The teaching of writing as a process can be accomplished through an eight-step "prewriting process" approach. The eight steps include planning, organizing, establishing assumptions and premises, obtaining data, evaluating data, electing a course of action, control, and implementation. In the planning stage, students are asked to complete an experience portfolio survey. This sets the tone of the class and also begins to move the class away from the unknown to the known and to encourage them to believe that they have something to say. In the next step, organizing, students are asked to narrow their topics to three possible areas. After this has been completed, students must make a decision and write questions related to their selected topic. The third state, establishing assumptions, asks students to write at least two or three statements about one of their questions. Students are to assume that an answer or answers to their questions can be attained. During the fourth stage, obtaining data, students are ready to obtain a bibliographic listing of magazine and newspaper articles and other reference resources that may help them to answer their questions. A decision as to what information may be used to answer their questions is made in the fifth step, evaluating data. Once the students have the materials read and selected, they are ready to answer their questions--electing a course of action or the sixth stage. In the seventh stage, control, teachers instruct students on the method of approach by discussing such words as fact-gathering, opinions, quotes, statistics, examples, and the like. In the final or eighth phase, students formulate their first copy--implementation. (HOD)