Describes a six-week summer remedial writing program at the State University of New York at Buffalo, which utilized instructional approaches designed to accommodate students' learning styles. Results on pre- and posttests of essay-writing ability, sentence fluency, and attitudes toward writing revealed improvements in all areas following the…

Compares the quality and syntactic complexity of 2 types of essays written by 44 college freshmen in a basic writing course. Essays dealing with group-phenomenon events (intensification) had more words per clause, but received lower quality scores than essays dealing with individually experienced events (initiation). (PAA)

Reviews research demonstrating a relationship between the use of comprehension monitoring strategies and improved reader proficiency; investigating the characteristics of unskilled college students; and supporting direct, explicit instruction in reading strategies and comprehension monitoring. Summarizes studies of the most effective methods of…

Argues that a special approach is needed to teach Standard American English to West Indians and that they not be placed in classes with native or limited-English speakers. Identifies the linguistic features of West Indian Creole. Reviews research conducted in Great Britain on West Indian immigrants' special problems and needs. (PAA)

Offers a brief introduction on the theory of schemata (dynamic, constructive processes by which people perceive and remember information) and its relation to reading instruction. Reviews three instructional techniques that seek to develop students' schemata, including PReP (Pre Reading Plan), ConStruct (Concept Structuring), and double-entry…

Describes various types of writing across the curriculum (WAC) programs and issues in program implementation, examines the implications of WAC programs for teaching basic writers, and outlines some instructional strategies that can be used by teachers to prepare basic writing students for participation in WAC programs. (PAA)

Discusses issues related to the subject/topic content of developmental mathematics programs. Argues that such programs should teach as much preprobability and statistics as they do precalculus, and that less time be spent by students simplifying and operating with rational algebraic expressions and other process-oriented mathematical equations.…

Describes the design, implementation, evaluation and outcomes of using writing across the curriculum in a package of composition, history, and environmental science courses offered to 50 developmental writers attending the University of Minnesota's General College. Writing was taught as a learning strategy related to critical thinking and content…

Discusses the importance of world knowledge in the comprehension of metaphor. Examines difficulties encountered by students when their cultural schemata are insufficient or inappropriate to ensure comprehension. Offers pedagogical solutions to these problems. (DMM)

Describes the "Two-Eight" instructional model for students who have arithmetic computational skills but lack the ability to select appropriate strategies to solve problems. Offers examples showing the replacement of the actual values used in a word problem with the simple numeric values of 2 and 8 to create a parallel, solvable problem. (DMM)

Uses Clark and Trow's schema for differentiating collegiate, vocational, academic, and nonconformist peer cultures to classify basic writers' areas of commitment and attachment. Suggests ways that students can be grouped to work at translating non-Standard English so that it can be better understood by other cultures. (DMM)

Reviews the literature on the benefits of mentor relationships for both the protege and the mentor. Suggests that experienced developmental educators mentor colleagues new to the field and that developmental students be encouraged to find and cultivate mentoring relationships. (DMM)

Offers a theoretical framework for understanding the academic and career goals, lifestyle, and educational attitudes of college athletes and areas of dissonance between student-athletes and their instructors. Outlines strategies for improving student-athletes' motivation and performance in college courses, focusing on improving their experiences…

Describes the use of student-generated questions to enhance learning in a freshman-level communication skills course. As class exercises, students were asked to develop questions about an assigned reading, to analyze the questions, and to map the questions to identify important textual elements and various levels of thinking about the text. (DMM)

Describes several models for the design, evaluation, and delivery of developmental programs, including the Expanded Individualized Prescriptive Instruction system (which includes placement, counseling, and intervention phases), and the Developmental Pyramid Model (which includes diagnosis, prescription, evaluation, and advising/tutoring). (DMM)