In the hope that students would develop authority in their writing, they were instructed to write a personal essay about themselves. Most of the essays, however, were mediocre and formulaic. While one student's experience of the painful loss of his mother to cancer was tragic, his essay was cliched. Supporters of the use of personal essay in…

Freshmen often approach research papers by selecting a "giant topic" and going to the library to confront swamps and mountains of resources. A different approach to teaching research is designed to help students begin to shift the often counter-productive paradigm under which they operate. The classroom strategy proposed is 3-fold.…

A model for an integrative first-year writing class, combining American native writing, field experience, and the fundamental trappings of a composition class, are examined in this paper. Students can learn to respond to environmental issues in creative ways and explore issues that they will face in their lives. In addition to a combined…

For one freshman composition instructor, the method that has brought more students out of their shells in her classes over the past three years is group conferencing. Adapted from compositionist Donald Murray's method of conferencing with individual students to discuss their papers, group conferencing gives students the opportunity to discuss…

Though the expressivist and process movements rightly banished literary interpretation from the writing class, they went much too far in similarly banishing the study of texts and reading in favor of the "productive" act of writing. This paper argues that undergraduates can play their "professors' game," the Burkean parlor game of Kristeva's…

Offers a supplementary approach to teaching literacy narratives that builds on the work of M. Soliday and others but is centered in student production. Outlines specific strategies for teaching the literacy narrative in the first-year composition classroom. Discusses possible benefits of teaching the student production of literacy narratives.…

Investigates the impact of task definition on students' revising strategies. Finds that texts written by students who receive instruction on global revision are judged both to be of significantly better quality and include significantly more global revisions than students who were simply asked to make the text better. (MG)

Updates an earlier report to underscore the inadvisability of imposing large sections of freshman composition students on reluctant departments and to promote further discussion of the issues raised by the program. Discusses some of the more controversial implications raised by the program. (RS)

Explores how computer-assisted instruction (the ACCESS program) affected teaching goals and student responses in a freshman composition course. Finds that the quantity of student writing increased dramatically. Suggests that word processing offers new ways to provoke students' thoughts, encourage collaboration, and create a lively and interactive…

Assesses the broad, measurable effects of using computers to teach introductory college composition, collecting data from 24 classes. Finds that students using computers revise and improve their posttest essays at significantly better levels than students writing with pen and paper. (SR)

The way in which the English Department of the University of South Alabama handled the large influx of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students in its freshman writing program is described. The university developed classes especially for ESL students with the assistance of the department's ESL specialist. (13 references) (LB)

Provides discussion and critical analysis of the "dog days" of part-time writing instructors in today's academic world. Compares student writing and teacher evaluation of that writing at vastly different colleges at which the same instructor taught. Considers how teacher attitudes are swayed by institutional setting. (HB)

Focuses on how various literacy narratives portray passages between language worlds. Considers how such passages are relevant to a writing pedagogy. Stresses the relationship between such literacy passages is useful in basic writing contexts. Analyzes two essays written by one student who portrays such a literacy passage. (HB)

Argues that, although writing teachers have come to see writing as socially constructed, they have failed to understand the teacher's role in such meaning construction. Calls for development of a theory of reading student texts which takes into account teachers' reading of the students themselves. Illustrates reading and misreading of student…

Examines the cognitive needs of novice writers and the role of word processors in the instruction of those writers. Reviews writing software in the categories of idea organizers, text analyzers, process prompters, communication packages, and artificially intelligent writing environments. Suggests future research areas. (SG)