A study investigated the nature and extent of English curricula and resources available for English language learning in Taiwan's universities. Data were drawn from a survey of 18 coordinators of English programs for non-English majors (EPNMs) in Taiwan universities and from examination of course descriptions. Results indicate that all…

Offering teaching assistants, new faculty members, and adjunct instructors "real-world" scenarios about the many facets of teaching introductory college composition, this book provides situations, sample syllabi, assignments, and journal entries from classrooms. The book's six chapters move from general considerations of assignment…

In the fall of 1993, six faculty at SUNY Plattsburgh launched what they called the "Looking for America Freshman Semester," a program or course cluster of 16 credit hours in American studies, including anthropology, history, literature, philosophy, composition, and library skills. The core assumption underlying this effort was that…

In 1991, a study was conducted at Golden West College (California) to determine whether there was a significant relationship between eligibility for English 100, a university-transferable writing course, and success in Introductory Psychology. The sample consisted of students appearing on first-day rosters of Introductory Psychology classes in the…

Students will be better equipped for college writing if they know how and by what standards their writing will be judged during their undergraduate years. At the college level, measures of writing skills serve the important functions of admission, placement, course equivalency, junior status, exit from courses, or barriers to graduation. Placement…

Many freshmen come to English courses thinking that they generally dislike poetry and that in particular they dislike writing critical essays about poetry. Two strategies which are effective in helping students overcome their own negative perceptions are to allow students to: (1) engage in transactional reader response; and (2) explore poetry…

A study evaluated a new freshman writing course offered to students at the University of Minnesota who were underprepared for study at a major research university. In the fall of 1997 it was proposed that all freshmen be placed in for-credit, strengthened, basic writing courses rather than placing certain students in non-credit, pre-college-level…

At the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR), an urban university, students drop out of college on a regular basis. Developing a community of linked courses appears to be an effective way of reaching the university's goal of helping students stay in school past the critical first semester when many of them tend to leave. Seeking to help…

The conditions under which graduate students teach freshman composition militate against a comfortable and productive relationship between instructors and students. As instructors are constrained by political forces beyond their control, such as lack of position and power, teaching undervalued courses, and the lack of respect from students, their…

A college writing instructor used lesbian and gay fiction in three of his classes--two freshman composition classes and a science fiction class. His university accepted the instructor's right to use these materials and acknowledged students' rights to opt out of the classes after they learned the requirements of the class. The instructor viewed…

Two faculty members from a California community college and a nearby state university worked together to articulate placement and assessment procedures in writing courses at the two institutions to better serve students transferring from one to the other. Historically the institutions, Bakersfield College (California) (BC) and California State…

This study compared the grade equivalents of students with learning disabilities in English composition classes using traditional lecture and word processing formats, to determine which format would best accommodate these students at San Antonio College (Texas). Students in the word processing class were instructed on the use of the computer…

Demonstrating that gender perceptions and expectations can influence assessment decisions that seem neutral on the surface, this book examines the responses of 31 freshman composition teachers to student writing. The book shows the negative effects of gender biases on assessment. For writing instructors to increase their sensitivity to gender…

This paper presents an ex post facto analysis of the performance of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) college students in ESL and mainstream freshman composition courses. Students were evaluated on 4 essays written during the 10-week quarter and a final in-class essay. This final essay examination focused on a common theme, was evaluated by at…

A study examined how novice instructors become professional writing teachers. Subjects, 7 men and 13 women each teaching 1 section of regular freshman composition and 1 developmental writing class, participated in a weekly seminar designed to provide a "comfort zone" to which they could bring their questions about teaching and discuss…