Sample records for early writing abilities

  1. Writing Abilities of American Young Adults.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    DeCrow, Roger, Ed.

    This brief digest of the results of the National Assessment of Writing compares the writing abilities of a sample of 17 year olds, in school and out, with an adult sample aged 26 to 35. In writing for social communication, 57% of the adults and 75% of the 17 year olds wrote descriptions that were judged acceptable. When asked to describe an auto…

  2. Using Hypnoteaching Strategy to Improve Students' Writing Ability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dj, Muhammad Zuhri; Sukarnianti

    2015-01-01

    This research discusses about using hypnoteaching strategy to improve students' writing ability. The objective of this research is to find out hypnoteaching strategy in improving students' writing ability. The method used in this research was pre-experimental method by using one groups' pretest-posttest design. The group was given pretest and…

  3. Writer's Workshop vs. Writing Prompts: The Effect on First Graders' Writing Ability and Attitude towards Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carroll, Stacy; Feng, Jay

    2010-01-01

    In the county schools, students are assessed every nine weeks based on a writing prompt using a rubric supplied by the county, but the students are often taught using Writer's Workshop. This action research attempted to determine if Writer's Workshop and the use of writing prompts have different effects on first graders' writing ability and…

  4. The Effects of Collaborative Writing Activity Using Google Docs on Students' Writing Abilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Suwantarathip, Ornprapat; Wichadee, Saovapa

    2014-01-01

    Google Docs, a free web-based version of Microsoft Word, offers collaborative features which can be used to facilitate collaborative writing in a foreign language classroom. The current study compared writing abilities of students who collaborated on writing assignments using Google Docs with those working in groups in a face-to-face classroom.…

  5. Emergent Name-Writing Abilities of Preschool-Age Children with Language Impairment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cabell, Sonia Q.; Justice, Laura M.; Zucker, Tricia A.; McGinty, Anita S.

    2009-01-01

    Purpose: The 2 studies reported in this manuscript collectively address 3 aims: (a) to characterize the name-writing abilities of preschool-age children with language impairment (LI), (b) to identify those emergent literacy skills that are concurrently associated with name-writing abilities, and (c) to compare the name-writing abilities of…

  6. The Relationship between L2 Students' Writing Experiences and Their Perceived Poetry Writing Ability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Liao, Fang-Yu

    2017-01-01

    This paper looks at how L2 students' writing experiences relate to the way they think they can write poems and to further investigate if any types of writing experiences contribute to their perceived poetry writing ability. The paper starts by bringing up the value of introducing poetry writing to L2 students. Then, the literature review section…

  7. The role of research-article writing motivation and self-regulatory strategies in explaining research-article abstract writing ability.

    PubMed

    Lin, Ming-Chia; Cheng, Yuh-Show; Lin, Sieh-Hwa; Hsieh, Pei-Jung

    2015-04-01

    The purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of research-article writing motivation and use of self-regulatory writing strategies in explaining second language (L2) research-article abstract writing ability, alongside the L2 literacy effect. Four measures were administered: a L2 literacy test, a research abstract performance assessment, and inventories of writing motivation and strategy. Participants were L2 graduate students in Taiwan (N=185; M age=25.8 yr., SD=4.5, range=22-53). Results of structural equation modeling showed a direct effect of motivation on research-article writing ability, but no direct effect of strategy or indirect effect of motivation via strategy on research-article writing ability, with L2 literacy controlled. The findings suggest research-article writing instruction should address writing motivation, besides L2 literacy.

  8. Early Writing Development: Kindergarten Teachers' Beliefs about Emergent Writing in Qatari Preschool Settings

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Al-Maadadi, Fatima; Ihmeideh, Fathi

    2016-01-01

    Writing often begins during the very early years of childhood; however, some children first learn writing when they begin attending school. Teachers' beliefs about early writing development can influence when and how children learn to write. The purpose of this study was to determine kindergarten teachers' beliefs about the development of…

  9. How Do I Write…? Scaffolding Preschoolers' Early Writing Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cabell, Sonia Q.; Tortorelli, Laura S.; Gerde, Hope K.

    2013-01-01

    Providing preschoolers with rich writing experiences can help to lay a foundation for their later reading and writing success. Early writing experiences can be greatly enhanced by how preschool teachers answer young children's questions about writing and engage them in productive writing instruction. With appropriate scaffolding, early writing…

  10. Early writing deficits in preschoolers with oral language difficulties.

    PubMed

    Puranik, Cynthia S; Lonigan, Christopher J

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate whether preschool children with language impairments (LI), a group with documented reading difficulties, also experience writing difficulties. In addition, a purpose was to examine if the writing outcomes differed when children had concomitant cognitive deficits in addition to oral language problems. A group of 293 preschool children were administered an assessment battery that included measures to examine oral language, nonverbal cognition, emergent reading, and writing. Children were divided into four groups based on their language and cognitive performance. The findings from this study show that as early as preschool, children with weaker oral language skills lag behind their peers with stronger oral language skills in terms of their writing-related skills. Children with oral language and cognitive deficits performed more poorly than children whose deficits were confined to oral language. A child's cognitive ability also has an impact on emergent writing skills, but it appears to be moderated by oral language skills. These results are consistent with research documenting links between preschool language and emergent reading in children with a history of LI. © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2012.

  11. Early Writing Deficits in Preschoolers with Oral Language Difficulties

    PubMed Central

    Puranik, Cynthia S.; Lonigan, Christopher J.

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate whether preschool children with language impairments (LI), a group with documented reading difficulties, also experience writing difficulties. In addition, a purpose was to examine if the writing outcomes differed when children had concomitant cognitive deficits in addition to oral language problems. A group of 293 preschool children were administered an assessment battery that included measures to examine oral language, nonverbal cognition, emergent reading, and writing. Children were divided into four groups based on their language and cognitive performance. The findings from this study show that as early as preschool, children with weaker oral language skills lag behind their peers with stronger oral language skills in terms of their writing-related skills. Children with oral language and cognitive deficits performed more poorly than children whose deficits were confined to oral language. A child’s cognitive ability also has an impact on emergent writing skills, but it appears to be moderated by oral language skills. These results are consistent with research documenting links between preschool language and emergent reading in children with a history of LI. PMID:22043027

  12. Anxiety as It Pertains to EFL Writing Ability and Performance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nodoushan, Mohammad Ali Salmani

    2015-01-01

    This paper reports the results of a study conducted to find (a) the impact of anxiety on EFL learners' writing performance, and (b) the relationship between anxiety and foreign language writing ability. 137 (N = 137) EFL learners took the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS), the Oxford Placement Test (OPT), and a writing task on a…

  13. Measures of Writing Ability of Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Grade Children.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Simpson, George Franklin

    The purpose of this canonical and multiple correlation study of measures of writing ability was to develop a valid weighted index of writing ability to replace the single measures now being used to evaluate elementary English programs. The subjects, 134 pupils from each fourth, fifth, and sixth grade level of Broadway and Dunham schools in Maple…

  14. Early Grade Writing Assessment: An Instrument Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jiménez, Juan E.

    2017-01-01

    The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization promoted the creation of a model instrument for individual assessment of students' foundational writing skills in the Spanish language that was based on a literature review and existing writing tools and assessments. The purpose of the "Early Grade Writing Assessment"…

  15. The Genetic and Environmental Origins of Learning Abilities and Disabilities in the Early School Years

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kovas, Yulia; Haworth, Claire M. A.; Dale, Philip S.; Plomin, Robert

    2007-01-01

    Despite the importance of learning abilities and disabilities in education and child development, little is known about their genetic and environmental origins in the early school years. We report results for English (which includes reading, writing, and speaking), mathematics, and science as well as general cognitive ability in a large and…

  16. Implicit Theory of Writing Ability: Relationship to Metacognitive Strategy Knowledge and Strategy Use in Academic Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Karlen, Yves; Compagnoni, Miriam

    2017-01-01

    Implicit theories about the nature of human attributes as either malleable or fixed influence how people perceive knowledge and approach different tasks. Two studies explored the relationship between implicit theory of writing ability, metacognitive strategy knowledge (MSK), and strategy use in the context of academic writing. The pre-study with N…

  17. Reciprocal Teaching of Comprehension Strategies Improves EFL Learners' Writing Ability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ghorbani, Mohammad Reza; Gangeraj, Atefeh Ardeshir; Alavi, Sahar Zahed

    2013-01-01

    Although the importance of reading in developing writing ability is undeniable, few competent readers in EFL contexts develop into competent writers. Since students are not aware that reading can assist them in writing, this study examined the effect of reciprocal teaching--which focuses on four reading comprehension strategies, namely…

  18. Integrating Early Writing into Science Instruction in Preschool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wheatley, Barbara C.; Gerde, Hope K.; Cabell, Sonia Q.

    2016-01-01

    Providing children with early writing opportunities in preschool is a meaningful way to facilitate their language and literacy learning. Young children have an innate curiosity of the natural world around them that motivates their learning; therefore science experiences are logical areas in which to incorporate early writing opportunities.…

  19. Writing abilities in intellectual disabilities: a comparison between Down and Williams syndrome.

    PubMed

    Varuzza, Cristiana; De Rose, Paola; Vicari, Stefano; Menghini, Deny

    2015-02-01

    Writing is a complex task that requires the integration of multiple cognitive, linguistic, and motor abilities. Until now, only a few studies investigated writing abilities in individuals with Intellectual Disability (ID). The aim of the present exploratory study was to provide knowledge on the organization of writing in two populations with ID, Down syndrome (DS) and Williams syndrome (WS), trying to disentangle different components of the process. A battery tapping diverse writing demands as low-level transcription skills as well as high-level writing skills was proposed to 13 individuals with WS, 12 individuals with DS and 11 mental-age-matched typically developing (TD) children. Results showed that the two groups with genetic syndromes did not differ from TD in writing a list of objects placed in bedroom, in the number of errors in the text composition, in a text copying task and in kind of errors made. However, in a word dictation task, individuals with DS made more errors than individuals with WS and TD children. In a pseudoword dictation task, both individuals with DS and WS showed more errors than TD children. Our results showed good abilities in individuals with ID in different aspects of writing, involving not only low-level transcription skills but also high-level composition skills. Contrary to the pessimistic view, considering individuals with ID vulnerable for failure, our results indicate that the presence of ID does not prevent the achievement of writing skills. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. An Application of Brief Experimental Analysis with Early Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Parker, David C.; Dickey, Bradley N.; Burns, Matthew K.; McMaster, Kristen L.

    2012-01-01

    Students' poor performance on national assessments of writing suggests that educators need effective approaches to assess and intervene with writing problems. Brief experimental analysis (BEA) has supporting evidence for identifying interventions in reading, but little research has investigated BEA with writing. Early writing is an especially…

  1. What Do Education Students Think about Their Ability to Write Essays?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Quintero, Gisela Consolación

    2018-01-01

    The present study reflects the results obtained from a diagnosis carried out with Education students concerning the writing of academic essays. The objective was to identify the perceptions that Comprehensive Education students have about their ability to write academic essays. A descriptive cross-sectional research study was conducted at a single…

  2. Expressive writing in early breast cancer survivors.

    PubMed

    Craft, Melissa A; Davis, Gail C; Paulson, René M

    2013-02-01

    This article is the report of a study aimed at determining whether or not expressive writing improves the quality-of-life of early breast cancer survivors. An additional aim is the investigation of whether or not the type of writing prompt makes a difference in results. The risk of distress can extend well beyond the time of a breast cancer diagnosis. Emotional expression may assist in dealing with this. Randomized controlled study. Participants (n = 120) were randomized into one of four groups: a control group (no writing) or one of three expressive writing groups: breast cancer trauma, any self-selected trauma and facts related to breast cancer. Participants wrote 20 minutes a day for 4 consecutive days. Their quality-of-life was measured, using the 'Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast Cancer Version', at baseline and at 1 month and 6 months after writing. Paired t-tests, multivariate analysis of variance and multiple regression were used to analyse the data of the 97 participants who completed the journaling assignment and at least the first assessment, collected in 2006. Intention-to-treat analysis was used. Expressive writing about one's breast cancer, breast cancer trauma and facts related to breast cancer, significantly improved the quality-of-life outcome. Expressive writing, focusing the instructions on writing about one's living and dealing with a diagnosis of breast cancer, is recommended for early breast cancer survivors as a feasible and easily implemented treatment approach to improve quality-of-life. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  3. Do writing and storytelling skill influence assessment of reflective ability in medical students' written reflections?

    PubMed

    Aronson, Louise; Niehaus, Brian; DeVries, Charlie D; Siegel, Jennifer R; O'Sullivan, Patricia S

    2010-10-01

    Increasingly, students are asked to write reflections as part of their medical education, but some question the influence of other factors on the evaluation of these reflections. In this pilot study, the investigators determined whether scores from a validated rubric to measure reflective ability were affected by irrelevant variance resulting from writing or storytelling ability. Students in clerkships wrote reflections on professionalism. All were given identical prompts, with half receiving additional structured guidelines on reflection. Sixty reflections, 30 from each group, were randomly chosen and scored for reflection, writing, and storytelling by trained raters using validated rubrics. There was no correlation between reflection and either writing (r = 0.049, P = .35) or storytelling (r = 0.14, P = .13). The guidelines increased reflection, but not writing or storytelling scores. Reflection is a distinct construct unaffected by learners' writing or storytelling skills. These findings support reflective ability as a distinct skill.

  4. Using Blogs to Improve Students' Summary Writing Abilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kitchakarn, Orachorn

    2012-01-01

    The research compared students' summary writing ability before and after they were taught through blog, a new medium or tool for written communication and interaction in many different languages around the world. The research design is a kind of one group pretest posttest. Participants were 33 first-year students who studied EN 011 course (English…

  5. Measuring Students' Writing Ability on a Computer-Analytic Developmental Scale: An Exploratory Validity Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Burdick, Hal; Swartz, Carl W.; Stenner, A. Jackson; Fitzgerald, Jill; Burdick, Don; Hanlon, Sean T.

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of the study was to explore the validity of a novel computer-analytic developmental scale, the Writing Ability Developmental Scale. On the whole, collective results supported the validity of the scale. It was sensitive to writing ability differences across grades and sensitive to within-grade variability as compared to human-rated…

  6. Developing Writing Abilities of EFL Students through Blogging

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kitchakarn, Orachorn

    2014-01-01

    Due to a rapid development and expansion of technology and, as a result, Web 2.0 technologies are providing both teachers and learners with new solutions to the limitations of traditional method in the field of language teaching and learning. The research compared students' writing ability before and after they were taught through blog, a new…

  7. Nursing students' reading and English aptitudes and their relationship to discipline-specific formal writing ability: a descriptive correlational study.

    PubMed

    Newton, Sarah; Moore, Gary

    2010-01-01

    Formal writing assignments are commonly used in nursing education to develop students' critical thinking skills, as well as to enhance their communication abilities. However, writing apprehension is a common phenomenon among nursing students. It has been suggested that reading and English aptitudes are related to formal writing ability, yet neither the reading nor the English aptitudes of undergraduate nursing students have been described in the literature, and the relationships that reading and English aptitude have with formal writing ability have not been explored. The purpose of this descriptive correlational study was to describe writing apprehension and to assess the relationships among reading and English aptitude and discipline-specific formal writing ability among undergraduate nursing students. The study sample consisted of 146 sophomores from one baccalaureate nursing program. The results indicated that both reading and English aptitude were related to students' formal writing ability.

  8. The Influence of Spelling Ability on Vocabulary Choices When Writing for Children With Dyslexia.

    PubMed

    Sumner, Emma; Connelly, Vincent; Barnett, Anna L

    2016-01-01

    Spelling is a prerequisite to expressing vocabulary in writing. Research has shown that children with dyslexia are hesitant spellers when composing. This study aimed to determine whether the hesitant spelling of children with dyslexia, evidenced by frequent pausing, affects vocabulary choices when writing. A total of 31 children with dyslexia, mean age 9 years, were compared to typically developing groups of children: the first matched by age, the second by spelling ability. Oral vocabulary was measured and children completed a written and verbal compositional task. Lexical diversity comparisons were made across written and verbal compositions to highlight the constraint of having to select and spell words. A digital writing tablet recorded the writing. Children with dyslexia and the spelling-ability group made a high proportion of spelling errors and within-word pauses, and had a lower lexical diversity within their written compositions compared to their verbal compositions. The age-matched peers demonstrated the opposite pattern. Spelling ability and pausing predicted 53% of the variance in written lexical diversity of children with dyslexia, demonstrating the link between spelling and vocabulary when writing. Oral language skills had no effect. Lexical diversity correlated with written and verbal text quality for all groups. Practical implications are discussed and related to writing models. © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2014.

  9. Reconsidering English Grammar Teaching for Improving Non-English Majors' English Writing Ability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shen, Yuru

    2012-01-01

    With the globalization of world economy, English learners' writing ability has been attached less and less importance. As a result, many college students in China, especially the non-English majors, cannot express themselves effectively in written English. They make various kinds of mistakes, mostly grammar mistakes, such as writing sentence…

  10. Early motor development and cognitive abilities among Mexican preschoolers.

    PubMed

    Osorio-Valencia, Erika; Torres-Sánchez, Luisa; López-Carrillo, Lizbeth; Rothenberg, Stephen J; Schnaas, Lourdes

    2017-07-18

    Psychomotricity plays a very important role in children's development, especially for learning involving reading-writing and mathematical calculations. Evaluate motor development in children 3 years old and its relationship with their cognitive abilities at the age of 5 years. Based on a cohort study, we analyzed the information about motor performance evaluated at 3 years old by Peabody Motor Scale and cognitive abilities at 5 years old. The association was estimated using linear regression models adjusted by mother's intelligence quotient, sex, Bayley mental development index at 18 months, and quality of the environment at home (HOME scale). 148 children whose motor performance was determined at age 3 and was evaluated later at age 5 to determine their cognitive abilities. Cognitive abilities (verbal, quantitative, and memory) measured by McCarthy Scales. Significant positive associations were observed between stationary balance at age 3 with verbal abilities (β = 0.67, p = .04) and memory (β = 0.81, p = .02) at 5 years. Grasping and visual-motor integration were significant and positively associated with quantitative abilities (β = 0.74, p = .005; β = 0.61, p = .01) and memory (β = 2.11, p = .001; β = 1.74, p = .004). The results suggest that early motor performance contributes to the establishment of cognitive abilities at 5 years. Evaluation and early motor stimulation before the child is faced with formal learning likely helps to create neuronal networks that facilitate the acquisition of academic knowledge.

  11. The Effect of Journal Writing on Mathematics Achievement among High-Ability Students in Singapore

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tan, Tracy; Garces-Bacsal, Rhoda Myra

    2013-01-01

    This study examined the effect of journal writing on mathematics achievement in high-ability students in Singapore. It assessed both the cognitive benefits of journal writing (as evidenced through gains in math test scores) and the socio-affective benefits of journal writing (as demonstrated in their personal reflections) as the students learned…

  12. Medical Writing Competency Model - Section 2: Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, and Behaviors.

    PubMed

    Clemow, David B; Wagner, Bertil; Marshallsay, Christopher; Benau, Dan; L'Heureux, Darryl; Brown, David H; Dasgupta, Devjani Ghosh; Girten, Eileen; Hubbard, Frank; Gawrylewski, Helle-Mai; Ebina, Hiroko; Stoltenborg, Janet; York, J P; Green, Kim; Wood, Linda Fossati; Toth, Lisa; Mihm, Michael; Katz, Nancy R; Vasconcelos, Nina-Maria; Sakiyama, Norihisa; Whitsell, Robin; Gopalakrishnan, Shobha; Bairnsfather, Susan; Wanderer, Tatyana; Schindler, Thomas M; Mikyas, Yeshi; Aoyama, Yumiko

    2018-01-01

    This article provides Section 2 of the 2017 Edition 2 Medical Writing Competency Model that describes the knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors that professional medical writers need in order to perform effectively within the life sciences industry. What a medical writer should know, what they should be able to do, and how they should use this knowledge and these skills to facilitate their primary work function is a focus. Regulatory, publication, and other scientific writing as well as management of writing activities are covered. The full Model also includes Section 1, which covers the core work functions and associated tasks and activities related to professional medical writing within the life sciences industry; Section 1 is included in a companion article. The Model was developed to aid medical writers and managers within the life sciences industry regarding medical writing hiring, training, expectation and goal setting, performance evaluation, career development, retention, and role value sharing to cross-functional partners.

  13. Investigating Prospective Teachers' Ability to Write Context-Based Problems

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ültay, Neslihan; Donmez Usta, Necla

    2016-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the prospective teachers' ability to write context-based problems about the concepts in radioactivity unit. Methodology: The study is carried out in a university in Turkey with 21 prospective teachers in physics, chemistry and biology in 2014-2015 fall terms. In the study, data are collected…

  14. Influence of Writing Ability and Computation Skill on Mathematics Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Powell, Sarah R.; Hebert, Michael A.

    2016-01-01

    Mathematics standards expect students to communicate about mathematics using oral and written methods, and some high-stakes assessments ask students to answer mathematics questions by writing. Assumptions about mathematics communication via writing include (a) students possess writing skill, (b) students can transfer this writing skill to…

  15. The application of interactive worksheet to improve vocational students' ability to write financial statements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Larasati, Aisyah; Hajji, Apif Miftahul

    2017-09-01

    Vocational students in Culinary Department is required to mastering the ability on managing restaurant. One of the responsibility of the students while operating a training restaurant is writing financial statements. Most of the time, writing financial statements is the hardest part for students to be conducted in a training restaurant since the students have studied limited theory/courses on that topic. This research aims to explore the improvement of students' ability to write financial statements after the application of interactive worksheet by asking them to solve financial statements case study. This research is an experimental research. Three groups of samples are used in this research, in which each of the group consists of 74 students. The first group consists of the students who solve the case study without using any software/application, the second group solve the case study by using Microsoft excel, and the third group solve the case study by using the interactive worksheet application. The results show that the use of interactive worksheet significantly improve the students ability to solve the financial statement case study either in term of accuracy or time needed to write the financial statement.

  16. Effect of Assessment Task and Letter Writing Ability on Preschool Children's Spelling Performance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Puranik, Cynthia; Apel, Kenn

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine whether spelling performance in preschool children varied as a function of the method of assessment and letter writing ability. The authors manipulated the motoric element and memory demands of the task by having children spell single words using letter tiles, orally, and by writing. The authors also…

  17. The effects of an early intervention music curriculum on prereading/writing.

    PubMed

    Register, D

    2001-01-01

    This study evaluated the effects of music sessions using a curriculum designed to enhance the prereading and writing skills of 25 children aged 4 to 5 years who were enrolled in Early Intervention and Exceptional Student Education programs. This study was a replication of the work of Standley and Hughes (1997) and utilized a larger sample size (n = 50) in order to evaluate the efficacy of a music curriculum designed specifically to teach prereading and writing skills versus one that focuses on all developmental areas. Both the experimental (n = 25) and control (n = 25) groups received two 30-minute sessions each week for an entire school year for a minimum of 60 sessions per group. The differentiating factors between the two groups were the structure and components of the musical activities. The fall sessions for the experimental group were focused primarily on writing skills while the spring sessions taught reading/book concepts. Music sessions for the control group were based purely on the thematic material, as determined by the classroom teacher with purposeful exclusion of all preliteracy concepts. All participants were pretested at the beginning of the school year and posttested before the school year ended. Overall, results demonstrated that music sessions significantly enhanced both groups' abilities to learn prewriting and print concepts. However, the experimental group showed significantly higher results on the logo identification posttest and the word recognition test. Implications for curriculum design and academic and social applications of music in Early Intervention programs are discussed.

  18. Medial-Vowel Writing Difficulty in Korean Syllabic Writing: A Characteristic Sign of Alzheimer's Disease

    PubMed Central

    Yoon, Ji Hye; Jeong, Yong

    2018-01-01

    Background and Purpose Korean-speaking patients with a brain injury may show agraphia that differs from that of English-speaking patients due to the unique features of Hangul syllabic writing. Each grapheme in Hangul must be arranged from left to right and/or top to bottom within a square space to form a syllable, which requires greater visuospatial abilities than when writing the letters constituting an alphabetic writing system. Among the Hangul grapheme positions within a syllable, the position of a vowel is important because it determines the writing direction and the whole configuration in Korean syllabic writing. Due to the visuospatial characteristics of the Hangul vowel, individuals with early-onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD) may experiences differences between the difficulties of writing Hangul vowels and consonants due to prominent visuospatial dysfunctions caused by parietal lesions. Methods Eighteen patients with EOAD and 18 age-and-education-matched healthy adults participated in this study. The participants were requested to listen to and write 30 monosyllabic characters that consisted of an initial consonant, medial vowel, and final consonant with a one-to-one phoneme-to-grapheme correspondence. We measured the writing time for each grapheme, the pause time between writing the initial consonant and the medial vowel (P1), and the pause time between writing the medial vowel and the final consonant (P2). Results All grapheme writing and pause times were significantly longer in the EOAD group than in the controls. P1 was also significantly longer than P2 in the EOAD group. Conclusions Patients with EOAD might require a higher judgment ability and longer processing time for determining the visuospatial grapheme position before writing medial vowels. This finding suggests that a longer pause time before writing medial vowels is an early marker of visuospatial dysfunction in patients with EOAD. PMID:29504296

  19. Medial-Vowel Writing Difficulty in Korean Syllabic Writing: A Characteristic Sign of Alzheimer's Disease.

    PubMed

    Yoon, Ji Hye; Jeong, Yong; Na, Duk L

    2018-04-01

    Korean-speaking patients with a brain injury may show agraphia that differs from that of English-speaking patients due to the unique features of Hangul syllabic writing. Each grapheme in Hangul must be arranged from left to right and/or top to bottom within a square space to form a syllable, which requires greater visuospatial abilities than when writing the letters constituting an alphabetic writing system. Among the Hangul grapheme positions within a syllable, the position of a vowel is important because it determines the writing direction and the whole configuration in Korean syllabic writing. Due to the visuospatial characteristics of the Hangul vowel, individuals with early-onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD) may experiences differences between the difficulties of writing Hangul vowels and consonants due to prominent visuospatial dysfunctions caused by parietal lesions. Eighteen patients with EOAD and 18 age-and-education-matched healthy adults participated in this study. The participants were requested to listen to and write 30 monosyllabic characters that consisted of an initial consonant, medial vowel, and final consonant with a one-to-one phoneme-to-grapheme correspondence. We measured the writing time for each grapheme, the pause time between writing the initial consonant and the medial vowel (P1), and the pause time between writing the medial vowel and the final consonant (P2). All grapheme writing and pause times were significantly longer in the EOAD group than in the controls. P1 was also significantly longer than P2 in the EOAD group. Patients with EOAD might require a higher judgment ability and longer processing time for determining the visuospatial grapheme position before writing medial vowels. This finding suggests that a longer pause time before writing medial vowels is an early marker of visuospatial dysfunction in patients with EOAD. Copyright © 2018 Korean Neurological Association.

  20. Present and past: Can writing abilities in school children be associated with their auditory discrimination capacities in infancy?

    PubMed

    Schaadt, Gesa; Männel, Claudia; van der Meer, Elke; Pannekamp, Ann; Oberecker, Regine; Friederici, Angela D

    2015-12-01

    Literacy acquisition is highly associated with auditory processing abilities, such as auditory discrimination. The event-related potential Mismatch Response (MMR) is an indicator for cortical auditory discrimination abilities and it has been found to be reduced in individuals with reading and writing impairments and also in infants at risk for these impairments. The goal of the present study was to analyze the relationship between auditory speech discrimination in infancy and writing abilities at school age within subjects, and to determine when auditory speech discrimination differences, relevant for later writing abilities, start to develop. We analyzed the MMR registered in response to natural syllables in German children with and without writing problems at two points during development, that is, at school age and at infancy, namely at age 1 month and 5 months. We observed MMR related auditory discrimination differences between infants with and without later writing problems, starting to develop at age 5 months-an age when infants begin to establish language-specific phoneme representations. At school age, these children with and without writing problems also showed auditory discrimination differences, reflected in the MMR, confirming a relationship between writing and auditory speech processing skills. Thus, writing problems at school age are, at least, partly grounded in auditory discrimination problems developing already during the first months of life. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Early Grade Writing Assessment: An Instrument Model.

    PubMed

    Jiménez, Juan E

    The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization promoted the creation of a model instrument for individual assessment of students' foundational writing skills in the Spanish language that was based on a literature review and existing writing tools and assessments. The purpose of the Early Grade Writing Assessment (EGWA) is to document learners' basic writing skills, mapped in composing units of increasing complexity to communicate meaning. Validation and standardization of EGWA was conducted in the Canary Islands (Spain) in 12 schools using a cross-sectional design with a sample of 1,653 Spanish-speaking students in Grades 1 through 3. The author describes EGWA's internal structure, along with the prevalence of learning disabilities (LD) in transcription and developmental differences in writing between Spanish-speaking children with LD and typical peers. Findings suggest that EGWA's psychometric characteristics are satisfactory, and its internal structure can be attributed to four factors responsible for a high percentage of the variance. The odds ratio indicated that 2 Spanish-speaking children with LD in transcription are identified out of every 100. A comparison between students with and without LD in transcription revealed statistically significant differences concerning sentence and text production across grades. Results are interpreted within current theoretical accounts of writing models.

  2. Monsters under the Bed: Critically Investigating Early Years Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Melrose, Andrew

    2012-01-01

    "Monsters Under the Bed" is an essential text focussing on critical and contemporary issues surrounding writing for "early years" children. Containing a critically creative and a creatively critical investigation of the cult and culture of the child and childhood in fiction and non-fictional writing, it also contains a wealth of ideas and critical…

  3. The Power of Reflective Writing for Early Childhood Teachers in Palestine

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kahles, Buad

    2015-01-01

    This research aimed to highlight the power of reflective writing for early childhood teachers in Palestine, seven teachers in Palestine participated in this qualitative study, they were asked to write their reflections for 18 months. Data was gathered using semi-structured interviews and reflective writing journals. Data was analyzed using…

  4. Do Peer Reviews Help Improve Student Writing Abilities in an EFL High School Classroom?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kurihara, Noriko

    2017-01-01

    Several studies have reported the benefits of peer reviews in English as a second language (ESL) and English as a foreign language (EFL) writing classrooms. However, there has been little empirical research on whether such peer reviews improve students' writing abilities. The current study investigated the effects of peer review on the development…

  5. Predicting writing development in dual language instructional contexts: exploring cross-linguistic relationships.

    PubMed

    Savage, Robert; Kozakewich, Meagan; Genesee, Fred; Erdos, Caroline; Haigh, Corinne

    2017-01-01

    This study examined whether decoding and linguistic comprehension abilities, broadly defined by the Simple View of Reading, in grade 1 each uniquely predicted the grade 6 writing performance of English-speaking children (n = 76) who were educated bilingually in both English their first language and French, a second language. Prediction was made from (1) English to English; (2) French to French; and (3) English to French. Results showed that both decoding and linguistic comprehension scores predicted writing accuracy but rarely predicted persuasive writing. Within the linguistic comprehension cluster of tests, Formulating Sentences was a strong consistent within- and between-language predictor of writing accuracy. In practical terms, the present results indicate that early screening for later writing ability using measures of sentence formulation early in students' schooling, in their L1 or L2, can provide greatest predictive power and allow teachers to differentiate instruction in the primary grades. Theoretically, the present results argue that there are correlations between reading-related abilities and writing abilities not only within the same language but also across languages, adding to the growing body of evidence for facilitative cross-linguistic relationships between bilinguals' developing languages. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  6. Narrative and orthographic writing abilities in Elementary School students: characteristics and correlations.

    PubMed

    Bigarelli, Juliana Faleiros Paolucci; Ávila, Clara Regina Brandão de

    2011-09-01

    To characterize, according to the school grade and the type of school (private or public), the performance on orthographic and narrative text production in the writing of Elementary School students with good academic performance, and to investigate the relationships between these variables. Participants were 160 children with ages between 8 and 12 years, enrolled in 4th to 7th grades Elementary School. Their written production was assessed using words and pseudowords dictation, and autonomous writing of a narrative text. Public school students had a higher number of errors in the words and pseudowords dictation, improving with education level. The occurrence of complete and incomplete utterances was similar in both public and private schools. However, 4th graders presented more incomplete statements than the other students. A higher number of overall microstructure and macrostructure productions occurred among private school students. The essential macrostructures were most frequently found in the later school grades. The higher the total number of words in the autonomous written production, the higher the occurrence of linguistic variables and the better the narrative competence. There was a weak negative correlation between the number of wrong words and the total of events in text production. Positive and negative correlations (from weak to good) were observed between different orthographic, linguistic and narrative production variables in both private and public schools. Private school students present better orthographic and narrative performance than public school students. Schooling progression influences the performance in tasks of words' writing and text production, and the orthographic abilities influence the quality of textual production. Different writing abilities, such as orthographic performance and use of linguistic elements and narrative structures, are mutually influenced in writing production.

  7. Writing Research Articles for Publication in Early Childhood Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Saracho, Olivia N.

    2013-01-01

    Published research results in early childhood education contribute to the field's knowledge, theory, and practice. They also guide future early childhood education research studies. The publication of research articles is an essential requirement for academics. For some researchers, however, writing may be a difficult activity, particularly the…

  8. The dynamics of narrative writing in primary grade children: writing process factors predict story quality.

    PubMed

    von Koss Torkildsen, Janne; Morken, Frøydis; Helland, Wenche A; Helland, Turid

    In this study of third grade school children, we investigated the association between writing process measures recorded with key stroke logging and the final written product. Moreover, we examined the cognitive predictors of writing process and product measures. Analyses of key strokes showed that while most children spontaneously made local online revisions while writing, few revised previously written text. Children with good reading and spelling abilities made more online revisions than their peers. Two process factors, transcription fluency and online revision activity, contributed to explaining variance in narrative macrostructural quality and story length. As for cognitive predictors, spelling was the only factor that gave a unique contribution to explaining variance in writing process factors. Better spelling was associated with more revisions and faster transcription. The results show that developing writers' ability to make online revisions in creative writing tasks is related to both the quality of the final written product and to individual literacy skills. More generally, the findings indicate that investigations of the dynamics of the writing process may provide insights into the factors that contribute to creative writing during early stages of literacy.

  9. Scientific writing seminar for early-stage investigators in substance abuse research.

    PubMed

    Guydish, Joseph; Masson, Carmen; Flentje, Annesa; Shopshire, Michael; Sorensen, James L

    2016-01-01

    There is little information on how to increase the scientific writing productivity of early-stage investigators in the addictions field. A scientific writing seminar is presented in this article, aiming to encourage manuscript writing and dissemination of addiction research, and outcomes are reported for 14 years of the seminar. In 14 years, there were 113 postdoctoral fellow enrollments in a 6-month writing seminar. Records of submission and publication rates of manuscripts were collected for 14 cohorts. Of the 113 participant enrollments, 97 (86%) submitted a manuscript for publication, and 87 participants (77%) published their manuscript. A scientific writing seminar may benefit writing productivity, but more research is needed to compare this training model with other existing models.

  10. Writing Abilities Longitudinally Predict Academic Outcomes of Adolescents with ADHD

    PubMed Central

    Molitor, Stephen J.; Langberg, Joshuah M.; Bourchtein, Elizaveta; Eddy, Laura D.; Dvorsky, Melissa R.; Evans, Steven W.

    2016-01-01

    Students with ADHD often experience a host of negative academic outcomes and deficits in reading and mathematics abilities contribute to these academic impairments. Students with ADHD may also have difficulties with written expression but there has been minimal research in this area and it is not clear whether written expression abilities uniquely contribute to the academic functioning of students with ADHD. The current study included a sample of 104 middle school students diagnosed with ADHD (grades 6–8). Participants were followed longitudinally to evaluate whether written expression abilities at baseline predicted student GPA and parent ratings of academic impairment 18 months later, after controlling for reading ability and additional relevant covariates. Written expression abilities longitudinally predicted both academic outcomes above and beyond ADHD and ODD symptoms, medication use, reading ability, and baseline values of GPA and parent-rated academic impairment. Follow-up analyses revealed that no single aspect of written expression was demonstrably more impactful on academic outcomes than the others, suggesting that writing as an entire process should be the focus of intervention. PMID:26783650

  11. A correlational study between signature, writing abilities and decision-making capacity among people with initial cognitive impairment.

    PubMed

    Renier, M; Gnoato, F; Tessari, A; Formilan, M; Busonera, F; Albanese, P; Sartori, G; Cester, A

    2016-06-01

    Some clinical conditions, including dementia, compromise cognitive functions involved in decision-making processes, with repercussions on the ability to subscribe a will. Because of the increasing number of aged people with cognitive impairment there is an acute and growing need for decision-making capacity evidence-based assessment. Our study investigates the relationship between writing abilities and cognitive integrity to see if it is possible to make inferences on decision-making capacity through handwriting analysis. We also investigated the relationship between signature ability and cognitive integrity. Thirty-six participants with diagnosis of MCI and 38 participants with diagnosis of initial dementia were recruited. For each subject we collected two samples of signature-an actual and a previous one-and an extract of spontaneous writing. Furthermore, we administered a neuropsychological battery to investigate cognitive functions involved in decision-making. We found significant correlations between spontaneous writing indexes and neuropsychological test results. Nonetheless, the index of signature deterioration does not correlate with the level of cognitive decline. Our results suggest that a careful analysis of spontaneous writing can be useful to make inferences on decision-making capacity, whereas great caution should be taken in attributing validity to handwritten signature of subjects with MCI or dementia. The analysis of spontaneous writing can be a reliable aid in cases of retrospective evaluation of cognitive integrity. On the other side, the ability to sign is not an index of cognitive integrity.

  12. Scientific Writing Seminar for Early-stage Investigators in Substance Abuse Research

    PubMed Central

    Guydish, Joseph; Masson, Carmen; Flentje, Annesa; Shopshire, Michael; Sorensen, James L.

    2015-01-01

    Background There is little information on how to increase the scientific writing productivity of early-stage investigators in the addictions field. A scientific writing seminar is presented in this article, aiming to encourage manuscript writing and dissemination of addiction research, and outcomes are reported for 14 years of the seminar. Methods In 14 years there were 113 postdoctoral fellow enrollments in a 6-month writing seminar. Records of submission and publication rates of manuscripts were collected for 14 cohorts. Results Of the 113 participant enrollments, 97 (86%) submitted a manuscript for publication, and 87 participants (77%) published their manuscript. Conclusions A scientific writing seminar may benefit writing productivity, but more research is needed to compare this training model to other existing models. PMID:25893689

  13. Writing Posthumanism, Qualitative Enquiry and Early Literacy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bridges-Rhoads, Sarah; Van Cleave, Jessica

    2017-01-01

    This paper was written in the midst of enquiry--provoked by the question of what happens when we write posthumanism, qualitative enquiry and early literacy together. Rather than offer a stable methodology that is the product of our experimentation, the paper functions as a map, a situated cartography that has multiple access points and is…

  14. What Happens When I Write? Pupils' Writing about Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Barbeiro, Luis Filipe

    2011-01-01

    This article presents pupils' awareness of writing as elicited through a metawriting task, in other words a task in which pupils from the third, fourth and sixth forms (grades) were required to write about writing. The analysis of the texts revealed the pupils' increasing ability to write texts focusing on writing and on the subject's relationship…

  15. Technology-Mediated Writing Instruction in the Early Literacy Program: Perils, Procedures, and Possibilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Beam, Sandra; Williams, Cheri

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine one kindergarten teacher's use of digital and multimodal technologies to mediate early writing instruction and explore the students' appropriation of that instruction to support their independent writing. Data sources included observations of writing instruction, as well as students'…

  16. Writing abilities longitudinally predict academic outcomes of adolescents with ADHD.

    PubMed

    Molitor, Stephen J; Langberg, Joshua M; Bourchtein, Elizaveta; Eddy, Laura D; Dvorsky, Melissa R; Evans, Steven W

    2016-09-01

    Students with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often experience a host of negative academic outcomes, and deficits in reading and mathematics abilities contribute to these academic impairments. Students with ADHD may also have difficulties with written expression, but there has been minimal research in this area and it is not clear whether written expression abilities uniquely contribute to the academic functioning of students with ADHD. The current study included a sample of 104 middle school students diagnosed with ADHD (Grades 6-8). Participants were followed longitudinally to evaluate whether written expression abilities at baseline predicted student grade point average (GPA) and parent ratings of academic impairment 18 months later, after controlling for reading ability and additional relevant covariates. Written expression abilities longitudinally predicted both academic outcomes above and beyond ADHD and oppositional defiant disorder symptoms, medication use, reading ability, and baseline values of GPA and parent-rated academic impairment. Follow-up analyses revealed that no single aspect of written expression was demonstrably more impactful on academic outcomes than the others, suggesting that writing as an entire process should be the focus of intervention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  17. The Modern Value of Early Writings in Medicine and Dentistry.

    PubMed

    Peck, Sheldon

    2016-01-01

    This article illustrates three examples supporting the modern value of early writings in dentistry and medicine. First, by studying cases described in works published long before the era of genetic science, we are able to develop new hypotheses about familial conditions and their genetic roots. Tooth transposition is presented as an example. Second, old writings may lead us to valuable historical insights and perspectives in medicine that can be revealed only in retrospective analysis. An example of this kind of historical analysis uncovers why dentistry became unnaturally separated from mainstream medicine in the 19th century. Third, early writings become keys to unlocking forgotten knowledge that enriches our understanding of historically significant people and events. The discovery of Norman Kingsley's long forgotten pyrographic paintings after Rembrandt portraits is used as an example. Libraries, the traditional custodians of these valued old texts, must continue to be supported, and not undermined by the paperless digital revolution. Copyright American Academy of the History of Dentistry.

  18. Examining the Technical Adequacy of Progress Monitoring Using Early Writing Curriculum-Based Measures

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hampton, David D.; Lembke, Erica S.

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine 4 early writing measures used to monitor the early writing progress of 1st-grade students. We administered the measures to 23 1st-grade students biweekly for a total of 16 weeks. We obtained 3-min samples and conducted analyses for each 1-min increment. We scored samples using 2 different methods: correct…

  19. Concentrated Language Encounter Instruction Model III in Reading and Creative Writing Abilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Promnont, Piyapong; Rattanavich, Saowalak

    2015-01-01

    The research is aimed to study the development of eleventh grade students' reading, creative writing abilities, satisfaction taught through the concentrated language encounter instruction method, CLE model III. One experimental group time series design was used, and the data was analyzed by MANOVA with repeated measures, t-test for one-group…

  20. Improving Students' Chinese Writing Abilities in Taiwan with the "Conditioned Writing System"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Liu, Yuan-Chen; Lee, Wan-Chun; Huang, Tzu-Hua; Hsieh, Hsiao-Mei

    2012-01-01

    This research investigates students' performance while writing Chinese essays using an interactive online writing system. Participants include students from two seventh-grade classes of a junior high school in Taoyuan County, Taiwan. The experimental group uses the conditioned writing interactive online system, while the control group receives…

  1. Predictors of Success with Writing in the First Year of School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mackenzie, Noella; Hemmings, Brian

    2014-01-01

    Language and literacy skills are instrumental to success at school and early success with writing is a key factor in literacy development. By eight years of age, children spend up to half of their school day engaged in writing tasks suggesting that those who find learning to write difficult may be disadvantaged. The ability to hear and record…

  2. Contributions of Emergent Literacy Skills to Name Writing, Letter Writing, and Spelling in Preschool Children

    PubMed Central

    Puranik, Cynthia S.; Lonigan, Christopher J.; Kim, Young-Suk

    2011-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine which emergent literacy skills contribute to preschool children’s emergent writing (name-writing, letter-writing, and spelling) skills. Emergent reading and writing tasks were administered to 296 preschool children aged 4–5 years. Print knowledge and letter-writing skills made positive contributions to name writing; whereas alphabet knowledge, print knowledge, and name writing made positive contributions to letter writing. Both name-writing and letter-writing skills made significant contributions to the prediction of spelling after controlling for age, parental education, print knowledge, phonological awareness, and letter-name and letter-sound knowledge; however, only letter-writing abilities made a significant unique contribution to the prediction of spelling when both letter-writing and name-writing skills were considered together. Name writing reflects knowledge of some letters rather than a broader knowledge of letters that may be needed to support early spelling. Children’s letter-writing skills may be a better indicator of children’s emergent literacy and developing spelling skills than are their name-writing skills at the end of the preschool year. Spelling is a developmentally complex skill beginning in preschool and includes letter writing and blending skills, print knowledge, and letter-name and letter-sound knowledge. PMID:21927537

  3. The Relationship between Multiple Intelligences and Writing Ability of Iranian EFL Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sadeghi, Karim; Farzizadeh, Bahareh

    2012-01-01

    The relationship between multiple intelligences and learning of L2 language skills is a burgeoning area of research. This study aimed at finding the relationship between Multiple Intelligences (MI) and the writing ability of EFL learners. For this purpose, the body of female BA sophomores in TEFL at Urmia University (N = 47), within the age range…

  4. A Preliminary Investigation of Racial Bias in Early Writing Curriculum-Based Measures

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kondisko, Joseph E.

    2017-01-01

    Using de-identified data, this study investigated the relationship between racial categories with curriculum-based early writing measures (CBM-W), which included word dictation, picture word sentence writing, and story prompt tasks for over 300 participants in Grades 1, 2, and 3. Words written, words spelled correctly, correct letter sequences,…

  5. Cognitive Constraints and the Early Learning Goals in Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bourke, Lorna; Adams, Anne-Marie

    2010-01-01

    This study examined the relative importance of a number of cognitive factors (i.e. working memory, vocabulary knowledge, general cognitive ability and reading skills) in accounting for differences in the rate of progress made by children in the development of emergent writing skills. Sixty-seven children were assessed on tasks measuring the…

  6. Ways of Knowing: Implications of Writing Curriculum in an Early Childhood Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Furman, Cara Elizabeth

    2017-01-01

    Early childhood writing curriculums typically focus on skills and encouraging interest. What children are asked to write is rarely closely examined. Through a self-study of my first and second grade classroom, in this paper I look at the implications of genre when teaching young children. I first identify some of the problems of a popular personal…

  7. The Role of Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) Cognitive Abilities in Predicting Writing Achievement during the School-Age Years

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cormier, Damien C.; Bulut, Okan; McGrew, Kevin S.; Frison, Jessica

    2016-01-01

    Writing is a complex academic task--it involves numerous mental processes. Given the necessity for developing writing skills from elementary to secondary school, this study aimed to investigate the role of broad cognitive abilities derived from the Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) theory of intelligence in predicting skills associated with writing…

  8. Effects of listening ability on speaking, writing and reading skills of children who were suspected of auditory processing difficulty.

    PubMed

    Yalçinkaya, Fulya; Muluk, Nuray Bayar; Sahin, Semra

    2009-08-01

    The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of listening ability on speaking, writing and reading skills of children who was suspected of auditory processing difficulty (APD). This research was conducted with 67 children in 1st or 2nd grade of primary school. The first group (Group I-control) was comprised of 41 children without APD. The second group (Group II-study group) was comprised of 26 children with APD. Listening, speaking, reading and writing skills were evaluated by Observational Rating Scale (ORS) and analyzed in both groups. Listening value of ORS in APD group was significantly lower; and, speaking, reading and writing values of ORS in APD group were significantly higher than control group (p=0.000). It was also found that, the main effect of listening skills was on speaking in normal childs, and on writing ability in children with APD. It was concluded that, for school-aged children, APD can lead to or is associated with difficulties in written language.

  9. What Johnny Can't Write: A University View of Freshman Writing Ability.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Newkirk, Thomas R.; And Others

    It is regularly claimed that the quality of writing done by college freshmen is declining. This study attempted, through the use of questionnaires and interviews, to determine what specific freshman writing problems English teaching assistants and English professors at the University of Texas viewed as most serious. Questionnaire results showed…

  10. On the Effects of L2 on Iranian Bilinguals' L1 Writing Ability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Agheshteh, Hessam

    2015-01-01

    While the effects of L1 on L2 have been extensively investigated, the effects of L2 on L1 have been largely ignored. The present study attempted to address this issue by investigating the effects of L2 English on Iranian Bilinguals' L1 writing ability. For this end, 61 participants, 30 bilinguals and 31 monolinguals, were assessed on an…

  11. The Effects of Processing Instruction and Traditional Instruction on Iranian EFL Learners' Writing Ability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hashemnezhad, Hossein; Zangalani, Sanaz Khalili

    2012-01-01

    The aim of the present paper was to investigate the effects of processing instruction and traditional instruction on Iranian EFL learners' writing ability. Thirty participants who were non-randomly selected out of 63 Intermediate EFL learners, taking English courses in a language institute in Khoy-Iran, participated in this quasi-experimental…

  12. Chinese children's early knowledge about writing.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Lan; Yin, Li; Treiman, Rebecca

    2017-09-01

    Much research on literacy development has focused on learners of alphabetic writing systems. Researchers have hypothesized that children learn about the formal characteristics of writing before they learn about the relations between units of writing and units of speech. We tested this hypothesis by examining young Chinese children's understanding of writing. Mandarin-speaking 2- to 5-year-olds completed a graphic task, which tapped their knowledge about the formal characteristics of writing, and a phonological task, which tapped their knowledge about the correspondence between Chinese characters and syllables. The 3- to 5-year-olds performed better on the graphic task than the phonological task, indicating that learning how writing appears visually begins earlier than learning that writing corresponds to linguistic units, even in a writing system in which written units correspond to syllables. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Learning about writing's visual form, how it looks, is an important part of emergent literacy. Knowledge of how writing symbolizes linguistic units may emerge later. What does this study add? We test the hypothesis that Chinese children learn about writing's visual form earlier than its symbolic nature. Chinese 3- to 5- year-olds know more about visual features than character-syllable links. Results show learning of the visual appearance of a notation system is developmentally precocious. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

  13. Improving Students' Summary Writing Ability through Collaboration: A Comparison between Online Wiki Group and Conventional Face-To-Face Group

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wichadee, Saovapa

    2013-01-01

    Wikis, as one of the Web 2.0 social networking tools, have been increasingly integrated into second language (L2) instruction to promote collaborative writing. The current study examined and compared summary writing abilities between students learning by wiki-based collaboration and students learning by traditional face-to-face collaboration.…

  14. Effects of Early Writing Intervention Delivered within a Data-Based Instruction Framework

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jung, Pyung-Gang; McMaster, Kristen L.; delMas, Robert C.

    2017-01-01

    We examined effects of research-based early writing intervention delivered within a data-based instruction (DBI) framework for children with intensive needs. We randomly assigned 46 students with and without disabilities in Grades 1 to 3 within classrooms to either treatment or control. Treatment students received research-based early writing…

  15. Linguistic ability in early life and the neuropathology of Alzheimer's disease and cerebrovascular disease. Findings from the Nun Study.

    PubMed

    Snowdon, D A; Greiner, L H; Markesbery, W R

    2000-04-01

    Findings from the Nun Study indicate that low linguistic ability in early life has a strong association with dementia and premature death in late life. In the present study, we investigated the relationship of linguistic ability in early life to the neuropathology of Alzheimer's disease and cerebrovascular disease. The analyses were done on a subset of 74 participants in the Nun Study for whom we had handwritten autobiographies completed some time between the ages of 19 and 37 (mean = 23 years). An average of 62 years after writing the autobiographies, when the participants were 78 to 97 years old, they died and their brains were removed for our neuropathologic studies. Linguistic ability in early life was measured by the idea (proposition) density of the autobiographies, i.e., a standard measure of the content of ideas in text samples. Idea density scores from early life had strong inverse correlations with the severity of Alzheimer's disease pathology in the neocortex: Correlations between idea density scores and neurofibrillary tangle counts were -0.59 for the frontal lobe, -0.48 for the temporal lobe, and -0.49 for the parietal lobe (all p values < 0.0001). Idea density scores were unrelated to the severity of atherosclerosis of the major arteries at the base of the brain and to the presence of lacunar and large brain infarcts. Low linguistic ability in early life may reflect suboptimal neurological and cognitive development, which might increase susceptibility to the development of Alzheimer's disease pathology in late life.

  16. Just-in-Time Teaching Techniques through Web Technologies for Vocational Students' Reading and Writing Abilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chantoem, Rewadee; Rattanavich, Saowalak

    2016-01-01

    This research compares the English language achievements of vocational students, their reading and writing abilities, and their attitudes towards learning English taught with just-in-time teaching techniques through web technologies and conventional methods. The experimental and control groups were formed, a randomized true control group…

  17. Supporting English Language Learners' Writing Abilities: Exploring Third Spaces

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Assaf, Lori Czop

    2014-01-01

    Research on the sociocultural processes of writing and its impact on writing instruction in the middle grades has gained increased attention in educational research. Less attention has been devoted to research on writing with middle grade English learners (ELs) who are mainstreamed into English only classrooms. National assessment data, reports,…

  18. Using Print in the Environment to Promote Early Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gerde, Hope K.; Goetsch, Megan E.; Bingham, Gary E.

    2016-01-01

    Print in the environment is typically posted in early childhood classrooms. However, the print that exists is often not meaningful to children, and teachers rarely engage children in using the print. This is a missed opportunity to support children's writing. This article presents research-based ideas for engaging children with meaningful print in…

  19. The Effect of Virtual Language Learning Method on Writing Ability of Iranian Intermediate EFL Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Khoshsima, Hooshang; Sayadi, Fatemeh

    2016-01-01

    This study aimed at investigating the effect of virtual language learning method on Iranian intermediate EFL learners writing ability. The study was conducted with 20 English Translation students at Chabahar Maritime University who were assigned into two groups, control and experimental, after ensuring of their homogeneity by administering a TOEFL…

  20. Identifying Writing Difficulties in First Grade: An Investigation of Writing and Reading Measures

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ritchey, Kristen D.; Coker, David L., Jr.

    2014-01-01

    Early identification of students who are at risk for writing difficulties is an important first step in improving writing performance. First grade students (N = 150) were administered a set of early writing measures and reading measures in January. Sentence Writing Quality and Oral Reading Fluency demonstrated strong classification accuracy when a…

  1. The Effects of Explicit Instruction on the Writing Ability of a Student with Noonan Syndrome

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Asaro-Saddler, Kristie; Saddler, Bruce; Ellis-Robinson, Tammy

    2014-01-01

    In this study, we sought to determine the effectiveness of a sentence creation intervention on the sentence writing ability of a young writer with Noonan Syndrome. Noonan syndrome is an autosomal dominant condition characterized by shortness in stature, with neck and ear anomalies, hypertelorism, ptosis of the eyelids, low set ears, and instances…

  2. The Impact of Time-Series Diagnostic Tests on the Writing Ability of Iranian EFL Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Atashgahi, Bahareh Molazem

    2014-01-01

    This study aimed to show whether administering a battery of time-series diagnostic tests (screening) has any impact on Iranian EFL learners' writing ability. The study was conducted on the intermediate EFL learners at Islamic Azad University North Tehran branch. The researcher administered a homogenizing test in order to exclude the exceptional…

  3. Students' abilities to critique scientific evidence when reading and writing scientific arguments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Knight, Amanda M.

    Scientific arguments are used to persuade others for explanations that make sense of the natural world. Over time, through the accumulation of evidence, one explanation for a scientific phenomenon tends to take precedence. In science education, arguments make students' thinking and reasoning visible while also supporting the development of their conceptual, procedural, and epistemic knowledge. As such, argumentation has become a goal within recent policy documents, including the Next Generation Science Standards, which, in turn, presents a need for comprehensive, effective, and scalable assessments. This dissertation used assessments that measure students' abilities to critique scientific evidence, which is measured in terms of the form of justification and the support of empirical evidence, when reading and writing scientific arguments. Cognitive interviews were then conducted with a subset of the students to explore the criteria they used to critique scientific evidence. Specifically, the research investigated what characteristics of scientific evidence the students preferred, how they critiqued both forms of justification and empirical evidence, and whether the four constructs represented four separate abilities. Findings suggest that students' prioritized the type of empirical evidence to the form of justification, and most often selected relevant-supporting justifications. When writing scientific arguments, most students constructed a justified claim, but struggled to justify their claims with empirical evidence. In comparison, when reading scientific arguments, students had trouble locating a justification when it was not empirical data. Additionally, it was more difficult for students to critique than identify or locate empirical evidence, and it was more difficult for students to identify than locate empirical evidence. Findings from the cognitive interviews suggest that students with more specific criteria tended to have more knowledge of the construct

  4. Relationship between Reading/Writing Skills and Cognitive Abilities among Japanese Primary-School Children: Normal Readers versus Poor Readers (Dyslexics)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uno, Akira; Wydell, Taeko N.; Haruhara, Noriko; Kaneko, Masato; Shinya, Naoko

    2009-01-01

    Four hundred and ninety-five Japanese primary-school children aged from 8 (Grade-2) to 12 (Grade-6) were tested for their abilities to read/write in Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji, for their size of vocabulary and for other cognitive abilities including arithmetic, visuo-spatial and phonological processing. Percentages of the children whose…

  5. Scaffolding EFL Students' Writing through the Writing Process Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Faraj, Avan Kamal Aziz

    2015-01-01

    This research reports a study conducted at Koya University/English Language Department, and it aims at presenting the effect of scaffolding on EFL students' writing ability through the writing process. In this study, the students have taken the role of writers, so they need to follow the same steps that writers apply during their writing process.…

  6. Effects of Writing Instruction on Kindergarten Students' Writing Achievement: An Experimental Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jones, Cindy D'On

    2015-01-01

    This full-year experimental study examined how methods of writing instruction contribute to kindergarten students' acquisition of foundational and compositional early writing skills. Multiple regression with cluster analysis was used to compare 3 writing instructional groups: an interactive writing group, a writing workshop group, and a…

  7. Write from the Start: Tapping Your Child's Natural Writing Ability.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Graves, Donald; Stuart, Virginia

    Based on a seminal classroom research project directed by Dr. Donald Graves, as well as on the experiences of numerous children, teachers, parents, and researchers around the world, this book shows what can happen when teachers and parents realize that every child can write. Although the book is the result of a collaboration, the two authors have…

  8. Teaching Spelling, Writing, and Reading for Writing; Powerful Evidence Based Practices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Harris, Karen R.; Graham, Steve; Aitken, A. Angelique; Barkel, Ashley; Houston, Julia; Ray, Amber

    2017-01-01

    Students with disabilities often find writing extremely challenging (Harris & Graham, 2016). Special educators can, however, promote tremendous gains in students' ability to write by understanding common challenges students face and mastering specific teaching techniques. Students' writing success depends on reducing how much attention and…

  9. Writing abilities and the role of working memory in children with symptoms of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder.

    PubMed

    Capodieci, Agnese; Serafini, Alice; Dessuki, Alice; Cornoldi, Cesare

    2018-02-20

    The writing abilities of children with ADHD symptoms were examined in a simple dictation task, and then in two conditions with concurrent verbal or visuospatial working memory (WM) loads. The children with ADHD symptoms generally made more spelling mistakes than controls, and the concurrent loads impaired their performance, but with partly different effects. The concurrent verbal WM task prompted an increase in the phonological errors, while the concurrent visuospatial WM task prompted more non-phonological errors, matching the Italian phonology, but not the Italian orthography. In the ADHD group, the children proving better able to cope with a concurrent verbal WM load had a better spelling performance too. The ADHD and control groups had a similar handwriting speed, but the former group's writing quality was poorer. Our results suggest that WM supports writing skills, and that children with ADHD symptoms have general writing difficulties, but strength in coping with concurrent verbal information may support their spelling performance.

  10. Writing as a Survival Skill: How Neuroscience Can Improve Writing in Organizations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Douglas, Yellowlees

    2012-01-01

    This article looks at the apparent paradox between the demand for strong writing skills and the lack of colleges of business that require their MBA students to complete writing courses. In the past, most approaches to teaching writing proved inadequate in producing graduates with the ability to write clearly, effectively, and efficiently. This…

  11. From "What Did I Write?" to "Is This Right?": Intention, Convention, and Accountability in Early Literacy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wohlwend, Karen E.

    2008-01-01

    When children enter public kindergartens in the current atmosphere of high-stakes testing, they often encounter an emphasis on correctness that casts doubt on the integrity of their personally invented messages, prompting them to ask not "What did I write?" but "Is this right?" This ethnographic case study examines early writing by 23 kindergarten…

  12. The Effects of Phonemic Awareness Instruction on the Writing Ability of First Grade At Risk Students.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carro, Dorothy J.

    The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of increased phonemic awareness instruction on the writing ability of At Risk first graders. Twenty-three students from a suburban first grade classroom in Central New Jersey were involved in the study. Twelve at risk students were divided into two groups, each of which received one half hour of…

  13. Writing: Empowering Literacy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Love, Angela; Burns, M. Susan; Buell, Martha Jane

    2007-01-01

    Writing activities are an essential part of quality literacy practices in early care and education settings. As children communicate through writing, they learn important concepts about books and other forms of print in the world around them, including writing and alphabet systems. Young children best understand and appreciate writing when it is…

  14. Peer Feedback on College Students' Writing: Exploring the Relation between Students' Ability Match, Feedback Quality and Essay Performance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Huisman, Bart; Saab, Nadira; van Driel, Jan; van den Broek, Paul

    2017-01-01

    There does not appear to be consensus on how to optimally match students during the peer feedback process: with same-ability peers (homogeneously) or different-ability peers (heterogeneously). In fact, there appears to be no empirical evidence that either homogeneous or heterogeneous student matching has any direct effect on writing performance.…

  15. Using Peer Assisted Strategies to Teach Early Writing: Results of a Pilot Study to Examine Feasibility and Promise

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Puranik, Cynthia S.; Patchan, Melissa M.; Lemons, Christopher J.; Al Otaiba, Stephanie

    2017-01-01

    Despite the poor outcomes for U.S. students on national writing tests, overall research on how to teach writing is sparse, and this scarcity is more pronounced in the early years of beginning to write. In this study 81,200 we present preliminary findings from Year 1 of a 3-year Institute of Education Sciences-funded Goal 2 project aimed at…

  16. Aspects of Tutor and Writing Ability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zaidin, M. Arifin

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to assess the correlation between aspects of tutor and the students' basic writing outcomes of the Elementary School Teacher Education at the Distance Learning Program Unit, Open University of Palu. This is ex post facto correlation with the population research of 387 people and the total sample of 100 people. This…

  17. Reading Comprehension Mediates the Relationship between Syntactic Awareness and Writing Composition in Children: A Longitudinal Study.

    PubMed

    Tong, Xiuhong; McBride, Catherine

    2016-12-01

    This research aimed to explore the relation between syntactic awareness and writing composition in 129 Hong Kong Chinese children. These children were from a ten-year longitudinal project. At each year, a number of measures were administered. The 129 children's data of nonverbal reasoning at age 4, phonological awareness, morphological awareness, vocabulary knowledge at age 8, reading comprehension at age 12 and syntactic awareness and writing composition skills at ages 11 and 12 were included in this study. Syntactic awareness was longitudinally and uniquely predictive of Chinese children's writing composition, and children's performance in early writing composition was uniquely associated with their later syntactic skills, even when controlling for the contributions from age, nonverbal and verbal abilities, phonological awareness, and morphological awareness. The relationship between syntactic awareness and writing composition was mediated by children's performance in reading comprehension. These findings may suggest a reciprocal relation between syntactic awareness and writing composition, and this association may vary with ability in reading comprehension in Chinese children.

  18. Why Do You Write? Creative Writing and the Reflective Teacher

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hains-Wesson, Rachael

    2013-01-01

    In this article, the author asserts that whether we write creatively or academically (or both) it takes time to understand the reasons why we "want" to write, and the more we write, the more we fully begin to appreciate why we have to write in the ?rst place. From an early age, nearly every day, Rachel Hains-Wesson actively participated in…

  19. Professional Wisdom and Writing for Publication: Qualitative Interviews with Editors and Authors in Early Childhood Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jalongo, Mary Renck

    2013-01-01

    College and university faculty members specializing in early childhood education face some unique challenges in scholarly writing. The purpose of this research was to use open-ended interviews as a way to gather the collective wisdom of a group of key informants about academic writing and publishing in the field. Twenty-two editors and/or authors,…

  20. The Writing Mathematician

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yoon, Caroline

    2017-01-01

    Popular culture casts mathematics and writing as opposites--a false dichotomy, which can be harmful for our discipline of mathematics education. Positioning writing outside the domain of the mathematician's abilities and cultivated skill set can create doubt in the mathematician wishing to write--not that one cannot be both writer and…

  1. The Utility of Writing Assignments in Undergraduate Bioscience

    PubMed Central

    Libarkin, Julie; Ording, Gabriel

    2012-01-01

    We tested the hypothesis that engagement in a few, brief writing assignments in a nonmajors science course can improve student ability to convey critical thought about science. A sample of three papers written by students (n = 30) was coded for presence and accuracy of elements related to scientific writing. Scores for different aspects of scientific writing were significantly correlated, suggesting that students recognized relationships between components of scientific thought. We found that students' ability to write about science topics and state conclusions based on data improved over the course of three writing assignments, while the abilities to state a hypothesis and draw clear connections between human activities and environmental impacts did not improve. Three writing assignments generated significant change in student ability to write scientifically, although our results suggest that three is an insufficient number to generate complete development of scientific writing skills. PMID:22383616

  2. Developing General Literacy Ability and Intercultural Sensitivity through English Literacy Instruction: Using Global Literature for Korean EFL Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bae, Jiyoung

    2012-01-01

    This study explored L2 literacy ability and intercultural sensitivity of Korean late elementary to early middle school students learning English as a foreign language. This study investigated the latent variable structure of L2 literacy abilities, including fluency, vocabulary, reading comprehension, and writing abilities, and intercultural…

  3. A Response to "Measuring Students' Writing Ability on a Computer Analytic Developmental Scale: An Exploratory Validity Study"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Reutzel, D. Ray; Mohr, Kathleen A. J.

    2014-01-01

    In this response to "Measuring Students' Writing Ability on a Computer Analytic Developmental Scale: An Exploratory Validity Study," the authors agree that assessments should seek parsimony in both theory and application wherever possible. Doing so allows maximal dissemination and implementation while minimizing costs. The Writing…

  4. Research in Writing Assessment.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Coffman, William E.

    Five papers on the assessment of writing ability presented at the Division D meeting are critiqued. It is suggested that it is not possible to conclude--as has Larson in his study of grades 4, 6, and 8--that National Assessment of Educational Progress results do not give evidence of growth in writing ability. Dovell and Buhr, examining approaches…

  5. Validation of the Early Functional Abilities scale: An assessment of four dimensions in early recovery after traumatic brain injury.

    PubMed

    Poulsen, Ingrid; Kreiner, Svend; Engberg, Aase W

    2018-02-13

    The Early Functional Abilities scale assesses the restoration of brain function after brain injury, based on 4 dimensions. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the validity, objectivity, reliability and measurement precision of the Early Functional Abilities scale by Rasch model item analysis. A secondary objective was to examine the relationship between the Early Functional Abilities scale and the Functional Independence Measurement™, in order to establish the criterion validity of the Early Functional Abilities scale and to compare the sensitivity of measurements using the 2 instruments. The Rasch analysis was based on the assessment of 408 adult patients at admission to sub-acute rehabilitation in Copenhagen, Denmark after traumatic brain injury. The Early Functional Abilities scale provides valid and objective measurement of vegetative (autonomic), facio-oral, sensorimotor and communicative/cognitive functions. Removal of one item from the sensorimotor scale confirmed unidimensionality for each of the 4 subscales, but not for the entire scale. The Early Functional Abilities subscales are sensitive to differences between patients in ranges in which the Functional Independence Measurement™ has a floor effect. The Early Functional Abilities scale assesses the early recovery of important aspects of brain function after traumatic brain injury, but is not unidimensional. We recommend removal of the "standing" item and calculation of summary subscales for the separate dimensions.

  6. Early Childhood Stunting and Later Fine Motor Abilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chang, Susan M.; Walker, Susan P.; Grantham-McGregor, Sally; Powell, Christine A.

    2010-01-01

    Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of early childhood stunting (height for age 2SD or more below reference values) and interventions on fine motor abilities at 11 to 12 years, and the relationship between fine motor abilities and school achievement and intelligence. Method: A cohort of stunted children who had participated in…

  7. Written Language and Writing Abilities: Abstracts of Doctoral Dissertations Published in "Dissertation Abstracts International," July through December 1981 (Vol. 42 Nos. 1 through 6).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading and Communication Skills, Urbana, IL.

    This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 29 titles deal with a vareity of topics, including the following: (1) the interrelationship of reading and writing in the composing process; (2) the relationship between composition teachers' ability to write and the writing…

  8. Teaching the Writing Process

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Keen, John

    2017-01-01

    This article outlines some cognitive process models of writing composition. Possible reasons why students' writing capabilities do not match their abilities in some other school subjects are explored. Research findings on the efficacy of process approaches to teaching writing are presented and potential shortcomings are discussed. Product-based…

  9. Development of a Blended Instructional Model via Weblog to Enhance English Summary Writing Ability of Thai Undergraduate Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Termsinsuk, Saisunee

    2015-01-01

    The objective of this research and development was to develop an effective blended instructional model via weblog to enhance English summary writing ability of Thai undergraduate students. A sample group in the English program of Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University was studied in academic year 2010-2013. The research instruments were an…

  10. Exploring Associations among Writing Self-Perceptions, Writing Abilities, and Native Language of English-Spanish Two-Way Immersion Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Neugebauer, Sabina R.; Howard, Elizabeth R.

    2015-01-01

    The current study, with 409 fourth graders in two-way immersion programs, explored the writing self-perceptions of native English and native Spanish speakers and the relationship between self-perceptions and writing performance. An adapted version of the Writer Self-Perception Scale (WSPS) was administered along with a writing task. Native English…

  11. White matter maturation profiles through early childhood predict general cognitive ability.

    PubMed

    Deoni, Sean C L; O'Muircheartaigh, Jonathan; Elison, Jed T; Walker, Lindsay; Doernberg, Ellen; Waskiewicz, Nicole; Dirks, Holly; Piryatinsky, Irene; Dean, Doug C; Jumbe, N L

    2016-03-01

    Infancy and early childhood are periods of rapid brain development, during which brain structure and function mature alongside evolving cognitive ability. An important neurodevelopmental process during this postnatal period is the maturation of the myelinated white matter, which facilitates rapid communication across neural systems and networks. Though prior brain imaging studies in children (4 years of age and above), adolescents, and adults have consistently linked white matter development with cognitive maturation and intelligence, few studies have examined how these processes are related throughout early development (birth to 4 years of age). Here, we show that the profile of white matter myelination across the first 5 years of life is strongly and specifically related to cognitive ability. Using a longitudinal design, coupled with advanced magnetic resonance imaging, we demonstrate that children with above-average ability show differential trajectories of myelin development compared to average and below average ability children, even when controlling for socioeconomic status, gestation, and birth weight. Specifically, higher ability children exhibit slower but more prolonged early development, resulting in overall increased myelin measures by ~3 years of age. These results provide new insight into the early neuroanatomical correlates of cognitive ability, and suggest an early period of prolonged maturation with associated protracted white matter plasticity may result in strengthened neural networks that can better support later development. Further, these results reinforce the necessity of a longitudinal perspective in investigating typical or suspected atypical cognitive maturation.

  12. Written Language and Writing Abilities: Abstracts of Doctoral Dissertations Published in "Dissertation Abstracts International," July through December 1982 (Vol. 43 Nos. 1 through 6).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading and Communication Skills, Urbana, IL.

    This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 37 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: (1) composing strategies used by college freshmen; (2) three methods of assessment of writing ability; (3) one child's growth in writing; (4) the relationship…

  13. Classroom Writing Environments and Children's Early Writing Skills: An Observational Study in Head Start Classrooms

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zhang, Chenyi; Hur, Jinhee; Diamond, Karen E.; Powell, Douglas

    2015-01-01

    This study examined the classroom writing environment in 31 Head Start classrooms, and explored the relations between the writing environment, children's (N = 262) name-writing, and children's letter knowledge using pathway analysis. Our analyses showed that Head Start classrooms provided opportunities (i.e., writing materials and teachers'…

  14. Relations between Early Reading and Writing Skills among Spanish-Speaking Language Minority Children

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Goodrich, J. Marc; Farrington, Amber L.; Lonigan, Christopher J.

    2016-01-01

    Although there is a growing body of literature on the development of reading skills of Spanish-speaking language minority children, little research has focused on the development of writing skills in this population. This study evaluated whether children's Spanish early reading skills (i.e., print knowledge, phonological awareness, oral language)…

  15. Children's high-level writing skills: development of planning and revising and their contribution to writing quality.

    PubMed

    Limpo, Teresa; Alves, Rui A; Fidalgo, Raquel

    2014-06-01

    It is well established that the activity of producing a text is a complex one involving three main cognitive processes: Planning, translating, and revising. Although these processes are crucial in skilled writing, beginning and developing writers seem to struggle with them, mainly with planning and revising. To trace the development of the high-level writing processes of planning and revising, from Grades 4 to 9, and to examine whether these skills predict writing quality in younger and older students (Grades 4-6 vs. 7-9), after controlling for gender, school achievement, age, handwriting fluency, spelling, and text structure. Participants were 381 students from Grades 4 to 9 (age 9-15). Students were asked to plan and write a story and to revise another story by detecting and correcting mechanical and substantive errors. From Grades 4 to 9, we found a growing trend in students' ability to plan and revise despite the observed decreases and stationary periods from Grades 4 to 5 and 6 to 7. Moreover, whereas younger students' planning and revising skills made no contribution to the quality of their writing, in older students, these high-level skills contributed to writing quality above and beyond control predictors. The findings of this study seem to indicate that besides the increase in planning and revising, these skills are not fully operational in school-age children. Indeed, given the contribution of these high-level skills to older students' writing, supplementary instruction and practice should be provided from early on. © 2013 The British Psychological Society.

  16. The Relative Contributions of the Cattell-Horn-Carroll Cognitive Abilities in Explaining Writing Achievement during Childhood and Adolescence

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Floyd, Randy G.; McGrew, Kevin S.; Evans, Jeffrey J.

    2008-01-01

    This study examined the relative contributions of measures of Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) cognitive abilities in explaining writing achievement. Drawing from samples that covered the age range of 7 to 18 years, simultaneous multiple regression was used to regress scores from the Woodcock-Johnson III (WJ III; Woodcock, McGrew, & Mather, 2001) that…

  17. Assessing the Writing of Deaf College Students: Reevaluating a Direct Assessment of Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schley, Sara; Albertini, John

    2005-01-01

    The NTID Writing Test was developed to assess the writing ability of postsecondary deaf students entering the National Technical Institute for the Deaf and to determine their appropriate placement into developmental writing courses. While previous research (Albertini et al., 1986; Albertini et al., 1996; Bochner, Albertini, Samar, & Metz, 1992)…

  18. Assessing the writing of deaf college students: reevaluating a direct assessment of writing.

    PubMed

    Schley, Sara; Albertini, John

    2005-01-01

    The NTID Writing Test was developed to assess the writing ability of postsecondary deaf students entering the National Technical Institute for the Deaf and to determine their appropriate placement into developmental writing courses. While previous research (Albertini et al., 1986; Albertini et al., 1996; Bochner, Albertini, Samar, & Metz, 1992) has shown the test to be reliable between multiple test raters and as a valid measure of writing ability for placement into these courses, changes in curriculum and the rater pool necessitated a new look at interrater reliability and concurrent validity. We evaluated the rating scores for 236 samples from students who entered the college during the fall 2001. Using a multiprong approach, we confirmed the interrater reliability and the validity of this direct measure of assessment. The implications of continued use of this and similar tests in light of definitions of validity, local control, and the nature of writing are discussed.

  19. Write to Read: Investigating the Reading-Writing Relationship of Code-Level Early Literacy Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jones, Cindy D.; Reutzel, D. Ray

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine whether the code-related features used in current methods of writing instruction in kindergarten classrooms transfer reading outcomes for kindergarten students. We randomly assigned kindergarten students to 3 instructional groups: a writing workshop group, an interactive writing group, and a control group.…

  20. Early Word Decoding Ability as a Longitudinal Predictor of Academic Performance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nordström, Thomas; Jacobson, Christer; Söderberg, Pernilla

    2016-01-01

    This study, using a longitudinal design with a Swedish cohort of young readers, investigates if children's early word decoding ability in second grade can predict later academic performance. In an effort to estimate the unique effect of early word decoding (grade 2) with academic performance (grade 9), gender and non-verbal cognitive ability were…

  1. Strengthening Academic Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bodnar, Julie R.; Petrucelli, Susan L.

    2016-01-01

    Underprepared students often need assistance building writing skills and maintaining confidence in their abilities and potential. The authors share the philosophy, pedagogy, and experience of freshman developmental education and the writing center at a four-year, private, not-for-profit urban college. They describe high-impact educational…

  2. Fine Motor Skills Predict Maths Ability Better than They Predict Reading Ability in the Early Primary School Years

    PubMed Central

    Pitchford, Nicola J.; Papini, Chiara; Outhwaite, Laura A.; Gulliford, Anthea

    2016-01-01

    Fine motor skills have long been recognized as an important foundation for development in other domains. However, more precise insights into the role of fine motor skills, and their relationships to other skills in mediating early educational achievements, are needed to support the development of optimal educational interventions. We explored concurrent relationships between two components of fine motor skills, Fine Motor Precision and Fine Motor Integration, and early reading and maths development in two studies with primary school children of low-to-mid socio-economic status in the UK. Two key findings were revealed. First, despite being in the first 2 years of primary school education, significantly better performance was found in reading compared to maths across both studies. This may reflect the protective effects of recent national-level interventions to promote early literacy skills in young children in the UK that have not been similarly promoted for maths. Second, fine motor skills were a better predictor of early maths ability than they were of early reading ability. Hierarchical multiple regression revealed that fine motor skills did not significantly predict reading ability when verbal short-term memory was taken into account. In contrast, Fine Motor Integration remained a significant predictor of maths ability, even after the influence of non-verbal IQ had been accounted for. These results suggest that fine motor skills should have a pivotal role in educational interventions designed to support the development of early mathematical skills. PMID:27303342

  3. Fine Motor Skills Predict Maths Ability Better than They Predict Reading Ability in the Early Primary School Years.

    PubMed

    Pitchford, Nicola J; Papini, Chiara; Outhwaite, Laura A; Gulliford, Anthea

    2016-01-01

    Fine motor skills have long been recognized as an important foundation for development in other domains. However, more precise insights into the role of fine motor skills, and their relationships to other skills in mediating early educational achievements, are needed to support the development of optimal educational interventions. We explored concurrent relationships between two components of fine motor skills, Fine Motor Precision and Fine Motor Integration, and early reading and maths development in two studies with primary school children of low-to-mid socio-economic status in the UK. Two key findings were revealed. First, despite being in the first 2 years of primary school education, significantly better performance was found in reading compared to maths across both studies. This may reflect the protective effects of recent national-level interventions to promote early literacy skills in young children in the UK that have not been similarly promoted for maths. Second, fine motor skills were a better predictor of early maths ability than they were of early reading ability. Hierarchical multiple regression revealed that fine motor skills did not significantly predict reading ability when verbal short-term memory was taken into account. In contrast, Fine Motor Integration remained a significant predictor of maths ability, even after the influence of non-verbal IQ had been accounted for. These results suggest that fine motor skills should have a pivotal role in educational interventions designed to support the development of early mathematical skills.

  4. Using the Science Writing Heuristic to Improve Undergraduate Writing in Biology

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cronje, Ruth; Murray, Kelly; Rohlinger, Spencer; Wellnitz, Todd

    2013-01-01

    Our objective was to investigate the impact of the Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) on undergraduates' ability to express logical conclusions and include appropriate evidence in formal writing assignments. Students in three laboratory sections were randomly allocated to the SWH treatment ("n"?=?51 students) with another three sections…

  5. Reading Strategies to Improve Writing Instruction.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bulakowski, Carole

    Reading instructors have valuable expertise to share with writing instructors to improve the writing ability of students. Writing instructors often give reading assignments to provide topics for students' essays or discussion, without understanding the reading process. A reading teacher can (1) show the writing instructor how to determine the…

  6. Classroom Teachers' Feelings and Experiences in Teaching Early Reading and Writing: A Phenomenological Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bastug, Muhammet

    2016-01-01

    The current study aimed to reveal classroom teachers' feelings and experiences in teaching early reading and writing. Phenomenological research design was applied in the qualitative research methodology of the study. The participants of the study were 15 classroom teachers working in different cities. The data were collected through…

  7. Learning abilities and disabilities: generalist genes in early adolescence.

    PubMed

    Davis, Oliver S P; Haworth, Claire M A; Plomin, Robert

    2009-01-01

    The new view of cognitive neuropsychology that considers not just case studies of rare severe disorders but also common disorders, as well as normal variation and quantitative traits, is more amenable to recent advances in molecular genetics, such as genome-wide association studies, and advances in quantitative genetics, such as multivariate genetic analysis. A surprising finding emerging from multivariate quantitative genetic studies across diverse learning abilities is that most genetic influences are shared: they are "generalist", rather than "specialist". We exploited widespread access to inexpensive and fast Internet connections in the United Kingdom to assess over 5000 pairs of 12-year-old twins from the Twins Early Development Study (TEDS) on four distinct batteries: reading, mathematics, general cognitive ability (g) and, for the first time, language. Genetic correlations remain high among all of the measured abilities, with language as highly correlated genetically with g as reading and mathematics. Despite developmental upheaval, generalist genes remain important into early adolescence, suggesting optimal strategies for molecular genetic studies seeking to identify the genes of small effect that influence learning abilities and disabilities.

  8. An Exploration into the Writing Ability of Generation 1.5 and International Second Language Writers: A Mixed Methods Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Di Gennaro, Kristen K.

    2011-01-01

    A growing body of research suggests that the writing ability of international second language learners (IL2) and US-resident second language learners, also referred to as Generation 1.5 (G1.5), differs, despite a dearth of substantial empirical evidence supporting such claims. The present study provides much-needed empirical evidence concerning…

  9. Help Me Where I Am: Scaffolding Writing in Preschool Classrooms

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Quinn, Margaret F.; Gerde, Hope K.; Bingham, Gary E.

    2016-01-01

    Early writing is important to young children's development--research indicates that writing is predictive of later reading and writing. Despite this, preschool teachers often do not focus on writing and offer limited scaffolding to foster children's writing development. This article shares innovative ways to scaffold early writing across the three…

  10. Supporting the Development of Students' Academic Writing through Collaborative Process Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mutwarasibo, Faustin

    2013-01-01

    The study examines how undergraduate university students in Rwanda experience collaborative process writing as an instruction method capable of helping them improve their academic writing abilities in English. It involved 34 second-year students, divided into 12 small working groups. The data were collected by means of group interviews carried out…

  11. Nietzsche in Basel: Writing Reading.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Miller, J. Hillis

    1993-01-01

    Explores the tight relationship between reading and writing, and discusses the implications of this central relationship for departments of English. Discusses Friedrich Nietzsche's early writings on rhetoric as challenging Western metaphysical tradition and providing a new model of writing. (HB)

  12. Children's Advertisement Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Burrell, Andrew; Beard, Roger

    2010-01-01

    This paper explores primary school children's ability to engage with "the power of the text" by tackling persuasive writing in the form of an advertisement. It is eclectically framed within genre theory and rhetorical studies and makes use of linguistic tools and concepts. The paper argues that writing research has not built upon earlier…

  13. Math Anxiety and Math Ability in Early Primary School Years.

    PubMed

    Krinzinger, Helga; Kaufmann, Liane; Willmes, Klaus

    2009-06-01

    Mathematical learning disabilities (MLDs) are often associated with math anxiety, yet until now, very little is known about the causal relations between calculation ability and math anxiety during early primary school years. The main aim of this study was to longitudinally investigate the relationship between calculation ability, self-reported evaluation of mathematics, and math anxiety in 140 primary school children between the end of first grade and the middle of third grade. Structural equation modeling revealed a strong influence of calculation ability and math anxiety on the evaluation of mathematics but no effect of math anxiety on calculation ability or vice versa-contrasting with the frequent clinical reports of math anxiety even in very young MLD children. To summarize, our study is a first step toward a better understanding of the link between math anxiety and math performance in early primary school years performance during typical and atypical courses of development.

  14. Writing Strategies for All Primary Students: Scaffolding Independent Writing with Differentiated Mini-Lessons, Grades K-3

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Richards, Janet C.; Lassonde, Cynthia A.

    2011-01-01

    The 25 mini-lessons provided in this book are designed to develop students' self-regulated writing behaviors and enhance their self-perceived writing abilities. These foundational writing strategies are applicable and adaptable to all primary students: emergent, advanced, English Language Learners, and struggling writers. Following the SCAMPER…

  15. The Impact of Including Writing Materials in Early Childhood Classrooms on the Early Literacy Development of Children from Low-Income Families

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Clark, Patricia; Kragler, Sherry

    2005-01-01

    The purpose of this research was to determine the effect of incorporating writing materials in all areas of the preschool classroom on the early literacy development of young children from low-income families. The researchers worked with six teachers in three preschool classrooms to incorporate literacy materials--particularly those materials that…

  16. Development of Early Handwriting: Visual-Motor Control During Letter Copying

    PubMed Central

    Maldarelli, Jennifer E.; Kahrs, Björn A.; Hunt, Sarah C.; Lockman, Jeffrey J.

    2015-01-01

    Despite the importance of handwriting for school readiness and early academic progress, prior research on the development of handwriting has focused primarily on the product rather than the process by which young children write letters. In contrast, in the present work, early handwriting is viewed as involving a suite of perceptual, motor and cognitive abilities, which must work in unison if children are to write letters efficiently. To study such coordination, head-mounted eye-tracking technology was used to investigate the process of visual-motor coordination while kindergarten children (N=23) and adults (N=11) copied individual letters and strings of letters that differed in terms of their phonemic properties. Results indicated that kindergarten children were able to copy single letters efficiently, as did adults. When the cognitive demands of the task increased and children were presented with strings of letters, however, their ability to copy letters efficiently was compromised: children frequently interrupted their writing mid-letter, whereas they did not do so on single letter trials. Yet, with increasing age, children became more efficient in copying letter strings, in part by using vision more prospectively when writing. Taken together, the results illustrate how the coordination of perceptual, motor and cognitive processes contributes to advances in the development of letter writing skill. PMID:26029821

  17. Cognitive Factors Contributing to Chinese EFL Learners' L2 Writing Performance in Timed Essay Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lu, Yanbin

    2010-01-01

    This study investigated cognitive factors that might influence Chinese EFL learners' argumentative essay writing in English. The factors that were explored included English (L2) language proficiency, Chinese (L1) writing ability, genre knowledge, use of writing strategies, and working memory capacity in L1 and L2. Data were collected from 136…

  18. Math Anxiety and Math Ability in Early Primary School Years

    PubMed Central

    Krinzinger, Helga; Kaufmann, Liane; Willmes, Klaus

    2010-01-01

    Mathematical learning disabilities (MLDs) are often associated with math anxiety, yet until now, very little is known about the causal relations between calculation ability and math anxiety during early primary school years. The main aim of this study was to longitudinally investigate the relationship between calculation ability, self-reported evaluation of mathematics, and math anxiety in 140 primary school children between the end of first grade and the middle of third grade. Structural equation modeling revealed a strong influence of calculation ability and math anxiety on the evaluation of mathematics but no effect of math anxiety on calculation ability or vice versa—contrasting with the frequent clinical reports of math anxiety even in very young MLD children. To summarize, our study is a first step toward a better understanding of the link between math anxiety and math performance in early primary school years performance during typical and atypical courses of development. PMID:20401159

  19. Universal Screening for Writing Risk in Kindergarten

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Coker, David L., Jr.; Ritchey, Kristen D.

    2014-01-01

    Early identification of students at risk for writing disabilities is an important step in improving writing performance. Kindergarten students (n = 84) were administered a set of researcher-developed writing tasks (letter writing, sound spelling, word spelling, and sentence writing) and school-administered reading tasks ("Dynamic Indicators…

  20. Math Anxiety and Math Ability in Early Primary School Years

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Krinzinger, Helga; Kaufmann, Liane; Willmes, Klaus

    2009-01-01

    Mathematical learning disabilities (MLDs) are often associated with math anxiety, yet until now, very little is known about the causal relations between calculation ability and math anxiety during early primary school years. The main aim of this study was to longitudinally investigate the relationship between calculation ability, self-reported…

  1. Writing After College: A Stratified Survey of the Writing of College-Trained People. Technical Report Number 1.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Faigley, Lester; And Others

    This report contains the results of a study of the writing of college-trained personnel that examined: (1) the importance of their writing abilities in the world of work and in situations other than work, (2) the types of writing done on and off the job and the composing processes used, (3) the media college-trained people use for writing, and (4)…

  2. Writing with a Personal Voice.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rico, Gabriele Lusser

    1985-01-01

    Clustering is a nonlinear brainstorming technique that can encourage children's natural writing ability by helping them draw on their need to make patterns out of their experience. Tips for introducing cluster writing into the classroom are offered. (MT)

  3. The Effects of Computer Assisted Mediating Prompts on EFL Learners' Writing Ability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Damavandi, Zahra Mousazadeh; Hassaskhah, Jaleh; Zafarghandi, Amir Mahdavi

    2018-01-01

    This study aims to examine the EFL learners' perception and process of writing development through using a digital storytelling tool, called "Storyjumper." To do so, 15 intermediate-level students were participants of the study. The participants' writing development was frequently assessed through a series of repeated writing tests…

  4. Alphabet Writing and Allograph Selection as Predictors of Spelling in Sentences Written by Spanish-Speaking Children Who Are Poor or Good Keyboarders.

    PubMed

    Peake, Christian; Diaz, Alicia; Artiles, Ceferino

    This study examined the relationship and degree of predictability that the fluency of writing the alphabet from memory and the selection of allographs have on measures of fluency and accuracy of spelling in a free-writing sentence task when keyboarding. The Test Estandarizado para la Evaluación de la Escritura con Teclado ("Spanish Keyboarding Writing Test"; Jiménez, 2012) was used as the assessment tool. A sample of 986 children from Grades 1 through 3 were classified according to transcription skills measured by keyboard ability (poor vs. good) across the grades. Results demonstrated that fluency in writing the alphabet and selecting allographs mediated the differences in spelling between good and poor keyboarders in the free-writing task. Execution in the allograph selection task and writing alphabet from memory had different degrees of predictability in each of the groups in explaining the level of fluency and spelling in the free-writing task sentences, depending on the grade. These results suggest that early assessment of writing by means of the computer keyboard can provide clues and guidelines for intervention and training to strengthen specific skills to improve writing performance in the early primary grades in transcription skills by keyboarding.

  5. Is there a link between writing ability, drawing aptitude and manual skills of dental students?

    PubMed

    Gillet, Dominique; Quinton, André; Jeannel, Alain

    2002-05-01

    In France, students have to choose between medical or dental courses, according to their rank, after a competitive examination at the end of their first year of study. Intellectual ability is evaluated, while manual competence is not, and this is a paradox. The purpose of the present study is to investigate whether it is possible to predict the manual aptitude of a dental student through tests that allow the qualities of reflection and organization to be judged. We administered writing tests and drawing tests to 45 students of the Bordeaux dental school to ascertain whether there was a correlation between the competitive examination, the criterion examined (reflection, organization, aesthetics em leader) and the results of the dental practical assessments during the first year of dental study. The results showed that although manual competence in dental practical work, graphic qualities and writing skills are connected, it is difficult to correlate them directly with competitive examination performance. In view of the number of uncontrolled variables influencing the students' outcome, is it useful to be able to predict who will become a good practitioner? One indication may be found in the moral reasoning of candidates.

  6. Enhancing Undergraduate Students' Research and Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lumpkin, Angela

    2015-01-01

    Concern about the research and writing abilities of undergraduate students led to the development, implementation and enhancement of four sequential writing assignments in an introductory course. These writing assignments--which included a report on an interview of a professional in the field, a research paper on an aspirational career, a research…

  7. The Word Writing CAFE: Assessing Student Writing for Complexity, Accuracy, and Fluency

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Leal, Dorothy J.

    2005-01-01

    The Word Writing CAFE is a new assessment tool designed for teachers to evaluate objectively students' word-writing ability for fluency, accuracy, and complexity. It is designed to be given to the whole class at one time. This article describes the development of the CAFE and provides directions for administering and scoring it. The author also…

  8. Strategic English Writing for Academic Purposes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lin, Grace Hui Chin

    2017-01-01

    Writing is one of the four abilities in English Learning. Many students need to write their theses and dissertations in English in order to achieve their academic degrees. English writing is in fact an access of international and intercultural communication with native-speakers and non-native speakers, in academic fields. After reading abundant…

  9. Empirically Based Profiles of the Early Literacy Skills of Children with Language Impairment in Early Childhood Special Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Justice, Laura; Logan, Jessica; Kaderavek, Joan; Schmitt, Mary Beth; Tompkins, Virginia; Bartlett, Christopher

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to empirically determine whether specific profiles characterize preschool-aged children with language impairment (LI) with respect to their early literacy skills (print awareness, name-writing ability, phonological awareness, alphabet knowledge); the primary interest was to determine if one or more profiles suggested…

  10. Development of early handwriting: Visual-motor control during letter copying.

    PubMed

    Maldarelli, Jennifer E; Kahrs, Björn A; Hunt, Sarah C; Lockman, Jeffrey J

    2015-07-01

    Despite the importance of handwriting for school readiness and early academic progress, prior research on the development of handwriting has focused primarily on the product rather than the process by which young children write letters. In contrast, in the present work, early handwriting is viewed as involving a suite of perceptual, motor, and cognitive abilities, which must work in unison if children are to write letters efficiently. To study such coordination, head-mounted eye-tracking technology was used to investigate the process of visual-motor coordination while kindergarten children (N = 23) and adults (N = 11) copied individual letters and strings of letters that differed in terms of their phonemic properties. Results indicated that kindergarten children were able to copy single letters efficiently, as did adults. When the cognitive demands of the task increased and children were presented with strings of letters, however, their ability to copy letters efficiently was compromised: Children frequently interrupted their writing midletter, whereas they did not do so on single letter trials. Yet, with increasing age, children became more efficient in copying letter strings, in part by using vision more prospectively when writing. Taken together, the results illustrate how the coordination of perceptual, motor, and cognitive processes contributes to advances in the development of letter writing skill. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  11. Early differentiation between drawing and writing in Chinese children.

    PubMed

    Treiman, Rebecca; Yin, Li

    2011-04-01

    Children under 3½ years of age or so are often thought to produce the same types of scribbles for writing and drawing. We tested this idea by asking Chinese 2- to 6-year-olds to write and draw four targets. In Study 1, Chinese adults judged the status of the productions as writings or drawings. The adults performed significantly above the level expected by chance even with the productions of 2- to 2½-year-olds. In Study 2, we examined specific characteristics of the children's writings and drawings. Although the younger children's scribbles bore little resemblance to the correct characters, they tended to be smaller, sparser, and more angular than their artwork, with less filling in. Differences were also found in paper use and implement use. Children did not appear to distinguish writing from drawing for their own names before they did so for other targets. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Tailoring Multicomponent Writing Interventions: Effects of Coupling Self-Regulation and Transcription Training.

    PubMed

    Limpo, Teresa; Alves, Rui A

    Writing proficiency is heavily based on acquisition and development of self-regulation and transcription skills. The present study examined the effects of combining transcription training with a self-regulation intervention (self-regulated strategy development [SRSD]) in Grade 2 (ages 7-8). Forty-three students receiving self-regulation plus transcription (SRSD+TR) intervention were compared with 37 students receiving a self-regulation only (SRSD only) intervention and 39 students receiving the standard language arts curriculum. Compared with control instruction, SRSD instruction-with or without transcription training-resulted in more complex plans; longer, better, and more complete stories; and the effects transferred to story written recall. Transcription training produced an incremental effect on students' composing skills. In particular, the SRSD+TR intervention increased handwriting fluency, spelling accuracy for inconsistent words, planning and story completeness, writing fluency, clause length, and burst length. Compared with the SRSD-only intervention, the SRSD+TR intervention was particularly effective in raising the writing quality of poorer writers. This pattern of findings suggests that students benefit from writing instruction coupling self-regulation and transcription training from very early on. This seems to be a promising instructional approach not only to ameliorate all students' writing ability and prevent future writing problems but also to minimize struggling writers' difficulties and support them in mastering writing.

  13. Student Writing: Strategies to Reverse Ongoing Decline

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carter, Michael J.; Harper, Heather

    2013-01-01

    This article reports on the decline in writing ability skills in secondary and higher education students. The author discusses changes that have affected student writing skills over the recent decades and offers recommendations for improving these skills, such as: implementing intensive freshman writing courses; adjusting existing course…

  14. Engaging Young Adolescents in School-Based Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yost, Deborah S.; Liang, Ling L.; Vogel, Robert

    2014-01-01

    How might middle school teachers and schools more appropriately engage early adolescent students in the writing process so that they are motivated and engaged to "want" to write and write well? This article introduces "Writers Matter," an approach designed to engage and motivate young adolescents in the writing process,…

  15. Language experience shapes early electrophysiological responses to visual stimuli: the effects of writing system, stimulus length, and presentation duration.

    PubMed

    Xue, Gui; Jiang, Ting; Chen, Chuansheng; Dong, Qi

    2008-02-15

    How language experience affects visual word recognition has been a topic of intense interest. Using event-related potentials (ERPs), the present study compared the early electrophysiological responses (i.e., N1) to familiar and unfamiliar writings under different conditions. Thirteen native Chinese speakers (with English as their second language) were recruited to passively view four types of scripts: Chinese (familiar logographic writings), English (familiar alphabetic writings), Korean Hangul (unfamiliar logographic writings), and Tibetan (unfamiliar alphabetic writings). Stimuli also differed in lexicality (words vs. non-words, for familiar writings only), length (characters/letters vs. words), and presentation duration (100 ms vs. 750 ms). We found no significant differences between words and non-words, and the effect of language experience (familiar vs. unfamiliar) was significantly modulated by stimulus length and writing system, and to a less degree, by presentation duration. That is, the language experience effect (i.e., a stronger N1 response to familiar writings than to unfamiliar writings) was significant only for alphabetic letters, but not for alphabetic and logographic words. The difference between Chinese characters and unfamiliar logographic characters was significant under the condition of short presentation duration, but not under the condition of long presentation duration. Long stimuli elicited a stronger N1 response than did short stimuli, but this effect was significantly attenuated for familiar writings. These results suggest that N1 response might not reliably differentiate familiar and unfamiliar writings. More importantly, our results suggest that N1 is modulated by visual, linguistic, and task factors, which has important implications for the visual expertise hypothesis.

  16. Investigation Report on the Teaching of Practical English Writing of English Majors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Liu, Xiaojuan

    2010-01-01

    The practical writing course aims at helping students have a comprehensive understanding of writing subjects and improve their abilities of analyzing and understanding texts. This paper has explored how writing textbooks are used in the writing course and pointed out that the aim should be to help students improve their ability of analysis and…

  17. Implementing CLIL in Higher Education in Thailand: The Extent to Which CLIL Improves Agricultural Students' Writing Ability, Agricultural Content, and Cultural Knowledge

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chansri, Charinee; Wasanasomsithi, Punchalee

    2016-01-01

    The present study aimed to investigate the extent to which a CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) course at university level in Thailand improves undergraduate Agricultural students' writing ability, agricultural content, and cultural knowledge. The study sample consisted of 27 students majoring in Agriculture at a public university in…

  18. Writing instruction in kindergarten: examining an emerging area of research for children with writing and reading difficulties.

    PubMed

    Edwards, Lana

    2003-01-01

    This review examines the literature on how to teach kindergarten children with reading and writing difficulties how to write. Specifically, research on handwriting instruction, spelling instruction, and composition writing is discussed. Due to the limited number of empirical studies on writing that included kindergarten students with diagnosed reading and writing difficulties, selected studies conducted with the full range of kindergarten children, as well as studies conducted in the early elementary grades, are presented to highlight future directions for research.

  19. [Relationship between clinical symptoms and Hiragana reading ability in children with difficulties in reading and writing:usefulness of a clinical-symptoms-checklist].

    PubMed

    Kita, Yosuke; Kobayashi, Tomoka; Koike, Toshihide; Koeda, Tatsuya; Wakamiya, Eiji; Hosokawa, Torn; Kaga, Makiko; Inagaki, Masumi

    2010-11-01

    We investigated the clinical symptoms of children with developmental dyslexia (DD) and evaluated the relationship between these symptoms and their Hiragana reading abilities. In order to detect the clinical symptoms of DD, we newly developed a clinical-symptoms-checklist (CL), which consisted of a total of 30 yes/no questions regarding symptoms linked to reading (15 questions) and writing (15 questions). Subjects were 98 Japanese school grade (1 to 9) children, aged 6 to 15 years old, with normal intelligence confirmed by the Wechsler Intelligence Test for Children (WISC-Ill) and they were divided into 2 groups according to their diagnosis. Twenty four children diagnosed as developmental dyslexia consisted the DD group, and the remaining 74 children were grouped in the non-DD group. CL showed significant construct validity (p<0.05) and inner consistency (reading: a =0.82, writing: a =0.72) after deleting two questions from the originals. The number of questions checked in the CL reading subcategory significantly correlated with the Hiragana reading ability of articulation time in all Hiragana reading tasks (p<0.001). More severe clinical symptoms and lower reading ability were observed in the DD group compared to the non-DD group. Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) analysis indicated that these two groups could be discriminated by the CL and the results of the reading task, and both sensitivity and specificity rate were approximately 80%. It was suggested that 7 or more positive checks in the CL and 2 or more abnormal scores in the reading tasks might discriminate DD from other conditions which cause difficulties in reading and writing in Japanese children.

  20. States, Traits, and Dispositions: The Impact of Emotion on Writing Development and Writing Transfer across College Courses and Beyond

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Driscoll, Dana Lynn; Powell, Roger

    2016-01-01

    Drawing from a five-year longitudinal data set following thirteen college writers through undergraduate writing and beyond, we explore the impact of students' emotions and emotional dispositions on their ability to transfer writing knowledge and on their overall writing development. Participants experienced a range of emotions concerning their…

  1. Cognitive ability in young adulthood predicts risk of early-onset dementia in Finnish men.

    PubMed

    Rantalainen, Ville; Lahti, Jari; Henriksson, Markus; Kajantie, Eero; Eriksson, Johan G; Räikkönen, Katri

    2018-06-06

    To test if the Finnish Defence Forces Basic Intellectual Ability Test scores at 20.1 years predicted risk of organic dementia or Alzheimer disease (AD). Dementia was defined as inpatient or outpatient diagnosis of organic dementia or AD risk derived from Hospital Discharge or Causes of Death Registers in 2,785 men from the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study, divided based on age at first diagnosis into early onset (<65 years) or late onset (≥65 years). The Finnish Defence Forces Basic Intellectual Ability Test comprises verbal, arithmetic, and visuospatial subtests and a total score (scores transformed into a mean of 100 and SD of 15). We used Cox proportional hazard models and adjusted for age at testing, childhood socioeconomic status, mother's age at delivery, parity, participant's birthweight, education, and stroke or coronary heart disease diagnosis. Lower cognitive ability total and verbal ability (hazard ratio [HR] per 1 SD disadvantage >1.69, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.01-2.63) scores predicted higher early-onset any dementia risk across the statistical models; arithmetic and visuospatial ability scores were similarly associated with early-onset any dementia risk, but these associations weakened after covariate adjustments (HR per 1 SD disadvantage >1.57, 95% CI 0.96-2.57). All associations were rendered nonsignificant when we adjusted for participant's education. Cognitive ability did not predict late-onset dementia risk. These findings reinforce previous suggestions that lower cognitive ability in early life is a risk factor for early-onset dementia. © 2018 American Academy of Neurology.

  2. Effect of Instruction on ESL Students' Synthesis Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zhang, Cui

    2013-01-01

    Synthesis writing has become the focus of much greater attention in the past 10 years in L2 EAP contexts. However, research on L2 synthesis writing has been limited, especially with respect to treatment studies that relate writing instruction to the development of synthesis writing abilities. To address this research gap, the present study…

  3. Sharpening the Craft of Scientific Writing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koprowski, John L.

    1997-01-01

    Describes a writing-intensive ecology course designed to foster the development of writing and critiquing skills early in the semester and immerse students in the peer-review process toward the end of the course. By critiquing other scientific papers, students gain insight into the effectiveness of their own writing while also increasing their…

  4. Writing Well: The Long-Term Effect on Empathy, Observation, and Physician Writing Through a Residency Writers' Workshop.

    PubMed

    Lemay, Megan; Encandela, John; Sanders, Lisa; Reisman, Anna

    2017-06-01

    Writing narratives during medical training can provide a way to derive meaning from challenging experiences, enhance reflection, and combat burnout. The Yale Internal Medicine Residency Writers' Workshop, an annual 2-day intensive workshop followed by faculty-guided writing revision and publication, has been training resident physicians in the craft of writing since 2003. The study aimed to assess the long-term effects of a craft-focused writers' workshop for residents on empathy, observation skills, and future writing. A survey of closed and open-ended questions was sent to former workshop participants (2003-2013), who rated and described the workshop's influence on their observation skills, empathy, improvement in writing, and continued informal and formal writing. A total of 89 of 130 participants (68%) completed the online survey. We identified key themes in written responses and collected quantitative ratings on a 5-point Likert scale of self-reported influence on these factors. Simple statistics and narrative analysis were used to derive results. Most participants agreed or strongly agreed that the workshop influenced their ability for careful observation (72 of 85, 85%); ability to be empathic with patients or colleagues (51 of 77, 66%); quality of writing (69 of 77, 90%); and continued formal or informal writing (52 of 77 [68%] and 41 of 77 [53%], respectively). Participants felt the workshop improved their attention to detail, provided a deeper understanding of others' experiences, and improved their writing. Participants in a residency writers' workshop experienced lasting effects on observation, empathy, and writing skills.

  5. Writing Well: The Long-Term Effect on Empathy, Observation, and Physician Writing Through a Residency Writers' Workshop

    PubMed Central

    Encandela, John; Sanders, Lisa; Reisman, Anna

    2017-01-01

    Background Writing narratives during medical training can provide a way to derive meaning from challenging experiences, enhance reflection, and combat burnout. The Yale Internal Medicine Residency Writers' Workshop, an annual 2-day intensive workshop followed by faculty-guided writing revision and publication, has been training resident physicians in the craft of writing since 2003. Objective The study aimed to assess the long-term effects of a craft-focused writers' workshop for residents on empathy, observation skills, and future writing. Methods A survey of closed and open-ended questions was sent to former workshop participants (2003–2013), who rated and described the workshop's influence on their observation skills, empathy, improvement in writing, and continued informal and formal writing. A total of 89 of 130 participants (68%) completed the online survey. We identified key themes in written responses and collected quantitative ratings on a 5-point Likert scale of self-reported influence on these factors. Simple statistics and narrative analysis were used to derive results. Results Most participants agreed or strongly agreed that the workshop influenced their ability for careful observation (72 of 85, 85%); ability to be empathic with patients or colleagues (51 of 77, 66%); quality of writing (69 of 77, 90%); and continued formal or informal writing (52 of 77 [68%] and 41 of 77 [53%], respectively). Participants felt the workshop improved their attention to detail, provided a deeper understanding of others' experiences, and improved their writing. Conclusions Participants in a residency writers' workshop experienced lasting effects on observation, empathy, and writing skills. PMID:28638517

  6. The Effects of Computer-Assisted Instruction Based on Top-Level Structure Method in English Reading and Writing Abilities of Thai EFL Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jinajai, Nattapong; Rattanavich, Saowalak

    2015-01-01

    This research aims to study the development of ninth grade students' reading and writing abilities and interests in learning English taught through computer-assisted instruction (CAI) based on the top-level structure (TLS) method. An experimental group time series design was used, and the data was analyzed by multivariate analysis of variance…

  7. Writing an Independently Composed Sentence by Spanish-Speaking Children with and without Poor Transcription Skills: A Writing-Level Match Design

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Garcia, Eduardo; Crespo, Patricia; Bermúdez, Ivana

    2017-01-01

    The main objective of this research was to analyze the impact of transcription skills of Spanish writers when writing an independently composed sentence within a writing-level design. The free-writing sentence task from the "Early Grade Writing Assessment" (Jiménez, in press) was used to examine the production, accuracy, speed, syntactic…

  8. Descriptive Writing: A Thematic Unit.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smith, Joanna J.

    This thematic unit for teaching descriptive writing is organized around 10 days of lesson plans. The unit begins by asking key questions about descriptive writing and providing information on grade level, ability level, number of lessons and length of classes, and prior knowledge students should have. It also offers a unit rationale and key…

  9. [Talks on evaluation of students' writing (discussion)].

    PubMed

    Terazawa, K; Otaki, J; Abe, K

    2001-09-01

    We talked about the evaluation of students' writing; this is thought to be difficult for teachers. We have a class "history of medicine" for freshmen in the second semester of the medical course. Students give lecture by themselves on famous historical persons in medicine such as Hippocrates, Vesalius, Pasteur and Sackett, referring to their historical significance in present medicine. As the final work of the subject they write report on "clinical medicine or medical researches 20 years in future and myself". We talked generally about educational evaluation in various aspects, concerning the methods for writing. We discussed mainly on two themes--ability to write and originality in thinking. We give a larger point to the originality, which correlates to ability to write, though we feel difficult in evaluating students' originality only by reading their reports. We also emphasize the importance of active interaction between students and teachers, and to evaluate educational activities of teachers in Japanese universities.

  10. To Tell a Story, to Write It: Developmental Patterns of Narrative Skills from Preschool to First Grade

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bigozzi, Lucia; Vettori, Giulia

    2016-01-01

    In this 1-year longitudinal study, the authors explored the development of narrative skills between the oral and written form. The authors aimed to assess the predictive power of textual narrative competence on early narrative text-writing skills taking into account the impact of spelling ability. Eighty children ("M" age = 5.3 years,…

  11. Source-Based Tasks in Writing Independent and Integrated Essays

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gholami, Javad; Alinasab, Mahsa

    2017-01-01

    Integrated writing tasks have gained considerable attention in ESL and EFL writing assessment and are frequently needed and used in academic settings and daily life. However, they are very rarely practiced and promoted in writing classes. This paper explored the effects of source-based writing practice on EFL learners' composing abilities and…

  12. A writing-intensive course improves biology undergraduates' perception and confidence of their abilities to read scientific literature and communicate science.

    PubMed

    Brownell, Sara E; Price, Jordan V; Steinman, Lawrence

    2013-03-01

    Most scientists agree that comprehension of primary scientific papers and communication of scientific concepts are two of the most important skills that we can teach, but few undergraduate biology courses make these explicit course goals. We designed an undergraduate neuroimmunology course that uses a writing-intensive format. Using a mixture of primary literature, writing assignments directed toward a layperson and scientist audience, and in-class discussions, we aimed to improve the ability of students to 1) comprehend primary scientific papers, 2) communicate science to a scientific audience, and 3) communicate science to a layperson audience. We offered the course for three consecutive years and evaluated its impact on student perception and confidence using a combination of pre- and postcourse survey questions and coded open-ended responses. Students showed gains in both the perception of their understanding of primary scientific papers and of their abilities to communicate science to scientific and layperson audiences. These results indicate that this unique format can teach both communication skills and basic science to undergraduate biology students. We urge others to adopt a similar format for undergraduate biology courses to teach process skills in addition to content, thus broadening and strengthening the impact of undergraduate courses.

  13. Exploring the Relationships between Students' Ability of Computer-Based Chinese Input and Other Variables Associated to Their Performances in Composition Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chai, Ching Sing; Wong, Lung-Hsiang; Sim, Seok Hwa; Deng, Feng

    2012-01-01

    Computer-based writing is already a norm to a large extent in social communication for any major language around the world. From this perspective, it would be pedagogically sound for students to master the Chinese input system as early as possible. This poses some challenges to students in Singapore, most of which are learning Chinese as a second…

  14. Change over Time in Children's Co-Constructed Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Harmey, Sinead Judith

    2015-01-01

    The development of expertise in writing is a complex but important achievement for young children as they become literate. Writing is a critical component of literacy development, yet there are few accounts of change over time in early writing development that attend to both changes in writing behaviors, the complexity of written messages, and the…

  15. Early Writing Deficits in Preschoolers with Oral Language Difficulties

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Puranik, Cynthia S.; Lonigan, Christopher J.

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate whether preschool children with language impairments (LI), a group with documented reading difficulties, also experience writing difficulties. In addition, a purpose was to examine if the writing outcomes differed when children had concomitant cognitive deficits in addition to oral language problems. A…

  16. Expanding the Developmental Models of Writing: A Direct and Indirect Effects Model of Developmental Writing (DIEW)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kim, Young-Suk Grace; Schatschneider, Christopher

    2017-01-01

    We investigated direct and indirect effects of component skills on writing (DIEW) using data from 193 children in Grade 1. In this model, working memory was hypothesized to be a foundational cognitive ability for language and cognitive skills as well as transcription skills, which, in turn, contribute to writing. Foundational oral language skills…

  17. Writing: A Mosaic of New Perspectives

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Grigorenko, Elena L., Ed.; Mambrino, Elisa, Ed.; Preiss, David D., Ed.

    2012-01-01

    This book captures the diversity and richness of writing as it relates to different forms of abilities, skills, competencies, and expertise. Psychologists, educators, researchers, and practitioners in neighboring areas are interested in exploring how writing develops and in what manner this development can be fostered, but they lack a handy,…

  18. Building a scholar in writing (BSW): A model for developing students' critical writing skills.

    PubMed

    Bailey, Annette; Zanchetta, Margareth; Velasco, Divine; Pon, Gordon; Hassan, Aafreen

    2015-11-01

    Several authors have highlighted the importance of writing in developing reflective thinking skills, transforming knowledge, communicating expressions, and filling knowledge gaps. However, difficulties with higher order processing and critical analysis affect students' ability to write critical and thoughtful essays. The Building a Scholar in Writing (BSW) model is a 6-step process of increasing intricacies in critical writing development. Development of critical writing is proposed to occur in a processed manner that transitions from presenting simple ideas (just bones) in writing, to connecting ideas (connecting bones), to formulating a thesis and connecting key components (constructing a skeleton), to supporting ideas with evidence (adding muscle), to building creativity and originality (adding essential organs), and finally, developing strong, integrated, critical arguments (adding brain). This process symbolically represents the building of a scholar. The idea of building a scholar equates to progressively giving life and meaning to a piece of writing with unique scholarly characteristics. This progression involves a transformation in awareness, thinking, and understanding, as well as advancement in students' level of critical appraisal skills. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Young Dual Language Learners' Emergent Writing Development

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gillanders, Cristina; Franco, Ximena; Seidel, Kent; Castro, Dina C.; Méndez, Lucía I.

    2017-01-01

    This study examined how early writing develops in Spanish-English-speaking children of Mexican and Central American descent who are dual language learners (DLLs) in the United States. The emergent writing skills in Spanish and English of 140 preschoolers in a multisite study were assessed using name- and word-writing tasks during the children's…

  20. Whys and hows of in-house writing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lane, J. C.

    1981-01-01

    The combining of requisite technical knowledge with requisite writing ability is addressed. Considerations in the development of in-house writing courses, in-plant training, are presented and evaluated. Specific problems in past methodology are also detailed. It is suggested that teachers of technical writing should be technical people themselves, preferably with working experience in industry or business; the training provided should be user-oriented, not theory oriented.

  1. Developmental patterns of spatial ability: an early sex difference.

    PubMed

    Johnson, E S; Meade, A C

    1987-06-01

    Over 1,800 public school students (grades K-12, ages 6-18) took a battery of 7 spatial tests tailored to their respective developmental levels. Analyses of resulting data indicate that it is feasible to measure spatial ability throughout this developmental range with modified versions of adult paper-and-pencil tests, that a male advantage in spatial performance appears reliably by age 10, and that the magnitude of the advantage remains constant through age 18. Analysis of covariance suggests that an early female precocity in language skills may mask a male advantage in spatial ability during the primary school years. There is no indication of a sex difference in kindergarten children.

  2. Listening for the Squeaky Wheel: Designing Distance Writing Program Assessment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tucker, Virginia M.

    2012-01-01

    Distance writing programs still struggle with assessment strategies that can evaluate student writing as well as their ability to communicate about that writing with peers at a distance. This article uses Kim, Smith and Maeng's 2008 distance education program assessment scheme to evaluate a single distance writing program at Old Dominion…

  3. Flexible nonlinear estimates of the association between height and mental ability in early life.

    PubMed

    Murasko, Jason E

    2014-01-01

    To estimate associations between early-life mental ability and height/height-growth in contemporary US children. Structured additive regression models are used to flexibly estimate the associations between height and mental ability at approximately 24 months of age. The sample is taken from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort, a national study whose target population was children born in the US during 2001. A nonlinear association is indicated between height and mental ability at approximately 24 months of age. There is an increasing association between height and mental ability below the mean value of height, but a flat association thereafter. Annualized growth shows the same nonlinear association to ability when controlling for baseline length at 9 months. Restricted growth at lower values of the height distribution is associated with lower measured mental ability in contemporary US children during the first years of life. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  4. Pattern of mathematic representation ability in magnetic electricity problem

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hau, R. R. H.; Marwoto, P.; Putra, N. M. D.

    2018-03-01

    The mathematic representation ability in solving magnetic electricity problem gives information about the way students understand magnetic electricity. Students have varied mathematic representation pattern ability in solving magnetic electricity problem. This study aims to determine the pattern of students' mathematic representation ability in solving magnet electrical problems.The research method used is qualitative. The subject of this study is the fourth semester students of UNNES Physics Education Study Program. The data collection is done by giving a description test that refers to the test of mathematical representation ability and interview about field line topic and Gauss law. The result of data analysis of student's mathematical representation ability in solving magnet electric problem is categorized into high, medium and low category. The ability of mathematical representations in the high category tends to use a pattern of making known and asked symbols, writing equations, using quantities of physics, substituting quantities into equations, performing calculations and final answers. The ability of mathematical representation in the medium category tends to use several patterns of writing the known symbols, writing equations, using quantities of physics, substituting quantities into equations, performing calculations and final answers. The ability of mathematical representations in the low category tends to use several patterns of making known symbols, writing equations, substituting quantities into equations, performing calculations and final answer.

  5. Does early communication mediate the relationship between motor ability and social function in children with cerebral palsy?

    PubMed

    Lipscombe, Belinda; Boyd, Roslyn N; Coleman, Andrea; Fahey, Michael; Rawicki, Barry; Whittingham, Koa

    2016-01-01

    Children diagnosed with neurodevelopmental conditions such as cerebral palsy (CP) are at risk of experiencing restrictions in social activities negatively impacting their subsequent social functioning. Research has identified motor and communication ability as being unique determinants of social function capabilities in children with CP, to date, no research has investigated whether communication is a mediator of the relationship between motor ability and social functioning. To investigate whether early communication ability at 24 months corrected age (ca.) mediates the relationship between early motor ability at 24 months ca. and later social development at 60 months ca. in a cohort of children diagnosed with cerebral palsy (CP). A cohort of 71 children (43 male) diagnosed with CP (GMFCS I=24, 33.8%, II=9, 12.7%, III=12, 16.9%, IV=10, 14.1%, V=16, 22.5%) were assessed at 24 and 60 months ca. Assessments included the Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM), the Communication and Symbolic Behaviour Scales-Developmental Profile (CSBS-DP) Infant-Toddler Checklist and the Paediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI). A mediation model was examined using bootstrapping. Early communication skills mediated the relationship between early motor abilities and later social functioning, b=0.24 (95% CI=0.08-0.43 and the mediation model was significant, F (2, 68)=32.77, p<0.001, R(2)=0.49. Early communication ability partially mediates the relationship between early motor ability and later social function in children with CP. This demonstrates the important role of early communication in ongoing social development. Early identification of communication delay and enriched language exposure is crucial in this population. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. The Peter Effect in Early Experimental Education Research

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Little, Joseph

    2003-01-01

    One of the signatures of scientific writing is its ability to present the claims of science as if they were "untouched by human hands." In the early years of experimental education, researchers achieved this by adopting a citational practice that led to the sedimentation of their cardinal method, the analysis of variance, and their standard for…

  7. Between Technological Endorsement and Resistance: The State of Online Writing Centers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Neaderhiser, Stephen; Wolfe, Joanna

    2009-01-01

    Over the past two decades, writing centers have steadily been expanding services and materials they offer online. The way students write and communicate about their writing continues to change, and the writing center has increasingly been looked upon as a site through which technology and writing have the ability to converge in the form of…

  8. Argument-Driven Inquiry as a Way to Help Undergraduate Students Write to Learn by Learning to Write in Chemistry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sampson, Victor; Phelps Walker, Joi

    2012-07-01

    This exploratory study examined how undergraduate students' ability to write in science changed over time as they completed a series of laboratory activities designed using a new instructional model called argument-driven inquiry. The study was conducted in a single section of an undergraduate general chemistry lab course offered at a large two-year community college located in the southeast USA. The intervention took place over a 15-week semester and consisted of six laboratory activities. During each laboratory activity, the undergraduates wrote investigation reports, participated in a double-blind group peer review of the reports, and revised their reports based on the reviews. The reports written during each laboratory activity were used to examine changes in the students' writing skills over time and to identify aspects of scientific writing that were the most difficult for the undergraduates in this context. The reviews produced by the students during each report were used to evaluate how well undergraduates engage in the peer-review process. The results of a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the reports and reviews indicate that the participants made significant improvements in their ability to write in science and were able to evaluate the quality of their peers' writing with a relatively high degree of accuracy, but they also struggled with several aspects of scientific writing. The conclusions and implications of the study include recommendations for helping undergraduate students learn to write by writing to learn in science and new directions for future research.

  9. The Impact of First and Second Languages on Azerbaijani EFL Learners' Writing Ability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shabani, Mansour; Tahriri, Abdorreza; Ardebili, Samaneh Farzaneh

    2016-01-01

    There has always been a debate whether or not the learners' first language (L1) can facilitate the process of learning foreign language. Since foreign language writing (FL) is a complicated process, it seems that the role of the learners' L1 and its effect on FL writing is of great importance in this regard. The present study aimed at…

  10. Whole Language--Writing: The Critical Response.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jochum, Julie

    1989-01-01

    Writers of all ages and abilities come to the act of writing with three critical needs: (1) they need a commitment of time; (2) they need ownership over their topics; and, most important, (3) they need a response to their personal revelations. Sharing and responding to student writing can take place in writers' circles and writers' conferences. In…

  11. Promoting Linguistic Complexity, Greater Message Length and Ease of Engagement in Email Writing in People with Aphasia: Initial Evidence from a Study Utilizing Assistive Writing Software

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thiel, Lindsey; Sage, Karen; Conroy, Paul

    2017-01-01

    Background: Improving email writing in people with aphasia could enhance their ability to communicate, promote interaction and reduce isolation. Spelling therapies have been effective in improving single-word writing. However, there has been limited evidence on how to achieve changes to everyday writing tasks such as email writing in people with…

  12. Hand orthosis as a writing aid in writer's cramp.

    PubMed

    Taş, N; Karataş, G K; Sepici, V

    2001-11-01

    Writer's cramp is a focal, task-specific dystonia of the hand and wrist. It primarily affects people who do a significant amount of writing, and causes difficulties in writing. We present five cases with writer's cramp who showed improvement in their writing ability with an applied hand orthosis. Copyright 2001 Movement Disorder Society.

  13. Three steps to writing adaptive study protocols in the early phase clinical development of new medicines

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    This article attempts to define terminology and to describe a process for writing adaptive, early phase study protocols which are transparent, self-intuitive and uniform. It provides a step by step guide, giving templates from projects which received regulatory authorisation and were successfully performed in the UK. During adaptive studies evolving data is used to modify the trial design and conduct within the protocol-defined remit. Adaptations within that remit are documented using non-substantial protocol amendments which do not require regulatory or ethical review. This concept is efficient in gathering relevant data in exploratory early phase studies, ethical and time- and cost-effective. PMID:24980283

  14. Doing Academic Writing in Education: Connecting the Personal and the Professional

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Richards, Janet C.; Miller, Sharon K.

    2005-01-01

    This clear, reader-friendly book is carefully designed to help readers gain confidence and acquire competence in their academic writing abilities. It focuses on real people as they write and actively involves readers in the writing process. The authors' innovative approach encourages reflection on how professional writing initiatives connect to…

  15. Early Life Conditions, Adverse Life Events, and Chewing Ability at Middle and Later Adulthood

    PubMed Central

    Watt, Richard G.; Tsakos, Georgios

    2014-01-01

    Objectives. We sought to determine the extent to which early life conditions and adverse life events impact chewing ability in middle and later adulthood. Methods. Secondary analyses were conducted based on data from waves 2 and 3 of the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), collected in the years 2006 to 2009 and encompassing information on current chewing ability and the life history of persons aged 50 years or older from 13 European countries. Logistic regression models were estimated with sequential inclusion of explanatory variables representing living conditions in childhood and adverse life events. Results. After controlling for current determinants of chewing ability at age 50 years or older, certain childhood and later life course socioeconomic, behavioral, and cognitive factors became evident as correlates of chewing ability at age 50 years or older. Specifically, childhood financial hardship was identified as an early life predictor of chewing ability at age 50 years or older (odds ratio = 1.58; 95% confidence interval = 1.22, 2.06). Conclusions. Findings suggest a potential enduring impact of early life conditions and adverse life events on oral health in middle and later adulthood and are relevant for public health decision-makers who design strategies for optimal oral health. PMID:24625140

  16. The Writing Experiences and Beliefs of Secondary Teacher Candidates

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Daisey, Peggy

    2009-01-01

    Writing affords students an opportunity to clarify their thinking. Through the process of writing, students recognize what they know and what they still need to learn. Teachers need to provide positive writing experiences that promote student enjoyment, as well as help students to express themselves with clarity and power. The ability of a teacher…

  17. Diagnosing EAP Writing Ability Using the Reduced Reparameterized Unified Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kim, Youn-Hee

    2011-01-01

    Despite the increasing interest in and need for test information for use in instructional practice and student learning, there have been few attempts to systematically link a diagnostic approach to English for academic purposes (EAP) writing instruction and assessment. In response to this need for research, this study examined the extent to which…

  18. The Groove of Growth: How Early Gains in Math Ability Influence Adolescent Achievement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Watts, Tyler W.; Duncan, Greg J.; Siegler, Robert S.; Davis-Kean, Pamela E.

    2014-01-01

    A number of studies, both small scale and of nationally-representative student samples, have reported substantial associations between school entry math ability and later elementary school achievement. However, questions remain regarding the persistence of the association between early growth in math ability and later math achievement due to the…

  19. The Role of Reading Strategies in Integrated L2 Writing Tasks

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Plakans, Lia

    2009-01-01

    Integrated second-language writing tasks elicit writing performances that involve other abilities such as reading or listening. Thus, understanding the role of these other abilities is necessary for interpreting performance on such tasks. This study used an inductive analysis of think-aloud protocol data and interviews to uncover the reading…

  20. Writing over Time: An Analysis of Texts Created by Year One Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mackenzie, Noella M.; Scull, Janet; Bowles, Terry

    2015-01-01

    Writing is a key area of literacy in the early years, however writing receives less research attention than reading despite its impact on students' learning generally, and literacy development specifically. Writing skills have also been shown to be quite stable--good writers in the early years stay good writers in the later years. Therefore it is…

  1. A novel approach to improving writing skills: ClimateSnack

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Reeve, Mathew

    2014-05-01

    Writing is a huge part of any research career. We can think of writing as a research tool we find in any research laboratory. Much like any research tool, we have to understand how to calibrate, adjust and apply it in order to achieve the very best experimental outcomes. We can learn how to use this tool with advice from writing workshops, online writing courses, books and so on. Unfortunately, when it comes to working with this tool, we often have to do it alone. But, like in any laboratory, the most rewarding way to learn and to achieve the best results is to interact with others. Through this interaction, we can improve our writing and remain motivated. ClimateSnack aims to help early career scientists understand how they can use writing as an effective research tool. We encourage the formation of writing groups at different universities and institutes. Members write short popular science articles and read them aloud at group meetings. The group uses knowledge from different learning resources to discuss the articles and give feedback. The author then improves their writing further before publishing on the ClimateSnack website. If early-career scientists can successfully increase their control of writing, they will more likely write memorable high-impact scientific articles, and confidently communicate their science via varied media to varied audiences.

  2. The role of ability, motivation, and opportunity to work in the transition from work to early retirement--testing and optimizing the Early Retirement Model.

    PubMed

    de Wind, Astrid; Geuskens, Goedele A; Ybema, Jan Fekke; Bongers, Paulien M; van der Beek, Allard J

    2015-01-01

    Determinants in the domains health, job characteristics, skills, and social and financial factors may influence early retirement through three central explanatory variables, namely, the ability, motivation, and opportunity to work. Based on the literature, we created the Early Retirement Model. This study aims to investigate whether data support the model and how it could be improved. Employees aged 58-62 years (N=1862), who participated in the first three waves of the Dutch Study on Transitions in Employment, Ability and Motivation (STREAM) were included. Determinants were assessed at baseline, central explanatory variables after one year, and early retirement after two years. Structural equation modeling was applied. Testing the Early Retirement Model resulted in a model with good fit. Health, job characteristics, skills, and social and financial factors were related to the ability, motivation and/or opportunity to work (significant β range: 0.05-0.31). Lower work ability (β=-0.13) and less opportunity to work (attitude colleagues and supervisor about working until age 65: β=-0.24) predicted early retirement, whereas the motivation to work (work engagement) did not. The model could be improved by adding direct effects of three determinants on early retirement, ie, support of colleagues and supervisor (β=0.14), positive attitude of the partner with respect to early retirement (β=0.15), and not having a partner (β=-0.13). The Early Retirement Model was largely supported by the data but could be improved. The prolongation of working life might be promoted by work-related interventions focusing on health, work ability, the social work climate, social norms on prolonged careers, and the learning environment.

  3. Scientific writing: strategies and tools for students and advisors.

    PubMed

    Singh, Vikash; Mayer, Philipp

    2014-01-01

    Scientific writing is a demanding task and many students need more time than expected to finish their research articles. To speed up the process, we highlight some tools, strategies as well as writing guides. We recommend starting early in the research process with writing and to prepare research articles, not after but in parallel to the lab or field work. We suggest considering scientific writing as a team enterprise, which needs proper organization and regular feedback. In addition, it is helpful to select potential target journals early and to consider not only scope and reputation, but also decision times and rejection rates. Before submission, instructions to authors and writing guides should be considered, and drafts should be extensively revised. Later in the process editor's and reviewer's comments should be followed. Our tips and tools help students and advisors to structure the writing and publishing process, thereby stimulating them to develop their own strategies to success. Copyright © 2014 The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

  4. Dimensionality and Reliability of Letter Writing in 3- to 5-Year-Old Preschool Children

    PubMed Central

    Puranik, Cynthia S.; Petscher, Yaacov; Lonigan, Christopher J.

    2015-01-01

    The primary purpose of this study was to examine the dimensionality and reliability of letter writing skills in preschool children with the aim of determining whether a sequence existed in how children learn to write the letters of the alphabet. Additionally, we examined gender differences in the development of letter writing skills. 471 children aged 3 to 5 years old completed a letter writing task. Results from factor analyses indicated that letter writing represented a unidimensional skill. Similar to research findings that the development of letter-names and letter-sound knowledge varies in acquisition, our findings indicate that the ability to write some letters is acquired earlier than the ability to write other letters. Although there appears to be an approximate sequence for the easiest and most difficult letters, there appears to be a less clear sequence for letters in the middle stages of development. Overall, girls had higher letter writing scores compared to boys. Gender differences regarding difficulty writing specific letters was less conclusive; however, results indicated that when controlling for ability level, girls had a higher probability of writing a letter correctly than boys. Implications of these findings for the assessment and instruction of letter writing are discussed. PMID:26346443

  5. Helping Students Write about Science without Plagiarizing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wheeler-Toppen, Jodi

    2006-01-01

    Writing is an integral part of science. The growth of scientific knowledge depends on scientists' ability to record their thoughts and discoveries for future scientists to build on. Everyday literacy is the basis of scientific literacy. In addition, writing about science helps students learn science. In order to transfer science concepts from what…

  6. The Influence of Spelling Ability on Vocabulary Choices When Writing for Children with Dyslexia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sumner, Emma; Connelly, Vincent; Barnett, Anna L.

    2016-01-01

    Spelling is a prerequisite to expressing vocabulary in writing. Research has shown that children with dyslexia are hesitant spellers when composing. This study aimed to determine whether the hesitant spelling of children with dyslexia, evidenced by frequent pausing, affects vocabulary choices when writing. A total of 31 children with dyslexia,…

  7. Using the Literary Journal for More than Literary Writing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carbaugh, James Christopher

    1989-01-01

    Describes how the school literary journal can be used to publish students' writing about public affairs to add new dimensions to the journal and transform it to a comprehensive display of students' interests and writing abilities. (MG)

  8. Invisible Writing: An Intervention for Examining Cognitive Processes in Composition.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Blau, Sheridan

    To demonstrate how discourse tasks can differ in their cognitive difficulties, students in a graduate course on the teaching of writing participated in a procedure called "invisible writing." The purpose was to show the students that as they took on more cognitively demanding writing tasks, their ability to produce coherent discourse…

  9. Sustaining Preschoolers' Engagement during Interactive Writing Lessons

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hall, Anna H.

    2016-01-01

    Interactive writing is a developmentally appropriate activity used to enhance children's literacy development in the preschool setting. This article describes the unique needs of preschoolers as emerging writers, including their developing fine motor skills, early literacy skills, and social skills related to group writing. Strategies are provided…

  10. Who needs innate ability to succeed in math and literacy? Academic-domain-specific theories of intelligence about peers versus adults.

    PubMed

    Gunderson, Elizabeth A; Hamdan, Noora; Sorhagen, Nicole S; D'Esterre, Alexander P

    2017-06-01

    Individuals' implicit theories of intelligence exist on a spectrum, from believing intelligence is fixed and unchangeable, to believing it is malleable and can be improved with effort. A belief in malleable intelligence leads to adaptive responses to challenge and higher achievement. However, surprisingly little is known about the development of academic-domain-specific theories of intelligence (i.e., math vs. reading and writing). The authors examined this in a cross-section of students from 1st grade to college (N = 523). They also examined whether students hold different beliefs about the role of fixed ability in adult jobs versus their own grade. The authors' adult-specific beliefs hypothesis states that when children learn societally held beliefs from adults, they first apply these beliefs specifically to adults and later to students their own age. Consistent with this, even the youngest students (1st and 2nd graders) believed that success in an adult job requires more fixed ability in math than reading and writing. However, when asked about students in their own grade, only high school and college students reported that math involves more fixed ability than reading and writing. High school and college students' math-specific theories of intelligence were related to their motivation and achievement in math, controlling for reading and writing-specific theories. Reading and writing-specific theories did not predict reading and writing-specific motivations or achievement, perhaps because students perceive reading and writing as less challenging than math. In summary, academic-domain-specific theories of intelligence develop early but may not become self-relevant until adolescence, and math-specific beliefs may be especially important targets for intervention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  11. What Children Write: A Phenomenological Approach to Writing Development.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    King, Robert W.

    To examine the differences and the unique qualities of third grade writers in relation to their uses of language and their perception of the world, a selection of writings from 20 third grade students was analyzed for language ability as measured by words per T-unit. Then, two students from the higher and two from the lower end of the scale were…

  12. Vietnamese Learners' Ability to Write English Argumentative Paragraphs: The Role of Peer Feedback Giving

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lap, Trinh Quoc; Yen, Cao Hoang

    2013-01-01

    The nature of peer feedback and its impacts on writing in English has attracted much attention of researchers and educators. Recent studies have indicated various types of peer feedback and its positive effects on writing development. This paper presents the results of an investigation into the nature of peer feedback and its effects on learners'…

  13. Group Dynamic Assessment of L2 Learners' Writing Abilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shabani, Karim

    2018-01-01

    The present study was designed to test a group-based format of dynamic assessment (G-DA) in the context of writing over a time span of twelve weeks of instruction. A cohort of 60 students took a homogeneity test and based on the results, 44 students were selected to participate forming the two groups of experimental (N = 22) and control (N = 22).…

  14. The role of early language abilities on math skills among Chinese children.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Juan; Fan, Xitao; Cheung, Sum Kwing; Meng, Yaxuan; Cai, Zhihui; Hu, Bi Ying

    2017-01-01

    The present study investigated the role of early language abilities in the development of math skills among Chinese K-3 students. About 2000 children in China, who were on average aged 6 years, were assessed for both informal math (e.g., basic number concepts such as counting objects) and formal math (calculations including addition and subtraction) skills, language abilities and nonverbal intelligence. Correlation analysis showed that language abilities were more strongly associated with informal than formal math skills, and regression analyses revealed that children's language abilities could uniquely predict both informal and formal math skills with age, gender, and nonverbal intelligence controlled. Mediation analyses demonstrated that the relationship between children's language abilities and formal math skills was partially mediated by informal math skills. The current findings indicate 1) Children's language abilities are of strong predictive values for both informal and formal math skills; 2) Language abilities impacts formal math skills partially through the mediation of informal math skills.

  15. The role of early language abilities on math skills among Chinese children

    PubMed Central

    Fan, Xitao; Cheung, Sum Kwing; Cai, Zhihui; Hu, Bi Ying

    2017-01-01

    Background The present study investigated the role of early language abilities in the development of math skills among Chinese K-3 students. About 2000 children in China, who were on average aged 6 years, were assessed for both informal math (e.g., basic number concepts such as counting objects) and formal math (calculations including addition and subtraction) skills, language abilities and nonverbal intelligence. Methodology Correlation analysis showed that language abilities were more strongly associated with informal than formal math skills, and regression analyses revealed that children’s language abilities could uniquely predict both informal and formal math skills with age, gender, and nonverbal intelligence controlled. Mediation analyses demonstrated that the relationship between children’s language abilities and formal math skills was partially mediated by informal math skills. Results The current findings indicate 1) Children’s language abilities are of strong predictive values for both informal and formal math skills; 2) Language abilities impacts formal math skills partially through the mediation of informal math skills. PMID:28749950

  16. Differences in the Early Writing Development of Struggling Children Who Beat the Odds and Those Who Did Not

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Harmey, Sinéad J.; Rodgers, Emily M.

    2017-01-01

    We used mixed methods to examine differences in the early writing development of children, identified as at risk of literacy difficulties, in the context of Reading Recovery (RR). From an extant dataset of 24 children, we identified those who made fast progress (n = 6) and those who did not (n = 8). We studied change over time in the sources of…

  17. Children's Reading Ability in Early Primary Schooling: Challenges for a Kenyan Rural Community

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mwoma, Teresa

    2017-01-01

    School outcomes and good performance in different subjects depends on children's ability to read. Thus teaching children on how to read during early grades is critical in promoting learning to read. More advanced skills acquired in later grades depend on early grade learning, so children who do not acquire these reading skills in their early…

  18. A Powerful Tool: Writing Based on Knowledge and Understanding

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ginty, Eloise; Hawkins, Joanna; Kurzman, Karen; Leddy, Diana; Miller, Jane

    2016-01-01

    The National Writing Project (NWP) has contributed enormously and consistently to the effort to help teachers help students learn to write. In the early 1970s, researchers such as Donald Graves and Janet Emig began studying the ways writers go about the task of thinking and producing polished writing. The NWP's book "Because Writing…

  19. Teamwork and Feedback: Broadening the Base of Collaborative Writing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gebhardt, Richard

    Many advocates of collaborative writing place too little emphasis on the emotional benefits of feedback to the writer by restricting group feedback to relatively late points in the writing process. Collaboration is as appropriate during the early stages of writing as it is after the completion of a draft. Students can receive feedback from…

  20. Reading Instruction That Increases Thinking Abilities.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Collins, Cathy

    1991-01-01

    Analyzes the effects of eight reading and writing lessons designed to increase adolescent thinking ability. Finds that the lessons increased thinking abilities and scholastic achievement of middle school students. Notes that the lessons positively affect students' self-esteem and communication skills. (RS)

  1. Ipsilateral printing in children's mirror-writing: a cause of specific learning disabilities?

    PubMed

    Mather, David S

    2012-09-01

    Previous research has demonstrated that young children produce mirror-image letter-reversals when printing their names in a leftward direction from the midline or right margin of their writing paper. This ability is postulated to be an epiphenomenon of a symmetric, proximal (arm) stage of motor development that ontogenetically precedes lateralization of fine-motor distal (finger) control-a stage in which each arm can be controlled by either side of the brain. From this view, canonical writing in right hemi-space is contralaterally mediated by the left hemisphere and mirror-writing in left hemi-space is ipsilaterally mediated by the right hemisphere. However, evidence of right hemisphere canonical letter processing in dyslexia suggests that this is not always the case. Concordantly, an early study corrected reversals by having children print these errors canonically in left hemi-space and then rightward across the midline into right hemi-space. To further understand this behaviour, the present study investigated mirror-writing in three schools (Public, Montessori, and Waldorf) each differing in how writing is introduced. It was hypothesised that there would be no school-differences in mirror-writing if printing had been learned before school-entry and that some children would produce reversals in right hemi-space that were canonically written in left-hemi-space (inverse reversals)-the opposite of the normal pattern. The results showed that 39% of the children demonstrated these inverse reversals. It is discussed how this unexpectedly high incidence may be foundational in the development of the phonologically proficient and deficient subtypes of dyslexia, spelling-dysgraphia, and the left-hand inverted writing posture.

  2. Using Writing in Mathematics to Deepen Student Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Urquhart, Vicki

    2009-01-01

    Writing is the ability to compose text effectively for different purposes and audiences. When many of us reflect on our own school experiences, we recall writing in English and history classes, but not in mathematics. Math classes previously relied on skill-building and conceptual understanding activities. Today, teachers are realizing that…

  3. Medical Writing Competency Model - Section 1: Functions, Tasks, and Activities.

    PubMed

    Clemow, David B; Wagner, Bertil; Marshallsay, Christopher; Benau, Dan; L'Heureux, Darryl; Brown, David H; Dasgupta, Devjani Ghosh; Girten, Eileen; Hubbard, Frank; Gawrylewski, Helle-Mai; Ebina, Hiroko; Stoltenborg, Janet; York, J P; Green, Kim; Wood, Linda Fossati; Toth, Lisa; Mihm, Michael; Katz, Nancy R; Vasconcelos, Nina-Maria; Sakiyama, Norihisa; Whitsell, Robin; Gopalakrishnan, Shobha; Bairnsfather, Susan; Wanderer, Tatyana; Schindler, Thomas M; Mikyas, Yeshi; Aoyama, Yumiko

    2018-01-01

    This article provides Section 1 of the 2017 Edition 2 Medical Writing Competency Model that describes the core work functions and associated tasks and activities related to professional medical writing within the life sciences industry. The functions in the Model are scientific communication strategy; document preparation, development, and finalization; document project management; document template, standard, format, and style development and maintenance; outsourcing, alliance partner, and client management; knowledge, skill, ability, and behavior development and sharing; and process improvement. The full Model also includes Section 2, which covers the knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors needed for medical writers to be effective in their roles; Section 2 is presented in a companion article. Regulatory, publication, and other scientific writing as well as management of writing activities are covered. The Model was developed to aid medical writers and managers within the life sciences industry regarding medical writing hiring, training, expectation and goal setting, performance evaluation, career development, retention, and role value sharing to cross-functional partners.

  4. Quality Standards Matter: A Comparative Case Study Examining Interactive Writing in the Preschool Setting

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hall, Anna H.

    2017-01-01

    Interactive writing is a research-based early literacy strategy that has been found effective at increasing young children's oral language skills, alphabet knowledge, phonemic awareness, concepts of print, and early writing skills. This paper reports on a case study which explored the feasibility and fidelity of implementing interactive writing in…

  5. Scientific Writing: Strategies and Tools for Students and Advisors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Singh, Vikash; Mayer, Philipp

    2014-01-01

    Scientific writing is a demanding task and many students need more time than expected to finish their research articles. To speed up the process, we highlight some tools, strategies as well as writing guides. We recommend starting early in the research process with writing and to prepare research articles, not after but in parallel to the lab or…

  6. Writing as Thinking

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Menary, Richard

    2007-01-01

    In this paper I aim to show that the creation and manipulation of written vehicles is part of our cognitive processing and, therefore, that writing transforms our cognitive abilities. I do this from the perspective of cognitive integration: completing a complex cognitive, or mental, task is enabled by a co-ordinated interaction between neural…

  7. Musical, language, and reading abilities in early Portuguese readers

    PubMed Central

    Zuk, Jennifer; Andrade, Paulo E.; Andrade, Olga V. C. A.; Gardiner, Martin; Gaab, Nadine

    2013-01-01

    Early language and reading abilities have been shown to correlate with a variety of musical skills and elements of music perception in children. It has also been shown that reading impaired children can show difficulties with music perception. However, it is still unclear to what extent different aspects of music perception are associated with language and reading abilities. Here we investigated the relationship between cognitive-linguistic abilities and a music discrimination task that preserves an ecologically valid musical experience. 43 Portuguese-speaking students from an elementary school in Brazil participated in this study. Children completed a comprehensive cognitive-linguistic battery of assessments. The music task was presented live in the music classroom, and children were asked to code sequences of four sounds on the guitar. Results show a strong relationship between performance on the music task and a number of linguistic variables. A principle component analysis of the cognitive-linguistic battery revealed that the strongest component (Prin1) accounted for 33% of the variance and Prin1 was significantly related to the music task. Highest loadings on Prin1 were found for reading measures such as Reading Speed and Reading Accuracy. Interestingly, 22 children recorded responses for more than four sounds within a trial on the music task, which was classified as Superfluous Responses (SR). SR was negatively correlated with a variety of linguistic variables and showed a negative correlation with Prin1. When analyzing children with and without SR separately, only children with SR showed a significant correlation between Prin1 and the music task. Our results provide implications for the use of an ecologically valid music-based screening tool for the early identification of reading disabilities in a classroom setting. PMID:23785339

  8. Mirror writing in pre-school children: a pilot study.

    PubMed

    Cubelli, Roberto; Della Sala, Sergio

    2009-05-01

    Mirror writing refers to the production of individual letters, whole words or sentences in reverse direction. Unintentional mirror writing has been observed in young children learning to write and interpreted as the manifestation of different cognitive impairments. We report on mirror writing instances in a sample of 108 pre-school children. Results showed MW to be age-related but independent from handedness and left-right discrimination abilities. We propose an account of mirror writing as reflecting dissociation between acquired motor programmes for letter shape composition and unspecified spatial direction of hand movements. Before learning to write, the child's directional cognitive system is assumed to be dichotomous, thus inducing the production of randomly oriented asymmetrical letters.

  9. Radical Feminism and the Subject of Writing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rhodes, Jacqueline

    The radical feminists of the late 1960s and early 1970s, as well as their online counterparts today, offer provocative examples of networked textuality, a discourse dependent on the constant and visible contextualization of self and writing within the discourses of hegemony. Given its potential use for liberatory writing pedagogies, it seems…

  10. Evaluation of Secondary School Students' Writing Fluency Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Atasoy, Arzu; Temizkan, Mehmet

    2016-01-01

    Developed to evaluate secondary school students' writing fluency skills, this study is descriptive in nature and uses a mixed method approach. During the research, the researcher attempted to identify students' abilities to write in terms of quantity and complexity, on the one hand, and also attempted to identify findings on accuracy, the…

  11. Using the Composing Process and Positive Reinforcement to Teach College Basic Students to Write.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Milligan, Janice

    Following a literature review on the subjects of the decline in student writing abilities and increased student writing apprehension, this paper offers teachers information on a basic writing program that reduces writing anxiety and improves writing skills through large doses of positive reinforcement. The second section of the paper discusses the…

  12. The Impact of Self-Assessment on Language Learners' Writing Skill

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mazloomi, Siamak; Khabiri, Mona

    2018-01-01

    The present study investigates the impact of self-assessment (SA) training applied as a writing task and a dynamic assessment on English language learners' writing ability and explores the changes in their language proficiency level. This quasi-experimental research on two homogenised essay writing classes of 60 Iranian university students at…

  13. The Implementation of Team-Based Discovery Learning to Improve Students' Ability in Writing Research Proposal

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arifani, Yudhi

    2016-01-01

    Writing research proposal in educational setting is a very complex process involving variety of elements. Consequently, analyzing the complex elements from introduction to data analysis sections in order to yield convinced research proposal writing through reviewing reputable journal articles is worth-contributing. The objectives of this research…

  14. The Utility of Writing Assignments in Undergraduate Bioscience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Libarkin, Julie; Ording, Gabriel

    2012-01-01

    We tested the hypothesis that engagement in a few, brief writing assignments in a nonmajors science course can improve student ability to convey critical thought about science. A sample of three papers written by students (n = 30) was coded for presence and accuracy of elements related to scientific writing. Scores for different aspects of…

  15. Teaching Chinese College ESL Writing: A Genre-Based Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yang, Yilong

    2016-01-01

    College students' English writing plays a vital role in their language learning and further education. However, the current college English teaching falls far behind to resolve this issue, which includes insufficient writing ability compared with that of listening and speaking, inadequate teacher instruction and students' exercise, negative…

  16. Thinking through Writing. Lord Fairfax Community College, 1990-1992.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lord Fairfax Community Coll., Middletown, VA.

    In an attempt to improve its students' writing abilities, as well as their critical thinking skills, Lord Fairfax Community College, in Virginia, developed a program called "Thinking through Writing." The project designers believed that concept formation, classification, memory enhancement, and other learning/thinking skills could be…

  17. Writing for Science Literacy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chamberlin, Shannon Marie

    Scientific literacy is the foundation on which both California's currently adopted science standards and the recommended new standards for science are based (CDE, 2000; NRC, 2011). The Writing for Science Literacy (WSL) curriculum focuses on a series of writing and discussion tasks aimed at increasing students' scientific literacy. These tasks are based on three teaching and learning constructs: thought and language, scaffolding, and meta-cognition. To this end, WSL is focused on incorporating several strategies from the Rhetorical Approach to Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking to engage students in activities designed to increase their scientific literacy; their ability to both identify an author's claim and evidence and to develop their own arguments based on a claim and evidence. Students participated in scaffolded activities designed to strengthen their written and oral discourse, hone their rhetorical skills and improve their meta-cognition. These activities required students to participate in both writing and discussion tasks to create meaning and build their science content knowledge. Students who participated in the WSL curriculum increased their written and oral fluency and were able to accurately write an evidence-based conclusion all while increasing their conceptual knowledge. This finding implies that a discourse rich curriculum can lead to an increase in scientific knowledge.

  18. Improvement of Speaking Ability through Interrelated Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Liao, Guoqiang

    2009-01-01

    How to improve students' ability of speaking English? That is the key point we are concerned about. This paper discusses the possibility and necessity of improving students' ability by combining the four skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing.

  19. Early development of language by hand: composing, reading, listening, and speaking connections; three letter-writing modes; and fast mapping in spelling.

    PubMed

    Berninger, Virginia W; Abbott, Robert D; Jones, Janine; Wolf, Beverly J; Gould, Laura; Anderson-Youngstrom, Marci; Shimada, Shirley; Apel, Kenn

    2006-01-01

    The first findings from a 5-year, overlapping-cohorts longitudinal study of typical language development are reported for (a) the interrelationships among Language by Ear (listening), Mouth (speaking), Eye (reading), and Hand (writing) in Cohort 1 in 1st and 3rd grade and Cohort 2 in 3rd and 5th grade; (b) the interrelationships among three modes of Language by Hand (writing manuscript letters with pen and keyboard and cursive letters with pen) in each cohort in the same grade levels as (a); and (c) the ability of the 1st graders in Cohort 1 and the 3rd graders in Cohort 2 to apply fast mapping in learning to spell pseudowords. Results showed that individual differences in Listening Comprehension, Oral Expression, Reading Comprehension, and Written Expression are stable developmentally, but each functional language system is only moderately correlated with the others. Likewise, manuscript writing, cursive writing, and keyboarding are only moderately correlated, and each has a different set of unique neuropsychological predictors depending on outcome measure and grade level. Results support the use of the following neuropsychological measures in assessing handwriting modes: orthographic coding, rapid automatic naming, finger succession (grapho-motor planning for sequential finger movements), inhibition, inhibition/switching, and phonemes skills (which may facilitate transfer of abstract letter identities across letter formats and modes of production). Both 1st and 3rd graders showed evidence of fast mapping of novel spoken word forms onto written word forms over 3 brief sessions (2 of which involved teaching) embedded in the assessment battery; and this fast mapping explained unique variance in their spelling achievement over and beyond their orthographic and phonological coding abilities and correlated significantly with current and next-year spelling achievement.

  20. Second and Fourth Graders' Copying Ability: From Graphical to Linguistic Processing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Grabowski, Joachim; Weinzierl, Christian; Schmitt, Markus

    2010-01-01

    Particularly in primary school, good performance on copy tasks is an important working technique. With respect to writing skills, copying is a very basic process on which more complex writing abilities are based. We studied the copying ability of second and fourth graders across four types of symbols which vary with respect to their semantic and…

  1. Achieving Consistency in Writing across the Curriculum

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Andersen, Richard

    2003-01-01

    From the early 1900s to the present, there have always been inconsistencies in how teachers evaluate the writing quality of their students' essays. Their critiques vary as much as their personalities. To establish common standards in writing for all courses in which essays are assigned and, at the same time, not infringe on the integrity of…

  2. Writeaerobics: 40 Workshop Exercises To Improve Your Writing Teaching. Bill Harp Professional Teachers Library.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thomason, Tommy

    To teach writing well, teachers need three things: first, they have to understand writing itself, as well as writing pedagogy; second, they need to be writers themselves; and third, they need to know how to communicate their knowledge about writing effectively to their students. This book is based on the premise that writing ability--and teaching…

  3. Using a Focus on Revision to Improve Students' Writing Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    O'Neill, Kathryn S.; Gravois, Renée

    2017-01-01

    The ability to write clearly and correctly is essential for students both in college and as they enter the workforce. One challenge we find in coaching student writing is that students shy away from engaging fully with writing as a process, especially with revising their drafts. It is important across Business courses, not just in Business…

  4. The Prewriting of Unsuccessful Writers on Timed Writing Competence Tests.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chiste, Katherine Beaty; O'Shea, Judith

    1990-01-01

    Examines the characteristics of prewriting activities of unsuccessful writers who took the Alberta Universities' Writing Competence Test. Finds that the students' limited and ineffective use of prewriting strategies interferes with their ability to generate and develop ideas in writing a timed essay. (KEH)

  5. The Effect of Online Peer Feedback on the Academic Writing Ability of Iranian EFL Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moradi, Mohammad Reza; Karimpour, Zahra

    2012-01-01

    This paper reports an exploratory study of 60 English as a foreign language (EFL) student's experiences of online peer feedback in an essay writing course at Islamic Azad University, Dezful Branch. They were required to comment on their peers' writing essays using the checklist to whom had been made available, but in different ways. The groups…

  6. A Self-Assessment Checklist for Undergraduate Students' Argumentative Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nimehchisalem, Vahid; Chye, David Yoong Soon; Jaswant Singh, Sheena Kaur A/P; Zainuddin, Siti Zaidah; Norouzi, Sara; Khalid, Sheren

    2014-01-01

    With a growing emphasis on students' ability to assess their own written works in teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) writing courses, self-assessment checklists are today regarded as useful tools. These checklists can help learners diagnose their own weaknesses and improve their writing performance. This necessitates development of…

  7. Cultural Intelligence and Writing Ability: Delving into Fluency, Accuracy and Complexity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ghonsooly, Behzad; Shalchy, Somayye

    2013-01-01

    Over the recent decades, cultural intelligence, now referred to as CQ has become a burgeoning area of research in the domain of business and management. Given the paucity of research on the effects of CQ on second or foreign language learning especially writing, this study intends to examine the effects of CQ on L2 learners' written performance…

  8. What Do We Mean by Writing Fluency and How Can It Be Validly Measured?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Abdel Latif, Muhammad M. Mahmoud

    2013-01-01

    Fluency is an essential component in writing ability and development. Writing fluency research is important to researchers and teachers interested in facilitating students' written text production and in assessing writing. This calls for reaching a better understanding of writing fluency and how it should be measured. Although fluency is the…

  9. Fluency and Accuracy in Alphabet Writing by Keyboarding: A Cross-Sectional Study in Spanish-Speaking Children With and Without Learning Disabilities.

    PubMed

    Bisschop, Elaine; Morales, Celia; Gil, Verónica; Jiménez-Suárez, Elizabeth

    The aim of this study was to analyze whether children with and without difficulties in handwriting, spelling, or both differed in alphabet writing when using a keyboard. The total sample consisted of 1,333 children from Grades 1 through 3. Scores on the spelling and handwriting factors from the Early Grade Writing Assessment (Jiménez, in press) were used to assign the participants to one of four groups with different ability patterns: poor handwriters, poor spellers, a mixed group, and typically achieving students. Groups were equalized by a matching strategy, resulting in a final sample of 352 children. A MANOVA was executed to analyze effects of group and grade on orthographic motor integration (fluency of alphabet writing) and the number of omissions when writing the alphabet (accuracy of alphabet writing) by keyboard writing mode. The results indicated that poor handwriters did not differ from typically achieving children in both variables, whereas the poor spellers did perform below the typical achievers and the poor handwriters. The difficulties of poor handwriters seem to be alleviated by the use of the keyboard; however, children with spelling difficulties might need extra instruction to become fluent keyboard writers.

  10. Mirror man: a case of skilled deliberate mirror writing.

    PubMed

    McIntosh, Robert D; De Lucia, Natascia; Della Sala, Sergio

    2014-01-01

    Mirror writing is a striking behaviour that is common in children and can reemerge in adults following brain damage. Skilled deliberate mirror writing has also been reported, but only anecdotally. We provide the first quantitative study of skilled deliberate mirror writing. K.B. can write forward or backward, vertically upright or inverted, with the hands acting alone or simultaneously. K.B. is predominantly left handed, but writes habitually with his right hand. Of his writing formats, his left hand mirror writing is by far the most similar in style to his normal handwriting. When writing bimanually, he performs better when his two hands make mirror-symmetrical movements to write opposite scripts than if they move in the same direction to write similar scripts. He has no special facility for reading mirrored text. These features are consistent with prior anecdotal cases and support a motor basis for K.B.'s ability, according to which his skilled mirror writing results from the left hand execution of a low-level motor program for a right hand abductive writing action. Our methods offer a novel framework for investigating the sharing of motor representations across effectors.

  11. Using Speech Recognition Software to Improve Writing Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Diaz, Felix

    2014-01-01

    Orthopedically impaired (OI) students face a formidable challenge during the writing process due to their limited or non-existing ability to use their hands to hold a pen or pencil or even to press the keys on a keyboard. While they may have a clear mental picture of what they want to write, the biggest hurdle comes well before having to tackle…

  12. Training Advanced Writing Skills: The Case for Deliberate Practice

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kellogg, Ronald T.; Whiteford, Alison P.

    2009-01-01

    The development of advanced writing skills has been neglected in schools of the United States, with even some college graduates lacking the level of ability required in the workplace (National Commission on Writing, 2003, 2004). The core problem, we argue, is an insufficient degree of appropriate task practice distributed throughout the secondary…

  13. Early Adolescent Sexual Debut: The Mediating Role of Working Memory Ability, Sensation Seeking, and Impulsivity

    PubMed Central

    Khurana, Atika; Romer, Daniel; Betancourt, Laura M.; Brodsky, Nancy L.; Giannetta, Joan M.; Hurt, Hallam

    2013-01-01

    Although deficits in working memory ability have been implicated in suboptimal decision making and risk taking among adolescents, its influence on early sexual initiation has so far not been examined. Analyzing 2 waves of panel data from a community sample of adolescents (N = 347; Mean age[baseline] = 13.4 years), assessed 1 year apart, the present study tested the hypothesis that weak working memory ability predicts early sexual initiation and explored whether this relationship is mediated by sensation seeking and 2 forms of impulsivity, namely acting-without-thinking and temporal discounting. The 2 forms of impulsivity were expected to be positively associated with early sexual initiation, whereas sensation seeking was hypothesized to be unrelated or to have a protective influence, due to its positive association with working memory. Results obtained from structural equation modeling procedures supported these predictions and in addition showed that the effects of 3 prominent risk factors (Black racial identity, low socioeconomic background, and early pubertal maturation) on early sexual initiation were entirely mediated by working memory and impulsivity. The findings are discussed in regard to their implications for preventing early sexual onset among adolescents. PMID:22369334

  14. Using Comic Art to Improve Speaking, Reading and Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bowkett, Steve

    2011-01-01

    "Using Comic Art to Improve Speaking, Reading and Writing" uses children's interest in pictures, comics and graphic novels as a way of developing their creative writing abilities, reading skills and oracy. The book's underpinning strategy is the use of comic art images as a visual analogue to help children generate, organise and refine their ideas…

  15. The Car Accident: An Exercise in Persuasive Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stevens, Betsy

    2005-01-01

    The ability to communicate persuasively is an important managerial tool. Surveys of both students and employers underscore the importance of oral and written communication skills and persuasion to successful careers in business. Writing persuasive documents to customers, subordinates, superiors, or stakeholders requires the ability to analyze the…

  16. Timed Writing Practice for Japanese University Students in an EFL Setting.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kresovich, Brant M.

    1990-01-01

    Timed writing exercises used at the University of the Ryukyus (Japan) to help alleviate common problems in English second language writing are described. It is proposed that Japanese students have difficulty writing in English because of early training in the grammar-translation method, a lack of communication skills, the overuse of bilingual…

  17. Impact of Guided-Inquiry-Based Instruction with a Writing and Reflection Emphasis on Chemistry Students' Critical Thinking Abilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gupta, Tanya; Burke, K. A.; Mehta, Akash; Greenbowe, Thomas J.

    2015-01-01

    The Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) laboratory instruction approach has been used successfully over a decade to engage students in laboratory activities. SWH-based instruction emphasizes knowledge construction through individual writing and reflection, and collaborative learning as a group. In the SWH approach, writing is a core component of…

  18. WriteSim TCExam - An open source text simulation environment for training novice researchers in scientific writing

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Background The ability to write clearly and effectively is of central importance to the scientific enterprise. Encouraged by the success of simulation environments in other biomedical sciences, we developed WriteSim TCExam, an open-source, Web-based, textual simulation environment for teaching effective writing techniques to novice researchers. We shortlisted and modified an existing open source application - TCExam to serve as a textual simulation environment. After testing usability internally in our team, we conducted formal field usability studies with novice researchers. These were followed by formal surveys with researchers fitting the role of administrators and users (novice researchers) Results The development process was guided by feedback from usability tests within our research team. Online surveys and formal studies, involving members of the Research on Research group and selected novice researchers, show that the application is user-friendly. Additionally it has been used to train 25 novice researchers in scientific writing to date and has generated encouraging results. Conclusion WriteSim TCExam is the first Web-based, open-source textual simulation environment designed to complement traditional scientific writing instruction. While initial reviews by students and educators have been positive, a formal study is needed to measure its benefits in comparison to standard instructional methods. PMID:20509946

  19. Effective writing that attracts patients.

    PubMed

    Baum, Neil

    2015-01-01

    Doctors today not only must communicate verbally, they must also realize that the written word is important to their ability to connect with the patients that they already have and also to attract new patients. Doctors will be expected to write blogs, to create content for their Web sites, to write articles for local publications, and even to learn to express themselves in 140 characters or less (i.e., Twitter). This article presents 10 rules for selecting the right words to enhance your communication with existing patients and potentially to attract new patients to your practice.

  20. Writing as Envision: Autobiographical and Academic Writing in the Composition Class.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tokarczyk, Michelle M.

    Three students in an autobiography class--an African-American, a woman, and a gay man struggling to come out--used their writing to both affirm their places in the world and envision another place. Having reviewed her early educational experiences as an African-American, Holly focused her essay back to her present college days and her attempts to…

  1. Early Maternal Employment and Children's Vocabulary and Inductive Reasoning Ability: A Dynamic Approach.

    PubMed

    Kühhirt, Michael; Klein, Markus

    2018-03-01

    This study investigates the relationship between early maternal employment history and children's vocabulary and inductive reasoning ability at age 5, drawing on longitudinal information on 2,200 children from the Growing Up in Scotland data. Prior research rarely addresses dynamics in maternal employment and the methodological ramifications of time-variant confounding. The present study proposes various measures to capture duration, timing, and stability of early maternal employment and uses inverse probability of treatment weighting to control for time-variant confounders that may partially mediate the effect of maternal employment on cognitive scores. The findings suggest only modest differences in the above ability measures between children who have been exposed to very different patterns of eary maternal employment, but with similar observed covariate history. © 2017 The Authors. Child Development © 2017 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

  2. Using Popular Magazine Articles to Teach the Art of Writing for Nontechnical Audiences

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sivey, John D.; Lee, Cindy M.

    2008-01-01

    Many undergraduate chemistry curricula are devoting increasing amounts of time to teaching technical writing skills. Significantly less attention, however, is given toward training students in nontechnical writing strategies. The ability of chemistry students to communicate effectively in writing to a wide variety of audiences is an essential (and…

  3. Bilingual Writing as an Act of Identity: Sign-Making in Multiple Scripts

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kabuto, Bobbie

    2010-01-01

    This article explores early bilingual script writing as an act of identity. Using multiple theoretical perspectives related to social semiotics and social constructivist perspectives on identity and writing, the research presented in this article is based on a case study of an early biliterate learner of Japanese and English from the ages of 3-7.…

  4. Memory ability of children with complex communication needs.

    PubMed

    Larsson, Maria; Sandberg, Annika Dahlgren

    2008-01-01

    Phonological memory is central to language and reading and writing skills. Many children with complex communication needs (CCN) experience problems with reading and writing acquisition. The reason could be because of the absence of articulatory ability, which might have a negative affect on phonological memory. Phonological and visuo-spatial short-term memory and working memory were tested in 15 children with CCN, aged 5 - 12 years, and compared to children with natural speech matched for gender, and mental and linguistic age. Results indicated weaker phonological STM and visuo-spatial STM and WM in children with CCN. The lack of articulatory ability could be assumed to affect subvocal rehearsal and, therefore, phonological memory which, in turn, may affect reading and writing acquisition. Weak visuo-spatial memory could also complicate the use of Bliss symbols and other types of augmentative and alternative communication.

  5. Innovative Writing Instruction: Writing Selves, Writing Stories

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kinloch, Valeria, Ed.

    2009-01-01

    In this third "Innovative Writing Instruction" column, the author invited a former high school teacher on the verge of preparing for doctoral candidacy exams, an instructor and doctoral student interested in writing research/practice, and a university supervisor for teacher education preservice students to share aspects of their writing selves,…

  6. "I Am Kind of a Good Writer and Kind of Not": Examining Students' Writing Attitudes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hall, Anna H.; Axelrod, Ysaaca

    2014-01-01

    Since writing ability has been found to be an important predictor of school success and college readiness, it is important for teachers to understand the connections between students' attitudes toward writing, writing self-efficacy, and writing achievement. This article describes the findings from focus groups conducted with 81 students in grades…

  7. Righting writing: strategies for improving nursing student papers.

    PubMed

    Bickes, Joan T; Schim, Stephanie M

    2010-01-01

    The ability to clearly express complex ideas in writing is necessary for nurses in professional practice at all levels from novice to expert. The community health nursing course is specially designated as writing intensive to provide students with the experience of preparing a major scholarly paper. To address issues of poor paper quality and grade inflation we implemented a program including a writing workshop for faculty, a revision of the grading rubric, and a system of blind review for grading student papers. Changes resulted in a major shift in paper grades which more closely reflects the actual quality of the work.

  8. Comparing Two Methods of Writing Instruction: Effects on Kindergarten Students' Reading Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jones, Cindy D'on; Reutzel, D. Ray; Fargo, Jamison D.

    2010-01-01

    This experimental study directly compared the effects of two prevalent forms of classroom writing instruction, interactive writing and writing workshop, on kindergarten students' acquisition of early reading skills. Repeated measures data was collected at four points over 16 weeks to monitor growth of 151 kindergarten students in phonological…

  9. "The Three Hags and Pocohontas": How Collaboration Develops Early Years Writing Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Boyle, Bill; Charles, Marie

    2011-01-01

    This article relates a child's development in story writing and the progress that she made in achieving text cohesion, spelling development and ideation through the collaborative process. The case study investigates the integration of major aspects of writing development such as collaboration, the importance of peer interactions through social…

  10. Teaching Writing in High School and College: Conversations and Collaborations.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thompson, Thomas C., Ed.

    Addressing what teachers can do to prepare high school students to write effectively in college, this book presents 15 narratives and studies suggesting that secondary-postsecondary partnerships and exchanges can significantly improve students' ability to succeed at college-level writing tasks. Essays in section I, Trading Places, are: (1)…

  11. Teaching Writing in the Republic of Colombia, 1800-1850

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Clark, Meri L.

    2010-01-01

    This article examines the enduring importance of handwriting in the early republic of Colombia. Colonial practice informed writing instruction but Colombians re-established it in national terms from the 1820s onward. Teaching writing became a critical tool of state formation: an ideal republic of virtuous functionaries depended on uniform…

  12. The Reading-Writing Connection

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Miller, Brett; McCardle, Peggy; Long, Richard

    2012-01-01

    Reading and writing development begin in early childhood and are linked in daily function and in classroom activities from kindergarten or prekindergarten through high school and beyond. There is little research addressing that relationship, or when and how best to integrate these two critical areas instructionally. The report presents an experts…

  13. Career Writing as a Dialogue about Work Experience: A Recipe for Luck Readiness?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lengelle, Reinekke; Meijers, Frans; Poell, Rob; Geijsel, Femke; Post, Mijke

    2016-01-01

    In this article, we examined whether career writing--creative, expressive, and reflective writing--can increase luck readiness, which is the ability to respond and make use of (career) opportunities. Two 2-day writing courses were taught to third-year bachelor students, one before and one after work placements. In this exploratory study, results…

  14. Parental Writing Support and Preschoolers' Early Literacy, Language, and Fine Motor Skills

    PubMed Central

    Bindman, Samantha W.; Skibbe, Lori E.; Hindman, Annemarie H.; Aram, Dorit; Morrison, Frederick J.

    2014-01-01

    The current study examines the nature and variability of parents' aid to preschoolers in the context of a shared writing task, as well as the relations between this support and children's literacy, vocabulary, and fine motor skills. In total, 135 preschool children (72 girls) and their parents (primarily mothers) in an ethnically diverse, middle-income community were observed while writing a semi-structured invitation for a pretend birthday party together. Children's phonological awareness, alphabet knowledge, word decoding, vocabulary, and fine motor skills were also assessed. Results revealed that parents provided variable, but generally low–level, support for children's approximation of sound-symbol correspondence in their writing (i.e., graphophonemic support), as well as for their production of letter forms (i.e., print support). Parents frequently accepted errors rather than asking for corrections (i.e., demand for precision). Further analysis of the parent-child dyads (n = 103) who wrote the child's name on the invitation showed that parents provided higher graphophonemic, but not print, support when writing the child's name than other words. Overall parental graphophonemic support was positively linked to children's decoding and fine motor skills, whereas print support and demand for precision were not related to any of the child outcomes. In sum, this study indicates that while parental support for preschoolers' writing may be minimal, it is uniquely linked to key literacy-related outcomes in preschool. PMID:25284957

  15. Parental Writing Support and Preschoolers' Early Literacy, Language, and Fine Motor Skills.

    PubMed

    Bindman, Samantha W; Skibbe, Lori E; Hindman, Annemarie H; Aram, Dorit; Morrison, Frederick J

    2014-01-01

    The current study examines the nature and variability of parents' aid to preschoolers in the context of a shared writing task, as well as the relations between this support and children's literacy, vocabulary, and fine motor skills. In total, 135 preschool children (72 girls) and their parents (primarily mothers) in an ethnically diverse, middle-income community were observed while writing a semi-structured invitation for a pretend birthday party together. Children's phonological awareness, alphabet knowledge, word decoding, vocabulary, and fine motor skills were also assessed. Results revealed that parents provided variable, but generally low-level, support for children's approximation of sound-symbol correspondence in their writing (i.e., graphophonemic support), as well as for their production of letter forms (i.e., print support). Parents frequently accepted errors rather than asking for corrections (i.e., demand for precision). Further analysis of the parent-child dyads ( n = 103) who wrote the child's name on the invitation showed that parents provided higher graphophonemic, but not print, support when writing the child's name than other words. Overall parental graphophonemic support was positively linked to children's decoding and fine motor skills, whereas print support and demand for precision were not related to any of the child outcomes. In sum, this study indicates that while parental support for preschoolers' writing may be minimal, it is uniquely linked to key literacy-related outcomes in preschool.

  16. Using Rubrics as a Scientific Writing Instructional Method in Early Stage Undergraduate Neuroscience Study.

    PubMed

    Clabough, Erin B D; Clabough, Seth W

    2016-01-01

    Scientific writing is an important communication and learning tool in neuroscience, yet it is a skill not adequately cultivated in introductory undergraduate science courses. Proficient, confident scientific writers are produced by providing specific knowledge about the writing process, combined with a clear student understanding about how to think about writing (also known as metacognition). We developed a rubric for evaluating scientific papers and assessed different methods of using the rubric in inquiry-based introductory biology classrooms. Students were either 1) given the rubric alone, 2) given the rubric, but also required to visit a biology subject tutor for paper assistance, or 3) asked to self-grade paper components using the rubric. Students who were required to use a peer tutor had more negative attitudes towards scientific writing, while students who used the rubric alone reported more confidence in their science writing skills by the conclusion of the semester. Overall, students rated the use of an example paper or grading rubric as the most effective ways of teaching scientific writing, while rating peer review as ineffective. Our paper describes a concrete, simple method of infusing scientific writing into inquiry-based science classes, and provides clear avenues to enhance communication and scientific writing skills in entry-level classes through the use of a rubric or example paper, with the goal of producing students capable of performing at a higher level in upper level neuroscience classes and independent research.

  17. Using Rubrics as a Scientific Writing Instructional Method in Early Stage Undergraduate Neuroscience Study

    PubMed Central

    Clabough, Erin B.D.; Clabough, Seth W.

    2016-01-01

    Scientific writing is an important communication and learning tool in neuroscience, yet it is a skill not adequately cultivated in introductory undergraduate science courses. Proficient, confident scientific writers are produced by providing specific knowledge about the writing process, combined with a clear student understanding about how to think about writing (also known as metacognition). We developed a rubric for evaluating scientific papers and assessed different methods of using the rubric in inquiry-based introductory biology classrooms. Students were either 1) given the rubric alone, 2) given the rubric, but also required to visit a biology subject tutor for paper assistance, or 3) asked to self-grade paper components using the rubric. Students who were required to use a peer tutor had more negative attitudes towards scientific writing, while students who used the rubric alone reported more confidence in their science writing skills by the conclusion of the semester. Overall, students rated the use of an example paper or grading rubric as the most effective ways of teaching scientific writing, while rating peer review as ineffective. Our paper describes a concrete, simple method of infusing scientific writing into inquiry-based science classes, and provides clear avenues to enhance communication and scientific writing skills in entry-level classes through the use of a rubric or example paper, with the goal of producing students capable of performing at a higher level in upper level neuroscience classes and independent research. PMID:27980476

  18. Construction of meaning in the authentic science writing of deaf students.

    PubMed

    Lang, H G; Albertini, J A

    2001-01-01

    This study examines how students construct meaning through writing during authentic science activities. To determine how well students understood science concepts, we analyzed 228 writing samples from deaf students in grades 6 through 11 as well as the explanatory and reflective comments of their teachers. The analyses indicate that certain process writing strategies were differentially useful in helping deaf students to construct meaning and in allowing teachers to evaluate the constructed meaning. Three instructional conditions and two teacher variables were found to play roles in determining the accuracy and adequacy of the writing: (1) the writing prompts the teachers used, (2) the focus for the writing, (3) follow-up to the initial writing activity, (4) the teacher's content knowledge, and (5) the teacher's ability to interpret student writing. The authors recommend future applications of writing-to-learn strategies and suggest directions for further research and changes in teacher education.

  19. Rubrics as a Tool in Writing Instruction: Effects on the Opinion Essays of First and Second Graders

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bradford, Kendall L.; Newland, Amanda C.; Rule, Audrey C.; Montgomery, Sarah E.

    2016-01-01

    Recently-adopted standards call for more emphasis on writing in early elementary grades. Rubrics may assist students in attending to important characteristics of effective writing, but research data on their use in early childhood is lacking. This study explores the effects of rubric use on writing instruction of opinion paragraphs for 20 first…

  20. Writing and Computing across the USM Chemistry Curriculum

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gordon, Nancy R.; Newton, Thomas A.; Rhodes, Gale; Ricci, John S.; Stebbins, Richard G.; Tracy, Henry J.

    2001-01-01

    The faculty of the University of Southern Maine believes the ability to communicate effectively is one of the most important skills required of successful chemists. To help students achieve that goal, the faculty has developed a Writing and Computer Program consisting of writing and computer assignments of gradually increasing sophistication for all our laboratory courses. The assignments build in complexity until, at the junior level, students are writing full journal-quality laboratory reports. Computer assignments also increase in difficulty as students attack more complicated subjects. We have found the program easy to initiate and our part-time faculty concurs as well. The Writing and Computing across the Curriculum Program also serves to unite the entire chemistry curriculum. We believe the program is helping to reverse what the USM chemistry faculty and other educators have found to be a steady deterioration in the writing skills of many of today's students.

  1. Making Writing Instruction a Priority in America's Middle and High Schools. Policy Brief

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Alliance for Excellent Education, 2007

    2007-01-01

    According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, only about a quarter of the nation's middle and high school students are proficient in writing. Even among students who plan to go to college, roughly a third fall short of readiness benchmarks for college-level writing composition. Yet, the ability to write plays an increasingly…

  2. Argumentative Writing in Pre-Adolescents: The Role of Verbal Reasoning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nippold, Marilyn A.; Ward-Lonergan, Jeannene M.

    2010-01-01

    Argumentative writing is a challenging communication task that calls upon sophisticated cognitive and linguistic abilities. Pre-adolescents (n = 80; mean age = 11;10; range = 10;6-13:5) were asked to write an argumentative essay on the controversial topic of training animals to perform in circuses. Additionally, they were asked to solve a set of…

  3. The Interrelationship among Critical Thinking, Writing an Argumentative Essay in an L2 and Their Subskills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Soodmand Afshar, Hassan; Movassagh, Hossein; Radi Arbabi, Hassan

    2017-01-01

    This study investigated the relationship between critical thinking and the writing ability of Iranian EFL learners, and the interrelationship among the subskills of the two constructs. Furthermore, it aimed at finding which skills of critical thinking predicted the participants' writing ability. To this end, 104 students majoring in English…

  4. Improving together: better science writing through peer learning

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stiller-Reeve, Mathew A.; Heuzé, Céline; Ball, William T.; White, Rachel H.; Messori, Gabriele; van der Wiel, Karin; Medhaug, Iselin; Eckes, Annemarie H.; O'Callaghan, Amee; Newland, Mike J.; Williams, Sian R.; Kasoar, Matthew; Wittmeier, Hella Elisa; Kumer, Valerie

    2016-07-01

    Science, in our case the climate and geosciences, is increasingly interdisciplinary. Scientists must therefore communicate across disciplinary boundaries. For this communication to be successful, scientists must write clearly and concisely, yet the historically poor standard of scientific writing does not seem to be improving. Scientific writing must improve, and the key to long-term improvement lies with the early-career scientist (ECS). Many interventions exist for an ECS to improve their writing, like style guides and courses. However, momentum is often difficult to maintain after these interventions are completed. Continuity is key to improving writing. This paper introduces the ClimateSnack project, which aims to motivate ECSs to develop and continue to improve their writing and communication skills. The project adopts a peer-learning framework where ECSs voluntarily form writing groups at different institutes around the world. The group members learn, discuss, and improve their writing skills together. Several ClimateSnack writing groups have formed. This paper examines why some of the groups have flourished and others have dissolved. We identify the challenges involved in making a writing group successful and effective, notably the leadership of self-organized groups, and both individual and institutional time management. Within some of the groups, peer learning clearly offers a powerful tool to improve writing as well as bringing other benefits, including improved general communication skills and increased confidence.

  5. Mirror writing ability is genetic and probably transmitted as a sex-linked dominant trait: it is hypothesised that mirror writers have bilateral language centres with a callosal interconnection.

    PubMed

    Mathewson, Iain

    2004-01-01

    Mirror writing is the ability to write from right to left, reversing each letter so that when held to a mirror the script appears normal. There is no information on the prevalence of this trait but a suggestion was received that it may be hereditary. A newspaper survey was carried out to discover the approximate prevalence and whether a hereditary factor is involved. The results indicated a prevalence of 1 in 6500. There is strong evidence that the trait is hereditary and is associated with non-right-handedness'. It is hypothesised that mirror writers may comprise a very small group of people who not only have bilateral language centres but also have an interconnecting pathway between these centres via the corpus callosum. The surprising genetic nature of a trait with no obvious evolutionary consequences is discussed. The data can best be explained on the basis of the trait being the phenotypic expression of an X-linked dominant gene, which does have evolutionary consequences. Similarities are noted between the proposed genetics of mirror writing and those of synaesthesia and of a few pathological X-linked dominant syndromes such as Rett syndrome. Other similarities and contrasts between mirror writing and synaesthesia are noted.

  6. Developing Team Skills through a Collaborative Writing Assignment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thomas, Theda Ann

    2014-01-01

    Employers want students who are able to work effectively as members of a team, and expect universities to develop this ability in their graduates. This paper proposes a framework for a collaborative writing assignment that specifically develops students' ability to work in teams. The framework has been tested using two iterations of an action…

  7. Transcoding abilities in typical and atypical mathematics achievers: the role of working memory and procedural and lexical competencies.

    PubMed

    Moura, Ricardo; Wood, Guilherme; Pinheiro-Chagas, Pedro; Lonnemann, Jan; Krinzinger, Helga; Willmes, Klaus; Haase, Vitor Geraldi

    2013-11-01

    Transcoding between numerical systems is one of the most basic abilities acquired by children during their early school years. One important topic that requires further exploration is how mathematics proficiency can affect number transcoding. The aim of the current study was to investigate transcoding abilities (i.e., reading Arabic numerals and writing dictation) in Brazilian children with and without mathematics difficulties, focusing on different school grades. We observed that children with learning difficulties in mathematics demonstrated lower achievement in number transcoding in both early and middle elementary school. In early elementary school, difficulties were observed in both the basic numerical lexicon and the management of numerical syntax. In middle elementary school, difficulties appeared mainly in the transcoding of more complex numbers. An error analysis revealed that the children with mathematics difficulties struggled mainly with the acquisition of transcoding rules. Although we confirmed the previous evidence on the impact of working memory capacity on number transcoding, we found that it did not fully account for the observed group differences. The results are discussed in the context of a maturational lag in number transcoding ability in children with mathematics difficulties. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. The Center Can Hold: Reflections on Teaching Writing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smelstor, Marjorie

    1980-01-01

    Attributes the decline in student writing ability to the conflict between society's demand for standardization, caution, and escapism and a writer's need to be subjective, adventurous, and self-centered. (HOD)

  9. Early but not late blindness leads to enhanced arithmetic and working memory abilities.

    PubMed

    Dormal, Valérie; Crollen, Virginie; Baumans, Christine; Lepore, Franco; Collignon, Olivier

    2016-10-01

    Behavioural and neurophysiological evidence suggest that vision plays an important role in the emergence and development of arithmetic abilities. However, how visual deprivation impacts on the development of arithmetic processing remains poorly understood. We compared the performances of early (EB), late blind (LB) and sighted control (SC) individuals during various arithmetic tasks involving addition, subtraction and multiplication of various complexities. We also assessed working memory (WM) performances to determine if they relate to a blind person's arithmetic capacities. Results showed that EB participants performed better than LB and SC in arithmetic tasks, especially in conditions in which verbal routines and WM abilities are needed. Moreover, EB participants also showed higher WM abilities. Together, our findings demonstrate that the absence of developmental vision does not prevent the development of refined arithmetic skills and can even trigger the refinement of these abilities in specific tasks. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Effect of Formative and Ability Test Results on Early Learning of Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kadir, Abdul; Ardi, Muhammad; Nurhayati, B.; Dirawan, Gufran Darma

    2016-01-01

    The objective of this study was to examine the relationship of formative tests to early learning ability of students in the science learning style. This research used an experimental method with a 2 x 2 factorial design. The participants comprised all the students in class VII of the Islamic Junior High School State of Kolaka, a total of 343…

  11. Using the Rasch measurement model to design a report writing assessment instrument.

    PubMed

    Carlson, Wayne R

    2013-01-01

    This paper describes how the Rasch measurement model was used to develop an assessment instrument designed to measure student ability to write law enforcement incident and investigative reports. The ability to write reports is a requirement of all law enforcement recruits in the state of Michigan and is a part of the state's mandatory basic training curriculum, which is promulgated by the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES). Recently, MCOLES conducted research to modernize its training and testing in the area of report writing. A structured validation process was used, which included: a) an examination of the job tasks of a patrol officer, b) input from content experts, c) a review of the professional research, and d) the creation of an instrument to measure student competency. The Rasch model addressed several measurement principles that were central to construct validity, which were particularly useful for assessing student performances. Based on the results of the report writing validation project, the state established a legitimate connectivity between the report writing standard and the essential job functions of a patrol officer in Michigan. The project also produced an authentic instrument for measuring minimum levels of report writing competency, which generated results that are valid for inferences of student ability. Ultimately, the state of Michigan must ensure the safety of its citizens by licensing only those patrol officers who possess a minimum level of core competency. Maintaining the validity and reliability of both the training and testing processes can ensure that the system for producing such candidates functions as intended.

  12. Life Writing Lite: Judy Garland and Reparative Rhetorics of Celebrity Life Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Janangelo, Joseph

    2010-01-01

    This essay offers a rhetorical reading of entertainer Judy Garland's early life writing projects. The author focuses on two open letters Garland published in 1950, in which she talks to the public and press to let them know "the truth" ("Open") about her life and how much her audience means to her. As a troubled celebrity, Garland had for years…

  13. Future direction of direct writing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Nam-Soo; Han, Kenneth N.

    2010-11-01

    Direct write technology using special inks consisting of finely dispersed metal nanoparticles in liquid is receiving an undivided attention in recent years for its wide range of applicability in modern electronic industry. The application of this technology covers radio frequency identification-tag (RFID-tag), flexible-electronics, organic light emitting diodes (OLED) display, e-paper, antenna, bumpers used in flip-chip, underfilling, frit, miniresistance applications and biological uses, artificial dental applications and many more. In this paper, the authors have reviewed various direct write technologies on the market and discussed their advantages and shortfalls. Emphasis has given on microdispensing deposition write (MDDW), maskless mesoscale materials deposition (M3D), and ink-jet technologies. All of these technologies allow printing various patterns without employing a mask or a resist with an enhanced speed with the aid of computer. MDDW and M3D are capable of drawing patterns in three-dimension and MDDW, in particular, is capable of writing nanoinks with high viscosity. However, it is still far away for direct write to be fully implemented in the commercial arena. One of the hurdles to overcome is in manufacturing conductive inks which are chemically and physically stable, capable of drawing patterns with acceptable conductivity, and also capable of drawing patterns with acceptable adhesiveness with the substrates. The authors have briefly discussed problems involved in manufacturing nanometal inks to be used in various writing devices. There are numerous factors to be considered in manufacturing such inks. They are reducing agents, concentrations, oxidation, compact ability allowing good conductivity, and stability in suspension.

  14. Write! Write! Write! Ready-to-Use Writing Process Activities for Grades 4-8.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Behrman, Carol H.

    This handbook contains over 265 reproducible writing process activities that help make writing fun for students in grades 4-8. The handbook provides stimulating activities to give students the directed practice they need to learn to write clearly and competently. Designed for minimal teacher input, activities are complete with directions geared to…

  15. Laser direct writing of micro- and nano-scale medical devices

    PubMed Central

    Gittard, Shaun D; Narayan, Roger J

    2010-01-01

    Laser-based direct writing of materials has undergone significant development in recent years. The ability to modify a variety of materials at small length scales and using short production times provides laser direct writing with unique capabilities for fabrication of medical devices. In many laser-based rapid prototyping methods, microscale and submicroscale structuring of materials is controlled by computer-generated models. Various laser-based direct write methods, including selective laser sintering/melting, laser machining, matrix-assisted pulsed-laser evaporation direct write, stereolithography and two-photon polymerization, are described. Their use in fabrication of microstructured and nanostructured medical devices is discussed. Laser direct writing may be used for processing a wide variety of advanced medical devices, including patient-specific prostheses, drug delivery devices, biosensors, stents and tissue-engineering scaffolds. PMID:20420557

  16. Writing as a Design Discipline: Exploring the Relationship between Composition and Programming.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Walton, Richard E.; Balestri, Diane

    1987-01-01

    Examines similarities between composition and programming processes, and reviews two studies that linked instruction in computer programming and freshman composition to help students understand writing as a design discipline. Projects at the University of Montana and Bryn Mawr College which improved students' writing abilities are described. (LRW)

  17. Families Writing Together: The Experience of English Language Learner Families in a Writing Workshop

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Korab, Elizabeth

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this qualitative study was to gain a greater understanding of English language learner (ELL) family involvement in school environments through the lens of family literacy. This study was informed by literature from two fields: early childhood writing and ELL family involvement. While some schools have focused on at-home reading…

  18. A Model of the Writing Process for Use in Teaching and Remediating Written Expression.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rager, John J.

    The writing process depends heavily on linguistic, psycho-perceptual, and psycho-motor abilities. If a student has a significant weakness in one of these major trait clusters, then thinking will suffer and he or she may experience great difficulty in writing. The process of writing can be broken down into four main phases, which can be labeled…

  19. Beyond the Single Text: Nurturing Young Children's Interest in Reading and Writing for Multiple Purposes.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Donovan, Carol A.; Milewicz, Elizabeth J.; Smolkin, Laura B.

    2003-01-01

    Describes children's early use of oral and written language for different purposes. Advocates fostering early appreciation of a variety of texts to cultivate children's disposition to read and write for enjoyment, information, and communication. Presents ideas for using the talking, reading, and writing done every day by young children to develop…

  20. Beginning Reading and Writing. Language and Literacy Series.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Strickland, Dorothy S., Ed.; Morrow, Lesley Mandel, Ed.

    In this essay collection, scholars in the area of early literacy provide concrete strategies for achieving excellence in literacy instruction. The collection presents current, research-based information on the advances and refinements in the area of emerging literacy and the early stages of formal instruction in reading and writing. Following a…

  1. A Sample Practical Report to Facilitate Writing in the Scientific Style

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Corradi, Hazel Ruth

    2012-01-01

    The ability to write concise and accurate scientific reports is highly valued in university level science. From reflection on marking student final year reports, it was apparent that many students have had insufficient practice at writing complete "scientific paper" style reports by that time, although some do it very well. This is a previously…

  2. Writing with Young Children: A Comparison of Paternal and Maternal Guidance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aram, Dorit

    2010-01-01

    The increasing involvement of fathers in active parenthood raises questions concerning their parenting style. This study compared mothers and fathers in their writing interactions with their young children, exploring how parents' writing guidance related to children's early literacy. Mothers and fathers of 51 kindergarteners were videotaped…

  3. Two Portfolio Systems: EFL Students' Perceptions of Writing Ability, Text Improvement, and Feedback

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lam, Ricky

    2013-01-01

    Research into portfolio assessment ("PA") typically describes teachers' development and implementation of different portfolio models in their respective teaching contexts, however, not much attention is paid to student perceptions of the portfolio approach or its impact on the learning of writing. To this end, this study aims to…

  4. Understanding the High School Proficiency Test and the Early Warning Test in Relation to HCCC Enrollment Trends.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Taffy, Fred

    The Grade 11 High School Proficiency Test (HSPT) and the New Jersey Early Warning Test (EWT) are two key standardized tests that indicate academic ability of county high school graduates which colleges will need to address. While HSPT scores for county high school districts reflect a range of competency in reading, math, and writing, the majority…

  5. Cognitive ability influences on written expression: Evidence for developmental and sex-based differences in school-age children.

    PubMed

    Hajovsky, Daniel B; Villeneuve, Ethan F; Reynolds, Matthew R; Niileksela, Christopher R; Mason, Benjamin A; Shudak, Nicholas J

    2018-04-01

    Some studies have demonstrated that the Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) cognitive abilities influence writing; however, little research has investigated whether CHC cognitive abilities influence writing the same way for males and females across grades. We used multiple group structural equation models to investigate whether CHC cognitive ability influences on written expression differed between grades or sex using the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children, Second Edition and the Kaufman Tests of Educational Achievement, Second Edition co-normed standardization sample data (N=2117). After testing for consistent measurement of cognitive abilities across grades and sex, we tested whether the cognitive ability influences on written expression were moderated by grade level or sex. An important developmental shift was observed equally across sex groups: Learning Efficiency (Gl) influences decreased whereas Crystallized Ability (Gc) influences increased after fourth grade. Further, Short-Term Memory (Gsm) and Retrieval Fluency (Gr) influences on written expression depended on sex at grades 1-4, with larger Gr influences for females and larger Gsm influences for males. We internally replicated our main findings using two different cognitive explanatory models, adding further support for the developmental and sex-based differential cognitive ability influences on writing. Explanatory cognitive models of writing need to incorporate development, and possibly, sex to provide an expanded understanding of writing development and guard against potential generalizability issues characteristic of special population (i.e., male-female) studies. Copyright © 2017 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. On the Strategies of Graduation Thesis Writing Teaching of Translation Major Undergraduates Based on Eco-Translatology

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lin, Wang

    2017-01-01

    Graduation thesis is an indispensible procedure for each undergraduate, which is crucial for successful graduation, employment, further study and even further development. However, due to most undergraduates' ignorance of academic writing and the deficiency of current thesis writing course, thesis writing ability can hardly be enhanced and…

  7. Science and thinking: The write connection

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Butler, Gene

    1991-09-01

    The effective use of writing in science instruction may open the way for students to grow in their ability to exercise higher order thinking skills (Bland & Koppel, 1988). Scinto (1986) makes a compelling case for writing as a means of stimulating thinking when he states: The production of written text demands more elaborate strategies of preplanning. Written language demands the conscious organization of ensembles of propositions to achieve its end. The need to manipulate linguistic means in such a conscious and deliberate fashion entails a level of linguistic self-reflection not called forth in oral discourse (p. 101). Science educators may find that the writing process is one technique to help them move away from the teacher-centered, textbook-driven science classroom of today, and move toward the realization of science education which will ensure that students are able to function as scientifically literate citizens in our contemporary society.

  8. Expanding the developmental models of writing: A direct and indirect effects model of developmental writing (DIEW)

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Young-Suk Grace; Schatschneider, Christopher

    2016-01-01

    We investigated direct and indirect effects of component skills on writing (DIEW) using data from 193 children in Grade 1. In this model, working memory was hypothesized to be a foundational cognitive ability for language and cognitive skills as well as transcription skills, which, in turn, contribute to writing. Foundational oral language skills (vocabulary and grammatical knowledge) and higher-order cognitive skills (inference and theory of mind) were hypothesized to be component skills of text generation (i.e., discourse-level oral language). Results from structural equation modeling largely supported a complete mediation model among four variations of the DIEW model. Discourse-level oral language, spelling, and handwriting fluency completely mediated the relations of higher-order cognitive skills, foundational oral language, and working memory to writing. Moreover, language and cognitive skills had both direct and indirect relations to discourse-level oral language. Total effects, including direct and indirect effects, were substantial for discourse-level oral language (.46), working memory (.43), and spelling (.37), followed by vocabulary (.19), handwriting (.17), theory of mind (.12), inference (.10), and grammatical knowledge (.10). The model explained approximately 67% of variance in writing quality. These results indicate that multiple language and cognitive skills make direct and indirect contributions, and it is important to consider both direct and indirect pathways of influences when considering skills that are important to writing. PMID:28260812

  9. The art of scientific writing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gad-El-Hak, Mohamed

    2015-11-01

    The humanities teach students how to learn and communicate. Science teaches why everything works. Engineering teaches how to make things work. But scientists and engineers need to communicate their ideas amongst themselves as well as to everyone else. A newly developed technical writing course is outlined. In the class, offered to senior undergraduate and beginning graduate students, we read numerous short novels, essays, and op-eds. Some of the reading materials are technical but many are not. The students also have weekly writing assignments. When the first assignment is returned to the students with a grade of 20-30%, their first reaction is, ``how come I did not receive my usual 80-90%?'' I retort, ``you reach that level only when your essay is ready to be published in The New York Times.'' What is emphasized in the class is the process of creating something to write about, researching that something, expressing ideas coherently and comprehensibly, then endlessly editing the essay. The elective class has been offered three times thus far, all of its available seats are always filled, the students' evaluations have been outstanding, and the improvements in the students' ability to write by the end of the semester is quite impressive.

  10. Motivating Students to Write about Art

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    New, Robin

    2005-01-01

    In this article, the author relates what she had learned about motivating students to participate in writing activities. She initially assumed that time consuming and materialistic rewards would be the solution to this common teachers' dilemma. Instead, she discovered that teacher enthusiasm and ability top the list. This practice makes sense…

  11. Substrate thermal conductivity controls the ability to manufacture microstructures via laser-induced direct write

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tomko, John A.; Olson, David H.; Braun, Jeffrey L.; Kelliher, Andrew P.; Kaehr, Bryan; Hopkins, Patrick E.

    2018-01-01

    In controlling the thermal properties of the surrounding environment, we provide insight into the underlying mechanisms driving the widely used laser direct write method for additive manufacturing. We find that the onset of silver nitrate reduction for the formation of direct write structures directly corresponds to the calculated steady-state temperature rises associated with both continuous wave and high-repetition rate, ultrafast pulsed laser systems. Furthermore, varying the geometry of the heat affected zone, which is controllable based on in-plane thermal diffusion in the substrate, and laser power, allows for control of the written geometries without any prior substrate preparation. These findings allow for the advance of rapid manufacturing of micro- and nanoscale structures with minimal material constraints through consideration of the laser-controllable thermal transport in ionic liquid/substrate media.

  12. For the Sake of Argument: An Approach to Teaching Evidence-Based Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Friedrich, Linda; Bear, Rachel; Fox, Tom

    2018-01-01

    The National Writing Project's (NWP) College, Career, and Community Writers Program (C3WP) aims to improve young people's ability to write thoughtful, evidence-based arguments. In an era where public discourse has become increasingly polarized, and "echo chambers" of narrow views populate people's social media feeds, teaching students to…

  13. Using Reciprocal Peer Review to Help Graduate Students Develop Scholarly Writing Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Palmer, Betsy; Major, Claire Howell

    2008-01-01

    We developed an innovative instructional method to actively engage students in writing and critiquing scholarly work. We tested the effectiveness of this pedagogy using a mixed methods research design. Compared to control group peers, students in the experimental classes perceived gains in their own writing, research ability, and motivation to…

  14. Is Handwriting Performance Affected by the Writing Surface? Comparing Preschoolers', Second Graders', and Adults' Writing Performance on a Tablet vs. Paper.

    PubMed

    Gerth, Sabrina; Klassert, Annegret; Dolk, Thomas; Fliesser, Michael; Fischer, Martin H; Nottbusch, Guido; Festman, Julia

    2016-01-01

    Due to their multifunctionality, tablets offer tremendous advantages for research on handwriting dynamics or for interactive use of learning apps in schools. Further, the widespread use of tablet computers has had a great impact on handwriting in the current generation. But, is it advisable to teach how to write and to assess handwriting in pre- and primary schoolchildren on tablets rather than on paper? Since handwriting is not automatized before the age of 10 years, children's handwriting movements require graphomotor and visual feedback as well as permanent control of movement execution during handwriting. Modifications in writing conditions, for instance the smoother writing surface of a tablet, might influence handwriting performance in general and in particular those of non-automatized beginning writers. In order to investigate how handwriting performance is affected by a difference in friction of the writing surface, we recruited three groups with varying levels of handwriting automaticity: 25 preschoolers, 27 second graders, and 25 adults. We administered three tasks measuring graphomotor abilities, visuomotor abilities, and handwriting performance (only second graders and adults). We evaluated two aspects of handwriting performance: the handwriting quality with a visual score and the handwriting dynamics using online handwriting measures [e.g., writing duration, writing velocity, strokes and number of inversions in velocity (NIV)]. In particular, NIVs which describe the number of velocity peaks during handwriting are directly related to the level of handwriting automaticity. In general, we found differences between writing on paper compared to the tablet. These differences were partly task-dependent. The comparison between tablet and paper revealed a faster writing velocity for all groups and all tasks on the tablet which indicates that all participants-even the experienced writers-were influenced by the lower friction of the tablet surface. Our results

  15. Is Handwriting Performance Affected by the Writing Surface? Comparing Preschoolers', Second Graders', and Adults' Writing Performance on a Tablet vs. Paper

    PubMed Central

    Gerth, Sabrina; Klassert, Annegret; Dolk, Thomas; Fliesser, Michael; Fischer, Martin H.; Nottbusch, Guido; Festman, Julia

    2016-01-01

    Due to their multifunctionality, tablets offer tremendous advantages for research on handwriting dynamics or for interactive use of learning apps in schools. Further, the widespread use of tablet computers has had a great impact on handwriting in the current generation. But, is it advisable to teach how to write and to assess handwriting in pre- and primary schoolchildren on tablets rather than on paper? Since handwriting is not automatized before the age of 10 years, children's handwriting movements require graphomotor and visual feedback as well as permanent control of movement execution during handwriting. Modifications in writing conditions, for instance the smoother writing surface of a tablet, might influence handwriting performance in general and in particular those of non-automatized beginning writers. In order to investigate how handwriting performance is affected by a difference in friction of the writing surface, we recruited three groups with varying levels of handwriting automaticity: 25 preschoolers, 27 second graders, and 25 adults. We administered three tasks measuring graphomotor abilities, visuomotor abilities, and handwriting performance (only second graders and adults). We evaluated two aspects of handwriting performance: the handwriting quality with a visual score and the handwriting dynamics using online handwriting measures [e.g., writing duration, writing velocity, strokes and number of inversions in velocity (NIV)]. In particular, NIVs which describe the number of velocity peaks during handwriting are directly related to the level of handwriting automaticity. In general, we found differences between writing on paper compared to the tablet. These differences were partly task-dependent. The comparison between tablet and paper revealed a faster writing velocity for all groups and all tasks on the tablet which indicates that all participants—even the experienced writers—were influenced by the lower friction of the tablet surface. Our

  16. Longitudinal stability of cognitive ability from infancy to early childhood: genetic and environmental etiologies.

    PubMed

    LaBuda, M C; DeFries, J C; Plomin, R; Fulker, D W

    1986-10-01

    A path model of genetic and shared family environmental transmission was fitted to general cognitive ability data from 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-year-old adopted and nonadopted children and their parents in order to assess the etiology of longitudinal stability from infancy to early childhood. Stability across years is moderate and is due mainly to influences not predicted by parental IQ. Results of the present study, in conjunction with those of previous twin studies, suggest substantial genetic stability from infancy and early childhood to adulthood.

  17. An Examination of At-Risk College Freshmen's Expository Literacy Skills Using Interactive Online Writing Activities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mongillo, Geraldine; Wilder, Hilary

    2012-01-01

    This qualitative study focused on at-risk college freshmen's ability to read and write expository text using game-like, online expository writing activities. These activities required participants to write descriptions of a target object so that peers could guess what the object was, after which they were given the results of those guesses as…

  18. Understanding the cognitive processes involved in writing to learn.

    PubMed

    Arnold, Kathleen M; Umanath, Sharda; Thio, Kara; Reilly, Walter B; McDaniel, Mark A; Marsh, Elizabeth J

    2017-06-01

    Writing is often used as a tool for learning. However, empirical support for the benefits of writing-to-learn is mixed, likely because the literature conflates diverse activities (e.g., summaries, term papers) under the single umbrella of writing-to-learn. Following recent trends in the writing-to-learn literature, the authors focus on the underlying cognitive processes. They draw on the largely independent writing-to-learn and cognitive psychology learning literatures to identify important cognitive processes. The current experiment examines learning from 3 writing tasks (and 1 nonwriting control), with an emphasis on whether or not the tasks engaged retrieval. Tasks that engaged retrieval (essay writing and free recall) led to better final test performance than those that did not (note taking and highlighting). Individual differences in structure building (the ability to construct mental representations of narratives; Gernsbacher, Varner, & Faust, 1990) modified this effect; skilled structure builders benefited more from essay writing and free recall than did less skilled structure builders. Further, more essay-like responses led to better performance, implicating the importance of additional cognitive processes such as reorganization and elaboration. The results highlight how both task instructions and individual differences affect the cognitive processes involved when writing-to-learn, with consequences for the effectiveness of the learning strategy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  19. Emergent Writing in Preschoolers: Preliminary Evidence for a Theoretical Framework

    PubMed Central

    Puranik, Cynthia S.; Lonigan, Christopher J.

    2014-01-01

    Researchers and educators use the term emergent literacy to refer to a broad set of skills and attitudes that serve as foundational skills for acquiring success in later reading and writing; however, models of emergent literacy have generally focused on reading and reading-related behaviors. Hence, the primary aim of this study was to articulate and evaluate a theoretical model of the components of emergent writing. Alternative models of the structure of individual and developmental differences of emergent writing and writing-related skills were examined in 372 preschool children who ranged in age from 3- to 5-years using confirmatory factor analysis. Results from a confirmatory factor analysis provide evidence that these emergent writing skills are best described by three correlated but distinct factors, (a) Conceptual Knowledge, (b) Procedural Knowledge, and (c) Generative Knowledge. Evidence that these three emergent writing factors show different patterns of relations to emergent literacy constructs is presented. Implications for understanding the development of writing and assessment of early writing skills are discussed. PMID:25316955

  20. Journal Writing in Experiential Education: Possibilities, Problems, and Recommendations. ERIC Digest.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dyment, Janet E.; O'Connell, Timothy S.

    This digest explores the literature related to journal writing from various disciplines, including psychology, language studies, outdoor education, and experiential education. Although journal writing has been around since ancient times, it was not until the early 1960s that it flourished as a learning tool. Instructors from a wide range of…

  1. A Simple View of Writing in Chinese

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yeung, Pui-sze; Ho, Connie Suk-han; Chan, David Wai-ock; Chung, Kevin Kien-hoa

    2017-01-01

    This study examined the Chinese written composition development of elementary-grade students in relation to the simple view of writing. Measures of nonverbal reasoning ability, component skills of transcription (stroke sequence knowledge, word spelling, and handwriting fluency), oral language (definitional skill, oral narrative skills, and…

  2. Investigation of Writing Strategies, Writing Apprehension, and Writing Achievement among Saudi EFL-Major Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Al Asmari, AbdulRahman

    2013-01-01

    The tenet of this study is to investigate the use of writing strategies in reducing writing apprehension and uncovering its effect on EFL students' writing achievement. It also attempts to explore associations between foreign language apprehension, writing achievement and writing strategies. The primary aims of the study were to explore the…

  3. Substrate thermal conductivity controls the ability to manufacture microstructures via laser-induced direct write

    DOE PAGES

    Tomko, John A.; Olson, David H.; Braun, Jeffrey L.; ...

    2018-01-30

    In controlling the thermal properties of the surrounding environment, we provide insight into the underlying mechanisms driving the widely used laser direct write method for additive manufacturing. In this study, we find that the onset of silver nitrate reduction for the formation of direct write structures directly corresponds to the calculated steady-state temperature rises associated with both continuous wave and high-repetition rate, ultrafast pulsed laser systems. Furthermore, varying the geometry of the heat affected zone, which is controllable based on in-plane thermal diffusion in the substrate, and laser power, allows for control of the written geometries without any prior substratemore » preparation. In conclusion, these findings allow for the advance of rapid manufacturing of micro- and nanoscale structures with minimal material constraints through consideration of the laser-controllable thermal transport in ionic liquid/substrate media.« less

  4. Substrate thermal conductivity controls the ability to manufacture microstructures via laser-induced direct write

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Tomko, John A.; Olson, David H.; Braun, Jeffrey L.

    In controlling the thermal properties of the surrounding environment, we provide insight into the underlying mechanisms driving the widely used laser direct write method for additive manufacturing. In this study, we find that the onset of silver nitrate reduction for the formation of direct write structures directly corresponds to the calculated steady-state temperature rises associated with both continuous wave and high-repetition rate, ultrafast pulsed laser systems. Furthermore, varying the geometry of the heat affected zone, which is controllable based on in-plane thermal diffusion in the substrate, and laser power, allows for control of the written geometries without any prior substratemore » preparation. In conclusion, these findings allow for the advance of rapid manufacturing of micro- and nanoscale structures with minimal material constraints through consideration of the laser-controllable thermal transport in ionic liquid/substrate media.« less

  5. The underlying number-space mapping among kindergarteners and its relation with early numerical abilities.

    PubMed

    Chan, Winnie Wai Lan; Wong, Terry Tin-Yau

    2016-08-01

    People map numbers onto space. The well-replicated SNARC (spatial-numerical association of response codes) effect indicates that people have a left-sided bias when responding to small numbers and a right-sided bias when responding to large numbers. This study examined whether such spatial codes were tagged to the ordinal or magnitude information of numbers among kindergarteners and whether it was related to early numerical abilities. Based on the traditional magnitude judgment task, we developed two variant tasks-namely the month judgment task and dot judgment task-to elicit ordinal and magnitude processing of numbers, respectively. Results showed that kindergarteners oriented small numbers toward the left side and large numbers toward the right side when processing the ordinal information of numbers in the month judgment task but not when processing the magnitude information in the number judgment task and dot judgment task, suggesting that the left-to-right spatial bias was probably tagged to the ordinal but not magnitude property of numbers. Moreover, the strength of the SNARC effect was not related to early numerical abilities. These findings have important implications for the early spatial representation of numbers and its role in numerical performance among kindergarteners. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Professional Writing in the English Classroom: Professional Collaborative Writing--Teaching, Writing, and Learning--Together.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bush, Jonathan; Zuidema, Leah

    2013-01-01

    In this article, the authors report the importance of teaching students about collaborative writing. When teachers are effective in helping students to learn processes for collaborative writing, everyone involved needs to speak, listen, write, and read about how to write well and what makes writing good. Students are forced to "go meta"…

  7. Using Technology to Support Expository Reading and Writing in Science Classes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Montelongo, Jose A.; Herter, Roberta J.

    2010-01-01

    Students struggle with the transition from learning to read narrative text in the early grades to reading expository text in the science classroom in the upper grades as they begin reading and writing to gain information. Science teachers can adapt their teaching materials to develop students' reading comprehension and recall by writing summaries…

  8. Linguistic ability in early life and cognitive function and Alzheimer's disease in late life. Findings from the Nun Study.

    PubMed

    Snowdon, D A; Kemper, S J; Mortimer, J A; Greiner, L H; Wekstein, D R; Markesbery, W R

    1996-02-21

    To determine if linguistic ability in early life is associated with cognitive function and Alzheimer's disease in late life. Two measures of linguistic ability in early life, idea density and grammatical complexity, were derived from autobiographies written at a mean age of 22 years. Approximately 58 years later, the women who wrote these autobiographies participated in an assessment of cognitive function, and those who subsequently died were evaluated neuropathologically. Convents in the United States participating in the Nun Study; primarily convents in the Milwaukee, Wis, area. Cognitive function was investigated in 93 participants who were aged 75 to 95 years at the time of their assessments, and Alzheimer's disease was investigated in the 14 participants who died at 79 to 96 years of age. Seven neuropsychological tests and neuropathologically confirmed Alzheimer's disease. Low idea density and low grammatical complexity in autobiographies written in early life were associated with low cognitive test scores in late life. Low idea density in early life had stronger and more consistent associations with poor cognitive function than did low grammatical complexity. Among the 14 sisters who died, neuropathologically confirmed Alzheimer's disease was present in all of those with low idea density in early life and in none of those with high idea density. Low linguistic ability in early life was a strong predictor of poor cognitive function and Alzheimer's disease in late life.

  9. Reviewing to Learn: Graduate Student Participation in the Professional Peer-Review Process to Improve Academic Writing Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chittum, Jessica R.; Bryant, Lauren H.

    2014-01-01

    Although expectations for graduate students' writing abilities are high, their actual writing skills are often subpar (Cuthbert & Spark, 2008; Singleton-Jackson, Lumsden, & Newson, 2009), even though academic writing is considered integral to graduate education and necessary for career preparedness (e.g., Mullen, 2006; Stevens, 2005).…

  10. Demystifying values-affirmation interventions: writing about social belonging is a key to buffering against identity threat.

    PubMed

    Shnabel, Nurit; Purdie-Vaughns, Valerie; Cook, Jonathan E; Garcia, Julio; Cohen, Geoffrey L

    2013-05-01

    Two experiments examined for the first time whether the specific content of participant-generated affirmation essays-in particular, writing about social belonging-facilitated an affirmation intervention's ability to reduce identity threat among negatively stereotyped students. Study 1, a field experiment, revealed that seventh graders assigned to a values-affirmation condition wrote about social belonging more than those assigned to a control condition. Writing about belonging, in turn, improved the grade point average (GPA) of Black, but not White students. In Study 2, using a modified "belonging-affirmation" intervention, we directly manipulated writing about social belonging before a math test described as diagnostic of math ability. The more female participants wrote about belonging, the better they performed, while there was no effect of writing about belonging for males. Writing about social belonging improved performance only for members of negatively stereotyped groups. Implications for self-affirmation theory and practice are discussed.

  11. Learning to Write: Progress-Monitoring Tools for Beginning and at-Risk Writers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ritchey, Kristen D.

    2006-01-01

    Teachers now have a wide range of tools to help assess the beginning reading performance of kindergarten and first-grade children. However, validated procedures for assessing the beginning writing skills of kindergarten and first-grade children are less widely available. Learning to write, like learning to read, is a complex task. The ability to…

  12. Name Writing Ability Not Length of Name Is Predictive of Future Academic Attainment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Copping, Lee T.; Cramman, Helen; Gott, Sarah; Gray, Helen; Tymms, Peter

    2016-01-01

    Background: The Performance Indicators in Primary Schools On Entry Baseline assessment for pupils starting school includes an item which aims to assess how well a pupil writes his or her own name. There is some debate regarding the utility of this measure, on the grounds that name length may constitute bias. Purpose, method and design: The…

  13. Moving from technical to critical reflection in journalling: an investigation of students' ability to incorporate three levels of reflective writing.

    PubMed

    Usher, K; Tollefson, J; Francis, D

    2001-01-01

    This paper outlines a research project aimed at changing the levels of reflection of preregistration nursing students in a tertiary institution. Whilst reflection is widely espoused now in nursing, few studies have been found that identify whether the level of reflective writing can be identified or developed by students. Anecdotal and research evidence (Powell 1989; van Manen 1977) however indicates that most student reflective writing occurs at the technical level. A descriptive exploratory study using both qualitative and quantitative techniques was undertaken to apply van Manen's (1977) levels in a structured way in an attempt to facilitate the student's understanding and use of the levels in their reflective writing. The findings of the study indicate that student self evaluation and identification of the levels in their own writing can lead to change in the levels of critical reflective writing achieved by undergraduate students.

  14. The Relationship between Academic Writing Experience and Academic Publishing for Graduate Physics Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hess, Steven Timothy Michael

    2012-01-01

    Writing for scientific publication represents an opportunity to interact with colleagues and make a positive contribution to the academic community. However, there is a growing concern regarding the ability of graduate students' to transfer writing skill sets learned at the graduate and undergraduate levels into professional settings. The main…

  15. A FACETS Analysis of Rater Bias in Measuring Japanese Second Language Writing Performance.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kondo-Brown, Kimi

    2002-01-01

    Using FACETS, investigates how judgments of trained teacher raters are biased toward certain types of candidates and certain criteria in assessing Japanese second language writing. Explores the potential for using a modified version of a rating scale for norm-referenced decisions about Japanese second language writing ability. (Author/VWL)

  16. Improving Academic Writing in Nursing Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mattsson, Janet

    2016-01-01

    Background: At a specialist nursing education in intensive care, located at a University college in Sweden, there was a desire among the faculty to develop their ability to support specialist nursing students in their academic development, as well as in their academic writing, to improve the overall quality of the master theses. A quality…

  17. Predicting first-grade mathematics achievement: the contributions of domain-general cognitive abilities, nonverbal number sense, and early number competence.

    PubMed

    Hornung, Caroline; Schiltz, Christine; Brunner, Martin; Martin, Romain

    2014-01-01

    Early number competence, grounded in number-specific and domain-general cognitive abilities, is theorized to lay the foundation for later math achievement. Few longitudinal studies have tested a comprehensive model for early math development. Using structural equation modeling and mediation analyses, the present work examined the influence of kindergarteners' nonverbal number sense and domain-general abilities (i.e., working memory, fluid intelligence, and receptive vocabulary) and their early number competence (i.e., symbolic number skills) on first grade math achievement (i.e., arithmetic, shape and space skills, and number line estimation) assessed 1 year later. Latent regression models revealed that nonverbal number sense and working memory are central building blocks for developing early number competence in kindergarten and that early number competence is key for first grade math achievement. After controlling for early number competence, fluid intelligence significantly predicted arithmetic and number line estimation while receptive vocabulary significantly predicted shape and space skills. In sum we suggest that early math achievement draws on different constellations of number-specific and domain-general mechanisms.

  18. Predicting first-grade mathematics achievement: the contributions of domain-general cognitive abilities, nonverbal number sense, and early number competence

    PubMed Central

    Hornung, Caroline; Schiltz, Christine; Brunner, Martin; Martin, Romain

    2014-01-01

    Early number competence, grounded in number-specific and domain-general cognitive abilities, is theorized to lay the foundation for later math achievement. Few longitudinal studies have tested a comprehensive model for early math development. Using structural equation modeling and mediation analyses, the present work examined the influence of kindergarteners' nonverbal number sense and domain-general abilities (i.e., working memory, fluid intelligence, and receptive vocabulary) and their early number competence (i.e., symbolic number skills) on first grade math achievement (i.e., arithmetic, shape and space skills, and number line estimation) assessed 1 year later. Latent regression models revealed that nonverbal number sense and working memory are central building blocks for developing early number competence in kindergarten and that early number competence is key for first grade math achievement. After controlling for early number competence, fluid intelligence significantly predicted arithmetic and number line estimation while receptive vocabulary significantly predicted shape and space skills. In sum we suggest that early math achievement draws on different constellations of number-specific and domain-general mechanisms. PMID:24772098

  19. Executive Function Mediates the Relations between Parental Behaviors and Children's Early Academic Ability

    PubMed Central

    Devine, Rory T.; Bignardi, Giacomo; Hughes, Claire

    2016-01-01

    The past decade has witnessed a growth of interest in parental influences on individual differences in children's executive function (EF) on the one hand and in the academic consequences of variation in children's EF on the other hand. The primary aim of this longitudinal study was to examine whether children's EF mediated the relation between three distinct aspects of parental behavior (i.e., parental scaffolding, negative parent-child interactions, and the provision of informal learning opportunities) and children's academic ability (as measured by standard tests of literacy and numeracy skills). Data were collected from 117 parent-child dyads (60 boys) at two time points ~1 year apart (M Age at Time 1 = 3.94 years, SD = 0.53; M Age at Time 2 = 5.11 years, SD = 0.54). At both time points children completed a battery of tasks designed to measure general cognitive ability (e.g., non-verbal reasoning) and EF (e.g., inhibition, cognitive flexibility, working memory). Our models revealed that children's EF (but not general cognitive ability) mediated the relations between parental scaffolding and negative parent-child interactions and children's early academic ability. In contrast, parental provision of opportunities for learning in the home environment was directly related to children's academic abilities. These results suggest that parental scaffolding and negative parent-child interactions influence children's academic ability by shaping children's emerging EF. PMID:28018253

  20. The Relationship between Early Elementary Teachers' Instructional Practices and Theoretical Orientations and Students' Growth in Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ritchey, Kristen D.; Coker, David L., Jr.; Jackson, Allison F.

    2015-01-01

    We investigated the relationship between 28 teachers' theoretical orientations to writing instruction and self-reported instructional practices and student writing performance. First-, second-, and third-grade teachers completed the Teacher Writing Orientation Scale developed by Graham, Harris, MacArthur, and Fink (2002) and reported the frequency…

  1. Walking ability as a measure of treatment effect in early rheumatoid arthritis.

    PubMed

    Hamilton, J; Brydson, G; Fraser, S; Grant, M

    2001-04-01

    To assess the clinical usefulness of a prototype walkmat system in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Twenty-four subjects with early RA and symptomatic forefoot disease requiring therapy with second-line drugs were recruited. Each subject underwent clinical assessment together with gait analysis on the contact sensitive walkmat system and Kistler forceplate before and after six months of treatment with second-line drugs. Two subjects were lost to follow-up. There was the expected improvement in disease activity in response to therapy. Significant differences were also demonstrated in defined gait parameters that indicated improved weight-bearing and enhanced forefoot propulsion. Medical therapy improved walking ability in patients with RA and the walkmat system provided a useful adjunct to existing outcome measures in the assessment of lower limb function.

  2. The Effect of Error Correction vs. Error Detection on Iranian Pre-Intermediate EFL Learners' Writing Achievement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Abedi, Razie; Latifi, Mehdi; Moinzadeh, Ahmad

    2010-01-01

    This study tries to answer some ever-existent questions in writing fields regarding approaching the most effective ways to give feedback to students' errors in writing by comparing the effect of error correction and error detection on the improvement of students' writing ability. In order to achieve this goal, 60 pre-intermediate English learners…

  3. Natural Approaches to Reading and Writing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Antonacci, Patricia; Hedley, Carolyn

    Based on a two-day presentation workshop on early reading and writing approaches, the 12 essays in this book discuss the development of literacy, natural approaches in developing literacy, and supporting literacy development. Essays in the book are: (1) "Theories of Natural Language" (Carolyn N. Hedley); (2) "Oral Language…

  4. The Relationship between the Amount of Extensive Reading and the Writing Performance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sakurai, Nobuko

    2017-01-01

    This paper explored the effects of the amount of extensive reading (ER) on writing ability. Participants were 157 first and second-year non-English majors at a private university in Japan who took a writing test in class. Some of them were reading extensively, while others had no experience in ER. The outcomes of Pearson's correlation indicated…

  5. Development of early numerical abilities of Spanish-speaking Mexican preschoolers: A new assessment tool.

    PubMed

    Beltrán-Navarro, Beatriz; Abreu-Mendoza, Roberto A; Matute, Esmeralda; Rosselli, Monica

    2018-01-01

    This article presents a tool for assessing the early numerical abilities of Spanish-speaking Mexican preschoolers. The Numerical Abilities Test, from the Evaluación Neuropsicológica Infantil-Preescolar (ENI-P), evaluates four core abilities of number development: magnitude comparison, counting, subitizing, and basic calculation. We evaluated 307 Spanish-speaking Mexican children aged 2 years 6 months to 4 years 11 months. Appropriate internal consistency and test-retest reliability were demonstrated. We also investigated the effect of age, children's school attendance, maternal education, and sex on children's numerical scores. The results showed that the four subtests captured development across ages. Critically, maternal education had an impact on children's performance in three out of the four subtests, but there was no effect associated with children's school attendance or sex. These results suggest that the Numerical Abilities Test is a reliable instrument for Spanish-speaking preschoolers. We discuss the implications of our outcomes for numerical development.

  6. Writing Plan Quality: Relevance to Writing Scores

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chai, Constance

    2006-01-01

    If writing matters, how can we improve it? This study investigated the nature of writing plan quality and its relationship to the ensuing writing scores. Data were drawn from the 1998 Provincial Learning Assessment Programme (PLAP) in Writing, which was administered to pupils in Grades 4, 7, and 10 across British Columbia, Canada. Common features…

  7. Relationships between language input and letter output modes in writing notes and summaries for students in grades 4 to 9 with persisting writing disabilities.

    PubMed

    Thompson, Robert; Tanimoto, Steven; Abbott, Robert; Nielsen, Kathleen; Lyman, Ruby Dawn; Geselowitz, Kira; Habermann, Katrien; Mickail, Terry; Raskind, Marshall; Peverly, Stephen; Nagy, William; Berninger, Virginia

    2017-01-01

    This study in programmatic research on technology-supported instruction first identified, through pretesting using evidence-based criteria, students with persisting specific learning disabilities (SLDs) in written language during middle childhood (grades 4-6) and early adolescence (grades 7-9). Participants then completed computerized writing instruction and posttesting. The 12 computer lessons varied output modes (letter production by stylus alternating with hunt and peck keyboarding versus by pencil with grooves alternating with touch typing on keyboard), input (read or heard source material), and task (notes or summaries). Posttesting and coded notes and summaries showed the effectiveness of computerized writing instruction on both writing tasks for multiple modes of language input and letter production output for improving letter production and related writing skills.

  8. Relationships between Language Input and Letter Output Modes in Writing Notes and Summaries for Students in Grades 4 to 9 with Persisting Writing Disabilities

    PubMed Central

    Thompson, Robert; Tanimoto, Steven; Abbott, Robert; Nielsen, Kathleen; Lyman, Ruby Dawn; Geselowitz, Kira; Habermann, Katrien; Mickail, Terry; Raskind, Marshall; Peverly, Stephen; Nagy, William; Berninger, Virginia

    2017-01-01

    This study in programmatic research on technology-supported instruction first identified, through pretesting using evidence-based criteria, students with persisting specific learning disabilities (SLDs) in written language during middle childhood (grades 4-6) and early adolescence (grades 7-9). Participants then completed computerized writing instruction and posttesting. The 12 computer lessons varied output modes (letter production by stylus alternating with hunt and peck keyboarding versus by pencil with grooves alternating with touch typing on keyboard), input (read or heard source material), and task (notes or summaries). Posttesting and coded notes and summaries showed the effectiveness of computerized writing instruction on both writing tasks for multiple modes of language input and letter production output for improving letter production and related writing skills. PMID:27434553

  9. UAE University Male Students' Interests Impact on Reading and Writing Performance and Improvement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Al Murshidi, Ghadah

    2014-01-01

    The study examined the impact of the conjunction of structured journal writing and reading for pleasure on students' reading and writing skills. Forty male students from UAE University participated in the study. The participants are of different academic abilities, majors and nationalities. Many of them have little experience with reading for…

  10. The Effects of Word Prediction on Writing Fluency for Students with Physical Disabilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mezei, Peter John

    2009-01-01

    Writing is a multifaceted, complex task that involves interaction between physical and cognitive skills. Individuals with physical disabilities vary in terms of both their physical and cognitive abilities. Often they must overcome one or more significant barriers in order to engage in the task of writing. Minimizing or eliminating barriers is…

  11. Academically Informed Creative Writing in LIS Programs and the Freedom to Be Creative

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dali, Keren; Lau, Andrea; Risk, Kevin

    2015-01-01

    This article makes a case for the inclusion of creative writing in Library & Information Science (LIS) courses. Using an example of the course on reading practices and audiences, it shows how creative writing can contribute to the development of creativity, critical thinking, ability for self-direction and independent learning--all the…

  12. Outcome Measure of L2 Writing as a Mediator of the Effects of Corrective Feedback on Students' Ability to Write Accurately

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Riazantseva, Anastasia

    2012-01-01

    This study used longitudinal data and a pre-post test design to examine the effect of the outcome measure of L2 writing on the accuracy rates of thirty-two international graduate students enrolled in a semester-long content-based EAP course. As part of the coursework, the students completed weekly written assignments on which they received weekly…

  13. How Do Movements to Produce Letters Become Automatic during Writing Acquisition? Investigating the Development of Motor Anticipation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kandel, Sonia; Perret, Cyril

    2015-01-01

    Learning how to write involves the automation of grapho-motor skills. One of the factors that determine automaticity is "motor anticipation." This is the ability to write a letter while processing information on how to produce following letters. It is essential for writing fast and smoothly. We investigated how motor anticipation…

  14. The Quality of University Writing: A Preliminary Analysis of Undergraduate Portfolios.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lavelle, Ellen

    2003-01-01

    Conducted an ex post facto study to test for differences in the quality of university student writing as reflected in years 1 and 2 and again in years 3 and 4. Findings from 30 undergraduate portfolios show no significant differences between early and late samples and no significant relationship between grade point average and writing quality.…

  15. "Thinking-for-Writing": A Prolegomenon on Writing Signed Languages.

    PubMed

    Rosen, Russell S; Hartman, Maria C; Wang, Ye

    2017-01-01

    In his article in this American Annals of the Deaf special issue that also includes the present article, Grushkin argues that the writing difficulties of many deaf and hard of hearing children result primarily from the orthographic nature of the writing system; he proposes a new system based on features found in signed languages. In response, the present authors review the literature on D/HH children's writing difficulties, outline the main percepts of and assumptions about writing signed languages, discuss "thinking-for-writing" as a process in developing writing skills, offer research designs to test the effectiveness of writing signed language systems, and provide strategies for adopting "thinking-for-writing" in education. They conclude that until empirical studies show that writing signed languages effectively reflects writers' "thinking-for-writing," the alphabetic orthographic system of English should still be used, and ways should be found to teach D/HH children to use English writing to express their thoughts.

  16. The Use and Misuse of Academic Words in Writing: Analyzing the Writing of Secondary English Learners and Redesignated Learners

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cons, Andrea Marie

    2012-01-01

    This study investigated the specific ways secondary English learners (ELs) and redesignated fluent English-proficient learners (RFEPs) use academic vocabulary that assesses interpretive reading and analytical writing ability. The research examines how ELs and RFEPs, formerly ELs, differ in use and misuse of academic words. The study extends…

  17. Generating Cultures of Writing: Collaborations between the Stanford Writing Center and High School Writing Centers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tinker, John

    2006-01-01

    For several years, the author has been working with colleagues in the Northern California Writing Centers Association (NCWCA) and the Stanford Writing Center to build bridges between college and high school writing centers. The writing center at Stanford defines one of its central goals as "celebrating a culture of writing" for all…

  18. Cognitive Components of Developmental Writing Skill

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Decker, Scott L.; Roberts, Alycia M.; Roberts, Kristin L.; Stafford, Allison L.; Eckert, Mark A.

    2016-01-01

    A significant number of studies have examined the cognitive components of basic academic skills, which has led to major changes in both teaching and early identification assessment practices. However, the majority of previous research has focused solely on reading. This study examines the cognitive components of academic writing skills across…

  19. Creative Writing as Public Pedagogy: A Short History of My Life in the Movies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ryan, Michael

    2005-01-01

    In the early 1970's the author of this article decided to dedicate his life to two tasks. The first was to write politically and creatively in popular literary genres such as the detective novel for a larger public than one was likely to find through academic writing. The second was to write politically and inventively within the genres of…

  20. The Generational Impact of Technology on Formal Writing of Rural Middle School Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Land, Martha Ann

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to determine the impact text messages, social networks, Instant Messaging, email, and blogging had on rural middle school students' ability to decipher between formal and informal writing. Students completed self-evaluation logs, completed Formal and Informal Writing Assessments, and were scored on their use of…

  1. Development of medical writing in India: Past, present and future.

    PubMed

    Sharma, Suhasini

    2017-01-01

    Pharmaceutical medical writing has grown significantly in India in the last couple of decades. It includes preparing regulatory, safety, and publication documents as well as educational and communication material related to health and health-care products. Medical writing requires medical understanding, knowledge of drug development and the regulatory and safety domains, understanding of research methodologies, and awareness of relevant regulations and guidelines. It also requires the ability to analyze, interpret, and present biomedical scientific data in the required format and good writing skills. Medical writing is the fourth most commonly outsourced clinical development activity, and its global demand has steadily increased due to rising cost pressures on the pharmaceutical industry. India has the unique advantages of a large workforce of science graduates and medical professionals trained in English and lower costs, which make it a suitable destination for outsourcing medical writing services. However, the current share of India in global medical writing business is very small. This industry in India faces some real challenges, such as the lack of depth and breadth in domain expertise, inadequate technical writing skills, high attrition rates, and paucity of standardized training programs as well as quality assessment tools. Focusing our time, attention, and resources to address these challenges will help the Indian medical writing industry gain its rightful share in the global medical writing business.

  2. Development of medical writing in India: Past, present and future

    PubMed Central

    Sharma, Suhasini

    2017-01-01

    Pharmaceutical medical writing has grown significantly in India in the last couple of decades. It includes preparing regulatory, safety, and publication documents as well as educational and communication material related to health and health-care products. Medical writing requires medical understanding, knowledge of drug development and the regulatory and safety domains, understanding of research methodologies, and awareness of relevant regulations and guidelines. It also requires the ability to analyze, interpret, and present biomedical scientific data in the required format and good writing skills. Medical writing is the fourth most commonly outsourced clinical development activity, and its global demand has steadily increased due to rising cost pressures on the pharmaceutical industry. India has the unique advantages of a large workforce of science graduates and medical professionals trained in English and lower costs, which make it a suitable destination for outsourcing medical writing services. However, the current share of India in global medical writing business is very small. This industry in India faces some real challenges, such as the lack of depth and breadth in domain expertise, inadequate technical writing skills, high attrition rates, and paucity of standardized training programs as well as quality assessment tools. Focusing our time, attention, and resources to address these challenges will help the Indian medical writing industry gain its rightful share in the global medical writing business. PMID:28194338

  3. An Analysis Of Cyber Security And How It Is Affecting A Contract Writing System, Seaport

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-06-01

    CONTRACT WRITING SYSTEM, SEAPORT June 2016 By: Bill Turner Daniel Belcher Danielle Allen Advisors: Raymond Jones Stacy McQuage...A CONTRACT WRITING SYSTEM, SEAPORT 5. FUNDING NUMBERS 6. AUTHOR(S) Bill Turner, Daniel Belcher, & Danielle Allen 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S...business support for the DOD—specifically, the contract writing system SeaPort. Is cybersecurity becoming too restrictive, making the ability to support the

  4. Teaching Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tomas, Z.; Kostka, I.; Mott-Smith, J. A.

    2013-01-01

    The authors of "Teaching Writing" draw on their years of teaching and their knowledge of theory and research to present major concepts in teaching L2 writing. These concepts encompass how cultural differences affect the writing class, planning instruction, text-based writing, writing strategies, modeling, and responding to student…

  5. An experimental assessment of a Pennebaker writing intervention in primary insomnia.

    PubMed

    Mooney, Patricia; Espie, Colin A; Broomfield, Niall M

    2009-01-01

    This study considers the role of pre-sleep cognitive arousal, worry, and inhibition in sleep onset difficulties. The Pennebaker writing task, which promotes emotional processing by asking people to write about their thoughts, worries, and emotions, has proven effective in several areas of health. Here, the paradigm's ability to reduce pre-sleep cognitive arousal (PSCA) and sleep onset latency (SOL) in people with insomnia was tested. Twenty-eight people with insomnia were randomized to three nights of Pennebaker writing or a control condition, following a one-night baseline. The outcomes of change over baseline at Day 4 in pre-sleep cognitive arousal and SOL were compared. Writing significantly reduced pre-sleep cognitive arousal on one out of two measures, but did not significantly reduce SOL.

  6. The influence of spelling ability on handwriting production: children with and without dyslexia.

    PubMed

    Sumner, Emma; Connelly, Vincent; Barnett, Anna L

    2014-09-01

    Current models of writing do not sufficiently address the complex relationship between the 2 transcription skills: spelling and handwriting. For children with dyslexia and beginning writers, it is conceivable that spelling ability will influence rate of handwriting production. Our aim in this study was to examine execution speed and temporal characteristics of handwriting when completing sentence-copying tasks that are free from composing demands and to determine the predictive value of spelling, pausing, and motor skill on handwriting production. Thirty-one children with dyslexia (Mage = 9 years 4 months) were compared with age-matched and spelling-ability matched children (Mage = 6 years 6 months). A digital writing tablet and Eye and Pen software were used to analyze handwriting. Children with dyslexia were able to execute handwriting at the same speed as the age-matched peers. However, they wrote less overall and paused more frequently while writing, especially within words. Combined spelling ability and within-word pausing accounted for over 76% of the variance in handwriting production of children with dyslexia, demonstrating that productivity relies on spelling capabilities. Motor skill did not significantly predict any additional variance in handwriting production. Reading ability predicted performance of the age-matched group, and pausing predicted performance for the spelling-ability group. The findings from the digital writing tablet highlight the interactive relationship between the transcription skills and how, if spelling is not fully automatized, it can constrain the rate of handwriting production. Practical implications are also addressed, emphasizing the need for more consideration to be given to what common handwriting tasks are assessing as a whole.

  7. The Effect of Teacher Error Feedback on the Accuracy of EFL Student Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pan, Yi-chun

    2010-01-01

    This study investigated the effect of teacher error feedback on students' ability to write accurately. Three male first-year Physics graduate students at a university in Taiwan participated in this study. They were asked to write a 100-word passage about the greatest invention in human history. Within days of the teacher's grammatical feedback,…

  8. Young Learner Writing Performance in Swiss Elementary Schools--Which Teacher Variables Matter?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Loder Buechel, Laura

    2015-01-01

    Elementary school English language teachers in Swiss public schools often question the role of writing in early years language instruction because there is a significant disparity in messages they receive from Board of Education members, from fellow teachers and from teacher trainers. This study describes the issues concerning writing in the first…

  9. The Relationship between Motor Abilities and Early Social Development in a Preschool Cohort of Children with Cerebral Palsy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Whittingham, Koa; Fahey, Michael; Rawicki, Barry; Boyd, Roslyn

    2010-01-01

    Aim: To investigate the relationship between motor ability and early social development in a cohort of preschool children with cerebral palsy (CP). Design: Population-based cohort study. Methods: Participants were 122 children with CP assessed at 18, 24 and 30 months, corrected age (ca). Motor ability was measured by the Gross Motor Function…

  10. The value of a writing center at a medical university.

    PubMed

    Ariail, Jennie; Thomas, Suzanne; Smith, Tom; Kerr, Lisa; Richards-Slaughter, Shannon; Shaw, Darlene

    2013-01-01

    Students often enter graduate healthcare/biomedical schools with insufficient undergraduate instruction in effective writing, yet the ability to write well affects their career opportunities in health care and in scientific research. The present study was conducted to determine the value and effectiveness of instruction by faculty with expertise in teaching writing at a writing center at an academic health science center. Two separate sources of data were collected and analyzed. First, an anonymous campus-wide survey assessed students' satisfaction and utilization of the university's Writing Center. Second, a nonexperimental objective study was conducted comparing a subsample of students who used versus those who did not receive instruction at the Writing Center on quality of writing, as determined by an evaluator who was blind to students' utilization status. From the campus-wide survey, more than 90% of respondents who used the center (which was 26% of the student body) agreed that it was a valuable and effective resource. From the objective study of writing quality, students who used the Writing Center were twice as likely as students who did not to receive an A grade on the written assignment, and the blinded evaluator accurately estimated which students used the Writing Center based on the clarity of writing. The instruction at the Writing Center at our university is highly valued by students, and its value is further supported by objective evidence of efficacy. Such a center offers the opportunity to provide instruction that medical and other healthcare students increasingly need without requiring additions to existing curricula. By developing competency in writing, students prepare for scholarly pursuits, and through the process of writing, they engage critical thinking skills that can make them more attuned to narrative and more reflective and empathetic in the clinical setting.

  11. Barely started and already left behind: a descriptive analysis of the mathematics ability demonstrated by young deaf children.

    PubMed

    Kritzer, Karen L

    2009-01-01

    This study examined young deaf children's early informal/formal mathematical knowledge as measured by the Test of Early Mathematics Ability (TEMA-3). Findings from this study suggest that prior to the onset of formal schooling, young deaf children might already demonstrate evidence of academic delays. Of these 28 participants (4-6 years of age), for whom data were analyzed, none received a score on the TEMA-3, indicating above-"average" ability according to normative ranking. More than half of participants received scores substantially below average with 11 participants receiving scores a year or more behind normative age-equivalent scores. Upon more focused analysis, specific areas of difficulty were found to include word/story problems, skip counting (i.e., counting by twos, threes, etc.), number comparisons, the reading/writing of two to three digit numbers, and addition/subtraction number facts. A qualitative analysis of the answers participants gave and the behaviors they demonstrated while answering the test items was conducted and revealed possible explanations for why specific test items may have been challenging. Implications of findings for parents, early interventionists, and teachers of young deaf children are discussed.

  12. How We Write: Understanding Scholarly Writing through Metaphor

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Boyd, Michelle

    2012-01-01

    This article introduces the "writing metaphor" and examines why political scientists should consider developing one to describe their own writing process. Drawing on the author's experience with writing accountability groups, it defines the components of the writing metaphor, provides an example, and discusses its advantages and disadvantages. The…

  13. Environmental Change Science Literacy Through Writing: Successes in an Undergraduate Writing and Composition Course

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Small, J. D.

    2007-12-01

    Basic science literacy, especially with regards to environmental change science, is often lacking in traditional K- 12 and undergraduate education. This generally leads to broad misconceptions based on distorted presentations of science in the media. Current educational research suggests that the teaching and learning of science can happen in many ways, whether it is through lectures, labs, research, inquiry or informal learning activities. This study was motivated by the desire to investigate the ability to teach environmental change science content in the non-traditional mode of an undergraduate composition and writing course. This technique offers educators another option for the integration of climate and environmental change material into their curriculum. The study incorporates the assessment and evaluation of student writing, in-class participation and student self- evaluations from "Writing about Change: Global Environmental Change and Society" a writing course that fulfils a requirement to graduate from the University of California - Santa Cruz. The course was taught Winter Quarter 2007 with a total of 28 days of instruction and the participation of 20 undergraduate students. The overarching goals of this study can be broadly classified as attitudinal, skills development and content retention. This study was designed to address three broad questions related to the above broad goals: i) Did students leave the class more comfortable and confident with environmental change issues and content? ii) Did students develop skills that are useful for reading and writing about scientific material? iii) What did students learn (retain): more general concepts or specific facts regarding climate and environmental change? Preliminary analysis and coding of student work clearly show that students were successful in developing skills for understanding and utilizing scientific information via writing and making thoughtful judgments regarding the reliability of environmental

  14. Writing by the Book, Writing beyond the Book

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Johnson, Kristine

    2017-01-01

    Writing has become more visible in academia through writing advice manuals and the faculty development activities they inspire. In this article, I examine writing advice manuals and argue they are epistemologically current traditional, which limits how well and how far they can support scholarly writers. Writing advice manuals and composition…

  15. Characterization and Prediction of Early Reading Abilities in Children on the Autism Spectrum

    PubMed Central

    Davidson, Meghan M.; Weismer, Susan Ellis

    2013-01-01

    Many children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have reading profiles characterized by higher decoding skills and lower reading comprehension. This study assessed whether this profile was apparent in young children with ASD and examined concurrent and longitudinal predictors of early reading. A discrepant profile of reading (higher alphabet and lower meaning) was found in 62% of this sample. Concurrent analyses revealed that reading proficiency was associated with higher nonverbal cognition and expressive language, and that social ability was negatively related to alphabet knowledge. Nonverbal cognition and expressive language at mean age 2½ years predicted later reading performance at mean age 5½ years. These results support the importance of early language skills as a foundation for reading in children with ASD. PMID:24022730

  16. E-Mail Writing: Providing Background Information in the Core of Computer Assisted Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nazari, Behzad; Ninknejad, Sahar

    2015-01-01

    The present study highly supported the effective role of providing background information via email by the teacher to write e-mail by the students in learners' writing ability. A total number of 50 EFL advanced male students aged between 25 and 40 at different branches of Iran Language Institute in Tehran, Tehran. Through the placement test of…

  17. Writing errors as a result of frontal dysfunction in Japanese patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

    PubMed

    Tsuji-Akimoto, Sachiko; Hamada, Shinsuke; Yabe, Ichiro; Tamura, Itaru; Otsuki, Mika; Kobashi, Syoji; Sasaki, Hidenao

    2010-12-01

    Loss of communication is a critical problem for advanced amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients. This loss of communication is mainly caused by severe dysarthria and disability of the dominant hand. However, reports show that about 50% of ALS patients have mild cognitive dysfunction, and there are a considerable number of case reports on Japanese ALS patients with agraphia. To clarify writing disabilities in non-demented ALS patients, eighteen non-demented ALS patients and 16 controls without neurological disorders were examined for frontal cognitive function and writing ability. To assess writing errors statistically, we scored them on their composition ability with the original writing error index (WEI). The ALS and control groups did not differ significantly with regard to age, years of education, or general cognitive level. Two patients could not write a letter because of disability of the dominant hand. The WEI and results of picture arrangement tests indicated significant impairment in the ALS patients. Auditory comprehension (Western Aphasia Battery; WAB IIC) and kanji dictation also showed mild impairment. Patients' writing errors consisted of both syntactic and letter-writing mistakes. Omission, substitution, displacement, and inappropriate placement of the phonic marks of kana were observed; these features have often been reported in Japanese patients with agraphia resulted from a frontal lobe lesion. The most frequent type of error was an omission of kana, the next most common was a missing subject. Writing errors might be a specific deficit for some non-demented ALS patients.

  18. Early Maternal Employment and Children's Vocabulary and Inductive Reasoning Ability: A Dynamic Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kühhirt, Michael; Klein, Markus

    2018-01-01

    This study investigates the relationship between early maternal employment history and children's vocabulary and inductive reasoning ability at age 5, drawing on longitudinal information on 2,200 children from the Growing Up in Scotland data. Prior research rarely addresses dynamics in maternal employment and the methodological ramifications of…

  19. Argument-Driven Inquiry as a Way to Help Undergraduate Students Write to Learn by Learning to Write in Chemistry

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sampson, Victor; Walker, Joi Phelps

    2012-01-01

    This exploratory study examined how undergraduate students' ability to write in science changed over time as they completed a series of laboratory activities designed using a new instructional model called argument-driven inquiry. The study was conducted in a single section of an undergraduate general chemistry lab course offered at a large…

  20. Developing Successful Writing Teachers: Outcomes of Professional Development Exploring Teachers' Perceptions of Themselves as Writers and Writing Teachers and Their Students' Attitudes and Abilities to Write across the Curriculum

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bifuh-Ambe, Elizabeth

    2013-01-01

    Writing is a complex, recursive and difficult process that requires strategic decision-making across multiple domains (Graham, 2006; Pritchard & Honeycutt, 2006). Students are expected to use this process to communicate with a variety of audiences for a variety of purposes. Modelling and providing effective instruction is critical, especially…

  1. Reading depends on writing, in Chinese.

    PubMed

    Tan, Li Hai; Spinks, John A; Eden, Guinevere F; Perfetti, Charles A; Siok, Wai Ting

    2005-06-14

    Language development entails four fundamental and interactive abilities: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Over the past four decades, a large body of evidence has indicated that reading acquisition is strongly associated with a child's listening skills, particularly the child's sensitivity to phonological structures of spoken language. Furthermore, it has been hypothesized that the close relationship between reading and listening is manifested universally across languages and that behavioral remediation using strategies addressing phonological awareness alleviates reading difficulties in dyslexics. The prevailing view of the central role of phonological awareness in reading development is largely based on studies using Western (alphabetic) languages, which are based on phonology. The Chinese language provides a unique medium for testing this notion, because logographic characters in Chinese are based on meaning rather than phonology. Here we show that the ability to read Chinese is strongly related to a child's writing skills and that the relationship between phonological awareness and Chinese reading is much weaker than that in reports regarding alphabetic languages. We propose that the role of logograph writing in reading development is mediated by two possibly interacting mechanisms. The first is orthographic awareness, which facilitates the development of coherent, effective links among visual symbols, phonology, and semantics; the second involves the establishment of motor programs that lead to the formation of long-term motor memories of Chinese characters. These findings yield a unique insight into how cognitive systems responsible for reading development and reading disability interact, and they challenge the prominent phonological awareness view.

  2. "The Writing Writes Itself": Deleuzian Desire and the Creative Writing MFA Degree

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Walker, Ginger Marie

    2017-01-01

    This post-qualitative inquiry project investigated subjectivity (sense of self) among graduates of creative writing Master of Fine Arts (MFA) programs. The project asked how subjectivity is involved in the creative writing process and how that process fuels further writing after a creative piece (such as the MFA thesis) is completed. A…

  3. Potential superiority of periarticular injection in analgesic effect and early mobilization ability over femoral nerve block following total knee arthroplasty.

    PubMed

    Fu, Huichao; Wang, Jiaxing; Zhang, Wen; Cheng, Tao; Zhang, Xianlong

    2017-01-01

    Pain management after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) should permit early knee mobilization with minimal pain. Periarticular injection (PAI) with local anaesthetics has been recently discussed as a protocol of pain control. The purpose of this review of the literature was to evaluate the efficacy of PAI in comparison with femoral nerve block (FNB). A literature search was performed in PubMed, EMBASE, the OVID database and the Cochrane Library databases. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane collaboration tool. Outcomes of interest included narcotic consumption, pain score, early mobilization ability, length of stay and adverse effects or events. Research identified 918 articles, of which six with a total of 284 knees, met the inclusion criteria and were eligible for the current study. Conflicting evidence was found in terms of narcotic consumption on the postoperative day 1 and early mobilization ability. Total narcotic consumption, pain score in the first 2 days after surgery, length of stay and adverse effects or events showed no difference between two groups. Lower pain score on the day of surgery was detected after PAI. When compared to continuous FNB, patients in PAI group showed a tendency to achieving better ability of early mobilization. In consideration of its relatively simple practice and its potential in analgesic effects or early mobilization ability, PAI had superiority to FNB in the management of pain control after TKA. Before PAI could be widely used in clinical practice after TKAs, further investigations would be necessary to confirm or refute our observed results and to unify the protocol of PAI. I.

  4. The Cortical Network for Braille Writing in the Blind.

    PubMed

    Likova, Lora T; Tyler, Christopher W; Cacciamani, Laura; Mineff, Kristyo; Nicholas, Spero

    2016-01-01

    Fundamental forms of high-order cognition, such as reading and writing, are usually studied in the context of one modality - vision. People without sight, however, use the kinesthetic-based Braille writing, and haptic-based Braille reading. We asked whether the cognitive and motor control mechanisms underlying writing and reading are modality-specific or supramodal. While a number of previous functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) studies have investigated the brain network for Braille reading in the blind, such studies on Braille writing are lacking. Consequently, no comparative network analysis of Braille writing vs. reading exists. Here, we report the first study of Braille writing, and a comparison of the brain organization for Braille writing vs Braille reading. FMRI was conducted in a Siemens 3T Trio scanner. Our custom MRI-compatible drawing/writing lectern was further modified to provide for Braille reading and writing. Each of five paragraphs of novel Braille text describing objects, faces and navigation sequences was read, then reproduced twice by Braille writing from memory, then read a second time. During Braille reading, the haptic-sensing of the Braille letters strongly activated not only the early visual area V1 and V2, but some highly specialized areas, such as the classical visual grapheme area and the Exner motor grapheme area. Braille-writing-from-memory, engaged a significantly more extensive network in dorsal motor, somatosensory/kinesthetic, dorsal parietal and prefrontal cortex. However, in contrast to the largely extended V1 activation in drawing-from-memory in the blind after training (Likova, 2012), Braille writing from memory generated focal activation restricted to the most foveal part of V1, presumably reflecting topographically the focal demands of such a "pin-pricking" task.

  5. The Cortical Network for Braille Writing in the Blind

    PubMed Central

    Likova, Lora T.; Tyler, Christopher W.; Cacciamani, Laura; Mineff, Kristyo; Nicholas, Spero

    2017-01-01

    Fundamental forms of high-order cognition, such as reading and writing, are usually studied in the context of one modality - vision. People without sight, however, use the kinesthetic-based Braille writing, and haptic-based Braille reading. We asked whether the cognitive and motor control mechanisms underlying writing and reading are modality-specific or supramodal. While a number of previous functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) studies have investigated the brain network for Braille reading in the blind, such studies on Braille writing are lacking. Consequently, no comparative network analysis of Braille writing vs. reading exists. Here, we report the first study of Braille writing, and a comparison of the brain organization for Braille writing vs Braille reading. FMRI was conducted in a Siemens 3T Trio scanner. Our custom MRI-compatible drawing/writing lectern was further modified to provide for Braille reading and writing. Each of five paragraphs of novel Braille text describing objects, faces and navigation sequences was read, then reproduced twice by Braille writing from memory, then read a second time. During Braille reading, the haptic-sensing of the Braille letters strongly activated not only the early visual area V1 and V2, but some highly specialized areas, such as the classical visual grapheme area and the Exner motor grapheme area. Braille-writing-from-memory, engaged a significantly more extensive network in dorsal motor, somatosensory/kinesthetic, dorsal parietal and prefrontal cortex. However, in contrast to the largely extended V1 activation in drawing-from-memory in the blind after training (Likova, 2012), Braille writing from memory generated focal activation restricted to the most foveal part of V1, presumably reflecting topographically the focal demands of such a “pin-pricking” task. PMID:28890944

  6. Toward understanding writing to learn in physics: Investigating student writing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Demaree, Dedra

    It is received wisdom that writing in a discipline helps students learn the discipline, and millions of dollars have been committed at many universities to supporting such writing. We show that evidence for effectiveness is anecdotal, and that little data-based material informs these prejudices. This thesis begins the process of scientific study of writing in the discipline, in specific, in physics, and creates means to judge whether such writing is effective. The studies culminating in this thesis are an aggressive start to addressing these complex questions. Writing is often promoted as an activity that, when put into classrooms in specific disciplines, not only helps students learn to write in the methods of that discipline but also helps students learn content knowledge. Students at the Ohio State University are being asked to write more in introductory courses, and the Engineering schools want their students to have more writing skills for the job market. Combined with the desire of many educators to have students be able to explain the course content knowledge clearly, it would seem that writing activities would be important and useful in physics courses. However, the question of whether writing helps learning or whether students learn writing within a non-English classroom helps learning in the discipline are open to debate, and data are needed before such claims can be made. This thesis presents several studies aimed at understanding the correlation of writing and content, and tracking and characterizing student writing behaviors to see how they are impacted by writing in physics courses. It consists of four parts: summer and autumn 2005 focus on writing in introductory physics labs with and without explicit instruction, while winter and spring 2006 focus on tracking and analyzing student writing and revising behavior in Physics by Inquiry (PbI). With these related projects, we establish three main results. First, there is a need for quantitative studies of

  7. Predictive ability of an early diagnostic guess in patients presenting with chest pain; a longitudinal descriptive study

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Background The intuitive early diagnostic guess could play an important role in reaching a final diagnosis. However, no study to date has attempted to quantify the importance of general practitioners' (GPs) ability to correctly appraise the origin of chest pain within the first minutes of an encounter. Methods The validation study was nested in a multicentre cohort study with a one year follow-up and included 626 successive patients who presented with chest pain and were attended by 58 GPs in Western Switzerland. The early diagnostic guess was assessed prior to a patient's history being taken by a GP and was then compared to a diagnosis of chest pain observed over the next year. Results Using summary measures clustered at the GP's level, the early diagnostic guess was confirmed by further investigation in 51.0% (CI 95%; 49.4% to 52.5%) of patients presenting with chest pain. The early diagnostic guess was more accurate in patients with a life threatening illness (65.4%; CI 95% 64.5% to 66.3%) and in patients who did not feel anxious (62.9%; CI 95% 62.5% to 63.3%). The predictive abilities of an early diagnostic guess were consistent among GPs. Conclusions The GPs early diagnostic guess was correct in one out of two patients presenting with chest pain. The probability of a correct guess was higher in patients with a life-threatening illness and in patients not feeling anxious about their pain. PMID:20170544

  8. Predictive ability of an early diagnostic guess in patients presenting with chest pain; a longitudinal descriptive study.

    PubMed

    Verdon, François; Junod, Michel; Herzig, Lilli; Vaucher, Paul; Burnand, Bernard; Bischoff, Thomas; Pécoud, Alain; Favrat, Bernard

    2010-02-21

    The intuitive early diagnostic guess could play an important role in reaching a final diagnosis. However, no study to date has attempted to quantify the importance of general practitioners' (GPs) ability to correctly appraise the origin of chest pain within the first minutes of an encounter. The validation study was nested in a multicentre cohort study with a one year follow-up and included 626 successive patients who presented with chest pain and were attended by 58 GPs in Western Switzerland. The early diagnostic guess was assessed prior to a patient's history being taken by a GP and was then compared to a diagnosis of chest pain observed over the next year. Using summary measures clustered at the GP's level, the early diagnostic guess was confirmed by further investigation in 51.0% (CI 95%; 49.4% to 52.5%) of patients presenting with chest pain. The early diagnostic guess was more accurate in patients with a life threatening illness (65.4%; CI 95% 64.5% to 66.3%) and in patients who did not feel anxious (62.9%; CI 95% 62.5% to 63.3%). The predictive abilities of an early diagnostic guess were consistent among GPs. The GPs early diagnostic guess was correct in one out of two patients presenting with chest pain. The probability of a correct guess was higher in patients with a life-threatening illness and in patients not feeling anxious about their pain.

  9. Promoting Writing for Research: The "Writing Retreat" Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Singh, R. J.

    2012-01-01

    Research papers take a long time to write and in an academic environment where the "publish or perish" clause applies, writing retreats are a way of creating time and space to write academic articles in a concentrated period of time. This article examines ways in which academics can write more articles for publication. In particular it…

  10. Integrating writing research with curricular development in large-enrollment introductory physics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Demaree, Dedra

    2008-05-01

    Multiple research projects have been undertaken as part of an ongoing study to develop methods to do quantitative assessment of writing to learn within physics. The ability to make use of writing to learn at first glance appears limited in large-enrollment courses due to the time-intensive nature of essay writing and grading. However, effective ways to implement writing are quite possible. One study that will be discussed required students to do textbook summary writing in introductory physics in the 2007 spring semester of the ``Foundation Physics Course'' at the University of Cape Town. This course is a component of the special access program which contains mostly second language English speakers. Another use of writing will be reported that is currently being used in the introductory physics course at Oregon State University as a way to enhance problem solving. This project is also aimed at scaffolding students toward goals in our upper division courses. This talk will report on some of what we know about writing to learn, how we are working to improve ways to study it quantitatively, and how we are incorporating some aspects of it in accessible ways in large-enrollment introductory courses.

  11. Cognitive, Linguistic and Print-Related Predictors of Preschool Children's Word Spelling and Name Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Milburn, Trelani F.; Hipfner-Boucher, Kathleen; Weitzman, Elaine; Greenberg, Janice; Pelletier, Janette; Girolametto, Luigi

    2017-01-01

    Preschool children begin to represent spoken language in print long before receiving formal instruction in spelling and writing. The current study sought to identify the component skills that contribute to preschool children's ability to begin to spell words and write their name. Ninety-five preschool children (mean age = 57 months) completed a…

  12. Technical writing versus technical writing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Dillingham, J. W.

    1981-01-01

    Two terms, two job categories, 'technical writer' and 'technical author' are discussed in terms of industrial and business requirements and standards. A distinction between 'technical writing' and technical 'writing' is made. The term 'technical editor' is also considered. Problems inherent in the design of programs to prepare and train students for these jobs are discussed. A closer alliance between industry and academia is suggested as a means of preparing students with competent technical communication skills (especially writing and editing skills) and good technical skills.

  13. Teaching Science Writing in an Introductory Lab Course

    PubMed Central

    Holstein, Sarah E.; Mickley Steinmetz, Katherine R.; Miles, John D.

    2015-01-01

    One challenge that many neuroscience instructors face is how to teach students to communicate within the field. The goal of this project was to improve students’ scientific writing in an introductory psychology laboratory course that serves as a feeder course into the neuroscience curriculum. This course included a scaffolded approach - breaking assignments into different sections that build upon each other to allow for more direction and feedback on each section. Students were also provided with examples of scientific writing, given direction on finding and reading journal articles, and were taught how to effectively peer review a paper. Research papers were assessed before (Year 1) and after (Year 2) this scaffolded approach was instituted. The assessment included measures of “Genre Knowledge” for each section of a research paper (abstract, introduction, method, results, discussion) as well as measures of “Writing Elements” (grammar, formatting, clarity, transitions, building to the hypothesis, using evidence). The results indicated that there was an improvement for Genre Knowledge scores when comparing Year 1 to Year 2. However, there was no systematic improvement in Writing Elements. This suggests that this teaching technique was most effective in improving students’ ability to write within the scientific genre. The logistics of implementing such an approach are discussed. PMID:25838801

  14. Laser-based direct-write techniques for cell printing

    PubMed Central

    Schiele, Nathan R; Corr, David T; Huang, Yong; Raof, Nurazhani Abdul; Xie, Yubing; Chrisey, Douglas B

    2016-01-01

    Fabrication of cellular constructs with spatial control of cell location (±5 μm) is essential to the advancement of a wide range of applications including tissue engineering, stem cell and cancer research. Precise cell placement, especially of multiple cell types in co- or multi-cultures and in three dimensions, can enable research possibilities otherwise impossible, such as the cell-by-cell assembly of complex cellular constructs. Laser-based direct writing, a printing technique first utilized in electronics applications, has been adapted to transfer living cells and other biological materials (e.g., enzymes, proteins and bioceramics). Many different cell types have been printed using laser-based direct writing, and this technique offers significant improvements when compared to conventional cell patterning techniques. The predominance of work to date has not been in application of the technique, but rather focused on demonstrating the ability of direct writing to pattern living cells, in a spatially precise manner, while maintaining cellular viability. This paper reviews laser-based additive direct-write techniques for cell printing, and the various cell types successfully laser direct-written that have applications in tissue engineering, stem cell and cancer research are highlighted. A particular focus is paid to process dynamics modeling and process-induced cell injury during laser-based cell direct writing. PMID:20814088

  15. The Relationship among Strategic Writing Behavior, Writing Motivation, and Writing Performance with Young, Developing Writers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Graham, Steve; Harris, Karen R.; Kiuhara, Sharlene A.; Fishman, Evan J.

    2017-01-01

    Our study tested whether learning is shaped by fundamental cognitive and motivational forces in the academic domain of writing. We examined whether strategic writing behavior and motivation (attitudes toward writing and self-efficacy) made a statistically significant and unique contribution to the prediction of writing quality and number of words…

  16. Diagnostic and Value-Added Assessment of Business Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fraser, Linda; Harich, Katrin; Norby, Joni; Brzovic, Kathy; Rizkallah, Teeanna; Loewy, Dana

    2005-01-01

    To assess students' business writing abilities upon entry into the business program and exit from the capstone course, a multitiered assessment package was developed that measures students' achievement of specific learning outcomes and provides "value-added" scores. The online segment of the test measures five competencies across three process…

  17. Developing Research Paper Writing Programs for EFL/ESL Undergraduate Students Using Process Genre Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tuyen, Kim Thanh; Bin Osman, Shuki; Dan, Thai Cong; Ahmad, Nor Shafrin Binti

    2016-01-01

    Research Paper Writing (RPW) plays a key role in completing all research work. Poor writing could lead to the postponement of publications. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a program of (RPW) to improve RPW ability for EFL/ESL writers, especially for undergraduate students in Higher Education (HE) institutions, which has caught less attention…

  18. Writing Instruction.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Richgels, Donald J.

    2003-01-01

    Discusses four recent writing books: "Teaching to Write: Theory Into Practice" (Jane B. Hughey and Charlotte Slack); "The Writing Teacher's Handbook" (Jo Phenix); "Scaffolding Young Writers: A Writers' Workshop Approach" (Linda J. Dorn and Carla Soffos); and "Directing the Writing Workshop: An Elementary Teacher's Handbook" (Jean Wallace Gillet…

  19. Learning to Write with Interactive Writing Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Williams, Cheri

    2018-01-01

    Interactive writing is a process-oriented instructional approach designed to make the composing and encoding processes of writing overt and explicit for young students who are learning to write. It is particularly suitable for students who struggle with literacy learning. This article describes one first-grade teacher's use of interactive writing…

  20. The role of learning in improving functional writing in stroke aphasia.

    PubMed

    Thiel, Lindsey; Sage, Karen; Conroy, Paul

    2016-10-01

    Improving writing in people with aphasia could improve ability to communicate, reduce isolation and increase access to information. One area that has not been sufficiently explored is the effect of impairment based spelling therapies on functional writing. A multiple case study was conducted with eight participants with aphasia subsequent to stroke. This aimed to measure the effects of spelling therapy on functional writing and perception of disability. Participants engaged in 10 sessions of copy and recall spelling therapy. Outcome measures included spelling to dictation of trained and untrained words, written picture description, spelling accuracy within emails, a disability questionnaire and a writing frequency diary. All participants made significant gains on treated words and six demonstrated improvements to untreated words. Group analyses showed significant improvements to written picture description, but not email writing, writing frequency or perceptions of disability. These results show that small doses of writing therapy can lead to large gains in specific types of writing. These gains did not extend to improvements in frequency of writing in daily living, nor ecological measures of email writing. There is a need to develop bridging interventions between experimental tasks towards more multi-faceted and ecological everyday writing tasks. Implications for Rehabilitation Acquired dysgraphia can restrict people from participating in social, educational and professional life. This study has shown that copy and recall spelling therapies can improve the spelling of treated words, untreated words and written picture description in people with a range of types and severities of dysgraphia following stroke. The results of this study suggest that more specific additional training is required for other writing activities such as email writing.

  1. Global, broad, or specific cognitive differences? Using a MIMIC model to examine differences in CHC abilities in children with learning disabilities.

    PubMed

    Niileksela, Christopher R; Reynolds, Matthew R

    2014-01-01

    This study was designed to better understand the relations between learning disabilities and different levels of latent cognitive abilities, including general intelligence (g), broad cognitive abilities, and specific abilities based on the Cattell-Horn-Carroll theory of intelligence (CHC theory). Data from the Differential Ability Scales-Second Edition (DAS-II) were used to create a multiple-indicator multiple cause model to examine the latent mean differences in cognitive abilities between children with and without learning disabilities in reading (LD reading), math (LD math), and reading and writing(LD reading and writing). Statistically significant differences were found in the g factor between the norm group and the LD groups. After controlling for differences in g, the LD reading and LD reading and writing groups showed relatively lower latent processing speed, and the LD math group showed relatively higher latent comprehension-knowledge. There were also some differences in some specific cognitive abilities, including lower scores in spatial relations and numerical facility for the LD math group, and lower scores in visual memory for the LD reading and writing group. These specific mean differences were above and beyond any differences in the latent cognitive factor means.

  2. Promoting linguistic complexity, greater message length and ease of engagement in email writing in people with aphasia: initial evidence from a study utilizing assistive writing software.

    PubMed

    Thiel, Lindsey; Sage, Karen; Conroy, Paul

    2017-01-01

    Improving email writing in people with aphasia could enhance their ability to communicate, promote interaction and reduce isolation. Spelling therapies have been effective in improving single-word writing. However, there has been limited evidence on how to achieve changes to everyday writing tasks such as email writing in people with aphasia. One potential area that has been largely unexplored in the literature is the potential use of assistive writing technologies, despite some initial evidence that assistive writing software use can lead to qualitative and quantitative improvements to spontaneous writing. This within-participants case series design study aimed to investigate the effects of using assistive writing software to improve email writing in participants with dysgraphia related to aphasia. Eight participants worked through a hierarchy of writing tasks of increasing complexity within broad topic areas that incorporate the spheres of writing need of the participants: writing for domestic needs, writing for social needs and writing for business/administrative needs. Through completing these tasks, participants had the opportunity to use the various functions of the software, such as predictive writing, word banks and text to speech. Therapy also included training and practice in basic computer and email skills to encourage increased independence. Outcome measures included email skills, keyboard skills, email writing and written picture description tasks, and a perception of disability assessment. Four of the eight participants showed statistically significant improvements to spelling accuracy within emails when using the software. At a group level there was a significant increase in word length with the software; while four participants showed noteworthy changes to the range of word classes used. Enhanced independence in email use and improvements in participants' perceptions of their writing skills were also noted. This study provided some initial evidence

  3. Predictive Validity Study of the APS Writing and Reading Tests [and] Validating Placement Rules for the APS Writing Test.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    College of the Canyons, Valencia, CA. Office of Institutional Development.

    California's College of the Canyons has used the College Board Assessment and Placement Services (APS) test to assess students' abilities in basic and college English since spring 1993. These two reports summarize data from a May 1994 study of the predictive validity of the APS writing and reading tests and a June 1994 effort to validate the cut…

  4. A Four-Week Reflective Writing Program in the Psychiatry Clerkship: Testing Effects on Reflective Capacity.

    PubMed

    Whitmore, Charles A; Sakai, Joseph; Mikulich-Gilbertson, Susan K; Davies, Robert D

    2018-04-27

    Reflective capacity is the ability to review and reconstruct the importance, emotional impact, and outcomes of an experience to give it added meaning and context. In medicine, greater reflective capacity is associated with greater empathy and diagnostic accuracy. This project implemented a four-week reflective writing curriculum for third-year medical students during their psychiatric clerkship. A single class of medical students participated in a pilot reflective writing program during their four-week Psychiatry Care Block. Students were provided with weekly writing prompts, and the reflective capacity of their writing assignments was assessed using the REFLECT rubric. Medical students who participated in the reflective writing course demonstrated a significant increase in Wald Rubric reflective writing scores across the four-week clerkship. These results suggest a short, four-week reflective writing curriculum can enhance reflective capacity in a class of third-year medical students.

  5. Promoting Self-Directed Revision in EFL Writing Classes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Coomber, Matthew

    2016-01-01

    Second language writers need to develop the ability to revise their writing independently of third party advice; thus, it is important that teachers devise methods by which to promote habits of self-directed revision. This quasi-experimental study investigates three classroom activities designed to encourage students to independently revise essays…

  6. Children's Writing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    MacPhee, Angus

    1971-01-01

    The proper approach to children's writing from an educational point of view is discussed. The point is made that there is something fundamentally wrong with the current approach in children's writing. Current books on children's writing deal only with children's writing. It is recommended that any program which aims to be efficient in the teaching…

  7. A CHC Theory-Based Analysis of Age Differences on Cognitive Abilities and Academic Skills at Ages 22 to 90 Years

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kaufman, Alan S.; Johnson, Cheryl K.; Liu, Xin

    2008-01-01

    Age differences for nine age groups between 22 and 25 years and 81 and 90 years were evaluated, covarying educational attainment, on five Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) abilities: fluid reasoning (Gf), crystallized ability (Gc), quantitative knowledge (Gq), reading (Grw-Reading), and writing (Grw-Writing). Data were from the adult portions of the…

  8. Writing Inspired

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tischhauser, Karen

    2015-01-01

    Students need inspiration to write. Assigning is not teaching. In order to inspire students to write fiction worth reading, teachers must take them through the process of writing. Physical objects inspire good writing with depth. In this article, the reader will be taken through the process of inspiring young writers through the use of boxes.…

  9. Sports Writing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Grubaugh, Karl

    2003-01-01

    Lists the following 10 tips for improved sports writing in high school publications: reporting comes before writing; do not try to do too much; show, do not tell; do not do game stories; avoid cliches; avoid "jock-talk"; use the drama of sports; do not write the obvious story; sports is also news; and read great sports writing. (PM)

  10. A State-of-the-Art Review of the Real-Time Computer-Aided Study of the Writing Process

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Abdel Latif, Muhammad M.

    2008-01-01

    Writing researchers have developed various methods for investigating the writing process since the 1970s. The early 1980s saw the occurrence of the real-time computer-aided study of the writing process that relies on the protocols generated by recording the computer screen activities as writers compose using the word processor. This article…

  11. Toward a Sociomaterial Understanding of Writing Experiences Incorporating Digital Technology in an Early Childhood Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kervin, Lisa; Comber, Barbara; Woods, Annette

    2017-01-01

    This article examines the resources, tools, and opportunities children enact as they engage with teacher-devised writing experiences within their classroom space. We begin with discussion about classroom writing time from the perspective of both the teacher and children of one Grade 1/2 composite class. We also reveal resources within the…

  12. Early Adolescent Sexual Debut: The Mediating Role of Working Memory Ability, Sensation Seeking, and Impulsivity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Khurana, Atika; Romer, Daniel; Betancourt, Laura M.; Brodsky, Nancy L.; Giannetta, Joan M.; Hurt, Hallam

    2012-01-01

    Although deficits in working memory ability have been implicated in suboptimal decision making and risk taking among adolescents, its influence on early sexual initiation has so far not been examined. Analyzing 2 waves of panel data from a community sample of adolescents (N = 347; Mean age[subscript baseline] = 13.4 years), assessed 1 year apart,…

  13. I've Fallen and I Can't Get up: Can High-Ability Students Recover from Early Mistakes in CAT?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rulison, Kelly L.; Loken, Eric

    2009-01-01

    A difficult result to interpret in Computerized Adaptive Tests (CATs) occurs when an ability estimate initially drops and then ascends continuously until the test ends, suggesting that the true ability may be higher than implied by the final estimate. This study explains why this asymmetry occurs and shows that early mistakes by high-ability…

  14. Preservice Early Childhood Teachers' Learning of Science in a Methods Course: Examining the Predictive Ability of an Intentional Learning Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Saçkes, Mesut; Trundle, Kathy Cabe

    2014-01-01

    This study investigated the predictive ability of an intentional learning model in the change of preservice early childhood teachers' conceptual understanding of lunar phases. Fifty-two preservice early childhood teachers who were enrolled in an early childhood science methods course participated in the study. Results indicated that the use…

  15. THE EFFECTS OF EXPRESSIVE WRITING ON POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION AND POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS SYMPTOMS.

    PubMed

    Blasio, Paola Di; Camisasca, Elena; Caravita, Simona Carla Silvia; Ionio, Chiara; Milani, Luca; Valtolina, Giovanni Giulio

    2015-12-01

    This study investigated whether an Expressive Writing intervention decreased depression and posttraumatic stress symptoms after childbirth. 113 women (M age = 31.26 yr., SD = 4.42) were assessed at Time 1 for depression (Beck Depression Inventory) and PTS (Perinatal PTSD Questionnaire) in the first days after childbirth, then randomized to either expressive writing or neutral writing conditions and reassessed at Time 2, 3 months later. The results (ANCOVAs, regression models) show that at 3 mo. depressive and posttraumatic symptoms were lower in women who performed the expressive writing task than in the neutral writing group. Moreover, the intervention condition was associated significantly with decreased depression at the high and at the mean levels of baseline depression at Time 1. Regarding PTSD, the results showed that the intervention condition was linked significantly to reductions of the symptoms at all levels of baseline PTSD. Mainly, these outcomes suggest that Expressive Writing can be a helpful early and low-cost universal intervention to prevent postpartum distress for women.

  16. Children's Writing Ability: Effects of Parent's Education, Mental Speed and Intelligence

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rindermann, Heiner; Michou, Christina Dimitra; Thompson, James

    2011-01-01

    Verbal ability comprises receptive (understanding) and active (producing) facets. While the first (e.g. as literacy in PIRLS and PISA) is frequently analyzed in its relationship to further cognitive abilities and parental attributes the latter is rarely investigated. The present study using data from N=280 students aged 9 to 14 years investigated…

  17. A mandatory course in scientific writing for undergraduate medical students.

    PubMed

    Roland, C G; Cox, B G

    1976-02-01

    All students at Mayo Medical School take a course in scientific writing during their sophomore and junior years. Early in the sophomore year they receive a self-instructional text designed to help them avoid 15 common writing faults. Comparison of pretest and posttest results for two classes, with a total of 89 students, indicates significant improvement (p less than .001). Later in his sophomore year, each student writes a minithesis; and during his junior year he reports on work done in a clinical or laboratory research project, preparing it as a paper submissible to a scientific journal. Professional editors work as preceptors with the students, critiquing their manuscripts, which are revised until they receive satisfactory ratings.

  18. Some Influences of Greek and Roman Rhetoric on Early Letter Writing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hildebrandt, Herbert W.

    1988-01-01

    Describes how letter writing, especially business letters, was influenced by Greek and Roman oral rhetoricians. Discusses three precepts of oral rhetoric--inventio, dispositio, and style--and notes that the classical theories' reflection in written communication can be seen in selected Italian, German, and English epistolographic works. (MM)

  19. Early Writing in the Research Mode via Digital Modeling of Rivers.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Snow, Robin Scott

    1991-01-01

    Author describes an individual research project involving digital modeling of graded river profiles as part of a sophomore-level geomorphology class. The three-week project gives students the opportunity to choose research topics, design experiments to test ideas, interpret results, and write a research report. (PR)

  20. Writing Disabilities in Spanish-Speaking Children: Introduction to the Special Series.

    PubMed

    Jiménez, Juan E

    This special issue of the Journal of Learning Disabilities focuses on studies of writing disabilities in Spanish-speaking children. The World Health Organization (2001) included writing difficulties as one of the problems considered to constitute an impediment to school participation, a significant element in the normal developmental process of the child. In this introduction, I describe the background of a larger project promoted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). This special series offers recent findings on writing disabilities in Spanish-Speaking children within the UNESCO project. The pilot study was carried out in the Canary Islands, an autonomous Spanish region located between three continents and composed of seven islands in the Atlantic Ocean. Most of the current empirical evidence on writing disabilities comes from English, a language with deep orthography; therefore, it is very relevant to investigate the writing process in Spanish, a language with shallow, fine-grained orthography. Included are a number of articles that form a conspectus on writing disabilities in the Spanish language. Topics center on early grade writing assessment, prevalence of writing disabilities, handwriting and keyboarding, transcription and text generation, graphonomic and handwriting analysis, and instructional practices with an learning disabled population.

  1. Integrating Scientific Argumentation to Improve Undergraduate Writing and Learning in a Global Environmental Change Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koffman, Bess G.; Kreutz,Karl J.; Trenbath, Kim

    2017-01-01

    We present a strategy for using scientific argumentation in an early undergraduate laboratory course to teach disciplinary writing practices and to promote critical thinking, knowledge transformation, and understanding of the scientific method. The approach combines targeted writing instruction; data analysis and interpretation; formulation of a…

  2. Effects of an expressive writing intervention on cancer-related distress in Danish breast cancer survivors - results from a nationwide randomized clinical trial.

    PubMed

    Jensen-Johansen, M B; Christensen, S; Valdimarsdottir, H; Zakowski, S; Jensen, A B; Bovbjerg, D H; Zachariae, R

    2013-07-01

    To examine the effects of an expressive writing intervention (EWI) on cancer-related distress, depressive symptoms, and mood in women treated for early stage breast cancer. A nationwide sample of 507 Danish women who had recently completed treatment for primary breast cancer were randomly assigned to three 20-min home-based writing exercises, one week apart, focusing on either emotional disclosure (EWI group) or a non-emotional topic (control group). Cancer-related distress [Impact of Event Scale (IES)], depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory-Short Form), and negative (37-item Profile of Moods State) and positive mood (Passive Positive Mood Scale) were assessed at baseline and at 3 and 9 months post-intervention. Choice of writing topic (cancer versus other), alexithymia (20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale), and social constraints (Social Constraints Scale) were included as possible moderators. Significant (p<0.01) group differences in mood change from before to immediately after each session suggested successful manipulation. Reductions over time in psychological symptoms were seen in both groups (p<0.05), but no time × group interactions were found. Choice of writing topic moderated effects on IES, with women writing about other themes showing greater reductions in cancer-related avoidance than women writing about their cancer. Fewer depressive symptoms and higher levels of positive mood were seen 3 months post-intervention in women writing about their cancer when compared with the control group. Difficulties describing feelings and externally oriented thinking (20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale) moderated effects on positive mood and IES-total, while no moderating effects were found of social constraints. In concordance with the majority of previous results with cancer patients, no main effects of EWI were found for cancer-related distress, depressive symptoms, and mood. Moderator analyses suggested that choice of writing topic and ability to process

  3. Promoting Writing and Preventing Writing Failure in Young Children

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kissel, Brian

    2008-01-01

    In 2003, the National Commission on Writing pleaded for a writing revolution in education. The plea included a call for increased attention on the subject of writing, considered the "most neglected" of the "three "Rs"". Although state tests dictate that schools take an intensive look at the writing of 4th-, 8th-, and 12th-grade students, studying…

  4. Exploring EFL Students' Use of Writing Strategies and Their Attitudes towards Reading-To-Write and Writing-Only Tasks

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Soltani, Azimeh; Kheirzadeh, Shiela

    2017-01-01

    This study aimed to explore EFL students' use of writing strategies and their attitudes towards reading-to-write and writing-only tasks. The primary purpose of this study was to see whether there was any significant difference between the writing performance of reading-to-write and writing-only task groups of Iranian EFL learners. Also, this study…

  5. Commentary: On the Importance of Early Life Cognitive Abilities in Shaping Later Life Outcomes.

    PubMed

    Hofer, Scott M; Clouston, Sean

    2014-01-01

    Early life cognitive ability is likely to be dynamically related to life course factors including educational attainment, occupational outcomes, health behaviors, activities, health, and subsequent cognitive health. Disentangling the selective and causal processes contributing to cognitive functioning across the lifespan is challenging and requires long-term investments in longitudinal data. We discuss results from several analyses using data from the Individual Development and Adaptation longitudinal research program (Bergman, 2000; Magnusson, 1988) that provide fresh insights into the relation of early life cognition, particularly high levels of cognitive capabilities, to educational achievement, emotional adjustment, and career success. These papers and the longitudinal data provide a remarkable window into the development and impacts of cognition, and high cognitive functioning, on a variety of important life outcomes that we hope will continue to inform us about additional outcomes in middle life, transition to retirement, and cognition and health in later years and to robustly examine how the early years matter across the whole lifespan.

  6. Collaborative Blended Learning Writing Environment: Effects on EFL Students' Writing Apprehension and Writing Performance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Challob, Ala'a Ismael; Bakar, Nadzrah Abu; Latif, Hafizah

    2016-01-01

    This study examined the effects of collaborative blended learning writing environment on students' writing apprehension and writing performance as perceived by a selected group of EFL students enrolled in one of the international schools in Malaysia. Qualitative case study method was employed using semi-structured interview, learning diaries and…

  7. Reflective writing: the student nurse's perspective on reflective writing and poetry writing.

    PubMed

    Coleman, Dawn; Willis, Diane S

    2015-07-01

    Reflective writing is a mandatory part of nurse education but how students develop their skills and use reflection as part of their experiential learning remains relatively unknown. Understanding reflective writing in all forms from the perspective of a student nurse is therefore important. To explore the use of reflective writing and the use of poetry in pre-registered nursing students. A qualitative design was employed to explore reflective writing in pre-registered nursing students. A small university in Scotland. BSc (Hons) Adult and Mental Health Pre-registration Student Nurses. Two focus groups were conducted with 10 student nurses during March 2012. Data was analysed thematically using the framework of McCarthy (1999). Students found the process of reflective writing daunting but valued it over time. Current educational methods, such as assessing reflective accounts, often lead to the 'narrative' being watered down and the student feeling judged. Despite this, reflection made students feel responsible for their own learning and research on the topic. Some students felt the use of models of reflection constricting, whilst poetry freed up their expression allowing them to demonstrate the compassion for their patient under their care. Poetry writing gives students the opportunity for freedom of expression, personal satisfaction and a closer connection with their patients, which the more formal approach to reflective writing did not offer. There is a need for students to have a safe and supportive forum in which to express and have their experiences acknowledged without the fear of being judged. Crown Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Peripheral dysgraphia: dissociations of lowercase from uppercase letters and of print from cursive writing.

    PubMed

    Ingles, Janet L; Fisk, John D; Fleetwood, Ian; Burrell, Steven; Darvesh, Sultan

    2014-03-01

    Clinical analyses of patients with acquired dysgraphia provide unique opportunities to understand the cognitive and neural organization of written language production. We report J.B., a 50-year-old woman with peripheral dysgraphia who had prominent dissociations in her ability to write in lowercase versus uppercase and print versus cursive. We gave J.B. a series of tasks that evaluated her skills at writing uppercase and lowercase print and cursive, spelling aloud and in writing, writing numbers and symbols, and visual letter recognition and imagery. She was impaired in printing letters, with lowercase more affected than uppercase, but her cursive writing was relatively intact. This pattern was consistent across letter, word, and nonword writing tasks. She was unimpaired on tasks assessing her visual recognition and imagery of lowercase and uppercase letters. Her writing of numbers was preserved. J.B.'s handwriting disorder was accompanied by a central phonological dysgraphia. Our findings indicate functional independence of graphomotor programs for print and cursive letter styles and for letters and numbers. We discuss the relationship between peripheral and central writing disorders.

  9. Learning about Fictionalized Biographies: A Reading and Writing Approach.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zarnowski, Myra

    1988-01-01

    Describes in detail a three-month class project focusing on fictionalized biographies and the life of Benjamin Franklin. Notes that in-depth integration of reading, writing, and content area instruction improves reading skills, as well as learning from content area textbooks, especially for low ability readers. (MM)

  10. Systemic Functional Linguistic Genre Pedagogy ((SFL GP) in a Tertiary EFL Writing Context in Indonesia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Emilia, Emi; Hamied, Fuad Abdul

    2015-01-01

    This article reports on the results of a study aiming to investigate whether systemic functional linguistic genre pedagogy (SFL GP) can help students develop their writing ability in English and the students' opinions about the teaching program using SFL GP. The study was conducted in one semester with 19 student teachers taking a writing course…

  11. Practices and Challenges of Writing Instruction in K-2 Classrooms: A Case Study of Five Primary Grade Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Korth, Byran B.; Wimmer, Jennifer J.; Wilcox, Brad; Morrison, Timothy G.; Harward, Stan; Peterson, Nancy; Simmerman, Sue; Pierce, Linda

    2017-01-01

    Given the interrelated role of writing and the development of early literacy skills, recommendations have been made to increase instructional writing experiences in K-2 classrooms. In an effort to increase the amount of writing in the primary grades that leads to later literacy success, it is important that teachers engage in instructional…

  12. Improving Writing Instruction through Professional Development and Professional Learning Communities (PLC'S): A Case Study of Six Teachers at A Middle School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Marculitis, Terri

    2017-01-01

    Writing skills are crucial for student success in school. Students are assessed on their ability to write well using both lower (grammar, sentence structure) and higher (writing to respond to literature, demonstrate understanding of a topic) order skills. Writing is also important beyond the classrooms, as many jobs require the use of strong…

  13. Family Connections: Promoting Early Literacy Skills--Ages Birth to 5

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Huisman, Sarah

    2012-01-01

    Reading, writing, and communicating, also known as literacy, are important cognitive skills to teach within society. Early literacy is knowledge about reading and writing before actually being able to read and write and is the foundation to future reading and writing skills (Ghoting & Martin-Diaz, 2006). The role of families in developing early…

  14. Teaching Pharmacology Graduate Students how to Write an NIH Grant Application.

    PubMed

    Leak, Rehana K; O'Donnell, Lauren A; Surratt, Christopher K

    2015-11-25

    Objective. To fill the gap in grant writing training in pharmacology graduate education using an active-learning strategy. Design. Graduate students wrote subsections of a grant according to NIH guidelines. Students revised their applications based on multiple rounds of critiques from professors and peers throughout a semester-long scientific writing course. Assessment. Prerevision and postrevision grant drafts were graded. Students were provided with questionnaires assessing their perception of the process. To determine the impact of feedback on the proposals, the quality of the pre/postrevision drafts was assessed by professors who were blinded and unaffiliated with the course. Conclusion. Student grades improved significantly upon resubmission. Perceptions of the proposals by blinded faculty members favored revised submissions based on multiple criteria. Survey feedback indicated an increase in student confidence in grant writing ability. The results of 3 independent measures demonstrate that intensive feedback on scientific writing improved the quality of student proposals.

  15. Bilingual Long-Term Working Memory: The Effects of Working Memory Loads on Writing Quality and Fluency.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ransdell, Sarah; Arecco, M. Rosario; Levy, C. Michael

    2001-01-01

    Discusses two experiments: the first examining multilinguals ability to maintain native language writing quality and fluency in the presence of unattended irrelevant speech while maintaining a concurrent 6-digit memory load; the second in which bilinguals reduced fluency during writing with a six-digit load only. Results are interpreted in terms…

  16. Convergence and conflict: anthropology, psychiatry and feminism in the early writings of Madeleine Pelletier (1874-1939).

    PubMed

    Gordon, Felicia

    2008-06-01

    This paper reviews the early career and psychiatric writings of Madeleine Pelletier (1874-1939), between 1901 and 1906. Pelletier, a committed feminist and socialist, was the first woman to remove the barriers to women entering the French psychiatric profession, successfully passing the examination for the l'internat des hôpitaux psychiatriques in 1903. Her involvement in La Société d'Anthropologie de Paris and the Institut Général de Psychologie provided a forum for her interest in psychology, both normal and abnormal. She turned increasingly to sociological explanations for mental illness, unwilling to accept the determinism inherent in degeneration theory. Although her career in psychiatry was cut short in 1906, her training and her debating skills, honed in the rationalism of the scientific and Free Masonic societies that she frequented, stood her in good stead in her subsequent career as a political militant.

  17. Tracking the "Lizardman": Writing Rotten to Write Well.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Polette, Keith

    1995-01-01

    Suggests that students can improve their writing by being instructed on how to write badly. Applies the criteria of testability, tunnel-vision, excessive vagueness, flying in the face of established fact, and hazy authority to tabloid newspaper stories. Discusses how students can write their own "rotten" tabloid stories by taking these…

  18. Improving Preservice Elementary Teachers' Writing in a Science Context

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Everett, Susan; Luera, Gail; Otto, Charlotte

    2008-01-01

    The authors investigated whether a series of mini prewriting assignments linked to a formal paper describing an original research project would improve preservice elementary teachers' writing abilities in a science context. They compared 38 final reports from students who completed the prewriting assignments with 38 reports randomly selected from…

  19. iPad versus Handwriting: Pilot Study Exploring the Writing Abilities of Students with Learning Disabilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Corkett, Julie K.; Benevides, Tina

    2016-01-01

    Written expression is an essential skill to actively function in today's society. For many learners, especially those with a learning disability (LD), writing can be a source of frustration. Technology in its various forms, holds promise to assist students in this area. The current study examines the role that tablet technology, specifically,…

  20. Fourteen Writing Strategies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Turner, Thomas; Broemmel, Amy

    2006-01-01

    Any science teacher who wants his or her students to be engaged in real science is going to engage them in real science writing. Writing in science should begin with clear, imaginative writing purposes and stimuli that are then scaffolded in such a way that students are able to find an organizational structure for their writing. Writing fluency is…

  1. Science + Writing = Super Learning. Writing Workshop.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bower, Paula Rogovin

    1993-01-01

    Article presents suggestions for motivating elementary students to learn by combining science and writing. The strategies include planning the right environment; teaching the scientific method; establishing a link to literature; and making time for students to observe, experiment, and write. (SM)

  2. Writing Across the Curriculum: Reliability Testing of a Standardized Rubric.

    PubMed

    Minnich, Margo; Kirkpatrick, Amanda J; Goodman, Joely T; Whittaker, Ali; Stanton Chapple, Helen; Schoening, Anne M; Khanna, Maya M

    2018-06-01

    Rubrics positively affect student academic performance; however, accuracy and consistency of the rubric and its use is imperative. The researchers in this study developed a standardized rubric for use across an undergraduate nursing curriculum, then evaluated the interrater reliability and general usability of the tool. Faculty raters graded papers using the standardized rubric, submitted their independent scoring for interrater reliability analyses, then participated in a focus group discussion regarding rubric use experience. Quantitative analysis of the data showed a high interrater reliability (α = .998). Content analysis of transcription revealed several positive themes: Consistency, Emphasis on Writing Ability, and Ability to Use the Rubric as a Teaching Tool. Areas for improvement included use of value words and difficulty with point allocation. Investigators recommend effective faculty orientation for rubric use and future work in developing a rubric to assess reflective writing. [J Nurs Educ. 2018;57(6):366-370.]. Copyright 2018, SLACK Incorporated.

  3. Exploring the Relationship between Reading and Writing in Early Literacy Development.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kurth, Ruth J.

    Researchers studying emerging literacy have begun building a theory of literacy development that links the processes of reading and writing. Their findings suggest that a child's emerging literacy is based on three factors: a functional expectation for print to make logical sense; an expectation of how language operates in alternate contexts; and…

  4. A curricular approach to improve the information literacy and academic writing skills of part-time post-registration nursing students in Hong Kong.

    PubMed

    Tarrant, Marie; Dodgson, Joan E; Law, Beatrice V K K

    2008-05-01

    In today's environment of rapidly changing health care and information technology, nurses require a broad range of skills. One of the key skills required of all health professionals in this environment is information literacy. For registered nurses returning to a university setting to study for their baccalaureate degree, becoming information literate is one of many challenges they face. Also key to students' ability to use and communicate information in an appropriate and effective manner is their writing skills. This article describes a curricular intervention designed to develop and strengthen post-registration nurses' information literacy and academic writing competencies. An introductory information management module was developed and provided to three successive cohorts of students (n=159). Students were predominantly female (85.4%) with a mean age of 34.2 years (SD=6.8). Prior to commencing the program, students reported low information literacy and writing skills, especially in accessing and searching electronic databases and using referencing formats. The post-test evaluation of skills showed substantial and statistically significant increases in all assessed competencies. This intervention demonstrated that with structured but flexible learning activities early in the curriculum, post-registration nursing students can quickly become information literate.

  5. Writing: National Results--Writing Mechanics.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Education Commission of the States, Denver, CO.

    This is the third National Assessment report on the writing of children aged 9, 13, and 17, and young adults. The three exercises used in the writing assessment were: Age 9: The Forest Fire Exercise; Age 13: The Famous Person Exercise; and Age 17: The Famous Person Exercise. An exercise for young adults (Adults: The Commissioner Stroud Letter)…

  6. Writing Impairments in Japanese Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment and with Mild Alzheimer's Disease.

    PubMed

    Hayashi, Atsuko; Nomura, Hiroshi; Mochizuki, Ruriko; Ohnuma, Ayumu; Kimpara, Teiko; Suzuki, Kyoko; Mori, Etsuro

    2015-01-01

    We investigated writing abilities in patients with the amnestic type of mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and mild Alzheimer's disease (AD). To examine the earliest changes in writing function, we used writing tests for both words and sentences with different types of Japanese characters (Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji). A total of 25 aMCI patients, 38 AD patients, and 22 healthy controls performed writing to dictation for Kana and Kanji words, copied Kanji words, and wrote in response to a picture story task. Analysis of variance was used to test the subject group effects on the scores in the above writing tasks. For the written Kanji words, the mild AD group performed worse than the aMCI group and the controls, but there was no difference between the aMCI group and the controls. For the picture story writing task, the mild AD and aMCI groups performed worse than the controls, but the difference between the AD and the aMCI groups was not significant. The mild AD group showed defects in writing Kanji characters, and the aMCI group showed impairments in narrative writing. Our study suggests that narrative writing, which demands complex integration of multiple cognitive functions, can be used to detect the subtle writing deficits in aMCI patients.

  7. Empirically Based Profiles of the Early Literacy Skills of Children With Language Impairment in Early Childhood Special Education.

    PubMed

    Justice, Laura; Logan, Jessica; Kaderavek, Joan; Schmitt, Mary Beth; Tompkins, Virginia; Bartlett, Christopher

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to empirically determine whether specific profiles characterize preschool-aged children with language impairment (LI) with respect to their early literacy skills (print awareness, name-writing ability, phonological awareness, alphabet knowledge); the primary interest was to determine if one or more profiles suggested vulnerability for future reading problems. Participants were 218 children enrolled in early childhood special education classrooms, 95% of whom received speech-language services. Children were administered an assessment of early literacy skills in the fall of the academic year. Based on results of latent profile analysis, four distinct literacy profiles were identified, with the single largest profile (55% of children) representing children with generally poor literacy skills across all areas examined. Children in the two low-risk categories had higher oral language skills than those in the high-risk and moderate-risk profiles. Across three of the four early literacy measures, children with language as their primary disability had higher scores than those with LI concomitant with other disabilities. These findings indicate that there are specific profiles of early literacy skills among children with LI, with about one half of children exhibiting a profile indicating potential susceptibility for future reading problems. © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2013.

  8. "Our Zoo to You": The Link between Zoo Animals in the Classroom and Science and Literacy Concepts in First-Grade Journal Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wilson, Kathleen; Trainin, Guy; Laughridge, Virginia; Brooks, David; Wickless, Mimi

    2011-01-01

    This study examined first-grade students' journal writing to determine how placing live zoo animals in classrooms for science education links to students' emergent and early writing. Students were asked to write journal entries during the daily language arts period. Although no direct instruction in informational text writing was offered, teachers…

  9. Usefulness of an ability-based health model in work ability assessments provided by psychiatrists and psychology specialists writing social security certificates.

    PubMed

    Solli, Hans Magnus; Barbosa da Silva, António; Egeland, Jens

    2015-01-01

    To investigate whether adding descriptions of the health factors "ability," "environment" and "intentions/goals" to the officially sanctioned biomedical disability model (BDM) would improve assessments of work ability for social security purposes. The study was based on a theoretical design consisting of textual analysis and interpretation. Two further work ability models were defined: the mixed health model (MHM), which describes health factors without assessing a person's abilities in context, and the ability-based health model (AHM), which assesses abilities in a concrete context of environment and intention. Eighty-six social security certificates, written by psychiatrists and psychology specialists in a Norwegian hospital-based mental health clinic, were analysed in relation to the three work ability/disability models. In certificates based on the BDM, a general pattern was found of "gradual work training". The MHM added health factors, but without linking them together in a concrete way. With the AHM, work ability was assessed in terms of a concrete unified evaluation of the claimant's abilities, environments and intentions/goals. Applying the AHM in work ability assessments, in comparison with the BDM and the MHM, is useful because this foregrounds claimants' abilities in a context of concrete goals and work-related opportunities, as a unity. Implications for Rehabilitation A concept of health should include ability, environment and intentions/goals as components. When all three of these components are described in concrete terms in a work ability assessment, an integrated picture of the individual's abilities in the context of his/her particular intentions/goals and work opportunities comes to the fore. This kind of assessment makes it possible to meet the individual's needs for individual follow-up in a work environment.

  10. See, Say, Write: A Writing Routine for the Preschool Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Copp, Stefanie B.; Cabell, Sonia Q.; Tortorelli, Laura S.

    2016-01-01

    See, Say, Write is an adaptable classroom writing routine that teachers can use across a range of activities in the preschool classroom. This preschool writing routine offers an opportunity for teachers to build on a shared experience through engagement in rich conversation and writing. After a shared experience, teachers will provide a visual…

  11. ORAL DRILLS AND WRITING IMPROVEMENT IN THE FOURTH GRADE.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    MILLER, BARBARA D.; NEY, JAMES W.

    BELIEVING FORMAL WRITTEN ENGLISH TO BE A "FOREIGN LANGUAGE" TO MOST AMERICAN PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS, RESEARCHERS USED THE AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE INSTRUCTION TO PROMOTE WRITING IMPROVEMENT IN FOURTH-GRADERS. TWO RANDOMLY-SELECTED CLASSES OF STUDENTS OF AVERAGE ABILITY COMPOSED THE STUDY POPULATION--ONE CLASS FOR THE EXPERIMENT,…

  12. New Directions in Composition Research. Perspectives in Writing Research.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Beach, Richard, Ed.; Bridwell, Lillian S., Ed.

    This book contains 20 articles, from a wide variety of perspectives, designed to bridge the interests of researchers and teachers on the topic of current composition research. The following articles are included: "Studying the Writing Abilities of a University Freshman Class: Strategies from a Case Study" (Charles R. Cooper, with Roger…

  13. An Online Writing Partnership: Transforming Classroom Writing Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Townsend, Jane S.; Nail, Allan; Cheveallier, Jennifer; Browning, Angela

    2013-01-01

    The four authors of this article have each at different times over a ten-year period helped develop versions of the Online Writing Partnership between future English teachers learning to teach writing and high school students learning to write better. The authors have been striving to help future English teachers learn how to help high school…

  14. Writing for publication Part II--The writing process.

    PubMed

    Clarke, L K

    1999-01-01

    You have selected a topic, gathered resources, and identified your target audience. The next step is to begin to write and organize your ideas. Initiating the actual writing process can be intimidating, especially for a novice author. This portion of the writing for publication series focuses on helping the writer to organize ideas and get started.

  15. Academic writing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eremina, Svetlana V.

    2003-10-01

    The series of workshops on academic writing have been developed by academic writing instructors from Language Teaching Centre, Central European University and presented at the Samara Academic Writing Workshops in November 2001. This paper presents only the part dealing with strucutre of an argumentative essay.

  16. Noam Chomsky Writes to Mrs. Davis about Grammar and Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    English Education, 1984

    1984-01-01

    In a personal letter, Chomsky suggests that while the study of grammar has little detectable effect on writing ability, it can, as a branch of science, help students learn how (and why) to think about hard and intriguing questions and to develop natural curiosity. (HOD)

  17. Reconsiderations: We Got the Wrong Gal--Rethinking the "Bad" Academic Writing of Judith Butler

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Birkenstein, Cathy

    2010-01-01

    It is hard to think of a writer whose work has been more prominently upheld as an example of bad academic writing than the philosopher and literary theorist Judith Butler. In 1998, Butler was awarded first prize in the annual Bad Writing Contest established by the journal "Philosophy and Literature," and early in 1999, was lampooned in an…

  18. The Protean Shape of the Writing Associate's Role: An Empirical Study and Conceptual Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cairns, Rhoda; Anderson, Paul V.

    2008-01-01

    Writing fellow or writing associate (WA) programs trace their heritage to a single point of origin: the model developed at Brown University in the early 1980s by Tori Haring-Smith (Soven, 1993, 2001). Since then, the Brown model has spread to hundreds of schools. WA programs are so adaptable because they consist of many discrete elements, each of…

  19. Self-Efficacy of Risk Taking in Outdoor Recreation as a Predictor of the Self-Efficacy of Risk Taking in Essay Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Taniguchi, Stacy T.; Bennion, John; Duerden, Mat D.; Widmer, Mark A.; Ricks, Meagan

    2017-01-01

    During two decades of teaching, we have observed that writing students seem more emotionally honest when their writing class is accompanied by an outdoor recreation component. The ability to take perceived risks is important to both outdoor recreation and writing; thus, we postulated that confidence gained in taking risks in outdoor experiences…

  20. Rethinking Early Childhood Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pelo, Ann, Ed.

    2008-01-01

    "Rethinking Early Childhood Education" is alive with the conviction that teaching young children involves values and vision. This anthology collects inspiring stories about social justice teaching with young children. Included here is outstanding writing from childcare teachers, early-grade public school teachers, scholars, and parents.…

  1. How Writing Instruction, Interventions, and Assessment Can Improve Student Outcomes. Middle School Matters Program No. 5

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Santangelo, Tanya; Graham, Steve

    2015-01-01

    The ability to write effectively and use writing as a tool for learning is essential for students' success in the middle grades--and beyond. This practice guide highlights several research-based practices that can be used school-wide to help middle grades students become better writers. This paper presents four questions middle grades educators…

  2. Employing Concept Mapping as a Pre-Writing Strategy to Help EFL Learners Better Generate Argumentative Compositions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Al-Shaer, Ibrahim M. R.

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this research was to examine the impact of employing concept mapping at a pre-writing stage on English as a foreign language (EFL) students' ability to generate better argumentative essays. Thirty-eight participants were randomly assigned to two groups participating in Writing II course at Al-Quds Open University (QOU). Both groups…

  3. Teaching Pharmacology Graduate Students how to Write an NIH Grant Application

    PubMed Central

    O’Donnell, Lauren A.; Surratt, Christopher K.

    2015-01-01

    Objective. To fill the gap in grant writing training in pharmacology graduate education using an active-learning strategy. Design. Graduate students wrote subsections of a grant according to NIH guidelines. Students revised their applications based on multiple rounds of critiques from professors and peers throughout a semester-long scientific writing course. Assessment. Prerevision and postrevision grant drafts were graded. Students were provided with questionnaires assessing their perception of the process. To determine the impact of feedback on the proposals, the quality of the pre/postrevision drafts was assessed by professors who were blinded and unaffiliated with the course. Conclusion. Student grades improved significantly upon resubmission. Perceptions of the proposals by blinded faculty members favored revised submissions based on multiple criteria. Survey feedback indicated an increase in student confidence in grant writing ability. The results of 3 independent measures demonstrate that intensive feedback on scientific writing improved the quality of student proposals. PMID:28435165

  4. Using Writing as a Constructivist Instructional Tool

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Narayanan, M.

    2006-12-01

    Researchers in the area of cognitive science and educational psychology have shown that instructors who encourage student writing are actually helping in motivating a reluctant pupil. It has also been reported that writing indirectly rewards an individual with dynamic interest. Furthermore, it is believed that writing strengthens the self-confidence of a lethargic learner. (Kosakowski, 1998). All in all, promoting writing helps and supports learners cultivate a positive attitude toward the subject matter in question. The constructivist approach promotes a learning paradigm and helps individuals learn and understand by "constructing" knowledge. Learners are effectively encouraged to generate and build their own knowledge base. Learners document progress by constructing new concepts based on previously gained knowledge. The role of the teacher is actually to facilitate the creation of a learning environment. The constructivist approach when used in the classroom enables the students to become more active, independent thinkers of knowledge. Education World writer Gloria Chaika (Chaika, 2000) states that "Talent is important, but practice creates the solid base that allows that unique talent to soar. Like athletes, writers learn by doing. Good writing requires the same kind of dedicated practice that athletes put in. Young writers often lack the support they need to practice writing and develop their talent to the fullest, though." The author has successfully utilized some of these principles and techniques in a senior level course he teaches. He has encouraged students to try to solve problems their own way and has asked them to observe, document, assess and evaluate the results. In the classroom, the author takes the role of a coach and helps the students approach the problem with a different viewpoint. Eventually the students document their conclusions in a page-long essay. This type of writing assignment not only builds critical thinking abilities but also

  5. Language ability in children with permanent hearing impairment: the influence of early management and family participation.

    PubMed

    Watkin, Peter; McCann, Donna; Law, Catherine; Mullee, Mark; Petrou, Stavros; Stevenson, Jim; Worsfold, Sarah; Yuen, Ho Ming; Kennedy, Colin

    2007-09-01

    The goal was to examine the relationships between management after confirmation, family participation, and speech and language outcomes in the same group of children with permanent childhood hearing impairment. Speech, oral language, and nonverbal abilities, expressed as z scores and adjusted in a regression model, and Family Participation Rating Scale scores were assessed at a mean age of 7.9 years for 120 children with bilateral permanent childhood hearing impairment from a 1992-1997 United Kingdom birth cohort. Ages at institution of management and hearing aid fitting were obtained retrospectively from case notes. Compared with children managed later (> 9 months), those managed early (< or = 9 months) had higher adjusted mean z scores for both receptive and expressive language, relative to nonverbal ability, but not for speech. Compared with children aided later, a smaller group of more-impaired children aided early did not have significantly higher scores for these outcomes. Family Participation Rating Scale scores showed significant positive correlations with language and speech intelligibility scores only for those with confirmation after 9 months and were highest for those with late confirmed, severe/profound, permanent childhood hearing impairment. Early management of permanent childhood hearing impairment results in improved language. Family participation is also an important factor in cases that are confirmed late, especially for children with severe or profound permanent childhood hearing impairment.

  6. Learning to Write Programs with Others: Collaborative Quadruple Programming

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arora, Ritu; Goel, Sanjay

    2012-01-01

    Most software development is carried out by teams of software engineers working collaboratively to achieve the desired goal. Consequently software development education not only needs to develop a student's ability to write programs that can be easily comprehended by others and be able to comprehend programs written by others, but also the ability…

  7. Enhancing Argumentative Writing Skill through Contextual Teaching and Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hasani, Aceng

    2016-01-01

    This study aims to describe the influence of contextual learning model and critical thinking ability toward argumentative writing skill on university students. The population of the research was 147 university students, and 52 university students were used as sample with multi stage sampling. The results of the research indicate that; group of…

  8. Early Literacy among Zambian Second Graders: The Role of Adult Mediation of Word Writing in Bemba

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kalindi, Sylvia C.; McBride, Catherine; Dan, Lin

    2018-01-01

    Considering the importance attached to writing as a life skill, this study investigated the nature and variability of adults' aid to Zambian second graders in the context of shared writing in Bemba (first language), and the relations between this support and students' literacy and cognitive-metalinguistic skills. Fifty-seven children and their…

  9. Morphological Awareness and Children's Writing: Accuracy, Error, and Invention

    PubMed Central

    McCutchen, Deborah; Stull, Sara

    2014-01-01

    This study examined the relationship between children's morphological awareness and their ability to produce accurate morphological derivations in writing. Fifth-grade U.S. students (n = 175) completed two writing tasks that invited or required morphological manipulation of words. We examined both accuracy and error, specifically errors in spelling and errors of the sort we termed morphological inventions, which entailed inappropriate, novel pairings of stems and suffixes. Regressions were used to determine the relationship between morphological awareness, morphological accuracy, and spelling accuracy, as well as between morphological awareness and morphological inventions. Linear regressions revealed that morphological awareness uniquely predicted children's generation of accurate morphological derivations, regardless of whether or not accurate spelling was required. A logistic regression indicated that morphological awareness was also uniquely predictive of morphological invention, with higher morphological awareness increasing the probability of morphological invention. These findings suggest that morphological knowledge may not only assist children with spelling during writing, but may also assist with word production via generative experimentation with morphological rules during sentence generation. Implications are discussed for the development of children's morphological knowledge and relationships with writing. PMID:25663748

  10. Technology Empowers Reading and Writing of Young Children.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Casey, Jean

    2001-01-01

    Contends that failing to learn to write and read in the early years results in more special education placement, retention, and poor self-esteem for the learner than any other cause. Proposes that computer technology may have many benefits for children with such learning difficulties, including motivational aspects and developing fine motor…

  11. Computer-Based Writing and Paper-Based Writing: A Study of Beginning-Level and Intermediate-Level Chinese Learners' Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kang, Hana

    2011-01-01

    Chinese writing is one of the most difficult challenges for Chinese learners whose first language writing system is alphabetic letters. Chinese teachers have incorporated computer-based writing into their teaching in the attempt to reduce the difficulties of writing in Chinese, with a particular emphasis on composing (as opposed to simply writing…

  12. Automated Writing Evaluation Program's Effect on Student Writing Achievement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Holman, Lester Donnie

    2011-01-01

    In an ex post facto causal-comparative research design, this study investigated the effectiveness of Automated Writing Evaluation (AWE) programs on raising the student writing achievement. Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) writing achievement scores from the 2010 administration were utilized for this study. The independent variable…

  13. Prompt and Rater Effects in Second Language Writing Performance Assessment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lim, Gad S.

    2009-01-01

    Performance assessments have become the norm for evaluating language learners' writing abilities in international examinations of English proficiency. Two aspects of these assessments are usually systematically varied: test takers respond to different prompts, and their responses are read by different raters. This raises the possibility of undue…

  14. Gender stereotypes about intellectual ability emerge early and influence children's interests.

    PubMed

    Bian, Lin; Leslie, Sarah-Jane; Cimpian, Andrei

    2017-01-27

    Common stereotypes associate high-level intellectual ability (brilliance, genius, etc.) with men more than women. These stereotypes discourage women's pursuit of many prestigious careers; that is, women are underrepresented in fields whose members cherish brilliance (such as physics and philosophy). Here we show that these stereotypes are endorsed by, and influence the interests of, children as young as 6. Specifically, 6-year-old girls are less likely than boys to believe that members of their gender are "really, really smart." Also at age 6, girls begin to avoid activities said to be for children who are "really, really smart." These findings suggest that gendered notions of brilliance are acquired early and have an immediate effect on children's interests. Copyright © 2017, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  15. Writing and Reading Skills as Assessed by Teachers in 7-Year Olds: A Behavioral Genetic Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oliver, Bonamy R.; Dale, Philip S.; Plomin, Robert

    2007-01-01

    A behavioral genetic analysis of general writing ability was conducted using teacher assessments based on UK National Curriculum criteria for a sample of 3296 same-sex pairs of 7-year-old twins. Writing was highly heritable within the normal range (0.66) and at the low extreme (0.70). Environmental influences were almost all non-shared, with…

  16. The Effect of Self-Regulation Writing Strategies and Gender on Writing Self-Efficacy and Persuasive Writing Achievement for Secondary Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Galbraith, Jessica

    2014-01-01

    This study investigated the impact of a self-regulation writing intervention program on the writing self-efficacy and persuasive writing achievement of ninth and tenth grade students. In addition, this study explored whether gender differences in writing may be addressed by the type of writing program that is implemented. Limited empirical studies…

  17. The Contribution of Early Home Literacy Activities to First Grade Reading and Writing Achievements in Arabic

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aram, Dorit; Korat, Ofra; Hassunah-Arafat, Safieh

    2013-01-01

    This longitudinal study assessed the literacy development of native Arabic-speaking children from kindergarten to the end of first grade, focusing on the role of home literacy activities (mother-child shared book reading and joint writing). The contribution of these activities in kindergarten to children's reading and writing at the end of…

  18. Cognitive abilities underlying second-language vocabulary acquisition in an early second-language immersion education context: a longitudinal study.

    PubMed

    Nicolay, Anne-Catherine; Poncelet, Martine

    2013-08-01

    First-language (L1) and second-language (L2) lexical development has been found to be strongly associated with phonological processing abilities such as phonological short-term memory (STM), phonological awareness, and speech perception. Lexical development also seems to be linked to attentional and executive skills such as auditory attention, flexibility, and response inhibition. The aim of this four-wave longitudinal study was to determine to what extent L2 vocabulary acquired through the particular school context of early L2 immersion education is linked to the same cognitive abilities. A total of 61 French-speaking 5-year-old kindergartners who had just been enrolled in English immersion classes were administered a battery of tasks assessing these three phonological processing abilities and three attentional/executive skills. Their English vocabulary knowledge was measured 1, 2, and 3 school years later. Multiple regression analyses showed that, among the assessed phonological processing abilities, phonological STM and speech perception, but not phonological awareness, appeared to underlie L2 vocabulary acquisition in this context of an early L2 immersion school program, at least during the first steps of acquisition. Similarly, among the assessed attentional/executive skills, auditory attention and flexibility, but not response inhibition, appeared to be involved during the first steps of L2 vocabulary acquisition in such an immersion school context. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Expressive/Exploratory Technical Writing (XTW) in Engineering: Shifting the Technical Writing Curriculum

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Warnock, Scott; Kahn, Michael

    2007-01-01

    While the importance of "expressive writing," or informal, self-directed writing, has been well established, teachers underutilize it, particularly in technical writing courses. We introduce the term expressive/exploratory technical writing (XTW), which is the use of informal, self-directed writing to problem-solve in technical fields. We describe…

  20. The contribution of general cognitive abilities and approximate number system to early mathematics.

    PubMed

    Passolunghi, Maria Chiara; Cargnelutti, Elisa; Pastore, Massimiliano

    2014-12-01

    Math learning is a complex process that entails a wide range of cognitive abilities to be fulfilled. There is sufficient evidence that both general and specific cognitive skills assume a fundamental role, despite the absence of shared consensus about the relative extent of their involvement. Moreover, regarding general abilities, there is no agreement about the recruitment of the different memory components or of intelligence. In relation to specific factors, great debate subsists regarding the role of the approximate number system (ANS). Starting from these considerations, we wanted to conduct a wide assessment of memory components and ANS, by controlling for the effects associated with intelligence and also exploring possible relationships between all precursors. To achieve this purpose, a sample of 157 children was tested at both beginning and end of their Grade 1. Both general (memory and intelligence) and specific (ANS) precursors were evaluated by a wide battery of tests and put in relation to concurrent and subsequent math skills. Memory was explored in passive and active aspects involving both verbal and visuo-spatial components. Path analysis results demonstrated that memory, and especially the more active processes, and intelligence were the strongest precursors in both assessment times. ANS had a milder role which lost significance by the end of the school year. Memory and ANS seemed to influence early mathematics almost independently. Both general and specific precursors seemed to have a crucial role in early math competences, despite the lower involvement of ANS. © 2014 The British Psychological Society.

  1. The Effect of a Classroom-Based Intensive Robotics and Programming Workshop on Sequencing Ability in Early Childhood

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kazakoff, Elizabeth R.; Sullivan, Amanda; Bers, Marina U.

    2013-01-01

    This paper examines the impact of programming robots on sequencing ability during a 1-week intensive robotics workshop at an early childhood STEM magnet school in the Harlem area of New York City. Children participated in computer programming activities using a developmentally appropriate tangible programming language CHERP, specifically designed…

  2. Laboratories for Writing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Leander, Kevin M.

    2000-01-01

    Looks at online writing centers and their multiple relations to cyber spaces and physical places, as well as to institutional and cultural practices. Notes proliferation of online writing centers, hybrid relations of online and offline writing centers, relation of online writing centers to classrooms, transforming space and practice in online…

  3. Authors "in Residence" Make Writing Fun! Online Mentors Help Fourth Graders Compose Original Stories

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hagins, Chelsea; Austin, Jackie; Jones, Raven; Timmons, Taylor

    2004-01-01

    Chelsea pointed to four sentences on her computer screen. "Am I done, Mrs. Weeg?" Writing was not her favorite activity. She and five other fourth-grade classmates were in the early stages of writing a story in the global classroom. For the past four years, 12 students at Delmar Elementary School have taken part in this online mentoring program,…

  4. Thirdspace Explorations in Online Writing Studios: Writing Centers, Writing in the Disiplines and First Year Composition in the Corporate University

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Miley, Michelle L.

    2013-01-01

    This study explores the use of online writing studios housed in the University Writing Center and attached to a Writing in the Disciplines course in the College of Technology and a First Year Composition program. The original goal of the online writing studio, modified from Grego and Thompson's (2009) writing studio approach, was to create an…

  5. Writing Impairments in Japanese Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment and with Mild Alzheimer's Disease

    PubMed Central

    Hayashi, Atsuko; Nomura, Hiroshi; Mochizuki, Ruriko; Ohnuma, Ayumu; Kimpara, Teiko; Suzuki, Kyoko; Mori, Etsuro

    2015-01-01

    Background/Aims We investigated writing abilities in patients with the amnestic type of mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and mild Alzheimer's disease (AD). To examine the earliest changes in writing function, we used writing tests for both words and sentences with different types of Japanese characters (Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji). Methods A total of 25 aMCI patients, 38 AD patients, and 22 healthy controls performed writing to dictation for Kana and Kanji words, copied Kanji words, and wrote in response to a picture story task. Analysis of variance was used to test the subject group effects on the scores in the above writing tasks. Results For the written Kanji words, the mild AD group performed worse than the aMCI group and the controls, but there was no difference between the aMCI group and the controls. For the picture story writing task, the mild AD and aMCI groups performed worse than the controls, but the difference between the AD and the aMCI groups was not significant. Conclusions The mild AD group showed defects in writing Kanji characters, and the aMCI group showed impairments in narrative writing. Our study suggests that narrative writing, which demands complex integration of multiple cognitive functions, can be used to detect the subtle writing deficits in aMCI patients. PMID:26483830

  6. Early life linguistic ability, late life cognitive function, and neuropathology: findings from the Nun Study.

    PubMed

    Riley, Kathryn P; Snowdon, David A; Desrosiers, Mark F; Markesbery, William R

    2005-03-01

    The relationships between early life variables, cognitive function, and neuropathology were examined in participants in the Nun Study who were between the ages of 75 and 95. Our early life variable was idea density, which is a measure of linguistic ability, derived from autobiographies written at a mean age of 22 years. Six discrete categories of cognitive function, including mild cognitive impairments, were evaluated, using the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease (CERAD) battery of cognitive tests. Neuropathologic data included Braak staging, neurofibrillary tangle and senile plaque counts, brain weight, degree of cerebral atrophy, severity of atherosclerosis, and the presence of brain infarcts. Early-life idea density was significantly related to the categories of late-life cognitive function, including mild cognitive impairments: low idea density was associated with greater impairment. Low idea density also was significantly associated with lower brain weight, higher degree of cerebral atrophy, more severe neurofibrillary pathology, and the likelihood of meeting neuropathologic criteria for Alzheimer's disease.

  7. Sustaining Writing Theory

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Patrick, Amy M.

    2010-01-01

    This article examines ways in which the fundamentals of both writing studies and sustainability studies overlap and complement each other, ultimately moving toward a theory of writing that not only is sustainable, but that also sustains writing practice across a variety of areas. For example, in order to be sustainable, both writing and…

  8. Writing Our Wrongs.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rothschild, Jeffrey

    In writing, as with tools, form must always follow function. From this perspective there can be no "good" writing, only effective writing. Unfortunately, in most instructional situations the function of communicating to an audience is often neglected. Most so-called poor writing falls into the category of writer-based prose. Once student writing…

  9. International Students in the Scientific and Technical Writing Class.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Constantinides, Janet C.

    A course sequence for teaching the forms and formats of scientific and technical writing to English as a second language (ESL) learners is described. The first assignment, a letter of application, serves as a diagnostic indication of the student's ability. The second assignment, a narrative, is designed to define the importance of audience and…

  10. Writing for professional publication. Part 6: writing the abstract.

    PubMed

    Fowler, John

    How to get your work published is the essence of this series on writing for professional publication. The first four articles focused on the preparation required before you start writing a potential article, and the previous article examined the importance of creating interest in the reader's mind. In this sixth part of the series, John Fowler, an experienced nursing lecturer and author, discusses the importance of writing the abstract. It examines the content to include and also the importance of writing it in a way which encourages others to read the full article.

  11. Unpacking the Value of Writing: Exploring College Students' Perceptions of Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zumbrunn, Sharon; Carter, Yvette M.; Conklin, Sarah

    2014-01-01

    This study explored college students' beliefs about the value of writing, their past experiences with writing, and the relationship between students' prior experiences with writing and writing value beliefs. One hundred fourteen undergraduates from a public Southeastern university participated in the study. Using expectancy-value theory as a…

  12. Factors influencing pre-service physics teachers' skills of writing teaching materials

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sinaga, Parlindungan

    2016-02-01

    Writing teaching materials is one of the generic pedagogical skills. Teachers and pre-service teachers should be trained to have the skills of writing teaching materials. This study examines the factors that influence the skills of writing in the disciplines among pre-service physics teachers. This study in particular aims to contribute to the development of science writing in the disciplines and to the organization of workshops on writing teaching materials for pre-service teachers. The problems of this research are formulated in the question of what are the factors that influence the skills of pre-service physics teachers in writing teaching materials. The research adopted mixed methods with embedded experimental design. The research subjects were 18 students enrolled in the school physics course. The instruments used consisted of conceptual understanding tests, learning strategy questionnaire, tests of the multiple representation skills, and one-on-one semi- structured interview. Results of data analysis show that the ability and skills of writing physics teaching materials of the pre- service physics teachers are determined by the factors of conceptual understanding of the subject matter with a contribution of 20%, the skills of making multiple representations of concepts with a contribution of 9.8% and students' self-regulation and learning strategy with a contribution of 33.5%. There are other factors that have not been investigated in this study; therefore, it is recommended that future research conduct further investigation on other factors that influence pre-service teachers' skills in writing physics teaching materials.

  13. Autobiographical Writing in the Technical Writing Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gellis, Mark

    2011-01-01

    Professionals in the workplace are rarely asked to write autobiographical essays. Such essays, however, are an excellent tool for helping students explore their growth as professionals. This article explores the use of such essays in a technical writing class.

  14. Project Synapse. Sparking Connection between Speech and Writing. Instructor's Handbook.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rubin, Donald; And Others

    Intended for college-level basic writers, the program described in this report integrates selected oral communication training with writing instruction. The first section of the report presents a rationale for the program--which uses oral activities to enhance students' development in the underlying rhetorical abilities of invention, audience…

  15. Writing for Publication.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brown, Bill

    1991-01-01

    Students at Hume-Fogg Academic High School in Nashville, Tennessee do every kind of writing, have won numerous writing awards, and have published everything from chapbooks to articles in national literary magazines. According to the creative writing teacher, students are first taught to write about things they know--to go back to their own…

  16. The Impact of Interactive Whiteboard Technology on Medical Students' Achievement in ESL Essay Writing: An Early Study in Egypt

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Albaaly, Emad; Higgins, Steven

    2012-01-01

    This study investigated the impact of the interactive whiteboard on Egyptian medical students' achievement in essay writing in English as a second language (ESL). First, the writing micro-skills judged essential to help these students improve their essay writing were identified, using a questionnaire which investigated experts' views. This gave…

  17. “Brevity is the Soul of Wit”: Use of a Stepwise Project to Teach Concise Scientific Writing

    PubMed Central

    Cyr, Nicole E.

    2017-01-01

    Skillful writing is essential for professionals in science and medicine. Consequently, many undergraduate institutions have adjusted their curriculum to include in-depth instruction and practice in writing for students majoring in the sciences. In neuroscience, students are often asked to write a laboratory report in the style of a primary scientific article or a term paper structured like a review article. Typically, students write section by section and build up to the final draft of a complete paper. In this way, students learn how to write a scientific paper. While learning to write such a paper is important, this is not the only type of written communication relevant to scientific careers. Here, I describe a stepwise writing project aimed to improve editing, succinctness, and the ability to synthesize the literature. Furthermore, I provide feedback from the students, and discuss the advantages and challenges of this project. PMID:29371841

  18. The art of writing good research proposals.

    PubMed

    van Ekelenburg, Henk

    2010-01-01

    Whilst scientists are by default motivated by intellectual challenges linked to the area of their interest rather than have an interest in the financial component related to their work, the reality of today is that funding for their work does not come automatically More and more governments provide project-related funding rather than multipurpose funding that covers the total annual costs of a research performing entity (such as a university department). So, like it or not, researchers have to present their research ideas and convince funding bodies about the usefulness and importance of their intended research work. Writing the research proposal is not simply typing words and punctuation. It requires succinctly and clearly chronicling the facts, as well as crafting a convincing line of reasoning for funding the project. For the best result, both the logical, verbal left side of the brain and the intuitive, creative right side of the brain need to work as a team. This article covers the process of writing a proposal, from research idea to submission to the funding body. The key to good writing is linking the text into a logical project flow. Therefore, in the early stage of writing an RTD proposal, developing the chain of reasoning and creating a flow chart is recommended to get a clear overview of the entire project and to visualise how the many work packages are connected.

  19. Rasch Model Analysis on the Effectiveness of Early Evaluation Questions as a Benchmark for New Students Ability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arsad, Norhana; Kamal, Noorfazila; Ayob, Afida; Sarbani, Nizaroyani; Tsuey, Chong Sheau; Misran, Norbahiah; Husain, Hafizah

    2013-01-01

    This paper discusses the effectiveness of the early evaluation questions conducted to determine the academic ability of the new students in the Department of Electrical, Electronics and Systems Engineering. Questions designed are knowledge based--on what the students have learned during their pre-university level. The results show students have…

  20. Writing to Read: A Meta-Analysis of the Impact of Writing and Writing Instruction on Reading

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Graham, Steve; Hebert, Michael

    2011-01-01

    Reading is critical to students' success in and out of school. One potential means for improving students' reading is writing. In this meta-analysis of true and quasi-experiments, Graham and Herbert present evidence that writing about material read improves students' comprehension of it; that teaching students how to write improves their reading…

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