Discusses idea strategies that can help the learner comprehend and communicate, and composition strategies that can be applied to writing for communication. Highlights include thought starters; information evaluation phases, including analyzing the audience; strategies in writing management; drafts and revisions; and introductions and conclusions.…

In a second-chance program to develop reading competence, secondary students in an Alberta district continue in core academic subjects while enrolling in a 90-minute curriculum based on the "Picture Work Inductive Model." They listen to readings by teachers, write to prompts, and read independently. (Contains 14 references.) (MLH)

Presents a dialog between two speakers examining the nature of writing discourse, how it is categorized, how it is changing, how e-mail and other media are affecting it, and what is considered acceptable in certain discourses. (TB)

Notes the difficulty in writing a newspaper column and gives several questions and responses to consider. Discusses what a column should do, how a column should be written, and questions to consider. Presents a sample page with an explanation of several different columns. (SC)

Replicates a previous study by Cole, et al. (1997b), which demonstrated that the type of stimulus used to elicit a written response had a marked impact for items measuring organization, unity, and coherence. The replicated study sample, consisting of 29 middle school students, produced comparable results to the Cole, et al. study. (Author/GCP)

Provides fundamental information on learning disabilities relevant to programs preparing students for print media careers. Discusses learning disabilities specific to written expression. Examines legal issues and offers an overview of the types of appropriate accommodations that may be made in the classroom, including assistive technology and…

Suggests how the teaching of "you-attitude" (or "you-perspective") in business communication classes can be enhanced by using politeness theories, case grammar, and information structure. Uses a brief written announcement to show how these linguistic theories can inform specific writing strategies. Suggests that a "you-attitude" is gradable…

Examines the situated-language practices associated with the production of negative letters in an insurance company. Combines textual analyses of a set of negative letters together with writers' accounts of producing these letters to identify effective strategies for composing this correspondence. Identifies some strategies that characterize…

Explores different ways of writing to portray the idea of the difference between Asian Americans and Asians living in Asia. Discusses some prejudices the author encountered as an Asian American, born in the United States. (SG)

Describes one student's writing project and how it develops in a writing program. Notes that his story focuses on the Holocaust and was inspired by reading over 15 books on the topic. (SG)

Middle school educators can enhance the quality of education in the classroom by obtaining grants for special projects. Grants, which can be used to improve instruction, upgrade equipment, and implement innovative programs, are available from local, state, and federal agencies, nonprofit foundations, and private corporations. Overall, millions of…

Some years ago, Gila Hanna offered the very insightful and useful distinction between mathematical proofs that prove and those that also explain. Proofs that explain not only state the deductive logic that justifies their mathematical claims, they lay bare the mechanisms and structures that underlie that logic, making content and logic more…

This study investigates the possibility that multimedia authorship may help students become more proficient writers. Four classes of 8th-grade students in an urban setting participated in the study, which took place over seven successive class periods. Students were given a 7-paragraph article on teen smoking to use in developing a nonlinear…

The 15 articles in this volume comprise the refereed proceedings of the 2009 ATLAANZ (Association of Tertiary Learning Advisors Aotearoa/New Zealand) conference. The first three chapters focus on collaborative work. In Chapter 1, Ann Pocock shares her experiences of working with other university support services. In Chapter 2, Berni Cooper and…

Many academics continue to approach the multi-path and multi-voiced capacity of the Internet's networked nodal structure as if it were a book with pages and paragraphs and sentences that flow together in one direction to make a whole. A different approach to that of traditional writing, is required to make effective use of the distinctive…