During the spring semester of 2006 the Department of Physical Education (John Jay College of Criminal Justice) and a writing fellow, an English doctoral candidate (CUNY Graduate Center), began working together, with the goal of creating a new writing assignment for an integral course at the college. PED 103, Personal Physical Fitness and Dynamic…

Research on persuasive writing by elementary children posits primarily a developmental perspective, claiming that elementary-age children can effectively argue through talk but not through writing. While this view is commonly held, this article presents counterevidence. Drawing on two cases of third and fourth grade children writing persuasive…

An autobiography class at Elizabethtown College (Pennsylvania) used one of its four technique paper assignments to focus on the exploratory essay, since the concept of exploration, simply for the sake of questioning, probing, and testing, has both validity and purpose in a class or assignment focusing on autobiography. First the class brainstormed…

Pupils need to express themselves in creative processes and products in the language arts curriculum. Too frequently, teachers require behavior which involves conformity on the part of learners. Specific objectives many times delimit pupils' opportunities to express original ideas that come from within the involved learners. Many activities can…

If writing teachers want to use modality effectively, they first have to deal with three problems: identification of markers of modality in English; representation (the use of models for modality); and correlation (pedagogical usefulness, and writing strategies for students). Two models of modality address the problems which writing teachers…

Many teachers would like to counter what Deborah Tannen calls "The Argument Culture." They recognize that teaching students traditional principles of argument may perpetuate the kind of adversarial thinking that erupts all too often: in aggressive newspaper headlines, on confrontational television shows, in court rooms, and in school…

In 1994, the situation of one writing teacher changed when she joined others at her institution to collaborate on the design and follow through of the Portfolio Composition Program for first-year writing students. Today, the collaboration continues as volunteer full-time faculty, graduate teaching assistants, and other part-time teachers try out…

Students draw a series of pictures that tell a simple story that includes character action, problem and solution. They "read" their story to others, transcribe it into writing, and create an accordion book with the drawings and writing. The activity supports the transition from oral to written storytelling. During the four 30- to 40-minute…

This lesson uses the informational power of the Internet for a prewriting activity. Through various Internet sites, students gather information about the history and celebration practices associated with Veterans Day. Following the prewriting activity, students write content-rich poems that honor veterans. During the 45-minute prewriting session,…

The issue of personal writing is hotly contested in composition studies. Some believe that personal writing has no place in academic writing. In a discussion with Peter Elbow regarding personal versus academic writing, David Bartholomae argues that "academic writing is the real work of the academy." Elbow, on the other hand, argues that…

Archival research gives students opportunities to appreciate original documents and artifacts, teaching them how to access materials, to treat them with care, and to invest them with meaning, and demonstrating the partnership researchers develop with librarians. Three suggested writing assignments introduce students to special collections,…

This collection of essays discusses writing program administrators' (WPAs') research. The essays pose several questions to characterize WPAs' research practices: "What is WPA research? What characterizes WPA research and the sites of WPA inquiry?"; and "What values guide WPA research?" The 14 chapters are divided into 2 parts, "Writing Program…

Describes writing assignments based on several readings on the ethical quagmire of pornography. Suggests that exploratory writing grounded in the texture of students' lives is an antidote to abstract, theoretical pronouncements. Urges returning to an ethics developed in a community of writers who begin with values already given but who form an…

Wrestles with the question of what kind of assignment to give to composition students at the University of Pittsburgh. Tries to strike a balance between critical reading and creativity, between work and play. Finds that "experimental writing" helps resolve the conflicts. Works to bring such writing into the classroom. (PA)

A model based on Vroom's expectancy theory of employee motivation posits that instructors can prevent plagiarism by ensuring that students understand the rules of ethical writing, expect assignments to be manageable and have personal benefits, and expect plagiarism to be difficult and have important personal costs. (SK)