A teacher's experience in guiding a group of 40 fourth-graders in writing a book is reported, and the book is included. Provided are descriptions of--(1) the step-by-step process of writing each chapter of the book, (2) the development of the students'"own English book"--rules for usage, spelling, punctuation, and capitalization, discovered by the…

Part 1 of this report presents a summary of 1969 research studies relating to language arts in elementary education. The summary comments on 111 studies (the majority of which deal with reading instruction) drawn from 61 journals, organized under the categories of (1) research summaries and listings; (2) language; (3) oral communication; (4)…

This book, which is written for English teachers in secondary schools and colleges, particularly junior college, is an attempt to provide a convenient and concise statement regarding prevailing tendencies and issues in teaching writing. These are related to correction, the tutorial conference, motivating composition, grammar, research, and lack of…

Bilingual education programs which foster literacy first in the mother tongue and then in the second language, before the second language is used as a medium of instruction, are proving to be successful in a number of locations around the world. Several social, psychological, and pedagogical advantages result from this bilingual education…

Describes a two-year study of one college student's efforts to produce appropriate content area writing in different disciplines. Using observation, interviews, composing-aloud protocols, and text analysis, evaluates the student's performance according to the Gricean rubric of conversation. Concludes that success was affected by unarticulated…

Reviews research on sex differences in language use. Describes a study of the language patterns of 20 female college students in basic writing or freshman composition. Addresses instructional implications. Reviews relevant reading theories, discusses the relationship between women's language patterns and their reading schemata, and recommends…

Presents summaries of research studies related to instructional computer use: three compare word processed and handwritten text of students with and without learning disabilities; one compares student retrieval skills using print and electronic encyclopedias; and one examines computer use by math and science teachers via data from a U.S. national…

Writing for the BBC World Service "Short Story" Program provides English as a second language students with the necessary conditions for "authentic writing," namely authentic and communicative writing practice, encouragement of language acquisition, and improvement of the teacher student relationship. (CB)

Technical questions regarding the reliability and validity of large-scale portfolio assessment were studied which focused on: (1) whether raters can score collections of writing reliably with rubrics designed for single samples; (2) whether ratings derived from different frameworks differ in their capacities to support technically sound…

This report describes the development over three trial semesters of a required course for sophomores at Baker University (Kansas) to develop reasoning and critical thinking skills that would prepare them for a required senior capstone course. The report describes the work of the faculty team that prepared two textbooks ("Reasoning and…

This document presents eight lesson plans designed to teach self-determination and Arizona academic standards to students with disabilities in grades K-12. The lesson plans include: (1) an oral language lesson plan for students with learning disabilities in grades 1-2; (2) a reading acquisition lesson that teaches color words to students with…

The eight titles in this document include the following: "Comprehension and Input Processing as Useful Terms in the Field of SLA" (number 28) (Teresa Cadierno); "On the Role of Instruction in SLA: Research Results and Theoretical Explanations" (number 29) (Teresa Cadierno); "Can Writing Be Taught" (number 30) (Stuart Greene); "Academic Listening"…

This study argues that community college composition instructors need to develop their own body of research and scholarship on theories of writing, one that is not solely dependent upon four-year college theory, but that works as an equal partner in the composition theory debate. The premise that community college students are different from…

Articles in this special issue include the following: "Learning to Write in a Second Language: Two Decades of Research" (Alister Cumming); "Some Steps Towards a Socio-Cognitive Interpretation of Second Language Composition Processes" (Julio Delarios Roca, Liz Murphy Liz); "Trends in the Conceptualizations of Second Language Composing Strategies: A…

First Steps is a program instituted by the Western Australia Ministry of Education to improve the literacy and numeracy of primary school students, particularly those at risk of academic failure. First Steps is organized around reading, writing, spelling, and oral language; children's skills are organized along developmental continua. This study,…