In this paper, I draw attention to a lively and accessible way of helping academics to make sense of their practice as teachers. First, I define "collaborative close reading" and "teaching texts". Then I invite the reader to eavesdrop on three (lightly fictionalised) reading sessions. Finally, I suggest some guidelines for…

Motivation, one of the leading problems in education, is an ongoing issue for teachers. Motivation is important because it highly contributes to achievement. Teachers have to be certain that their students are being motivated in order to develop a positive outcome. This article suggests some strategies to sustain students' classroom motivation.

Imaginative writing is a great vehicle for creative thinking and risk taking as children structure a reality in a story. However, the author believes that American children are untrained for this sort of work and progress. They need connected experiences. This insight intensifies the author's resolution to seek collaboration with artists in other…

Describes what business plans are and how educators can use them in class for a team writing assignment. (RS)

Discusses various aspects of collaborative writing and advocates its use in college journalism courses. (SR)

Describes a collaborative writing assignment devised for a first-year composition class. Outlines how the assignment was undertaken and carried out by the students. Provides background on the theoretical literature concerning collaborative writing. (HB)

In "Rhetoric, Discovery and Change" (1970), R. Young, A. Becker, and K. Pike took Carl Rogers' empathetic approach out of the context of one-on-one therapy and put it into the writing classroom. They proposed the now standard formulaic structure of argumentation which emphasizes a strong thesis up front, a detailed account of the…

When a class of lethargic college students showed no enthusiasm for their reading assignments in English class, one instructor turned to drama. She assigned a collaborative script, and the students' enthusiasm and motivation relegated her to a "pleasant oblivion." She thought that the novelty of the play genre might enliven the class,…

Describes how one English teacher stumbled on the idea of having student peer groups write scripts. Outlines a variety of ways that script writing assignments can be made. Advocates having such scripts created by student collaborative groups. (HB)

Reports on a study that examines the planning and revising of ninth-grade coauthors to determine how collaborative writing socializes and impacts the writing process. Finds that the students' writing processes tended to resemble those of more expert writers--planning, composing, and revising collapsed into a truly recursive process. (TB)

Describes the variables for designing and maintaining writing groups within classroom settings. Advocates the use of writing groups. Provides outline of which structures are possible, what training is advisable, and what modifications can be made in view of changing class dynamics. (HB)

Describes how one English teacher developed an approach to teaching writing that pairs student writers with writers in the community outside the school. Outlines the features of this writing partners project, including the responsibilities of each partner. Argues that such programs foster writer skill and self-esteem. (HB)

Personal narrative writing can be encouraged and used effectively in classes and in in-service workshops because it is accessible, because the writers may use their own voices, because they can tell their own stories, and because it helps them to make sense of their own experiences. However strong the case made for this form, though, there are…

At Moravian College, the Communication course is an interdisciplinary introduction to the writing process, designed to help freshmen develop strategies for solving problems at each stage of writing. The course is unique in that it is not meant to be taught exclusively by members of the English department and is taught in close alliance with…

Shows how to make room in the first-year composition course for unusual writings using collective research. Contains a narrative explaining how students devise their own topics and conduct their research in groups. (TB)