A longitudinal study of advanced senior high students' writing abilities indicates that, over a three-year period, students exhibit significantly improved writing skills. Follow a continuous program of writing enhancement, graduating seniors exit the system with reasonable or better than reasonable skills in essay organization, sentence formation,…

Compiled to assist those who are interested in building better workplace literacy programs, the first ERIC/RCS FAST (Focused Access to Selected Topics) Bibliography is a selection of representative documents from searches of the ERIC database. The bibliography is divided into the following groups: eight sources that provide an overview of concerns…

Reports in the ERIC database have found that computer-assisted writing instruction has some effect--if not a dramatic impact--in both the quantity and quality of student writing. Although computers are becoming more common in schools, the influx of computers into schools may not assure students ample opportunity to use them. Limited time-on-task…

Within the last few years English curriculum, especially at the introductory levels, has changed so that reading and the study of literature is integrated with the learning of writing skills. Consequently, English teachers need to consider the best way to merge the two skills by drawing upon the findings of psychologists and cognition theorists to…

This manual lists skills in the area of writing (including composition, mechanics, and structure/usage) considered essential for pupils to progress to the next higher level of achievement. The skills, described in terms of behavioral objectives, are listed according to grade, and grades kindergarten through 12 are covered. Students at the lower…

A scoring rubric transition study is described. It was designed to evaluate possible drift in scoring the Maryland Writing Test from year to year (when using a modified holistic scoring method), to evaluate strategies for revising swing rubrics from narrative and explanatory writing while maintaining original scoring standards, and to establish…

Six strategies for teaching handwriting skills to learning disabled elementary students are presented, along with a rationale and illustrated step-by-step teaching procedures for each. Skills addressed include the following: (1) improving eye-hand coordination through dot-to-dot alphabet letter tracing; (2) teaching basic strokes in manuscript…

An examination was made of a representative sample of language arts subtests on achievement test batteries and language arts textbooks to assess the skills tested and determine the material included in the instructional sequence. The four achievement test batteries were the California Achievement Tests, the Comprehesive Test of Basic Skills, the…

A study compared written texts produced by hand, by typewriter, and by word processor for differences in improvement in creativity and writing skills. Subjects included six college students--two with high creative ability, two with average creative ability, and two with low or weak ability. During a training period, the subjects were required to…

To evaluate the use of semantic organizers as a means of improving the prewriting techniques of composition students, a study was made of two separate groups of college freshman composition students during an intensive, five-week writing workshop. Data were also collected from case studies of students in the experimental group, including frequent…

The "Idea Place," a regular feature carried by the magazine "Learning," provides an assortment of practical teaching techniques selected from commercially available materials and from ideas submitted by readers. Games and activities are given for the areas of reading, writing, spelling, mathematics, science, social studies, and…

The most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reports suggest that the issue of declining quality in American education may be more complex than media accounts have portrayed it. If one looks at isolated communication skills, it appears that many students understand the fundamentals of reading and writing. The results also…

Ways in which college-level subject teachers might use writing as a form of learning and as a means of demonstrating learning are presented in this guide. Several assumptions about writing are made throughout this compendium: (1) writing about a subject means thinking about a subject; (2) students can only learn to write by writing; (3) more and…

Teachers of public relations and other communication areas, with endorsement from the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), should request the data processing industry to develop assisted instruction programs in journalistic writing. Such action would provide a clearly defined need for a significant market and…

Examination of an average student's and an honors student's essay revisions showed that while both students rewrote toward meaning, the honors student was more aware of the reasons for her revisions. Gradually, through several versions of her paper, the average student discovered her focus and could then complete her introductory paragraph. This…