The dialogic method of teaching, which is based on Paulo Freire's notion of dialogue as the "sealing power" in the writing classroom, encourages critical thinking and interaction, and should take a more prominent place in composition classrooms. According to Lev Vygotsky, knowledge, thought, and learning are social and collaborative…

In carrying out a successful writing workshop, careful attention must be given to the proper role and function of the teacher. Research indicates the power of extended peer response to writing and the benefits of writers talking with their peers about their writing. To construct more specific guidelines for the function of teachers in writing…

Discusses ways in which the atmosphere in an English classroom sometimes changes when a teacher-writer is in charge. (FL)

The reading and writing abilities of children work together from the inception of thought to produce literacy. Children can read and write for learning and enjoyment. Each activity enhances the other's development at all levels, thus, writing should not be held back until reading is accomplished at a set level. Children come to school rich in…

Traditionally, it has been off-limits to talk about failures attributable to the ideology of democratic, student-centered classrooms. However, these classrooms fail for a particular kind of student--the male student who defines himself with a quasi-religious, extremely religious or political stance and who demonstrates strident rejection of…

One college writing teacher's approach to teaching, characterized by reflection on the relationship between what she knows and what she does, is described. Techniques include structured assignments and specific suggestions for revision, cooperative learning, interest in individual students, and use of a personal journal for exploring problems and…

Discusses the use of holistic evaluation, the use of rubrics and checklists, peer evaluation, and small group peer evaluation as means of making writing evaluation effective while keeping the paper load manageable. (FL)

A question which is essential to writing is--"What am I doing?" The writer and the writing continually adjust to maintain a balance with the exigencies of the task. The question launches the writer into text by forcing a definition of the subject, situation, audience, and other such practical matters. The question, however, also pulls…

In this article, Boldt considers decisions teachers must make about the value of children's writing as a form of play in primary classrooms. She offers a brief history of the framing of this question at 1966 Dartmouth Conference on English, focusing particularly on the perspective of Jimmy Britton. She highlights the relationship between Britton's…

Teaching always occurs in a rhetorical context. It involves discovering and maintaining a proper balance among three elements at work in any communicative effort: the available arguments about the subject itself, the interests and peculiarities of the audience, and the voice of the speaker. Teacher management of the classroom, writing assignments,…

Discusses the difficulties teachers have in allowing natural literacy learning to take place in their classrooms and makes suggestions for dealing with the problems. Elaborates on two sets of conflicting ideologies: a fragmented view of literacy versus the holistic view and a natural approach to learning versus contrived/engineered learning. (EL)

Discusses how the whole-language process provides an authentic approach to lifelong learning. Includes discussions of Cambourne's conditions for learning; Holdaway's natural learning model; Goodman's miscue analysis research; whole-language theory; the role of teachers, students, and the community in language arts; and the role of the classroom…

Proposes abandoning the traditional auto mechanic metaphor for teaching news writing (which establishes the teacher's expertise at the expense of the student's learning) in favor of a dialogic method. Argues that dialogic learning that is double looped creates learning advantages for students, and models the social inquiry process of journalism.…

Intended for use by both elementary and secondary school teachers, this booklet is designed to answer questions instructors might have as they consider integrating microcomputers into their writing programs. Following a brief introductory section, the second section of the booklet reviews the advantages and disadvantages of using computers in the…

English teachers together with multilingual and multidialect students can create new standards for language use and learning in the classroom. A teacher of writing and ethnic studies finds herself telling her students "I still have time to learn Spanish." Many to whom she speaks these words are native speakers of Spanish, struggling in classroom…