While attempting to refine and redefine the composing process, rhetoric teachers have overlooked research showing how the brain's visual and verbal components interrelate. Recognition of the brain's visual potential can mean more than the use of media with the written word--it also has implications for the writing process itself. For example,…

Increasing numbers of teachers seem to recognize that sequencing assignments is an effective way to teach writing. A sequence of 20 writing assignments was developed by four composition instructors at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado. The first eight exercises asked cadets to look at and think about their physical surroundings at…

A study investigated the effects of sentence combining instruction on the reading comprehension and writing maturity of fifth grade children. The sample consisted of an experimental and a control group with 25 children in each group. For 6 weeks the experimental group received instruction in sentence combining, defined for purposes of the study as…

This paper reports the results of a study in which the following issues were addressed: (1) whether there is a strong relationship between syntactic enhancement, as measured by Davidson's Test of Ability to Subordinate (TAS), and overall writing ability; (2) whether a subordination test has any predictive ability for attained writing proficiency;…

Competing views of written texts, of the process of writing, and of the purposes of the scholarly investigation of written discourse appear inherently at odds. Today composition theory is often demeaned as being only pedagogical while literary study is granted the status of a self-fulfilling academic pursuit. What is needed is a model or matrix…

A study sought to determine the effect of computer-based text editing on the revision strategies of inexperienced writers. Four subjects, none of whom had experience with computers or word processors, were selected from an introductory college composition course and required to master the basic terminal functions that would be necessary for…

Measurement experts in the field of writing and writing-related competencies have to deal with fluctuating test reliability, implementation of efficient scoring procedures, and examining the validity of objective measures of writing. This study was undertaken to address measurement concerns brought to light by the competency-based assessment…

Three pilot studies--effects of writing prompt modality on writing performance; effect of topic familiarity; and effect of topic, sample and rater group membership on the stability of scoring criteria application--are used to identify the variability in student writing performance. A writing competency test aims to assess writing-specific skills…

The freshman composition courses at a southwestern university were originally designed with detailed and explicit standards for the first course, which emphasized grammar, while the standards for the two rhetoric courses were general and left much to the judgment of the teacher. No penalties were exacted for rhetorical or logical lapses, while…

During writing conferences, many teachers impose their own ideas and attitudes on the student's essay, and often are not sure how else to help their students arrive at changes that will improve their writing. Understanding or assessment of a student's prior knowledge about the topic can be very helpful to a teacher in shaping the conference and…

A text-editing approach to composition in the foreign language classroom is set forth. In a 15-week composition course meeting three times each week, students prepare a weekly composition that they will revise after an in-class text-editing session involving several student papers. The third day is devoted to grammar work. Criteria for evaluating…

"La dictee" is an effective, time-tested strategy for teaching writing based on the French method of writing from dictation. In addition to writing, "la dictee" incorporates thinking, listening, and speaking skills; relies on literature to provide instructional material; and stresses the interrelationships between reading and…

To determine whether teacher intervention or treatment (the introduction of literary devices used by published writers) during the process of writing would lead to greater incidence and improved use of creative devices in gifted children's writing, ten talented students from the ages of six to eleven were selected to meet with the researcher twice…