing ability presented at the Division D meeting are critiqued. It is suggested that it is not possible to conclude--as has Larson in his study of grades 4, 6, and 8--that National Assessment of Educational Progress results do not give evidence of growth in writing ability. Dovell and Buhr, examining approaches…

The writing skills item bank contain 82 objectives each represented by two writing prompts with criteria for holistic scoring. Grade levels covered are one through eight. The objectives deal with aspects of composition such as grammar, vocabulary, punctuation, logic, and creativity. The "items" are writing prompts to which the student…

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…

The conventional notion of the term "literacy" is rather narrow. Harvey Graff's work demonstrates that literacy in Western society not only means the ability to read and write, but also takes in a profusion of values and beliefs including empathy, innovativeness, and achievement. By contrast, a term such as illiterate comes to represent social…

Basic writers are defined as those whose home dialects are least like standard English. Given that all dialects of English are capable of conveying complex thought, the question facing educators is, Should students be made to learn and work in standard English, or should they be given the opportunity to express themselves in their home dialect?…

The Assessment Tool for Moderately Retarded Students in Academic Skills (1978) is designed for moderately retarded students (5-21 years) and mildly retarded students (3-14 years) who will be living in sheltered home and work settings. The assessment tool is based on a life centered curricular model concerned with developing--in a sequential…

Materials were gathered in a first and second grade informal, family-grouped classroom over 45 days of two school years to provide an interpretive framework for looking at writing in context. Participant observation was used in order to see the classroom community from a member's perspective while at the same time making explicit those features…

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…

A study investigated how eighth grade students used a microcomputer-based word processing system for composing. Five students, with a range of writing skills, used the technology across 10 class sessions. Data were gathered through interviews with the students about their models for composing, experiences that influenced their writing development,…

A study investigated the types of writing assignments commonly found in undergraduate natural sciences and engineering courses. The study was used as a basis for the development of composition courses for limited-English-speaking students in these fields, the most popular fields of study among foreign students. Eighty take-home assignments given…

The relationship of comprehension monitoring to writing was investigated in a multiple-measure, longitudinal study of writing skill development. Subjects were approximately 100 elementary school students who were followed during the first three grades. At the end of first grade, relationships were found between ambiguity detection, reading, and…

This report describes the PlayWrite Program, which was developed in the Montville Township School District, New Jersey, to encourage children in grades K-6 to write. The primary objectives of the program are to increase students' motivation to write; to improve their writing skills through the process of brainstorming, composing, revising, and…

A study focusing on the serious need for active programs in improving the cognitive skills of hearing-impaired students is examined. Six hypotheses are presented as potential outcomes of using the Instrumental Enrichment (IE) program (classroom intervention for adolescents and adults using content-free paper and pencil exercises to correct…