A dialogue journal is a written conversation in which a student and teacher communicate regularly over a period of a semester or a school year. The student may write as much as he chooses on any topic, and the teacher responds, introduces new topics, offers observations, clarifies, and asks and answers questions. Teachers use dialogue journals to…

A technique designed to make the classroom use of videotapes for second language teaching for specific purposes more efficient is described. The technique begins with a classroom review of basic vocabulary and structures, which is then tested with a computer exercise. A second stage requires discussion and memorization of vocabulary and phrases…

In spring 1984, the Language Arts Department of University College, University of Cincinnati, began requiring all third-term Freshman English students to pass an exit test in order to receive credit for their final English course. The exit exam, which was part of a joint effort with the other five English Departments within the University,…

The cognitivist view of composition suggests that if students are supplied with a set of writing strategies, they will learn to think in more complex and powerful ways, observing their own ideas and writing from another person's viewpoint. On the other hand, some social critics argue that composition teachers need to help their students enter into…

Evaluation results for the College Bound (C.B.) program at New York City public schools are presented. The C.B. program seeks to improve reading and mathematics skills of high school students who are 2 or more years below grade level and to prepare these students for college. It includes basic skills instruction in reading, career and college…

A small group activity involving the study of a cultural group is presented. The assignment consists of four activities: making a map, giving an oral report, choosing a writing activity, and participating in a skit about a cultural group. The assignment lists seven step-by-step procedures and grading criteria. Student groups choose among 12…

To determine how writing, as compared to other learning activities, affects both good and poor writers' ability to remember factual information and transfer learning, a study (1) investigated the effectiveness of a writing activity requiring students to develop compositions by synthesizing information read, and (2) explored the correspondences…

Containing a review of recent research on critical reading and six appendixes detailing course tasks and assignments in an introductory literature course, this essay aims to help teachers develop students' ability to read and write about literature critically. The essay, which focuses on how these course tasks coincide with the findings of recent…

Observations of a 12-year-old boy provide an in-depth look at the writing of a successful adolescent writer, as it developed over a 2-year period. The subject was interviewed once a week in his home. In addition to the information obtained in interviews, his texts were analyzed for formal features. Three factors emerged as particularly…

This study was an examination of the usefulness of a statistical regression approach to identify prospective Engineering and Information and Computer Science (ICS) applicants most likely to succeed at the University of California at Irvine (UCI). The specific purpose was to determine the extent to which preadmissions measures such as high school…

Many writing teachers agree that peer review is a beneficial experience for student writers. Recently, this experience has also been made available to faculty members at San Diego State University through a faculty writers' workshop. In the workshops, listeners give constructive criticism while at the same time pointing out what works well and…

This guide is a sampler of ideas and activities based on 22 minimum objectives in speech, reading, writing, and research that have been identified for American literature study. Many of the activities involve an integration of several skills that are cross-referenced to other skills in the margins of the guide. A separate section on research…

A southwestern university sponsored a two-week, half-day summer institute designed to help teachers become aware of recent writing research and implement writing within their classrooms based on the research findings. During the first week, teachers were encouraged to pay more attention to the communication perspective with less attention on…

This in-depth study explores problem areas of Hong Kong secondary and university students in writing narrative and argumentative compositions on two different themes. Subjects were 40 university English majors, 40 form four and 40 form six secondary students. The research indicates that the students at these grade levels experienced difficulty in…

Intended to help school personnel develop and implement a comprehensive, articulated writing program at the district, building, and classroom levels, this manual emphasizes writing as a composing process, describes the stages of the writing process, and outlines the composing skills expected of students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. In…