This resource book contains 10 articles on specific aspects of writing assessment. Article one addresses several key issues, among them (1) whether writing should be taught from a traditional analytic approach or from the "writing-as-a-process" perspective, (2) whether writing ability can be judged indirectly or only by actual performance, and (3)…

One of seven multicultural, nonsexist activity guides related to language arts, this guide offers a variety of teacher-developed activities for instruction in creative writing. The activities, which are presented in ascending order of grade level from kindergarten through sixth grade, are designed to develop creative writing skills while exploring…

As human understanding is largely metaphorical, what metaphor is, how children use it, and how they can be taught to use it more effectively are important educational concerns. A direct or indirect comparison between two apparently unlike things, metaphor consists of a topic, a vehicle of comparison, and ground--or traits--linking the topic and…

A teacher guide and six student workbooks are included in this supplementary writing program which provides daily writing practice in sentence and paragraph skills for children in grades 1-6. Sequentially arranged writing activities isolate and focus on those essential skills that children need to be successful with classroom writing. Using a…

Presented are the results of a questionnaire completed by 467 teachers from 32 states who teach English at the elementary school, secondary school, and college or university level. The questionnaire elicited information concerning teacher morale, critical issues facing the profession, the mood of teachers, and teacher curriculum interests and…

Intended to help elementary school language arts teachers provide students with opportunities for unprescribed writing according to a natural writing process, this booklet discusses research and practice in the writing process and creating a supportive classroom environment. The first part of the booklet examines theory and research on the stages…

The seven chapters of this book describe the process conference approach to writing instruction. The first chapter presents four principles used in this approach: adequate daily practice time, student control over and responsibility for writing, emphasis on the writing process, and frequent brief conferences between teacher and students and among…

Research indicating a strong correlation between reading and writing skills has been used to create effective teaching activities; this paper summarizes research findings and describes teaching activities in three classrooms. (1) As students' reading comprehension and recall have been shown to improve following instruction in summary writing, a…

Conditions of language and literacy are considered by a Texas educator and presented at a 1982 hearing held by the National Commission on Excellence in Education. It is noted that a 1979 policy at the University of Texas system established a freshman-level remedial English course for credit. At the University of Texas, San Antonio, this course is…

This workbook contains a wide variety of material directed at teaching and learning in the areas of word recognition, vocabulary, comprehension, and study skills by providing reading and writing activities which use sports as a backdrop. The activities include a clear statement of the exercise's purpose, directions for the activity, materials…

Using techniques of inference appraisal suggested by T. A. van Dijk and R. J. Sternberg, a study investigated whether by assigning particular writing tasks it would be possible to influence the way readers produce inferences about a text. Subjects, 52 ninth grade students, read especially prepared booklets and completed either a paraphrasing,…

A study of students in a linked reading/writing course team-taught by a reading instructor and a writing instructor was conducted to describe the effects of reading instruction upon the composing processes of freshman basic writers. Data were collected from direct observation, interviews, writing samples, and audio- and video-tapes of composing.…

This handbook for kindergarten through grade eight provides instructional objectives for student mastery in the basic skills of reading, mathematics, written communication, and oral communication. The section on reading is divided into the following strands: word identification skills; vocabulary skills; comprehension (literal, inferential, and…

This document provides a report on the evaluation of STEPS (Surviving Today's Experiences and Problems Successfully), the Waters Foundation Curriculum for teaching thinking skills and expository writing. Data were collected during the 1983-84 academic year, using a junior high school as a field site. Four experimental classes were taught STEPS two…

A case study examined the implementation of a schoolwide writing program established in a California middle school through a district sponsored school improvement program (SIP). Conducted at an urban sprawl southern California school of approximately 900 students in grades seven and eight, the program was directed and implemented by the English…