Follows four female language-minority students through their last semester in high school and first semester in college. Focuses on these students' perceptions of reading and writing they encountered across the curriculum. Finds that what they found more challenging in college was not necessarily predicted from a developmental perspective but…

Examines faculty attitudes toward student writing. Finds a number of positive changes in faculty attitudes about writing after the implementation of an interdisciplinary program designed to improve students' communication skills. (RS)

Three Spanish/English bilingual kindergarten children were interviewed to discover their views on learning to write. Texts of interviews are presented. (PCB)

Discusses how a high school writing teacher became increasingly aware of her own writing processes and attitudes toward writing. Reflects on what makes writing worthwhile for her, what prompts her to write, and what part revision plays in her writing. Notes that becoming a reflective writer has changed the way she teaches writing. (RS)

States that teachers who view themselves as writers experience the same sort of mental changes that regular writers do. Explains that attitudes about writing change, and higher interest in all things relating to writing increases. Argues that keeping a portfolio of writings is beneficial in the development of writing skills, even in writing…

Describes how, when a working writer visited a sixth-grade classroom on an ongoing basis to interact with students, the language and activities of the writing community changed in interesting and positive ways. (SR)

Describes a teacher-researcher project involving an after-school writing class composed of sixth graders. Discusses the children's participation in a session at a professional conference. Relates children's earlier nurturing episodes involving writing. Discusses the implications of the project on the author's "failure" in motivating two…

Describes a writing exercise--writing cliffhangers--that uses six class periods to engage students in the writing process and finishes by publishing a book of students' cliffhanger stories. (SR)

Describes a method by which teachers can introduce students to meaning and text through application of Mikhail Bakhtin's discourse theories. Explains that students are encouraged to reject common understandings of good writing. Identifies "daffy" definition exercises, newspaper editorial comparisons, and other activities that help…

Argues that faculty writing groups are the single most effective way to change faculty attitudes about writing and to build support for writing across the curriculum. Discusses challenges facing colleges or universities that decide to develop a writing program across the disciplines. (RS)

Investigates the relationships among self-confidence about writing, expected outcomes, writing apprehension, general self-confidence, and writing performance over one semester. Finds that students' beliefs about their own composition skills and the preperformance measure were the only significant predictors. (SR)

Discusses ways to introduce poetry to college students and to have high school students discuss quotes from famous individuals concerning reading and writing. (RS)

Describes the writing and business communication problems of college-educated workers in Silicon Valley. Discusses hidden illiterates in the universities and in the workplace. Offers solutions for professors and managers faced with the problem of hidden illiterates. (PRA)

Describes a modification of the software "Punctuation and Style," and a study of the modified software program. Reports that teachers rated computer evaluations of student compositions as helpful more often than did students. Notes that teachers and students agreed generally on the helpfulness of the program's most frequent comments. Argues that…

Argues that, with careful planning, computer networking can work in the writing classroom by stressing composition as a social collaborative act. Suggests that classroom networking planners must attend to (1) choice of technology; (2) ease of use; (3) participation; and (4) audience awareness. (SG)