One of a series dealing with current issues affecting language arts instruction, this paper focuses on writing evaluations. The paper begins by noting that any practical discussion of the evaluation of writing must address the question of how to obtain reliable, informative judgments about students' writing. The paper then discusses the purposes…

Articles in this journal issue focus primarily on evaluation in the language arts and oral communication. Following an introduction to the two themes, the articles discuss the following: (1) pop quizzes in literature, (2) holistic scoring, (3) self-evaluation strategies in prewriting and rewriting, (4) what not to do in student/teacher…

This newsletter contains 32 abstracts of approximately 1000 words each of papers presented at the 1988 conference of the National Testing Network in Writing. Abstracts, listed with their authors, include "Instructional Directions from Large Scale K-12 Writing Assessments" (C. Chew); "Portfolio Assessment across the Curriculum: Early Conflicts" (C.…

Focusing on the topic of composition, especially in the state of Illinois, this special journal issue begins with a description of the Illinois Articulation Project, a network developed to share and coordinate writing in the state. The second article describes Illinois State University's National Endowment for the Humanities program for…

Three articles on assessment in higher education include the following: "More Savvy, Good Signs, Next Steps: A Report on the Third National Conference on Assessment in Higher Education," by Pat Hutchings, on tapping expert judgment, getting students invested, and deepening understanding; "Perspectives on General Education and Its…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) continuously monitors the knowledge, skills, and performance of U.S. children and youth in a variety of academic subjects. The data collected are available in a series of major reports. The NAEP Facts series takes selected data from these reports and uses them to highlight specific issues of…

Reflecting some of the emerging issues sustaining debate in secondary school literature instruction and writing instruction, this newsletter presents articles that discuss the impact of E. D. Hirsch's book "Cultural Literacy,""authentic discourse," and collaborative classroom research. Articles in the newsletter are:…

The seven articles in this journal issue examine the value of developing audience awareness in student writing. Among the topics and concerns expressed are the following: (1) the importance of purpose and audience in designing assignments, (2) the value of classmates regularly discussing each other's papers, (3) the writing development of one…

In focusing on recursive writing, the nine articles in this journal issue suggest that student writing should be taken seriously. The first article states that revision should occur throughout the writing process while the second discusses how to invite writers to become active readers of their own texts. The third article presents methods of…

Intended to provide language arts teachers with practical ideas to help students become better writers, this focused journal issue addresses writing instruction at all levels, from elementary school through college. The titles of the articles and their authors are as follows: (1) "Intuitive Writing" (J. Hise); (2) "Tutoring the…

One of the goals of higher education is to develop the students' ability to think critically. However, little research has been done to indicate the impact of college on students' critical thinking skills. A study conducted at a midwestern university measured the critical thinking capability of college seniors. Subjects, 37 volunteers derived from…

This issue contains five articles, including reports of activities of the University of Hong Kong's English Center, five action research reports, reflections on various conferences, and a book review by Ray Mackay of "Asian Voices in English." The five articles are: "Cultural Syntonicity: Co-operative Relationships between the ESP Unit and Other…

Claiming that literary newswriting is not a contradiction in terms, that is, an oxymoron, this essay examines some of the criteria against which literary newswriting can be measured, defines what constitutes literary newswriting in contemporary newspapers, and explains how it contributes to modern newswriting. The paper argues that (1) modern…

Articles in this special issue include the following: "Learning to Write in a Second Language: Two Decades of Research" (Alister Cumming); "Some Steps Towards a Socio-Cognitive Interpretation of Second Language Composition Processes" (Julio Delarios Roca, Liz Murphy Liz); "Trends in the Conceptualizations of Second Language Composing Strategies: A…

Eight articles report on findings of the five Research Institutes in Learning Disabilities. T. Bryan reports on "The Chicago Institute for Learning Disabilities" with findings concerning children's conversational skills, how children account for success and failure, children's ingratiation tactics, children who forget quickly, and children's…