A full-scale case study of a college freshman writing course was conducted that made inferences about the course, its direction, and design and described its apparent influence on the students. The study, which is described in this report, addressed: (1) instructional influences, (2) student performances, (3) instructors' and students' perceptions of the course, and (4) a synthesis of students' course expectations and final written products. Because no comprehensive case studies of writing courses existed from which to pattern the study, the models developed to guide both the selection and the analysis of materials are described in some length in the first portion of the document. The second part summarizes the purpose of the study, the kinds of data collected, and the procedures for analyzing the material. The third part is a synopsis of the case study of one of the eight students whose complete portfolios of course writings were analyzed. The fourth part presents a condensed version of the observations from the portfolio analysis, while the fifth part discusses the implications of these observations for the teaching of writing and for further research. (HTH)