Work with 12 students in a basic writing class led to the conclusion that textual analysis alone will not provide basic writing teachers with the information they need to deal effectively with student errors; instead, contextual analysis is needed, an understanding of how students compose and what their guiding concerns and basic problems are.…

The National Basic Skills Improvement Program is authorized to provide grants and contracts to enable children to master the basic skills of reading, mathematics, and effective communication. In mid-1978 the South Carolina Legislature established the South Carolina Basic Skills Assessment Program. In the first half of 1979 an intensive project was…

The last 10 years have been a distinctive decade in American education. There was much argument for change in the 1950s, but it was Sputnik that sparked action in the field of education. The assumption at that time was that if the U.S. was technologically "behind," the schools were to blame. Federal funds for schools began as an "emergency"…

Calls for a redefinition of literacy and basics. Acknowledges the expanded classroom and the fact that new partnerships must be established with those who teach beyond the campuses. Educators must acknowledge the communications revolution and help students become more sophisticated as communicators. (JMF)

Writing problems in the basic college freshman writing course result from the students' misconception that once they get the required number of words down on paper their compositions are unalterable, and teachers' misconception that serving as an editor, correcting errors and rewriting sentences, is an effective teaching tool. Students'…

The implications of the lessons learned through an evaluability assessment (EA) of the Title II Basic Skills Improvement Program (BSIP) for State Education Agency (SEA) support of model demonstration programs are discussed. The purposes, methodology and uses of the EA process are presented. Also included is a discussion of the details of the…

The nature of thinking as perhaps the most basic of all intellectual skills and the neglect of thinking as a valuable skill to teach in formal educational settings are discussed in the first two sections of this paper. The third section provides a rationale for teaching effective thinking skills in school. (Author/RH)

In reviewing the Army Continuing Education System in 1979, the Assistant Secretary of the Army found a basic skills program based on traditional academic level goals was inadequate to meet the Army's requirement to provide functional, job-related basic skill education. Combining the shrinking manpower pool and projected basic skill deficiencies of…

A study skills course at the University of Minnesota Technical College Reading Center involves students by having them determine how study skills work for their situation, by using materials relevant to their academic classes, and by getting them to apply critical thinking to the learning process. Students conduct surveys, develop programs on good…

The paper discusses a new battery of tests, the Assessment of Basic Competencies, designed for fair assessment of the latent abilities of minority group children. It is explained that the tests provide diagnostic assessment in several domains of competence that are considered important for school learning. The three domains, information…

Remedial writers tend to be students who have never written very much, who come from families or neighborhoods in which more than one language may be spoken, and who have sensed their problems but have been unable or unwilling to do much to alleviate the difficulties. Unfortunately, the environment and attitudes of many college remedial programs…

This paper defines censorship as the "removal of any information considered secret" and argues that the ambivalence among English Teachers concerning what should be taught leaves students unevenly educated and unable to see the relationship between courses in the English classroom and the survival skills necessary for the "real world" they are…

This paper describes the activities of the National Institute of Education (NIE) in reading research and development with particular emphasis on the Essential Skills Program. The Essential Skills Program's purpose is to aid all children in obtaining skills necessary to function in society. The paper is divided into three categories: activities…

Teaching grammar to freshman composition students can be accomplished without turning the class into a remedial course or expending an undue amount of either student or teacher energy. Before grammar can have meaning for students, however, writing itself must become important to them. The teaching of the mechanics of language, therefore, should…

The "Back to Basics" movement is compared with the humanistic or affective approach to education. A return to basics would set the stage for an active teacher, shaping a passive student. Affective education, in contrast, considers helping a student learn to be a person as more central and more basic than the acquisition of skills and habits. If…