Presents the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages' provisional generic descriptions for nine levels (novice-low, novice-mid, novice-high, advanced, advanced plus, and superior) in the following areas: (1) speaking, (2) listening, (3) reading, (4) writing, and for six levels in culture. (SED)

Presents three ideas for teaching content area writing, noting that such writing is most productive when assignments are based on real subject area topics and authentic styles. (HOD)

Explains how students in a basic writing course gained confidence and independence as writers by producing and revising their texts on screen. (HOD)

Suggests that having students precede submission of research papers with oral presentations of their efforts can result in essays that are better grammatically and stylistically and better in the sense of having theses on practicable topics. (HOD)

Concludes that field-independent college writers produced discourse that was judged more coherent than the discourse produced by field-dependent writers. Concludes that cognitive style is a significant variable in explaining differences between good and poor writers. (FL)

Describes the power of adult writing groups to stimulate learning and encourage language development, personal development, and writing skill development. (CRH)

Discusses computer programs used to teach: engineers to analyze structural stress and strain; salesmen to sell; managers to write memos; musicians to compose; and pilots to use navigational instruments. A list of software on noncomputer subjects is provided; each entry includes title, supplier, format, current price, and computer needed. (JN)

Stresses benefits of freewriting techniques and writing support groups to improve student writing, shows that the usefulness of writing as exploration is better communication, and points out the advantages of having audience-centered communication and a shared responsibility for a project. (EL)

Investigates the effects of question type (general or specific) and question position (prior to or following writing) upon measures of conceptual elaboration in writing. Results indicate that writers can benefit from questions following initial writing that enhance conceptual elaboration of base-level ideas during writing revision. (HOD)

Responds to Raymond Rodrigues's l985 "English Journal" article presenting reservations about a too-narrow and too-dogmatic definition and application of the writing process approach to the teaching of writing. Addresses concerns that the article would provide ammunition from the traditionalists and that new writing process converts would find…

Describes a project that provided students with the opportunity to observe and comment on their own writing throughout the year through observations of their childhood writing, a series of journal writings, and writing taken through revision. (EL)

Describes a creative writing and reading class assignment in which each student was required to make a 20-minute presentation as a catalyst for student writing (such as a poem, song, object, or picture). (EL)

Offers a four-step procedure that can be used to help upper elementary school students learn to write a well-structured expository paragraph. Suggests that the writing experience is a bridge to understanding more difficult text structure. (FL)

Teachers Teaching Writing, a new series of videotapes, that presents outstanding teachers in their own classrooms is described. The complete writing process is traced from beginning to end in such a way as to make sense to the viewer and be true to the principles of effective composition instruction. (MLW)

Discusses the English writing difficulties experienced by native Chinese students in Canadian universities. Since they have little experience in creative or free writing, conforming to a western format of writing style is a problem which should be dealt within initially by a very basic understanding of Chinese culture and language. (SL)