One hundred seventy-five first-year community college students enrolled in a course called "Developmental Writing 090" participated in this study. Some students were enrolled in an experimental group which was divided into two subgroups: one group was involved in independent study and the other in small group instruction. Other students in the…

The "Epistle" is the publication forum of Professors of Reading Teacher Educators, a special-interest group of the International Reading Association. The topic considered in this issue is alternatives or positive approaches for dealing with current concerns in graduate education in reading. In "Speculations on the Management of Retrenchment in…

This manual is designed for the use of ESL students in the language laboratory. The manual consists of 30 lessons, each between 5 and 10 minutes in length. Every fifth lesson, beginning with lesson 10, is a review lesson. The emphasis is on punctuation. For a 15-week course, the materials are designed to be used twice a week during the regular…

This program, begun in 1968 and included in "Effective Reading Programs...," serves about 2,800 students in grades 10-12. A secondary reading skills chart was developed, behavioral objectives were written, and minimal-competency tests in both reading and sriting were prepared. During the school year, all skills listed on the chart are…

The purpose of this study was to obtain information on the attitudes held by corporate executives and college professors toward the importance of proposal writing ability. Based on a survey of executives and professors, an inspection of the literature on proposal writing, and informal conversations with business executives and former students, it…

This study examined the written product in several literary forms by boys and girls of junior high school age. Approximately 875 written items from 238 student authors were collected and examined. It was found that there was more variation in creativity in writing among the boys than among the girls. No significant differences between the sexes in…

Within the scope of the English program in the Cleveland Heights-University Heights (Ohio) junior high schools, three areas of concentration have been defined: literature, language, and composition. Correlation of these three areas is the focal point of this English course guide supplement for grades seven, eight, and nine. In the literature…

The obvious necessity for a freshman English course which is geared to the individual student's needs, prior preparation, and writing behavior prompted the formation of an experimental course at the University of Texas. Three major components--diagnostic tests, contracts, and computer-assisted instruction--provide the framework for a…

Forty-three 10th-grade boys and girls of upper-average intelligence were divided into two groups of poor and good writers (as determined by past performance, present teacher evaluation, and the evaluation by three experienced judges of two sets of sample compositions) to determine significant composition factors which could account for writing…

Observations of American instructors and students in England, as well as English publications, reveal that English primary teachers treat writing as a way for children to share their personal experiences, and they correspondingly emphasize freedom of expression, fluency, and the retention and development of imaginative responses. Teachers enrich…

This article proposes to teach writing from the hypothesis that true writing and good prose are only end products rather than the primary objectives. The author suggests that producing an effect in a reader and revealing the self in words are prior achievements in the process of learning to write well. Criteria for judging writing are based…

This study was designed to determine whether a student's level of critical thinking would be increased by exposure to programmed materials which emphasized the use of qualifying words in avoiding over-generalizations. Seventy 8th graders were randomly divided into two groups--one experimental, the other control--which were judged to be equivalent…

This overview of the first year of the La Mancha Project consists of papers on various aspects of the 5-year project to improve the composition instruction in Vermont schools, incorporating workshop and individual student conference techniques, and integrating writing with other academic studies. The papers include discussions of (1) ninth grade…

The low rate of agreement among readers of College Entrance Examination essays suggested the need to examine the qualities in student writing which caused wide variance in grading. To study this question, 300 homework papers by freshmen at three universities were graded by 60 distinguished readers in six fields. The following factors, by rank,…

The primary goal for teachers of English composition is to help students achieve a competent oral and written style compatible with their own environment, age, sex, and socioeconomic background. To help students express their thoughts and perceptions clearly and logically, teachers should (1) exhibit a positive attitude toward writing; (2) provide…