The William Perry model of learning is directly parallel to what has been learned about writing processes. He observed that the student is essentially a dualist who sees everything as right or wrong. This stance of absolute acceptance wavers when the student encounters varieties of or disagreements among truths, thus gradually evolving into the…

Describes a method for teaching developmental writing using reader-response theory and the works of James Joyce and Plato. (HTH)

Although student writers will accept evaluation more readily from their peers than from their instructors, beginning writers in particular hesitate to offer suggestions to another writer because they do not want to hurt their fellow students' feelings, and because they do not feel they know enough to evaluate someone else's work. The collaborative…

When students have difficulty writing, it is often because they are apathetic or afraid of failing, rather than because of a serious lack of skill. Basic writing teachers must break through student apathy and fear before the students can begin to progress. One way is to ask basic writers to unscramble sentences or analyze ambiguous sentences to…

This monograph explains dysgraphia in students and offers a range of practical suggestions tailored to individual children with specific dysfunctions that obstruct the transcription of their thoughts to paper. Chapters address: (1) why students avoid writing and the need for students to understand the purpose of writing; (2) underlying processing…