This paper considers evidence from an intervention designed to raise standards in spelling and independent writing. "The Complete Spelling Programme" (McMurray and Fleming, 1998) is designed to ensure that all processes involved in learning to spell are activated and that the interaction between them is facilitated. In addition, a number…

Second language writing scholars have undertaken descriptions of English-language writing instruction in a variety of international settings, describing the role of various contextual factors in shaping English-language writing instruction. This article describes English-language writing instruction at various levels in Poland, noting how it is…

This paper documents an initiative in Continuing Professional Development, conceived and carried out by London's "Centre for Literacy in Primary Education" (CLPE). The intention was to improve the teaching and learning of writing in Years 5 and 6 of the primary school (9-11-year-olds), through working with challenging literature. This…

Two-year campuses are known for students who contend with extraordinary obstacles to get degrees and for teachers who make the efforts required to get the job done. The author contends that, because dedicated teachers and striving students deserve more than college, government, and corporate policy allow them, instructors need to raise the profile…

Using a method of topical rhetorical analysis, inspired by K. Burke, to discuss the Ebonics debate, this article demonstrates that conversations about education, particularly writing instruction, have adopted a market rhetoric that limits teachers' agency. However, reappropriation of this market rhetoric can help writing teachers to imagine and…

How do scores from writing samples generated by computerized essay scorers compare to those generated by ''untrained'' human scorers and what combination of scores, if any, is more accurate at placing students in composition courses? This study endeavored to answer this two-part question by evaluating the correspondence between writing sample…

In traveling about contemporary academia, especially the haunts of philosophy and English, one is likely to stumble upon the lair of a new monster, one that bears considerable resemblance to Hawthorne's dreamy vision. The name of this huge miscreant is Critical Thinking--a name uttered by professors and students with more awe than understanding.…

The author of this article laments the gap in knowledge that he sees in composition scholarship as it relates to teaching writing students how to be both analytical and subjective within an increasingly complex world. He observes that the theory behind teaching such critical skills often lags teaching practice by decades. Moreover he describes…

After summarizing typical criticisms of multicultural composition readers, the author draws on work in "New Literacy Studies" to point toward composition pedagogies that encourage multicultural interactions beyond selections in assigned readers. The author suggests that what is ultimately needed is a productive critical frame not only for refining…

Writing is a powerful social tool that offers students opportunities to chisel their identities as they position themselves and others on issues and beliefs (Dyson, 1992). This article presents the story of how Mark, a fifth-grade student who resisted writing in certain classroom contexts, used positional writing practices to shape his identities.…

This instructional note describes the successful application and adaptation of teacher-student conference techniques as suggested by Donald M. Murray in his book "A Writer Teaches Writing." Athanasourelis states that while he believes that Murray overestimates students' abilities when he describes the conference process as "the working talk of…

In technical writing classes, audience is one of the most important concepts. Technical writing is typically written to a specific audience for a specific purpose. In addition, as audiences change, so must the way a document is written. An audience's lack of knowledge in a technical area, for example, would require more background information or…

Many students find it difficult to learn the kinds of knowledge and thinking required by college or high school courses in mathematics, science, or other complex domains. Thus they often emerge with significant misconceptions, fragmented knowledge, and inadequate problem-solving skills. Most instructors or textbook authors approach their teaching…

In this qualitative teacher-researcher one-year classroom study, the author focused upon the literacy strategies that four low-achieving writers used while creating and interpreting music video compositions. The students read a variety of musical and video texts as they composed their own music video project. The guiding question of this research…

Having grown up in an age of rapidly developing electronic communication technology, today's students come to higher education with high levels of comfort and familiarity with computer-mediated communication (CMC, hereafter). The students' level of comfort with CMC, coupled with CMC's promises of enabling supplemental class discussion as well as…