A survey of writing research indicates positive directions for teaching composition: reflecting developmental patterns in curriculum guides; emphasizing prewriting and revising strategies; giving priority to problem solving and creative thinking skills, attending to rhetorical issues like purpose and audience, and conducting research in the…

Argues that hedging devices are a major pragmatic feature of effective scientific writing, and that students of English for special purposes should be taught to recognize and use them in their own work. The article examines the frequency, functions, and realizations of hedges and discusses a range of strategies for familiarizing students with…

Outlines a successful children's literature author's struggle with writing in high school and college. Contends that stories are vital because they are experienced. Notes that children's literature is about the possibilities of childhood. (PM)

Argues that the publication of student writing from all levels of an English program motivates students, provides instructional material, and validates the process approach to teaching writing. (TB)

Examines how evaluation works through a text to convey the overall purpose of the writer of the text by using a developing corpus of academic research articles from a variety of disciplines. Findings indicate that the type of evaluation varies according to the type of entity and that two categories of research entity exist: those related to…

Observed writing strategies of two students in a primary, self-contained special education class using a whole language philosophy. Found that students showed concern for meaning and conventions and that they used metacognitive strategies, such as rereading or prior knowledge; external sources of help, including dictionaries or teacher assistance;…

Describes five writing activities and assignments designed to help students understand the content of social studies and the process of writing. These include student journals, biographical poems, elaborate word games, and creative writing exercises. Illustrative examples relate these to social studies issues. (MJP)

Interviews Susan Miller, a teacher of composition studies and author of well-known articles about the field. Discusses what it means to be able to write, and the cultural forces that have shaped her as a writer and teacher of writing. Argues for a renewed focus on the act of writing and the production of texts. (PM)

Describes a curriculum for teaching writing with computers. The approach is process-oriented and employs low-end technology, requiring only computers equipped with word processing programs, and follows an assignment structure that can be executed by high schools or universities. (Author/VWL)

Describes how students can exploit the power and flexibility of computers to find, organize, and store information gathered while conducting research. Describes how students can use computers to compose, revise, and edit their research papers. (RS)

Describes the positive impact of using reading and writing workshops (as described in Nancie Atwell's "In the Middle") in an urban school. Argues that the workshop format can work for large classes composed of students at many different ability levels and from many different cultures and races. (RS)

The theoretical and empirical work of J. Britton and his followers is reviewed. The uses of Britton's discourse system in writing research and studies of school writing are considered. Topics addressed include Britton's conceptualization of heuristics, written discourse, pedagogy, function system, learning processes, teaching methods, and text…

Investigates the effects of highly structured versus less structured lessons on student narrative writing. Finds that the less structured lessons resulted in superior student writing and the highly structured lessons resulted in mechanical, fill-in-the-blank responses. (MG)

Describes a Writing assignment in which students prepare a graduation speech. Separates the speech-writing process into steps: (1) deciding on a theme; (2) analyzing the theme; (3) developing an organizational pattern; (4) writing a rough draft; (5) editing in a group; (6) presenting the speech in class; and (7) presenting the speech at…

Describes study conducted at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) that investigated the adoption of word processing for dissertation writing by doctoral students. Perceived attributes of word processing that affect the adoption or rejection of word processing are examined and their influence on the writing process is discussed.…