A successful experiment in the teaching and learning of expository writing at the University of Hawaii at Manoa is described that has been used at both the secondary and graduate levels as well as in regular college composition courses. The approach includes mastery learning, informal atmosphere, product orientation, and development of cooperative…

Reports on a study comparing the use of the language experience approach and a traditional reading lab approach in which LEA students made equal or greater gains in verbal ability. (MKM)

Lists objectives, activities, methods, and materials that use listening and speaking skills to develop reading/writing abilities. (RL)

Describes a writing program for secondary vocational/technical students that was based on two-week modules incorporating the concept of individualized instruction; includes an annotated bibliography of titles for use in secondary English classes for vocational students and materials potentially useful to teachers designing courses and curricula.…

A high school electronics teacher describes the integration of technical report writing in the electronics program for trade and industrial students. He notes that the report writing rather than just recording data seemed to improve student laboratory experience but further improvements in the program are needed. A sample lab report is included.…

Describes a third-year English test for fifth graders, with examples (and discussion) in the areas of listening comprehension, answering questions, asking questions, speaking about a series of pictures, reading comprehension, sentence conversion and letter writing. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Offers basic advice on using a word processor to teach writing, from how to choose the appropriate software before selecting a computer and a printer, to the benefits of using a word processor instead of a typewriter. (NKA)

Outlines the "sandwich approach" to teaching remedial writing--a technique for teaching students the structure of a paragraph that removes the barriers of unfamiliar vocabulary (e.g. topic sentence, unity) and that appeals to the student's sense of sight and taste. Includes sample exercises for practical application. (NKA)

A study compared subjective and objective methods of evaluating college students' second-language communicative competence as expressed in their writing. (MSE)

Presents the idea that many tactics sports coaches use in training and improving athletes' performance can be adapted for the instruction of remedial writers. (JC)

Examines the problems business communications students have with summarizing written information and offers a sequential method for teaching students how to summarize well. (JC)

Describes a study that contrasted the abilities of special educators, vocational educators, and employers in modifying written instructions to conform to the reading abilities of mentally retarded employees. Results are reported and discussed. (CT)

Protocol analysis and a literature review were used to determine the ways novice and expert writers, from elementary to postsecondary levels, deal with the cognitive processes that constitute writing. They found that writing is goal-directed, writing goals are hierarchically organized, and writers accomplish their goals through planning, sentence…

Notes the problems with obtaining literature texts to teach in basic writing courses and the fact that there is very little information on the subject. Offers a discussion of the texts and other information the author has found and concludes that there may be more support for such literature-based programs in the future. (JC)

A three-week conference on the future of the English curriculum in elementary through postsecondary education is discussed. English students would study a variety of works. They would analyze the historical, cultural, and political dimensions of what they read and writing would be an integral part of the curriculum. (MLW)