A technique to help English as a second language students master the basic elements of expository prose is considered in terms of course objectives and the types of assignments used to accomplish them. A characteristic of many highly verbal students entering a college program is their propensity to "talk on paper" in an informal, ungrammatical,…

Content-based instruction in English as a second language develops thinking, researching, and writing skills more realistically than do traditional instruction methods. Approaches include: topic-centered modules; intensive, content based reading and writing courses; content-centered English for special purposes courses; course adjuncts in…

This report discusses the effectiveness of strategy-based writing instruction for adolescents with language-based learning disabilities. The instruction is being provided to Canadian students in grade eight who are at least two grade equivalents below their peers in reading and writing ability. The students are taught a paraphrasing strategy that…

This book sets out to adapt and use some of the practical approaches of genre theory to the teaching of writing to English as a Second or Other Language (ESOL) and Basic Skills students in Britain. The book has 9 units exploring different types of text or genres, descriptions of people, descriptions of places, personal narratives, folk stories,…

This book is the result of an effort by English language arts teachers and foreign language teachers to collaborate with the understanding that writing improves student learning across the curriculum, and that increased mastery of writing skills in a student's first language will improve foreign language learning. This fact notwithstanding, few…

This report describes a strategy for infusing computer technology into the essay composition process in order to enhance student achievement. The targeted population consisted of freshman high school students in a middle class community in central Illinois. Problems related to the use of computer technology in the learning process were documented…

Examines a six-step "lesson plan" for teaching writing. Details the pairing of eighth-grade students with first graders about whom they will write a story, the collection of information about the main character, the composition and revision of the stories, and the sharing of the final product with the students participating in the project. (AA)

This article explores the concept of writer identity and its influences as constructed by a group of college writers. Using a poststructural and sociocultural perspective, it takes a stand regarding the politics of language and the teaching of writing, especially as they relate to students whose racial, ethnic, cultural, and economic backgrounds…

With each issue focusing on different themes, volume 17 of "Inside English" looks at the writing process, literature and literacy, composition and creativity, and pedagogical alternatives and classroom writing. In addition to regular columns on the English Council of California Two-Year Colleges (ECCTYC) and legislative concerns, the following…

Information on current trends and issues in English instruction, compiled by the directors of six National Council of Teachers of English commissions, is presented in this report, the eighth annual report by the commissions. The commissions and their directors represented in the report are: (1) Commission on Reading (Patrick Shannon); (2)…

Intended for classroom teachers who are interested in but apprehensive about starting a writing program, this journal article addresses some of the most common questions asked at workshops. The specific questions answered in the article are as follows: (1) How do I start? (2) What materials are needed? (3) How do I find time for student writing?…

The Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills (TEAMS) was developed by the Texas Education Agency (TEA), in response to Texas House Bill 72 (1984), which mandated a new basic skills assessment program for mathematics, reading, and writing at grades 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. This document is one in a series of Instructional Strategies Guides…

The Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills (TEAMS) was developed by the Texas Education Agency (TEA), in response to Texas House Bill 72 (1984), which mandated a new basic skills assessment program for mathematics, reading, and writing at grades 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. This document is one in a series of Instructional Strategies Guides…

The Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills (TEAMS) was developed by the Texas Education Agency (TEA), in response to Texas House Bill 72 (1984), which mandated a new basic skills assessment program for mathematics, reading, and writing at grades 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. This document is one in a series of Instructional Strategies Guides…

The writing learning objectives for fifth graders contained in this volume are congruent with the Texas "State Board of Education Rules for Curriculum." These objectives and the measurement specifications are provided for use by teachers and other educators responsible for student instruction and for test development specialists involved…