This document describes a study undertaken by Florida community colleges to analyze student reading rates, which currently vary by ethnicity. To assess this concept, median scores for students who failed the College Placement Test (CPT) were compared between different ethic backgrounds across all Florida community colleges. All areas of the CPT…

Presents findings of a study comparing compositions by beginning writing and English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students at a two-year college. Reports similarities in the groups' topic choices, topic sentence use, and expository development. Reveals that ESL students tended to write shorter papers containing more sentence level errors. Discusses…

Two studies examined developmental changes in handwriting variability. Results indicated that, between 3 and 5 years, the number of grip patterns that children routinely use declines and the variability associated with pen-surface positioning declines. Older 3-year-olds used an adult grip pattern more often and were less variable in pen-surface…

Compares the preferred prewriting invention strategies of advanced, average, and basic ability eleventh grade writers. Finds that freewriting was used most frequently by the total group of students as well as when advanced students' and average students' responses were considered separately. Includes comparisons of preferences by level of student…

This study compared the written products of four groups of 26 male students in grades 4-6, including 8 students identified as gifted, 6 learning-disabled/gifted, 6 learning-disabled, and 6 normal. The Test of Written Language-2 was administered and seven subtest scores were compared among the four groups. In general, the speculation that…

A study compared the writing abilities of children in a whole language classroom with those of children involved in a skills-based classroom. Subjects, 37 African-American students in two heterogeneous first-grade classrooms in a low socio-economic area school in the inner-city of a large Alabama city, completed a reading/writing assessment (a…

This study of 40 junior high school students with learning disabilities and 20 control students found that significant intergroup differences in the quality of narrative compositions were not evident when students were allocated time for planning and were given "Create a Story" cues. (Author/JDD)

Compares the written production of 12 sixth grade English-as-a-second-language (ESL) students on 3 teacher-assigned tasks with their writing to the teacher in dialogue journals. Finds that the quantity and maturity of the dialogue journal writing was at least equivalent to the assigned writing on all measures. (RS)

A study compared writing scores and attitudes of second grade students in a traditional writing classroom and a writing process classroom. Subjects, 25 second-grade students in a writing process classroom and 26 students in a traditional classroom from the same rural school, were instructed in their respective classrooms for 6 months. Most…

A study investigated one dimension of metacognition--the knowledge of cognition--in first language (L1) and second language (L2) writing. Subjects were 20 students (10 L1 and 10 L2) in a first level college writing course. A questionnaire elicited subjects' definitions of good writing, their notions of the constituent features of the writing…

Many of the most talented authors and artists of the past and present have shared their thoughts and their gifts with young children through picture books. Many picture books allow young children to explore important ideas and to stretch their minds far beyond rote memorization. Young children absorb knowledge at a very rapid pace. In an age of…

As part of the mandate of the Alberta Government's Student Evaluation Branch to monitor changes in student achievement, the Humanities Diploma Examinations Unit compared the written work from 1984 and the 1990 English 30, Social Studies 30, and English 33 Canadian provincial diploma examinations. Full-length essays written by over 30,000 students…

A study compared the writing development and ideas about writing of students in a whole language program with students in a skills-oriented program from the time they entered kindergarten to the end of the second grade. Subjects were 22 inner city students who completed second grade out of an original kindergarten cohort of 50 minority students…

Two experiments compared signed and written stories by deaf 7- to 15-year-olds with oral and written stories by hearing age-mates. Found that the signed and oral stories had similar discourse structures as indicated by patterns of causal goal-action-outcome episodes. The grammatical and lexical character of deaf students' written stories lagged…

Examines the differences in the effectiveness of whole language and traditional instruction in end-of-the-year reading, writing, and spelling achievement for children with varying levels of incoming phonemic awareness, reading, and writing ability. Finds that neither program was more likely to close gaps between children high or low in these…