Considers how if students' curiosity is dismissed, children can develop passivity and grow into unquestioning adults, the opposite of most educators' goal of helping children develop into lifelong learners. Claims that inquiry: flourishes in highly structured classrooms; involves building personal background knowledge and using materials wisely;…

Considers how due to the emphasis of reading, writing, and math, low-performing students are pulled from their regular classes for one-on-one tutorial sessions, restricting their exposure to group discussions and activities that encourage higher-order thinking skills. Suggests a reshaping of remedial curricula based on six guidelines. (SG)

Discusses several approaches to creating an effective text, envisioning a specific audience and determining how much detail is appropriate. Provides examples from seventh-grade English classes and a literacy methods course for middle-grade teachers. Considers some broader implications of the framework that educators are beginning to consider as…

Describes how the author, in his seventh-grade English class, taught "little grammar" (sentence structure, parts of speech, and usage) and "big grammar" (such as essay structure, points of an argument, and rhetorical devices) through reading meaningful texts drawn from their history class. Discusses successes and difficulties with this approach,…

Focuses on university- and school-based teacher researchers attempting to alter or interrupt certain gendered discursive practices that threatened to reproduce some of the same inequities in classroom talk about texts that were noted in the past, but were not challenged. Finds four types of interactions: self-deprecating, discriminatory, and…

Although most teachers use word processors and electronic mail on a daily basis, they still depend on paper and pencil for correcting their students' compositions. This article suggests some tools and techniques for submitting, editing, and returning written work electronically. (BD) (Author/VWL)

Examines both what it means to teach writing and what it means to write in a first-year university course in the history of science. Investigates what students learned about writing when the focus was on subject matter and secondarily on writing and rhetoric. Raises the question of whether disciplinary courses in writing provide an authentic…

Within the context of recent concerns that mainstream composition studies in the United States have largely neglected English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students, this study describes the performance of ESL students on the exit test of a first year writing program at a U.S. institution. The passing rate for the test was high until the format was…

Examines the composition classroom as a training ground for standards of behavior determined by the dominant culture's institutional biases. Looks at some of the assumptions behind cultural expectations for behavior. (TB)

Describes a mass communications program at Texas's San Antonio College that invites Pulitzer Prize recipients to give guest lectures. Includes a list of the speakers who have lectured since the program's inception in 1978, a description of the speakers' accomplishments, and a description of program activities. (MAB)

Aims to reconcile the imitation practices of rhetorically involved advanced writers, such as T. Moi and C. Bedient, with the passive imitation strategies of many undergraduate writers. Suggests a rhetorical relationship with texts where undergraduate students may also "practice" imitation, "practice" implying praxis. Integrates…

Scrutinizes the author's response to a seemingly stereotypical male narrative written by a student fitting the disruptive macho male stereotype. Examines how teachers respond to stereotypical male narratives of conquest and individualist triumph, and whether their responses to such essays are not conditioned by their responses to the authors. (TB)

Examines the current disjunction between composition theory and practice. Suggests that neither the theorist's nor the practitioner's vantage point is sufficient unto themselves. Argues for theoretical and practical attention to the dialogic interaction or conflict between what and how the teacher would like to teach and what interests and motives…

A mnemonic strategy for writing a research paper is explained. "SCORE A" reminds the student to select a subject, create categories, obtain sources, read and take notes, evenly organize the information, and apply process writing steps. Implementation of the strategy with five eighth graders with learning disabilities is reported. (DB)

Describes a series of exercises designed to help students of technical writing to see the virtues of revision. Suggests that students may learn from finding sections of their own textbooks that they can revise both linguistically and graphically. (TB)