Based on interviews with students who had recently returned to school, this essay demonstrates the need for, challenges of, and ways to respond to the writing anxiety many adults bring with them back to school. Jessica and Sam were two of twenty-five newly returned adult students whom the author spent over sixty hours interviewing in the fall of…

Time and opportunity to discover truths are essential in education. Discovery takes repetition and trial and error. Discovery crosses intellectual and disciplinary boundaries as well. What is learned through the diverse experiences of one's academic and individual lives will pollinate each other if there is room left for discovery. The tyranny of…

Suggests ways to make adults comfortable about the writing process: (1) recognize that adults want more involving lessons; (2) recognize their varied experiences; (3) enable writers to show that experiences will add to understanding of classes; (4) assess writing samples in nonthreatening ways; and (5) indicate that learning to write is a…

States that many writers face rejection of their work and includes a quiz consisting of 17 quotations about famous authors whose work was at some time rejected. (DF)

The use of self-hypnosis techniques to overcome barriers to writing freely is illustrated in the experiences of several writers who successfully used the method. (MSE)

Present excerpts of a fairy tale for adults entitled "The Secret of the Seventh Tower," indicating the presence of the neurolinguistic systems of representation used in its creation during the process of automatism (automatic writing). Notes that the model can facilitate the resolution of writer's block and enhance creative writing in…

Describes how studying under Ken Macrorie led one high school English teacher to use freewriting as a prewriting activity in her classroom. (ARH)

Shows reading instructors basic principles that may aid them in writing and publishing articles related to the profession. Discusses writers' block, getting started, identifying markets, submitting manuscripts, and working with editors. (FL)

Suggests that, although writing instructors cannot completely eliminate writing anxiety in students, they can create a positive environment and offer strategies that will help reduce students' fears and build confidence in their writing skills. (AEA)

Suggests that a grammar-based, error-correction method to teach composition may be at least partially responsible for students' perception of themselves as incompetent writers. Offers a method that uses brainstorming, free writing, looping, and cubing to help students find focus and voice in their writing. (JOW)

Describes the strategies used to encourage two friends--professed nonwriters--to write about the stories of their childhood days. The sequence of the process shows how a teacher can build confidence in beginning writers. (JOW)

Reveals the motivation for writing the book "Dispatches" (l977), based on Herr's experiences as a correspondent in Vietnam. Discusses the difficulties with writing the book as it tries to capture the experience, sympathize with the participants, and yet allow the reader to walk away from it in the end. (NH)

Presents an interview with Mike Rose. Explains the source of Rose's interest in the cognitive dimension of writing and how it affects his teaching particularly and classroom instruction generally. Discusses writer's block in terms of cognition. (NH)

Identifies three types of writer's block. Suggests a model using peer tutors to help blocked students overcome the problem. Discusses diagnostic considerations, tutor qualifications, and the importance of clear communication among the student, teacher, and tutor. Emphasizes the importance of relaxed relations between student and tutor. (PAA)

Presents the voices of basic writers, telling the importance of education in their lives and their struggles with it. Argues that basic writing merits support and should be regarded as college-level in its objectives and methods. Rejects the move to transform the mission of two-year colleges into one of narrowly defined developmental endeavors.…