This chapter discusses textography as a strategy for researching academic writing in higher education. Textography is an approach to the analysis of written texts which combines text analysis with ethnographic techniques, such as surveys, interviews and other data sources, in order to examine what texts are like, and why. It aims to provide a more…

There is a burgeoning interest in how best to support and facilitate the development of writing and writing output of research students. One pedagogy is the use of writing groups for and beyond the period of the doctorate; however, there is relatively little empirical research that helps explain "how" the pedagogies of research writing…

Reports on a survey of 245 Australian high school students, who wrote about what they liked and disliked about their writing experiences. Notes the implications these results have for teaching writing. (RL)

Examines a number of written texts from a longitudinal case study that compared the writing development of a young girl and a young boy learning to write in writing process classrooms in Australia. Finds that the children took up strongly gendered positions in their writing. (RS)

A study of student perceptions of the goals of composition classes and essential rules for successful academic compositions was conducted as a pilot for the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) writing project, which will collect data on instructional practices and other aspects of written composition.…

Reports on a study of seven experienced secondary school writing teachers in Victoria, Australia. Focuses on how their own writing or lack of writing affects their teaching practices and effectiveness. Finds that the issue of becoming an effective writing teacher is more complex than the seemingly straightforward prescription that writing teachers…

Presents material from two first-year teachers' case writings and discussions about teaching writing which resulted in a "linguistic event," an opportunity to construct new knowledge about teaching. Claims the teachers were able to reflect on concerns in depth, validate each other's practice, and explore the value of talking and writing…

Experimental narrative forms of writing research can offer empowering representations for adult education and feminist researchers. This article presents a selection of academic storytelling in the form of scanned transcript poems or "Learning stories," produced through interviews with women who participated in a special access program…