A study examined the effects of peer evaluation on writing fluency and writing attitudes. Subjects, 177 ninth grade students from seven classrooms, were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Subjects in both groups wrote a first draft of a paper. Those in the experimental group then received peer evaluation training and rewrote…

Describes a college instructor's observations of her students' writing blocks. Suggests that female students' writing blocks differ from males'. Asserts that females' blocks last longer and cause greater distress than do males' writing blocks. Notes that female students also appear to experience difficulty in utilizing secondary sources and…

A qualitative study examined the revision of writing on the word processor of two re-entering students in advanced composition in comparison to three traditional-age students. Its purposes were to see whether there was any difference in adaptation to the word processor between the two groups and whether each writer had a consistent revision…

More than half of the entering freshmen at Rio Grande College in Ohio are required to take developmental English. In addition to having grammar, reading, and writing difficulties to overcome, most of these students have negative attitudes toward writing. In an effort to improve students' writing skills and attitudes, word processing instruction…

Describes a study of undergraduates at West Virginia University that was conducted to investigate the effects of computer-based instruction on writing performance and writing apprehension. Computer anxiety is measured, appropriate software is discussed, and the quality of pretreatment and posttreatment essays are compared with essays written…

Reflecting changes in the focus and methodology of writing research over the past 20 years, this book provides a meta-analysis of studies on teaching approaches and focuses on composition instruction at the elementary, secondary, and college levels. The first chapter of the book examines general studies of the composing process, studies of process…

A study examined differences in writing self-efficacy beliefs among high- and low-apprehensive writers. The Daly-Miller (1975a) Writing Apprehension Test was administered to 43 developmental writers in 3 freshman composition classes. Students scoring plus or minus one standard deviation from the mean for that population were selected for further…

A study at Hong Kong University explored the use of the word processor as a writing tool in enhancing a process approach to writing instruction and the effect it has on writing performance, student attitudes to writing and revising, and the process by which students revise their scripts. A comparative analysis was done on a control group of 13…

The writing apprehension experienced by Puerto Rican university students is examined. Levels of apprehension when writing in English versus native Spanish, for males versus females, and for students enrolled or not enrolled in writing classes are compared. The results indicate that the students, particularly the women, are more apprehensive when…

While research on the composing process has revealed great variation among writers and among types of writers, research has largely ignored fluctuation in the writing behaviors of a single writer. A study contrasted both texts and behaviors of six graduate and undergraduate students of English as a Second Language (ESL) as they wrote a practice…

An experimental study compared the effects of controlled and free writing exercises and of evaluative vs. communicative feedback on the writing quality and apprehension of Korean college students of English as a foreign language (EFL). Students in two sections of a freshman reading course wrote dialogue journals as practice in free writing, and…

This study examines writing apprehension in bilinguals, a common problem among Puerto Rican college students who take composition courses in both their native Spanish and English as a second language. A questionnaire designed to determine the sources of apprehension was administered to three student groups: graduate students of English, freshman…

The case study examined the development of English writing skills in a native Russian-speaking college student with no previous instruction in English as a Second Language. It drew on writing samples from 2 years of English language instruction. Theories of first and second language acquisition, especially in written expression, are analyzed in…

A study investigated links between writing apprehension, preferred writing processes, and academic achievement in 28 adult learners of English as a Second Language (ESL). One group was of varying language background in an intensive intermediate ESL class and the other consisted of francophone Canadians in an evening intermediate ESL writing class…

The three issues of the journal on second language teacher education include these articles: "Monitoring and Evaluating the Production of Materials on a Large Scale Trainer Training Workshop" (R. Williams, Choong Kam Foong, Diana Lubelska); Sensory Channels in ESL Instruction" (Michael E. Rudder); "Using the In-Service Feedback…