expository writing samples: Topics by Science.gov

Sample records for expository writing samples

Comparison of narrative and expository writing in students with and without language-learning disabilities.

PubMed

Koutsoftas, Anthony D; Gray, Shelley

2012-10-01

Students with language-learning disabilities (LLD) demonstrate difficulties with written language, especially in the areas of productivity, complexity, and grammar. It is not clear how these deficits affect their performance on high-stakes tests, such as those required by the No Child Left Behind Act (U.S. Department of Education, 2002). This study used writing samples to compare how students with and without LLD scored on analytic writing measures that are typically used in writing research and on a more holistic measure of writing, the six-traits writing rubric (STWR; Education Northwest, 2006), which is used in high-stakes writing assessments. Fifty-six 4th and 5th graders with typical development (TD) or LLD produced 1 narrative and 1 expository writing sample. Measures of oral language ability and handwriting accuracy-speed were also obtained. The narrative and expository samples were scored using 5-6 separate analytic measures and 6 separate traits on the STWR. On narratives, the TD group scored significantly higher than the LLD group on 5 analytic measures and all 6 traits. Similarly, for expository, the TD group outscored the LLD group on 3 analytic measures and all 6 traits. Results demonstrate that the analytic scores of productivity, sentence complexity, and lexical diversity were correlated significantly with a higher overall score on the STWR for narrative writing samples only. Results of this study suggest that exclusive use of analytic scores to select treatment goals and document writing progress may not translate into increased scores on writing rubrics, particularly for expository writing samples.
Narrative and Expository Writing of Adolescents with Language-Learning Disabilities: A Pilot Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hall-Mills, Shannon; Apel, Kenn

2013-01-01

We evaluated the narrative and expository writing samples of 12 adolescents with language-learning disabilities (LLD) in Grades 6 to 12 for elements of microstructure (e.g., productivity, grammatical complexity) and macrostructure (genre-specific text structure elements) using an experimental measure. Writing samples were elicited with…
Personal, Expository, Critical, and Creative: Using Writing in Mathematics Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Braun, Benjamin

2014-01-01

This article provides a framework for creating and using writing assignments based on four types of writing: personal, expository, critical, and creative. This framework includes specific areas of student growth affected by these writing styles. Illustrative sample assignments are given throughout for each type of writing and various combinations…
Linguistic Feature Development Across Grades and Genre in Elementary Writing.

PubMed

Hall-Mills, Shannon; Apel, Kenn

2015-07-01

As children develop skills in writing across academic contexts, clinicians and educators need to have a fundamental understanding of typical writing development as well as valid and reliable assessment methods. The purpose of this study was to examine the progression of linguistic elements in school-age children's narrative and expository writing development. Narrative and expository writing samples produced by 89 children in Grades 2 through 4 were analyzed at the microstructure and macrostructure levels. Measures of receptive vocabulary, word-level reading, and reading comprehension were obtained. Exploratory factor analyses revealed 4 microstructure factors (e.g., productivity, grammatical complexity, grammatical accuracy, and lexical density) and 1 macrostructure factor (e.g., a combination of organization, text structure, and cohesion). Multivariate analyses of covariance with reading comprehension as a covariate showed that productivity and macrostructure were sensitive to grade-level and genre differences and that expository grammatical complexity was sensitive to grade-level differences. Findings are discussed in light of grade-level standards for narrative and expository writing and current practices in writing assessment. Multiple suggestions are offered for clinical and educational implications, and specific directions are provided for future research.
Written cohesion in children with and without language learning disabilities.

PubMed

Koutsoftas, Anthony D; Petersen, Victoria

2017-09-01

Cohesion refers to the linguistic elements of discourse that contribute to its continuity and is an important element to consider as part of written language intervention, especially in children with language learning disabilities (LLD). There is substantial evidence that children with LLD perform more poorly than typically developing (TD) peers on measures of cohesion in spoken language and on written transcription measures; however, there is far less research comparing groups on cohesion as a measure of written language across genres. The current study addresses this gap through the following two aims. First, to describe and compare cohesion in narrative and expository writing samples of children with and without language learning disabilities. Second, to relate measures of cohesion to written transcription and translation measures, oral language, and writing quality. Fifty intermediate-grade children produced one narrative and one expository writing sample from which measures of written cohesion were obtained. These included the frequency, adequacy and complexity of referential and conjunctive ties. Expository samples resulted in more complex cohesive ties and children with TD used more complex ties than peers with LLD. Different relationships among cohesion measures and writing were observed for narrative verse expository samples. Findings from this study demonstrate cohesion as a discourse-level measure of written transcription and how the use of cohesion can vary by genre and group (LLD, TD). Clinical implications for assessment, intervention, and future research are provided. © 2016 Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.
Response to an Expository Writing Strategy across Middle School RtI Tiers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burke, Lisa; Poll, Gerard; Fiene, Judy

2017-01-01

Seventh grade students, varying in their literacy skills, from a suburban middle school in the United States were taught an expository writing strategy using the Self-Regulated Strategy Development approach. Using an AB design, the students participated in an eight-session expository writing intervention that taught the writing process. The…
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…
Using Modeled Writing to Support English-Only and English-Learner Second-Grade Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mohr, Kathleen A. J.

2017-01-01

This study compared 70 English learners (ELs) and English-only (EO) second-grade students' writing samples before and after a yearlong writing program. The school utilized Write From the Beginning (J. Buckner, 2006) and focused on personal narratives. A subgroup of students also participated in an intervention supporting expository writing on…
A Double-Focused Orientation in Teaching Expository Writing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muhyidin, Tatang Setia

1990-01-01

Emphasizing expository writing, this paper describes the writing instruction approaches used in IKIP Bandung, an Indonesian institute. The syntax-to-rhetoric approach is discussed along with strategies to help students practice topic development with appropriate linguistic forms. (Contains three references.) (LB)
Kindergarten Predictors of Third Grade Writing

PubMed Central

Kim, Young-Suk; Al Otaiba, Stephanie; Wanzek, Jeanne

2015-01-01

The primary goal of the present study was to examine the relations of kindergarten transcription, oral language, word reading, and attention skills to writing skills in third grade. Children (N = 157) were assessed on their letter writing automaticity, spelling, oral language, word reading, and attention in kindergarten. Then, they were assessed on writing in third grade using three writing tasks – one narrative and two expository prompts. Children’s written compositions were evaluated in terms of writing quality (the extent to which ideas were developed and presented in an organized manner). Structural equation modeling showed that kindergarten oral language and lexical literacy skills (i.e., word reading and spelling) were independently predicted third grade narrative writing quality, and kindergarten literacy skill uniquely predicted third grade expository writing quality. In contrast, attention and letter writing automaticity were not directly related to writing quality in either narrative or expository genre. These results are discussed in light of theoretical and practical implications. PMID:25642118
Acquisition of Expository Writing Skills. Technical Report No. 421.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raphael, Taffy E.; And Others

Four studies by the Cognitive Strategy Instruction in Writing project at the Institute for Research on Teaching, Michigan State University, examined the acquisition of expository writing skills in fifth and sixth grade students. The first study examined the effects of teaching sixth grade students about comparison/contrast text structure. Results…
QuIP: A Writing Strategy to Improve Comprehension of Expository Structure.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McLaughlin, Elaine M.

1987-01-01

Provides a rationale for the reading/writing connection through a brief review of research and describes Questions into Paragraphs (QuIP), a three-step procedure designed to improve expository awareness. (FL)
Avoiding the Struggle: Instruction That Supports Students' Motivation in Reading and Writing about Content Material

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mason, Linda H.; Meadan, Hedda; Hedin, Laura R.; Cramer, Anne Mong

2012-01-01

We conducted a mixed methods study to evaluate motivation among 20 fourth-grade students who struggle with reading and writing prior to and after receiving either self-regulated strategy development (SRSD) instruction for expository reading comprehension or SRSD instruction for expository reading comprehension plus informative writing. We…
Spies Like Us: Gamifying the Composition Classroom and Breaking the Academic Code

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Slentz, Jessica E.; Kondrlik, Kristin E.; Lyons-McFarland, Michelle

2017-01-01

English 150: Expository Writing is an undergraduate course in expository and research writing offered by special partnership to both the students of Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) and the students of the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM). The course provides student writers experience in the critical reading and writing practices required…
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…
Helping Students Write Better Conclusions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berber-Jimenez, Lola; Montelongo, Jose; Hernandez, Anita C.; Herter, Roberta; Hosking, David

2008-01-01

Unlike the vocabulary used in language arts and social studies, knowledge of expository text (text written to inform) and the language of science are required for reading and writing in science (Carrier 2005). This vocabulary, along with expository text structures, often is not taught in middle and high school classrooms, thus hindering students,…
The Interactive Effects of Computer Conferencing and Multiple Intelligences on Expository Writing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cifuentes, Lauren; Hughey, Jane

2003-01-01

Investigates the differential effects of computer conferencing on expository writing for students of seven intelligence types. Students were assigned to treatment groups that provided controlled exposure to a topic: unstructured exposure; computer conferencing; face-to-face discussion; and computer conferencing and face-to-face discussion.…
Improving Expository Writing Skills with Explicit and Strategy Instructional Methods in Inclusive Middle School Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cihak, David F.; Castle, Kristin

2011-01-01

Forty eighth grade students with and without learning disabilities in an inclusive classroom participated in an adapted Step-Up to Writing (Auman, 2002) intervention program. The intervention targeted expository essays and composing topic, detail, transitional, and concluding sentences. A repeated-measures ANOVA indicated that both students with…
Addendum to the Evaluation of the Expository Reading and Writing Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fong, Anthony B.; Finkelstein, Neal D.

2016-01-01

In 2015, Fong, Finkelstein, Jaeger, Diaz, and Broek reported the findings from an independent evaluation of the Expository Reading and Writing Course (ERWC). The evaluation found positive and statistically significant effects of the ERWC on student achievement. Due to some concerns that the previously reported results in Fong et al. (2015) did not…
The Learning-to-Learn Strategies of Adolescent Students with Disabilities: Highlighting, Note Taking, Planning, and Writing Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Englert, Carol Sue; Mariage, Troy V.; Okolo, Cynthia M.; Shankland, Rebecca K.; Moxley, Kathleen D.; Courtad, Carrie Anna; Jocks-Meier, Barbara S.; O'Brien, J. Christian; Martin, Nicole M.; Chen, Hsin-Yuan

2009-01-01

This study focuses on an examination of the learning-to-learn strategies of seventh-grade students as they highlight, take notes, plan, organize, and write expository texts. Participants consist of 125 students, 41 with disabilities and 84 without disabilities. The results reveal that the students with disabilities have more difficulties in using…

Going beyond the Fab Five: Helping Students Cope with the Unique Linguistic Challenges of Expository Reading in Intermediate Grades

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fang, Zhihui

2008-01-01

As students transition from primary to intermediate grades, the kind of materials that they are expected to read and write become more heavily dominated by expository texts. Expository texts contain grammatical patterns that are distinct from those used in primary-grade storybooks. These linguistic features pose new comprehension challenges for…
Procedures for Obtaining and Analyzing Writing Samples of School-Age Children and Adolescents.

PubMed

Price, Johanna R; Jackson, Sandra C

2015-10-01

Many students' writing skills are below grade-level expectations, and students with oral language difficulties are at particular risk for writing difficulties. Speech-language pathologists' (SLPs') expertise in language applies to both the oral and written modalities, yet evidence suggests that SLPs' confidence regarding writing assessment is low. Writing samples are a clinically useful, criterion-referenced assessment technique that is relevant to helping students satisfy writing-related requirements of the Common Core State Standards (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010a). This article provides recommendations for obtaining and analyzing students' writing samples. In this tutorial, the authors provide a comprehensive literature review of methods regarding (a) collection of writing samples from narrative, expository (informational/explanatory), and persuasive (argument) genres; (b) variables of writing performance that are useful to assess; and (c) manual and computer-aided techniques for analyzing writing samples. The authors relate their findings to expectations for writing skills expressed in the Common Core State Standards (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010a). SLPs can readily implement many techniques for obtaining and analyzing writing samples. The information in this article provides SLPs with recommendations for the use of writing samples and may help increase SLPs' confidence regarding written language assessment.
Promoting Revision through Blogging in a Second Grade Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Young, Chase; Stover, Katie

2015-01-01

This study helped the researchers to determine if blogging as a revision strategy in a second grade classroom was beneficial. Nineteen second grade students wrote expository essays and made revisions and edits based on peer feedback in a blogging environment. Six elementary school teachers independently rated the students' writing samples using…
First and Second Graders Writing Informational Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Read, Sylvia

2005-01-01

Process approaches to writing instruction in primary-grade classrooms have become widespread due to the influence of Graves (1983), Calkins (1986), Avery (1993), and others. Their work emphasizes expressive writing, particularly personal narrative, more than expository or informational writing. As a consequence, expressive writing is what children…
Interpreting Indian English Expository Prose.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kachru, Yamuna

1988-01-01

A study was undertaken to demonstrate that expository prose written in Indian English exhibits certain characteristics determined by the sociocultural conventions of writing in the Indian tradition. These features of Indian English texts are often judged to be inappropriate by native speakers of North American and British English, and mistakenly…
Mathematical Writing Errors in Expository Writings of College Mathematics Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guce, Ivee K.

2017-01-01

Despite the efforts to confirm the effectiveness of writing in learning mathematics, analysis on common errors in mathematical writings has not received sufficient attention. This study aimed to provide an account of the students' procedural explanations in terms of their commonly committed errors in mathematical writing. Nine errors in…
Writing Feature Articles with Intermediate Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morgan, Denise N.

2010-01-01

Students need regular opportunities to write expository text. However, focusing on report writing often leaves students without strong examples to study or analyze to guide and grow their own writing. Writing and studying feature articles, meant to inform and explain, can become an alternative to report writing, as they can easily be located in…
The Use of Podcasts to Enhance Narrative Writing Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Qaddour, Kinana

2017-01-01

This activity uses podcasts to model narrative writing techniques. The challenges students face when exercising narrative writing skills are unique when compared to those of persuasive and expository writing; my students have repeatedly expressed their qualms with articulating experiences that engage their audience. Although students have…
Using Criterion in an English for Academic Purposes Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cookson, Simon; Hunter, Simon; Jackson, Daniel; Sick, James

2005-01-01

English for Academic Purposes (EAP Writing) is a compulsory course for English literature and language students at Obirin University. The first semester focuses on expository writing, typical of the TOEFL[R] writing exam. The second semester focuses on writing about literature. To facilitate their writing all students are provided with a user…
The Write Brain: How to Educate and Entertain with Learner-Centered Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iverson, Kathleen M.

2009-01-01

This article presents a conceptual framework for the writing process to facilitate motivation, learning, retention, and knowledge transfer in readers of expository material. Drawing from four well-developed bodies of knowledge--cognitive science, learning theory, technical communication, and creative writing--the author creates a model that allows…
Teaching Writing Skills with Children's Literature.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dierking, Connie Campbell; Anderson-McElveen, Susan

Intended for teachers, this workbook uses 20 well-known children's books as models to teach expository and narrative writing skills. The workbook teaches students about brainstorming, focus, organization, elaboration, and writing conventions with readily-available quality children's literature, such as "When I Was Young in the…
Command Strategies for Balancing Respect and Authority in Undergraduate Expository Essays

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Sook Hee

2010-01-01

The primary purpose of the paper is to examine how undergraduate writers adopt various commanding strategies of "shouldness" in their expository essays and the extent to which their adoptions relate to the success in the assessment of essay writing. The theoretical bases of the commands operating both within and across clause complexes are derived…
Use of the Genre-Based Approach to Teach Expository Essays to English Pedagogy Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gómez Burgos, Eric

2017-01-01

The following article reports the results of an action research project conducted in a public university in Chile. The project consisted of exposing ten undergraduate students from an English pedagogy program to a genre-based approach to writing expository essays. During eight weeks the three stages of the genre-based approach, namely:…
Writing Evaluation: Rater and Task Effects on the Reliability of Writing Scores for Children in Grades 3 and 4

PubMed Central

Kim, Grace Young-Suk; Schatschneider, Christopher; Wanzek, Jeanne; Gatlin, Brandy; Al Otaiba, Stephanie

2017-01-01

We examined how raters and tasks influence measurement error in writing evaluation and how many raters and tasks are needed to reach a desirable level of .90 and .80 reliabilities for children in Grades 3 and 4. A total of 211 children (102 boys) were administered three tasks in narrative and expository genres, respectively, and their written compositions were evaluated in widely used evaluation methods for developing writers: holistic scoring, productivity, and curriculum-based writing scores. Results showed that 54% and 52% of variance in narrative and expository compositions were attributable to true individual differences in writing. Students’ scores varied largely by tasks (30.44% and 28.61% of variance), but not by raters. To reach the reliability of .90, multiple tasks and raters were needed, and for the reliability of .80, a single rater and multiple tasks were needed. These findings offer important implications about reliably evaluating children’s writing skills, given that writing is typically evaluated by a single task and a single rater in classrooms and even in state accountability systems. PMID:29075050
Reimagining "English 1311: Expository English Composition" as "Introduction to Rhetoric and Writing Studies"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ruecker, Todd

2011-01-01

English 1311: Expository English Composition is the first semester course in a two-semester first-year composition (FYC) sequence. Both ENG 1311 and its second-semester counterpart, ENG 1312, are required for all students unless they have transfer credit covering this requirement or place out of one or both of the courses via the College-Level…
Pause Time Patterns in Writing Narrative and Expository Texts by Children and Adults

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van Hell, Janet G.; Verhoeven, Ludo; van Beijsterveldt, Liesbeth M.

2008-01-01

How do beginning and skilled writers compose a text in the course of time? To gain insight into the temporal aspects of planning and translating activities during writing, this article examined writing in real time and analyzed pause time patterns in writing in relation to linguistic characteristics of the written product. Fourth-grade children…
Leveling the Playing Field: The Efficacy of Thinking Maps on English Language Learner Students' Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cooks, Jamal; Sunseri, Anita

2014-01-01

Many students, especially English language learners (ELLs), struggle with writing expository texts. This study examined the impact of several writing strategies on ELLs' writing skills, including prewriting strategies and scaffolding strategies inherent in the Thinking Maps (TM) program. The purpose of the study was to see if ELLs were able to use…
Extraordinary Animals and Expository Writing: Zoo in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trainin, Guy; Wilson, Kathleen; Wickless, Mimi; Brooks, David

2005-01-01

A zoo outreach program led to placing animals in classrooms where those animals became foci for numerous learning activities such as writing, observing, and care. Systematic debriefings suggested uniqueness to learning outcomes connected to zoo animals. Subsequent analysis of student writing indicated that students responded to situational…
Writing for New Readers: Message-Making in Print. Workshop Series. Occasional Papers on Basic Education. Paper Nr. 1.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bhola, H. S.

At the heart of the enterprise of providing reading materials to new readers is the writer. The writer must write before the new literates can read and must write both effectively and interestingly. Although talent helps, acquired skills play an important part in writing, especially in expository writing. More important, to enable them to produce…
One Sentence at a Time: The Need for Explicit Instruction in Teaching Students to Write Well

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hochman, Judith C.; Wexler, Natalie

2017-01-01

Expository writing--the kind of writing that explains and informs--is essential for success in school and the workplace. Students who cannot write at a competent level struggle in college. With the advent of e-mail and the Internet, an increasing number of jobs require solid writing skills. No matter what path students choose in life, the ability…

Contrastive Analyses of Organizational Structures and Cohesive Elements in English, Spanish (ESL) and Chinese (ESL) Students' Writing in Narrative and Expository Modes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Norment, Nathaniel, Jr.

A study examined the differences and similarities in the relationship between the organization of written English produced by native Chinese, English, and Spanish speaking adult college students when they wrote in the narrative and expository modes. Specifically, the study explored the kinds of cohesive devices that operated in the English text…
Effects of Note-Taking and Extended Writing on Expository Text Comprehension: Who Benefits?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hebert, Michael; Graham, Steve; Rigby-Wills, Hope; Ganson, Katie

2014-01-01

Writing may be an especially useful tool for improving the reading comprehension of lower performing readers and students with disabilities. However, it is reasonable to expect that students with poor writing skills in particular, may actually be less adept at using writing to improve their reading skills, and may not be able to do so without…
Yes, There "Is" Room for Soup in the Curriculum: Achieving Accountability in a Collaboratively Planned Writing Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Engel, Trudie; Streich, Russell

2006-01-01

This article describes how one U.S. school district created a planned writing curriculum to provide strong, cohesive instruction for all students. Because of teacher preferences, some children received little instruction in expository writing, and scores on the state writing assessment fluctuated widely. The authors focus on how all teachers came…
Evaluating Fifth- and Sixth-Grade Students' Expository Writing: Task Development, Scoring, and Psychometric Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kulikowich, Jonna M.; Mason, Linda H.; Brown, Scott W.

2008-01-01

Drawing from multiple theoretical frameworks representing cognitive and educational psychology, we present a writing task and scoring system for measurement of students' informative writing. Participants in this study were 72 fifth- and sixth-grade students who wrote compositions describing real-world problems and how mathematics, science, and…
TeenACE for Science: Using Multimedia Tools and Scaffolds to Support Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hitchcock, Caryl H.; Rao, Kavita; Chang, Chuan Chinn; Yuen, Joann W. L.

2016-01-01

TeenACE for Science (TAS) is a writing intervention that combines components of Multimedia Technology, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) to help students develop expository writing skills in science. This developmental study examined the effect of the TAS intervention with two groups of culturally…
Rewards: Knowledge and Liberation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Logan, Carolyn

Part of the reward for expository college English papers is, of course, letter grades, but careful writing offers two greater rewards: knowledge and liberation. Teachers can best motivate students to write by seeing to it that the writing they assign teaches and challenges, and by assigning topics that are important to students but ones that they…
Foundations for Creativity in the Writing Process: Rhetorical Representations of Ill-Defined Problems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carey, L. J.; Flower, Linda

This report examines the composing processes of expert writers to determine which cognitive processes in expository writing produce an opportunity for a creative response. The first section considers how the ill-defined nature of many writing problems and the cognitive processes experts use to solve these problems interact to provide an…
A Comparison of Text Structure and Self-Regulated Writing Strategies for Composing from Sources by Middle School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reynolds, Gillian A.; Perin, Dolores

2009-01-01

This study compared two techniques for teaching middle school students to compose from expository text sources, a common but difficult academic writing task. Classroom social studies content was used. Text structure instruction (TSI), which focused on text characteristics using graphic organizers, was compared with PLAN & WRITE for Summarization…
Communications for Engineers: A Multi-Dimensional Approach.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Winkler, Victoria M.

The development and content of a freshman engineering program that stresses writing, speaking, and listening skills are described. In conjunction with writing expository essays and research reports, the students make demonstrations, deliver informative and persuasive speeches, and participate in panel discussions and debates. Videotaping,…
CIL: Compiler Implementation Language

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

Gries, David

1969-03-01

This report is a manual for the proposed Compiler Implementation Language, CIL. It is not an expository paper on the subject of compiler writing or compiler-compilers. The language definition may change as work progresses on the project. It is designed for writing compilers for the IBM 360 computers.
The Effects of Self-Regulated Strategy Development on the Writing of Expository Essays for Adults with Written Expression Difficulties: Preparing for the GED

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berry, Ann Bassett; Mason, Linda H.

2012-01-01

A multiple-probe, multiple-baseline, across-subjects design was used to examine the writing performance of four low-achieving adult students with and without disabilities enrolled in general equivalency diploma (GED) preparatory classes. Students' writing was evaluated before instruction and after self-regulated strategy development (SRSD)…
The Effects of Differing Response Criteria on the Assessment of Writing Competence.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Winters, Lynn

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relative validities of four essay scoring systems, reflecting alternative conceptualizations of the writing process, for identifying "competent" writers. Each rater was trained in two of the four scoring systems: General Impression Scoring (GI), Diederich Expository Scale (DES), CSE…
A Lesson on Evolution & Natural Selection

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Curtis, Anthony D.

2010-01-01

I describe three activities that allow students to explore the ideas of evolution, natural selection, extinction, mass extinction, and rates of evolutionary change by engaging a simple model using paper, pens, chalk, and a chalkboard. As a culminating activity that supports expository writing in the sciences, the students write an essay on mass…
The Role of Expository Writing in Mathematical Problem Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Craig, Tracy S.

2016-01-01

Mathematical problem-solving is notoriously difficult to teach in a standard university mathematics classroom. The project on which this article reports aimed to investigate the effect of the writing of explanatory strategies in the context of mathematical problem solving on problem-solving behaviour. This article serves to describe the…
The integration of lexical, syntactic, and discourse features in bilingual adolescents' writing: an exploratory approach.

PubMed

Danzak, Robin L

2011-10-01

The purpose of this study was to assess the bilingual writing of adolescent English language learners (ELLs) using quantitative tools. Linguistic measures were applied to the participants' writing at the lexical, syntactic, and discourse levels, with the goal of comparing outcomes at each of these levels across languages (Spanish/English) and genres (expository/narrative). Twenty Spanish-speaking ELLs, ages 11-14 years, each produced 8 expository and narrative autobiographical texts. Texts were coded and scored for lexical sophistication, syntactic complexity, and overall text quality. Scores were analyzed using Friedman's 2-way analysis of variance by ranks (Siegel & Castellan, 1988); resulting ranks were compared across languages and genre topics. The text topic impacted rank differences at all levels. Performance at the three levels was similar across languages, indicating that participants were emerging writers in both Spanish and English. The impact of genre was generally inconsequential at all levels. Similar results across languages implied the potential transfer of writing skills. Overall, students appeared to apply a knowledge-telling strategy to writing rather than strategically planning, composing, and revising their writing. Finally, outcomes highlighted the synergistic relationships among linguistic levels in text composition, indicating a need to address the interaction of vocabulary, morphosyntax, and text-level structures in the instruction and assessment of ELL writing.
Some Analogies between Computer Programming and the Composing Process.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Skulicz, Matthew

Since there are similarities between the process of writing computer programs and the process of writing successful expository prose, a student's knowledge of computer programing can contribute to the understanding of some principles of composition. The establishment of a clear objective is the first priority of both the writer and the programer,…
Uses of Popular Culture in the Composition Classroom: No Apologies--No Regrets.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lemrow, Lynne; Lemrow, Joseph H.

Magazines and comic strips are two readily available cultural artifacts that can be used by expository writing teachers. Magazines are a particularly rich source of referential material for the composition classroom, offering examples of various prose styles and formal structures. One possibility for using magazines in writing classes is a…
Evaluation of a Computer-Based Revision Prompting Intervention for Undergraduate Writers with Acquired Brain Injury

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ledbetter, Alexander K.

2017-01-01

People with acquired brain injury (ABI) present with impairments in working memory and executive functions, and these cognitive deficits contribute to difficulty self-regulating the production of expository writing. Cognitive processes involved in carrying out complex writing tasks include planning, generating text, and reviewing or revising text…
A Glimpse into the Thinking of Young New Zealanders.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lamb, Hilary

In 1984, New Zealand tested 12- and 13- year-old and 15- and 16-year old students as part of the International Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) tests. Although weaknesses appeared at both age levels in the organization of material, particularly in argumentative and expository writing, students could write functional letters competently…
The rules of the game: properties of a database of expository language samples.

PubMed

Heilmann, John; Malone, Thomas O

2014-10-01

The authors created a database of expository oral language samples with the aims of describing the nature of students' expository discourse and providing benchmark data for typically developing preteen and teenage students. Using a favorite game or sport protocol, language samples were collected from 235 typically developing students in Grades 5, 6, 7, and 9. Twelve language measures were summarized from this database and analyses were completed to test for differences across ages and topics. To determine whether distinct dimensions of oral language could be captured with language measures from these expository samples, a factor analysis was completed. Modest differences were observed in language measures across ages and topics. The language measures were effectively classified into four distinct dimensions: syntactic complexity, expository content, discourse difficulties, and lexical diversity. Analysis of expository data provides a functional and curriculum-based assessment that has the potential to allow clinicians to document multiple dimensions of children's expressive language skills. Further development and testing of the database will establish the feasibility of using it to compare individual students' expository discourse skills to those of their typically developing peers.

Writing Evaluation: Rater and Task Effects on the Reliability of Writing Scores for Children in Grades 3 and 4

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Young-Suk Grace; Schatschneider, Christopher; Wanzek, Jeanne; Gatlin, Brandy; Al Otaiba, Stephanie

2017-01-01

We examined how raters and tasks influence measurement error in writing evaluation and how many raters and tasks are needed to reach a desirable level of 0.90 and 0.80 reliabilities for children in Grades 3 and 4. A total of 211 children (102 boys) were administered three tasks in narrative and expository genres, respectively, and their written…
The Rules of the Game: Properties of a Database of Expository Language Samples

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heilmann, John; Malone, Thomas O.

2014-01-01

Purpose: The authors created a database of expository oral language samples with the aims of describing the nature of students' expository discourse and providing benchmark data for typically developing preteen and teenage students. Method: Using a favorite game or sport protocol, language samples were collected from 235 typically developing…
Creating a Science E-Book with Fifth Grade Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Encheff, Dana

2013-01-01

This article explains how one teacher used iBooks Author, a free digital textbook creation tool that makes iBooks for iPads, in an upper elementary classroom to improve students' expository writing skills and understanding of science content. The classroom teacher taught students pre-requisite writing and technology skills for two weeks, and…
Differences in Writers' Initial Task Representations. Technical Report No. 35.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carey, Linda; And Others

An exploratory study investigated how writers represent their task to themselves before beginning to write. Using data from verbal protocols, the initial plans of 12 writers (5 experts and 7 student writers) who were working on an expository writing task were examined. The protocols were coded for types of planning. Independent measures of the…
Lectura y Vida: Revista Latinoamericana de Lectura, 2000 (Reading and Life: Latin American Reading Magazine, 2000).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lectura y Vida: Revista Latinoamericana de Lectura, 2001

2001-01-01

Articles in this volume, written in Spanish, focus on the following: reading and writing assessment: Some characteristics of new assessment practices; how to support active participation in the reading of expository texts; argumentative writing as a problem in the written composition of students in teacher training; reading in a workshop…
Informative, Compare and Contrast, and Persuasive Essay Composing of Fifth and Seventh Graders: Not All Essay Writing Is the Same

PubMed Central

Davidson, Matt; Berninger, Virginia

2015-01-01

Typically developing writers in fifth (n = 110, M = 10 years 8 months) or seventh (n = 97, M = 12 years 7 months) grade wrote informative, compare and contrast, and persuasive essays for which the content was held constant—two mountains with a history of volcanic eruption. Relevant background knowledge was provided by reading text and showing colorful illustrations to the students before writing each genre. Results showed considerable variability between genre pairs within and across individual writers in content quality, organization quality, and length. Results, which support multiple expository genres, are consistent with prior research showing multiple genres (narrative vs. expository or even within narrative). Results are discussed in reference to the importance of assessing multiple genres in inferring composing expertise as emphasized by Olinghouse and colleagues. PMID:27418715
The Writing of Expository Texts in Early Grades: What Predicative Analysis Teaches Us

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gagnon, Renee; Ziarko, Helene

2012-01-01

This paper presents the results of a predicative analysis led on comparison and problem-solution texts produced by pupils of the second and third grades of primary school following a set of reading and writing instructional activities. The production of those texts is of a special challenge to the young writers because of the cognitive and…
From Thought to Words to Print: Early Literacy Development in Grade 2

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roessingh, Hetty; Elgie, Susan

2014-01-01

This study examines the relationship of the underlying skills of printing, spelling and vocabulary choices as they influence the quality of writing at the end of Grade 2. Four classes of Grade 2 (N = 85) writing in response to an expository prompt were scored holistically on a trait based rubric, then scored for spelling accuracy and…
Improving Physics Texts: Students Speak Out.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guzzetti, Barbara J.; And Others

1995-01-01

Finds that high school physical science students prefer textbooks with expository text that not only gives a correct concept but refutes common incorrect ideas. Finds that writing a comprehensible text is more difficult than the researchers had imagined. (SR)
Summary Writing: A Topographical Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sherrard, Carol

1986-01-01

Examines summaries of expository text written by undergraduate students to discover the nature of text-to-summary mapping. Finds that simple omission and one-to-one mapping of text sentences into summary sentences were the most favored strategies. (FL)
Geschlechtertausch II.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holschuh, Albrecht

1993-01-01

Describes how mental experiments can be used to turn expository writing into games and even self-exploration in an advanced language course. Through a class project on sex change, for example, learners acquire more knowledge about themselves as well as heightened language skills. (LET)
Temporal Management of the Writing Process: Effects of Genre and Organizing Constraints in Grades 5, 7, and 9

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beauvais, Lucie; Favart, Monik; Passerault, Jean-Michel; Beauvais, Caroline

2014-01-01

We investigated changes across grades in the cognitive demands associated with the organizing subprocess of writing. A total of 85 fifth (age M = 10.8), 88 seventh (age M = 12.9), and 79 ninth (age M = 14.6) graders composed either a procedural text or an expository description on a digital tablet, on the basis of a "scrambled ideas"…
Into the Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

School Library Media Activities Monthly, 1991

1991-01-01

Provides fully developed library media activities that are designed to be used in connection with specific curriculum units, including foreign language (Spanish); reading and language arts (expository writing and use of a thesaurus); science and social studies (land biomes, state birds, and country's flags). (LRW)
The Effects of Two Summarization Strategies Using Expository Text on the Reading Comprehension and Summary Writing of Fourth-and Fifth-Grade Students in an Urban, Title 1 School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Braxton, Diane M.

2009-01-01

Using a quasi-experimental pretest/post test design, this study examined the effects of two summarization strategies on the reading comprehension and summary writing of fourth- and fifth- grade students in an urban, Title 1 school. The Strategies, "G"enerating "I"nteractions between "S"chemata and "T"ext (GIST) and Rule-based, were taught using…
When It Comes to Explaining: A Preliminary Investigation of the Expository Language Skills of African American School-Age Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koonce, Nicole M.

2015-01-01

This research investigated the expository language of school-age speakers of African American English. Specifically, the study describes the language productivity, syntax, and pragmatic features present in expository language samples produced by African American children and compares their performance with White children in the extant literature.…
From Asking to Answering: Making Questions Explicit

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Washington, Gene

2006-01-01

"From Asking To Answering: Making Questions Explicit" describes a pedagogical procedure the author has used in writing classes (expository, technical and creative) to help students better understand the purpose, and effect, of text-questions. It accomplishes this by means of thirteen discrete categories (e.g., CLAIMS, COMMITMENT, ANAPHORA, or…
Teaching Children to Identify the Main Idea of Expository Texts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Joanna P.

1986-01-01

When 11-year-old learning disabled students who were two years behind in reading participated in an instructional program emphasizing comprehension of main ideas using basic categorization and classification skills, there was a significant and substantial improvement in reading comprehension and ability to write sentences containing the main idea…
Lectura y Vida. Revista Latinoamericana de Lectura (Reading and Life. Latinamerican Reading Magazine). 1990-1995.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

International Reading Association, Newark, DE.

This series of 24 magazines offers readings in Spanish on literacy, education problems, psycholinguistics, expository writing, and reading behavior. The magazine's editorial committee includes representatives from Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, the United States, Uruguay, Mexico, Venezuela, and Spain. Articles concern literacy issues of both…
Finding Diego: A Bilingual Student Integrates School, Language, and Identity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Danzak, Robin L.; Wilkinson, Louise C.

2017-01-01

This article presents a mixed-methods case study of Diego, a bilingual teen who completed public school in Florida. During adolescence, Diego negotiated multiple identities: successful student, Mexican American, bilingual, and typical U.S. teenager. Diego provided interviews and bilingual (English/Spanish) writing (narrative/expository) in 2008…
The Undergraduate Case Research Study Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vega, Gina

2010-01-01

Student-written cases are powerful pedagogical tools that can lead to improved understanding of business situations, more informed analysis, emphasis on reflection, and clearer expository writing, all of which are critical skills for business students. Cases provide an opportunity for students to enjoy an active learning experience and derive the…

Tribal Resource Institute in Business, Engineering, and Science (T.R.I.B.E.S.). Part I, TRIBES Energy and Resource Management Simulation. Part II, Creative Writing--Essays submitted by the T.R.I.B.E.S. Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Veirs, Val; And Others

The expository and creaive writing of Native American high school students enrolled in a summer program at Colorado College sponsored by TRIBES (Tribal Resource Institute in Business, Engineering, and Science) is featured in this document. Part 1 presents a simulation problem in energy and resource management followed by reports submitted by 28…
Getting the Gist: Relating Text Processing Research to Reading and Writing Instruction for Learning Disabled Secondary Students. Long Island University Transition Project Learning How to Learn: A High School/College Linkage Model to Expand Higher Educational Opportunities for Learning Disabled Students. Position Paper Series: Document No. 5.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seidenberg, Pearl L.

Many learning disabled secondary school students have difficulties with text organization in both subject area reading and expository writing. Problems may include difficulty in following the main ideas in text, recognizing the main text topics and their interrelationships, or recognizing the subordinate and superordinate ideas and examples.…
Exploring the Common Ground of Rhetoric and Logic.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lamb, Catherine E.

In teaching the principles of rational discourse in advanced expository writing, it is necessary to clarify the similarities and differences between the logic and rhetoric of Aristotle and to identify a common ground between the two. The study of logic within rhetoric focuses on the inductive standards used to support two kinds of argument: the…
Integrating Composition and Literature: Some Practical Suggestions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Daiker, Donald A.

This paper suggests that it is possible to construct a course that integrates the teaching of composition with the teaching of literature without allowing the secondary goal of heightened literary understanding to overwhelm the primary goal of improved expository writing. It presents a syllabus for a four-week unit on Ernest Hemingway's "The Sun…
Educational Films: Writing, Directing, and Producing for Classroom, Television, and Industry.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herman, Lewis

Intended for beginning and nonprofessional film makers interested in making the educational film, this book explains the technical aspects of film making, the roles of the specialists responsible for it, the types of film treatments (expository, narrative, and dramatic), and the various types of educational films. Some of the technical aspects…
Reading, writing, and phonological processing skills of adolescents with 10 or more years of cochlear implant experience.

PubMed

Geers, Ann E; Hayes, Heather

2011-02-01

This study had three goals: (1) to document the literacy skills of deaf adolescents who received cochlear implants (CIs) as preschoolers; (2) to examine reading growth from elementary grades to high school; (3) to assess the contribution of early literacy levels and phonological processing skills, among other factors, to literacy levels in high school. A battery of reading, spelling, expository writing, and phonological processing assessments were administered to 112 high school (CI-HS) students, ages 15.5 to 18.5 yrs, who had participated in a reading assessment battery in early elementary grades (CI-E), ages 8.0 to 9.9 yrs. The CI-HS students' performance was compared with either a control group of hearing peers (N = 46) or hearing norms provided by the assessment developer. Many of the CI-HS students (47 to 66%) performed within or above the average range for hearing peers on reading tests. When compared with their CI-E performance, good early readers were also good readers in high school. Importantly, the majority of CI-HS students maintained their reading levels over time compared with hearing peers, indicating that the gap in performance was, at the very least, not widening for most students. Written expression and phonological processing tasks posed a great deal of difficulty for the CI-HS students. They were poorer spellers, poorer expository writers, and displayed poorer phonological knowledge than hearing age-mates. Phonological processing skills were a critical predictor of high school literacy skills (reading, spelling, and expository writing), accounting for 39% of variance remaining after controlling for child, family, and implant characteristics. Many children who receive CIs as preschoolers achieve age-appropriate literacy levels as adolescents. However, significant delays in spelling and written expression are evident compared with hearing peers. For children with CIs, the development of phonological processing skills is not just important for early reading skills, such as decoding, but is critical for later literacy success as well.
Effects of GO 4 IT . . . NOW! Strategy Instruction on Expository Writing Skills for Students with Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Konrad, Moira; Clark, Kelly A.; Test, David W.

2017-01-01

Students with disabilities trail behind their peers without disabilities while in school, as well as in post-secondary outcome areas. Given that self-determination and enhanced academic skills are associated with improved post-school outcomes, one possible solution is to identify interventions that teach self-determination and academic skills…
Affecting College English Placement Scores: College Readiness Remediation for High-School Seniors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Olsen Rowland, Joyce Kay

2011-01-01

The purpose of the quantitative ex post facto study was to compare the English Placement Test (EPT) scores of students before and after the Expository Reading and Writing Curriculum (ERWC) remediation efforts had been employed and to determine the effectiveness of the ERWC in raising EPT scores. Using a Wilcoxon signed rank test, the researcher…
The Transaction between Teachers' Comments and Students' Revisions: Catalysts and Obstacles.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Onore, Cynthia S.

One area of the writing process that has received considerable attention is revision. A case study was conducted to generate a picture of the effects of revision on texts, the writers' intentions and perceptions, and readers' assessments of the written products. Three students--Dan, Alex, and Miranda--enrolled in a required expository writing…
Unit 1003: The Language of Exposition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Minnesota Univ., Minneapolis. Center for Curriculum Development in English.

This language unit for grade 10 builds on a definition of the expository use of language developed in the two previous 10th-grade units. In a brief overview of report language, the referential language of Thomas Huxley is compared with the expressive language of Edgar Allan Poe. The writings of S. I. Hayakawa, Hans Guth, and others are examined…
Development of Disabled Readers' Metacomprehension Ability through Summarization Training Using Expository Text: Results of Three Studies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weisberg, Renee; Balajthy, Ernest

1990-01-01

In the three studies, high school aged disabled readers were taught how to identify passages' main ideas, construct graphic organizers, and write summaries. Study results suggest the need for modeling strategies and consistent feedback and the usefulness of these techniques in helping students monitor their understanding and improve reading…
The Effects of Browse Time on the Internet on Students' Essay Scores

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Doan, Kim; Bloomfield, Aaron

2014-01-01

This study examined how 30 minutes of search time on the Web affected students' essay scores in response to a writing prompt. Expository essays were obtained from 49 fourth- and fifth-grade students enrolled in an elementary school in Virginia, in the United States. Students were placed by random assignment into three groups with the same writing…
Learning to research in first grade: Bridging the transition from narrative to expository texts and tasks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weise, Richard

Decades of research indicate that students at all academic grade and performance levels perform poorly with informational texts and tasks and particularly with locating assignment-relevant information in expository texts. Students have little understanding of the individual tasks required, the arc of the activity, the hierarchical structure of the information they seek, or how to reconstitute and interpret the information they extract. Poor performance begins with the introduction of textbooks and research assignments in fourth grade and continues into adulthood. However, to date, neither educators nor researchers have substantially addressed this problem. In this quasi-experimental study, we ask if first-grade children can perform essential tasks in identifying, extracting, and integrating assignment-relevant information and if instruction improves their performance. To answer this question, we conducted a 15-week, teacher-led, intervention in two first-grade classrooms in an inner-city Nashville elementary school. We created a computer learning environment (NoteTaker) to facilitate children's creation of a mental model of the research process and a narrative/expository bridge curriculum to support the children's transition from all narrative to all expository texts and tasks. We also created a new scaffolding taxonomy and a reading-to-research model to focus our research. Teachers participated in weekly professional development workshops. The results of this quasi-experimental study indicate that at-risk, first-grade children are able to (a) identify relevant information in an expository text, (b) categorize the information they identify, and (c) justify their choice of category. Children's performance in the first and last tasks significantly improved with instruction, and low-performing readers showed the greatest benefits from instruction. We find that the children's performance in categorizing information depended upon content-specific knowledge that was not taught, as well as on the process knowledge that was taught. We also find that children's narrative reading performance predicted their initial-performance for each assessment measure. We argue that first-grade children are developmentally ready to read expository texts and to learn reading-to-research tasks and that primary-school literacy instruction should not be limited to reading and writing stories.
Effects of Topic Familiarity and Training in Generative Learning Activities on Poor Readers' Comprehension of Comparison/Contrast Expository Text Structure: Transfer to Real-World Materials.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weisberg, Renee; Balajthy, Ernest

A study investigated transfer effects of training below average high school readers in the use of graphic organizers and summary writing on their recognition of compare/contrast text structure. Subjects, 32 high school students with below-expectancy standardized test scores, were placed in two groups: an experimental group (five males and 11…
An Ideal Design for an Idea Processor.

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-09-01

make it a strong, healthy tree --all this, even as he was busily tending other plants in the garden. I will always remember his unique blend of experience...Structures Hierarchies. One of the most important structures of .Y. knowledge for communication is the hierarchy or tree (16:223). Friendly describes...typically used for documenting the tree -like structure of computer programs--to help structure expository writing (14:197). Figures 3 and 4 present examples
Evaluation of a computer-based prompting intervention to improve essay writing in undergraduates with cognitive impairment after acquired brain injury.

PubMed

Ledbetter, Alexander K; Sohlberg, McKay Moore; Fickas, Stephen F; Horney, Mark A; McIntosh, Kent

2017-11-06

This study evaluated a computer-based prompting intervention for improving expository essay writing after acquired brain injury (ABI). Four undergraduate participants aged 18-21 with mild-moderate ABI and impaired fluid cognition at least 6 months post-injury reported difficulty with the writing process after injury. The study employed a non-concurrent multiple probe across participants, in a single-case design. Outcome measures included essay quality scores and number of revisions to writing counted then coded by type using a revision taxonomy. An inter-scorer agreement procedure was completed for quality scores for 50% of essays, with data indicating that agreement exceeded a goal of 85%. Visual analysis of results showed increased essay quality for all participants in intervention phase compared with baseline, maintained 1 week after. Statistical analyses showed statistically significant results for two of the four participants. The authors discuss external cuing for self-monitoring and tapping of existing writing knowledge as possible explanations for improvement. The study provides preliminary evidence that computer-based prompting has potential to improve writing quality for undergraduates with ABI.
Influence of text type, topic familiarity, and stuttering frequency on listener recall, comprehension, and mental effort.

PubMed

Panico, James; Healey, E Charles

2009-04-01

To determine how text type, topic familiarity, and stuttering frequency influence listener recall, comprehension, and perceived mental effort. Sixty adults listened to familiar and unfamiliar narrative and expository texts produced with 0%, 5%, 10%, and 15% stuttering. Participants listened to 4 experimental text samples at only 1 stuttering frequency. After hearing the text samples, each listener performed a free recall task, answered cued recall questions, answered story comprehension questions, and rated their perceived mental effort. Free and cued recall as well as story comprehension scores were higher for narrative than for expository texts. Free and cued recall scores were better for familiar than for unfamiliar stories, although topic familiarity did not affect story comprehension scores. Samples with all levels of stuttering resulted in higher mental effort ratings for both text types and topic familiarities. Stuttering has a greater influence on listener recall and comprehension for narrative than for expository texts. Topic familiarity affects free and cued recall but has no influence on story comprehension. Regardless of the amount of stuttering, mental effort was high for both text types and levels of familiarity.
Effects of Transfer to Real-World Subject Area Materials from Training in Graphic Organizers and Summarizing on Developmental College Readers' Comprehension of the Compare/Contrast Text Structure in Science Expository Text.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balajthy, Ernest; Weisberg, Renee

To determine whether less able readers could use the strategies they had been taught, a study investigated the transfer effects of training in the use of graphic organizers and summary writing on readers' recognition of the compare/contrast text structure. Subjects, 70 freshmen at a western New York state college of liberal arts and sciences in a…
Improving students’ understanding of mathematical concept using maple

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ningsih, Y. L.; Paradesa, R.

2018-01-01

This study aimed to improve students’ understanding of mathematical concept ability through implementation of using Maple in learning and expository learning. This study used a quasi-experimental research with pretest-posttest control group design. The sample on this study was 61 students in the second semester of Mathematics Education of Universitas PGRI Palembang, South Sumatera in academic year 2016/2017. The sample was divided into two classes, one class as the experiment class who using Maple in learning and the other class as a control class who received expository learning. Data were collective through the test of mathematical initial ability and mathematical concept understanding ability. Data were analyzed by t-test and two ways ANOVA. The results of this study showed (1) the improvement of students’ mathematical concept understanding ability who using Maple in learning is better than those who using expository learning; (2) there is no interaction between learning model and students’ mathematical initial ability toward the improvement of students’ understanding of mathematical concept ability.
The psycholinguistics of developing text construction.

PubMed

Berman, Ruth A

2008-11-01

This paper outlines functionally motivated quantifiable criteria for characterizing different facets of discourse--global-level principles, categories of referential content, clause-linking complex syntax, local linguistic expression and overall discourse stance--in relation to the variables of development, genre and modality. Concern is with later, school-age language development, in the conviction that the long developmental route of language acquisition can profitably be examined in the context of extended discourse. Findings are reviewed from a cross-linguistic project that elicited narrative and expository texts in both speech and writing at four age groups: (9-10 years, 12-13, 16-17 and adults). Clear developmental patterns emerge from middle childhood to adulthood, with significant shifts in adolescence; global-level text organization is mastered earlier in narratives than in expository essays, but the latter promote more advanced use of local-level lexicon and syntax; and spoken texts are more spread out than their denser written counterparts in clause-linkage, referential content and lexical usage. These and other findings are discussed in terms of the growth and reorganization of knowledge about types of discourse and text-embedded language use.

Talking Drawings: Improving Intermediate Students' Comprehension of Expository Science Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fello, Susan E.; Paquette, Kelli R.; Jalongo, Mary Renck

2006-01-01

With the advent of the standards movement, most states have produced statewide tests that evaluate children's understanding of expository science text. Expository texts are designed to explain, describe, or present a logical argument. Usually, the purpose of expository texts is to present new information. This article describes a research-based…
Summarizing Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Westby, Carol; Culatta, Barbara; Lawrence, Barbara; Hall-Kenyon, Kendra

2010-01-01

Purpose: This article reviews the literature on students' developing skills in summarizing expository texts and describes strategies for evaluating students' expository summaries. Evaluation outcomes are presented for a professional development project aimed at helping teachers develop new techniques for teaching summarization. Methods: Strategies…
Processing and memory of information presented in narrative or expository texts.

PubMed

Wolfe, Michael B W; Woodwyk, Joshua M

2010-09-01

Previous research suggests that narrative and expository texts differ in the extent to which they prompt students to integrate to-be-learned content with relevant prior knowledge during comprehension. We expand on previous research by examining on-line processing and representation in memory of to-be-learned content that is embedded in narrative or expository texts. We are particularly interested in how differences in the use of relevant prior knowledge leads to differences in terms of levels of discourse representation (textbase vs. situation model). A total of 61 university undergraduates in Expt 1, and 160 in Expt 2. In Expt 1, subjects thought out loud while comprehending circulatory system content embedded in a narrative or expository text, followed by free recall of text content. In Expt 2, subjects read silently and completed a sentence recognition task to assess memory. In Expt 1, subjects made more associations to prior knowledge while reading the expository text, and recalled more content. Content recall was also correlated with amount of relevant prior knowledge for subjects who read the expository text but not the narrative text. In Expt 2, subjects reading the expository text (compared to the narrative text) had a weaker textbase representation of the to-be-learned content, but a marginally stronger situation model. Results suggest that in terms of to-be-learned content, expository texts trigger students to utilize relevant prior knowledge more than narrative texts.
Astronomy and Writing: A First-Year Cosmology Course for Nonmajors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martin, A. M.

2010-08-01

Astro 1109 (Spring 2009) is a first-year writing seminar offered through Cornell University's Knight Institute for Writing in the Disciplines. Every first-year student takes two of these seminars, each with fewer than 17 students; students are assigned to a course by ballot, creating opportunities for students to interact with a discipline other than their own. In Astro 1109, a non-mathematical course based on readings, discussion, and formal and informal writing assignments, students engaged with various forms of expository and persuasive writing focused on the topic of cosmology. The coursework covered fundamental questions of space, time, and relativity, black holes, the expansion of the Universe, dark matter and dark energy, and the anthropic principle. Assignments were developed to introduce students to a wide range of scientific writing for the lay audience. Throughout the course, an emphasis was placed on the importance of physical and textual evidence and observation, and the differences between a conjecture, a hypothesis, and a theory. Work for the course culminated in a four week research project, exploring the merits of the anthropic principle and the relationship between physics and philosophy, through which each student developed their own paper topic. Astro 1109 was designed as an outreach tool to improve scientific literacy by linking it to the traditional concepts of literacy and exposition. The assignments could be easily adaptable to students at different levels or with various levels of background on the topic.
Sharing Expository Texts with Preschool Children in Special Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Breit-Smith, Allison; Busch, Jamie; Guo, Ying

2015-01-01

Although a general limited availability of expository texts currently exists in preschool special education classrooms, expository tests offer speech-language pathologists (SLPs) a rich context for addressing the language goals of preschool children with language impairment on their caseloads. Thus, this article highlights the differences between…
Teaching Expository Text Structures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montelongo, Jose; Berber-Jimenez, Lola; Hernandez, Anita C.; Hosking, David

2006-01-01

Many students enter high school unskilled in the art of reading to learn from science textbooks. Even students who can read full-length novels often find science books difficult to read because students have relatively little practice with the various types of expository text structures used by such textbooks (Armbruster, 1991). Expository text…
Text Structure Strategies for Improving Expository Reading Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roehling, Julia V.; Hebert, Michael; Nelson, J. Ron; Bohaty, Janet J.

2017-01-01

Comprehending expository reading material is a challenge for many students. Research has shown that students' expository reading comprehension can improve with the help of text structure instruction. The purpose of this article is to present teachers with a framework for effectively implementing text structure instruction in their classrooms.…
Expository Language Skills of Young School-Age Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Westerveld, Marleen F.; Moran, Catherine A.

2011-01-01

Purpose: This research investigated the expository language skills of young school-age children with the ultimate aim of obtaining normative data for clinical practice. Specifically, this study examined (a) the level of expository language performance of 6- and 7-year-old children with typical development and (b) age-related differences between…
Comprehension and Learning from Refutation and Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diakidoy, Irene-Anna N.; Mouskounti, Thalia; Ioannides, Christos

2011-01-01

The study compared the effects of a refutation text on comprehension and learning outcomes to those of a standard expository text. Undergraduate students with varying amounts of accurate and inaccurate prior knowledge read and recalled a refutation or an expository text about energy. Comprehension measures included the amount of text information…
What Experiences Do Expository Books on Recommended Book Lists Offer to K-2 Students?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kletzien, Sharon B.; Dreher, Mariam Jean

2017-01-01

Teachers can use expository texts to teach academic vocabulary, content knowledge, text structure, and text features. National associations' recommended book lists are often used to identify books for classrooms. Previously we identified expository texts on these lists from 2001-2002 and 2011-2012. The current study explored instructional…
Children's Comprehension and Local-to-Global Recall of Narrative and Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Romero, Fernando; Paris, Scott G.; Brem, Sarah K.

2005-01-01

We examined underlying mechanisms for comprehension differences across expository and narrative text while controlling for factors confounded in the extant literature. Fourth grade students (n=32) read both an expository and a narrative text, and completed both a local comprehension assessment, and a global retelling assessment for each text.…
Interactive Book Reading with Expository Science Texts in Preschool Special Education Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Breit-Smith, Allison; Busch, Jamie D.; Dinnesen, Megan Schneider; Guo, Ying

2017-01-01

Expository, or informational, text can be defined as a type of nonfiction that describes a topic categorically by moving from subtopic to subtopic with the intent to teach content or convey information (Maloch & Bomer, 2013). One vehicle for teaching the text structure and language of expository text to preschool-age children is through…
How to Teach Expository Text Structure to Facilitate Reading Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akhondi, Masoumeh; Malayeri, Faramarz Aziz; Samad, Arshad Abd

2011-01-01

Expository text offers particular challenges to the reader because of the abstract and unfamiliar concepts that it presents. In order to solve these problems in reading classes, students should be taught the hierarchical structure of the expository text and the interrelationships among ideas. This is what experts in this field refer to as text…
Text Signals Influence Second Language Expository Text Comprehension: Knowledge Structure Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Kyung; Clariana, Roy B.

2017-01-01

This quasi-experimental investigation describes the influence of text signals on second language expository science text comprehension. In two course sections, mixed proficiency Korean English language learners (n = 88) read one of two print-based English expository text passage versions. Participants in one section (n = 44) were given a version…
The Influence of Narrative and Expository Lesson Text Structures on Knowledge Structures: Alternate Measures of Knowledge Structure

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clariana, Roy B.; Wolfe, Michael B.; Kim, Kyung

2014-01-01

This investigation applies two approaches for representing and comparing text structures as undirected network graphs to describe the influence of narrative and expository lesson texts on readers' knowledge structure elicited as free recall. Narrative and expository lesson texts and undergraduate participants' free recall essays (n = 90)…
The Relationship between Oral Narrative Production and Expository Text Comprehension of Fifth-Grade Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marron, Jill K.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study is to determine if there is a relationship between oral narrative production and the reading comprehension of expository text. The research questions are: (1) What is the relationship between oral narrative production and reading comprehension of expository text in fifth-grade students?; (2) Which components of oral…
Differential Competencies Contributing to Children's Comprehension of Narrative and Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Best, Rachel M.; Floyd, Randy G.; Mcnamara, Danielle S.

2008-01-01

This study examined the influences of reading decoding skills and world knowledge on third graders' comprehension of narrative and expository texts. Children read a narrative text and an expository text. Comprehension of each text was assessed with a free recall prompt, three cued recall prompts, and 12 multiple-choice questions. Tests from the…
Concept mapping: Impact on content and organization of technical writing in science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Conklin, Elaine

The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to compare the relationship between concept mapping and the content and organization of technical writing of ninth grade biology students. All students in the study completed a prewriting assessment. The experimental group received concept map instruction while the control group performed alternate tasks. After instruction, both groups completed the postwriting assessment and mean differences were compared using the t statistic for independent measures. Additionally, scores on the concept map were correlated to the scores on the postwriting assessment using the Pearson correlation coefficient. Finally, attitudes toward using concept mapping as a prewriting strategy were analyzed using the t statistic for repeated measures. Concept mapping significantly improved the depth of content; however, no statistical significance was detected for organization. Students had a significantly positive change in attitude toward using concept mapping to plan a writing assessment, organize information, and think creatively. The findings indicated concept mapping had a positive effect on the students' abilities to select concepts appropriate to respond to a writing prompt, integrate facts into complete thoughts and ideas, and apply it in novel situations. Concept maps appeared to facilitate learning how to process information and transform it into expository writing. Sustained practice in designing concept maps may influence organization as well as content. Developing a systematic approach to synthesize well-organized and coherent arguments in response to a writing task is an invaluable communication skill that has implications for the learner across disciplines and prepares them for higher education and the workforce.
An Examination of the Influence of Expository and Narrative Passages on the Dimensionality of the IGAP Reading Test.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bolt, Daniel; Ackerman, Terry

The 1993 Illinois Goal Assessment Program (IGAP) Reading Tests measured reading comprehension using both narrative and expository reading passages. Noticeable differences in mean scaled scores occurred depending on whether the 1993 results were equated back to the 1992 narrative test or the 1993 expository test (Hsu and Ackerman, 1994). In an…
Relationships between Translation and Transcription Processes during fMRI Connectivity Scanning and Coded Translation and Transcription in Writing Products after Scanning in Children with and without Transcription Disabilities

PubMed Central

Wallis, Peter; Richards, Todd; Boord, Peter; Abbott, Robert; Berninger, Virginia

2018-01-01

Students with transcription disabilities (dysgraphia/impaired handwriting, n = 13 or dyslexia/impaired word spelling, n = 16) or without transcription disabilities (controls) completed transcription and translation (idea generating, planning, and creating) writing tasks during fMRI connectivity scanning and compositions after scanning, which were coded for transcription and translation variables. Compositions in both groups showed diversity in genre beyond usual narrative-expository distinction; groups differed in coded transcription but not translation variables. For the control group specific transcription or translation tasks during scanning correlated with corresponding coded transcription or translation skills in composition, but connectivity during scanning was not correlated with coded handwriting during composing in dysgraphia group and connectivity during translating was not correlated with any coded variable during composing in dyslexia group. Results are discussed in reference to the trend in neuroscience to use connectivity from relevant seed points while performing tasks and trends in education to recognize the generativity (creativity) of composing at both the genre and syntax levels. PMID:29600113

Linguistic pattern analysis of misspellings of typically developing writers in grades 1-9.

PubMed

Bahr, Ruth Huntley; Sillian, Elaine R; Berninger, Virginia W; Dow, Michael

2012-12-01

A mixed-methods approach, evaluating triple word-form theory, was used to describe linguistic patterns of misspellings. Spelling errors were taken from narrative and expository writing samples provided by 888 typically developing students in Grades 1-9. Errors were coded by category (phonological, orthographic, and morphological) and specific linguistic feature affected. Grade-level effects were analyzed with trend analysis. Qualitative analyses determined frequent error types and how use of specific linguistic features varied across grades. Phonological, orthographic, and morphological errors were noted across all grades, but orthographic errors predominated. Linear trends revealed developmental shifts in error proportions for the orthographic and morphological categories between Grades 4 and 5. Similar error types were noted across age groups, but the nature of linguistic feature error changed with age. Triple word-form theory was supported. By Grade 1, orthographic errors predominated, and phonological and morphological error patterns were evident. Morphological errors increased in relative frequency in older students, probably due to a combination of word-formation issues and vocabulary growth. These patterns suggest that normal spelling development reflects nonlinear growth and that it takes a long time to develop a robust orthographic lexicon that coordinates phonology, orthography, and morphology and supports word-specific, conventional spelling.
Adolescent Summaries of Narrative and Expository Discourse: Differences and Predictors.

PubMed

Lundine, Jennifer P; Harnish, Stacy M; McCauley, Rebecca J; Blackett, Deena Schwen; Zezinka, Alexandra; Chen, Wei; Fox, Robert A

2018-05-03

Summarizing expository passages is a critical academic skill that is understudied in language research. The purpose of this study was to compare the quality of verbal summaries produced by adolescents for 3 different discourse types and to determine whether a composite measure of cognitive skill or a test of expressive syntax predicted their performance. Fifty adolescents listened to, and then verbally summarized, 1 narrative and 2 expository lectures (compare-contrast and cause-effect). They also participated in testing that targeted expressive syntax and 5 cognitive subdomains. Summary quality scores were significantly different across discourse types, with a medium effect size. Analyses revealed significantly higher summary quality scores for cause-effect than compare-contrast summaries. Although the composite cognitive measure contributed significantly to the prediction of quality scores for both types of expository summaries, the expressive syntax score only contributed significantly to the quality scores for narrative summaries. These results support previous research indicating that type of expository discourse may impact student performance. These results also show, for the first time, that cognition may play a predictive role in determining summary quality for expository but not narrative passages in this population. In addition, despite the more complex syntax commonly associated with exposition versus narratives, an expressive syntax score was only predictive of performance on narrative summaries. These findings provide new information, questions, and directions for future research for those who study academic discourse and for professionals who must identify and manage the problems of students struggling with different types of academic discourse. https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.6167879.
Knowing What You Know: Improving Metacomprehension and Calibration Accuracy in Digital Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reid, Alan J.; Morrison, Gary R.; Bol, Linda

2017-01-01

This paper presents results from an experimental study that examined embedded strategy prompts in digital text and their effects on calibration and metacomprehension accuracies. A sample population of 80 college undergraduates read a digital expository text on the basics of photography. The most robust treatment (mixed) read the text, generated a…
Generative Learning Strategy Use and Self-Regulatory Prompting in Digital Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reid, Alan J.; Morrison, Gary M.

2014-01-01

The digital revolution is shifting print-based textbooks to digital text, and it has afforded the opportunity to incorporate meaningful learning strategies and otherwise separate metacognitive activities directly into these texts as embedded support. A sample of 89 undergraduates read a digital, expository text on the basics of photography. The…
Memory for Textual Conflicts Predicts Sourcing When Adolescents Read Multiple Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stang Lund, Elisabeth; Bråten, Ivar; Brante, Eva W.; Strømsø, Helge I.

2017-01-01

This study investigated whether memory for conflicting information predicted mental representation of source-content links (i.e., who said what) in a sample of 86 Norwegian adolescent readers. Participants read four texts presenting conflicting claims about sun exposure and health. With differences in gender, prior knowledge, and interest…
What Predicts Adult Readers' Understanding of STEM Texts?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Follmer, D. Jake; Fang, Shin-Yi; Clariana, Roy B.; Meyer, Bonnie J. F.; Li, Ping

2018-01-01

The current study examined the relations among key variables that underlie reading comprehension of expository science texts in a diverse population of adult native English readers. Using Mechanical Turk to sample a range of adult readers, the study also examined the effect of text presentation on readers' comprehension and knowledge structure…
Teaching Fashion Illustration to University Students: Experiential and Expository Methods.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dragoo, Sheri; Martin, Ruth E.; Horridge, Patricia

1998-01-01

In a fashion illustration course, 24 students were taught using expository methods and 28 with experiential methods. Each method involved 20 lessons over eight weeks. Pre/posttest results indicated that both methods were equally effective in improving scores. (SK)
Studies in Philippine Languages and Cultures.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brainard, Sherri, Ed.

2001-01-01

This issue of Studies in Philippine Languages and Cultures contains the following articles: "Functions of Locatives in Northern Subanen Expository and Hortatory Discourse" (Josephine Sanicas-Daguman); "Functions of Demonstratives in Sama Bangingi' Expository Discourse" (John Blakely); "A Brief Look at Sinama Basic Verbs…
How Generalization Inferences Are Constructed in Expository Text Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ritchey, Kristin A.

2011-01-01

Three questions regarding adult readers' processing of generalization inferences (conceptually broad statements that subsume several specific statements) are investigated. College students (N=193) read expository texts containing target statements that were consistent, inconsistent, or off-topic in relation to a generalization implied by one…
Structure Strategies for Comprehending Expository Text.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muth, K. Denise

1987-01-01

Examines three strategies designed to help middle school students use text structures to comprehend expository text: (1) hierarchical summaries, (2) conceptual maps, and (3) thematic organizers. Summarizes advantages and disadvantages of each strategy and recommends that teachers consider the outcomes they want and select the most appropriate…
A discussion on velocity-speed and their instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yıldız, Ali

2016-04-01

This study was conducted to investigate how to teach velocity and speed effectively, with which activities and examples. Although they are different quantities, they are generally used in the same meaning. Study data and the quantities discussed were obtained from the examination of documents such as scientific articles and books about the instruction and they were examined by descriptive analysis approach. Expository instruction was supported with writing to learn activities and an approach actualized in seven stages was suggested so that velocity and speed could be understood at an anticipated level. At each stage, possible practices were explained; and especially at the fifth stage of the study, a detailed example on distance, displacement, velocity and speed promoted the understanding of presented quantities much more easily and correctly with their critical properties, thus students would be able to associate it with their prior knowledge. Moreover, it was anticipated based on these reasons that the example could be used as a tool to actualize permanent learning. At the last stage of the study, it was considered that having students write a letter and a summary to young respondents could support the practices in the previous stages, and also it would help promoting long-term retention of the learned concepts.
Influence of Text Type, Topic Familiarity, and Stuttering Frequency on Listener Recall, Comprehension, and Mental Effort

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Panico, James; Healey, E. Charles

2009-01-01

Purpose: To determine how text type, topic familiarity, and stuttering frequency influence listener recall, comprehension, and perceived mental effort. Method: Sixty adults listened to familiar and unfamiliar narrative and expository texts produced with 0%, 5%, 10%, and 15% stuttering. Participants listened to 4 experimental text samples at only 1…
The Relationship of Teacher-Personality Type to Grading Freshman Composition Essays: An Empirical Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Covner, Thelma Crockin

To gain insight into the evaluation of college freshman compositions, a study explored the relationship between the personality type of the instructor and the grades assigned to essays written by freshman composition students. The sample comprised 23 college instructors who answered a short questionnaire, graded the same expository essay, and…
The Construct Validity of Higher Order Factors Emphasizing Symbolic and Semantic Content Abilities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khattab, Ali-Maher

This study investigates the extent to which the higher order factors of symbolic and semantic content are differentiated. The main concern is an expository description of the use of confirmatory factor analysis in establishing factorial validity. Reanalyzed data originally collected in 1968 involved a sample of 197 tenth, eleventh and twelfth…
How Clearly Written are Children's Textbooks? or, of Bladderworts and Alfa. Reading Education Report No. 16.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, Thomas H.; And Others

Two representative samples of expository prose from sixth grade textbooks (one in science and one in social studies) were analyzed for clarity of explanation. Four text criteria were applied to the analyses: structure, unity, coherence, and audience appropriateness. The results of the analysis suggested that many children's textbooks are not…
Evaluating the Efficacy of Elaborative Strategies for Remembering Expository Text.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boudreau, Rhonda L.; Wood, Eileen; Willoughby, Teena; Specht, Jacqueline

1999-01-01

One hundred Canadian undergraduates read a lengthy expository text, used one of five study strategies for 50 minutes, and completed recall and multiple-choice tests. Students using self-study, repetition, or unsupported elaborative interrogation had difficulty recognizing the passage's main ideas. Elaborative interrogation's effectiveness was…
Epistolary and Expository Interaction Patterns in a Computer Conference Transcript.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fahy, Patrick J.

2002-01-01

Discusses the relationship of gender and discourse types, including epistolary and expository, in computer-mediated communication such as listservs. Describes a study that used transcript analysis to determine whether gender patterns could be detected in an online graduate course and considers the strategic value of discourse styles in group…
Narrative Fiction and Expository Nonfiction Differentially Predict Verbal Ability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mar, Raymond A.; Rain, Marina

2015-01-01

Although reading is known to be an important contributor to language abilities, it is not yet well established whether different text genres are uniquely associated with verbal abilities. We examined how exposure to narrative fiction and expository nonfiction predict language ability among university students. Exposure was measured both with…
Character Sets for PLATO/NovaNET: An Expository Catalog.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gilpin, John B.

The PLATO and NovaNET computer-based instructional systems use a fixed system character set ("normal font") and an author-definable character set ("alternate font"). The alternate font lets the author construct his own symbols and bitmapped pictures. This expository catalog allows users to determine quickly (1) whether there is…
Supporting Struggling Readers in Secondary School Science Classes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roberts, Kelly D.; Takahashi, Kiriko; Park, Hye-Jin; Stodden, Robert A.

2012-01-01

Many secondary school students struggle to read complex expository text such as science textbooks. This article provides step-by-step guidance on how to foster expository reading for struggling readers in secondary school science classes. Two strategies are introduced: Text-to-Speech (TTS) Software as a reading compensatory strategy and the…

The Effects of Metacognitive Strategy in Reading Expository Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Othman, Yahya; Mahamud, Zamri; Jaidi, Noradinah

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the performance of student achievement during comprehension lesson using metacognitive strategy and examine the effects of the strategy used in reading and understanding expository text lessons. Besides, this study also identified metacognitive strategy used by students in all three reading processes…
Transitioning from Expository Laboratory Experiments to Course-Based Undergraduate Research in General Chemistry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clark, Ted M.; Ricciardo, Rebecca; Weaver, Tyler

2016-01-01

General chemistry courses predominantly use expository experiments that shape student expectations of what a laboratory activity entails. Shifting within a semester to course-based undergraduate research activities that include greater decision-making, collaborative work, and "messy" real-world data necessitates a change in student…
Linguistic Pattern Analysis of Misspellings of Typically Developing Writers in Grades 1 to 9

PubMed Central

Bahr, Ruth Huntley; Silliman, Elaine R.; Berninger, Virginia W.; Dow, Michael

2012-01-01

Purpose A mixed methods approach, evaluating triple word form theory, was used to describe linguistic patterns of misspellings. Method Spelling errors were taken from narrative and expository writing samples provided by 888 typically developing students in grades 1–9. Errors were coded by category (phonological, orthographic, and morphological) and specific linguistic feature affected. Grade level effects were analyzed with trend analysis. Qualitative analyses determined frequent error types and how use of specific linguistic features varied across grades. Results Phonological, orthographic, and morphological errors were noted across all grades, but orthographic errors predominated. Linear trends revealed developmental shifts in error proportions for the orthographic and morphological categories between grades 4–5. Similar error types were noted across age groups but the nature of linguistic feature error changed with age. Conclusions Triple word-form theory was supported. By grade 1, orthographic errors predominated and phonological and morphological error patterns were evident. Morphological errors increased in relative frequency in older students, probably due to a combination of word-formation issues and vocabulary growth. These patterns suggest that normal spelling development reflects non-linear growth and that it takes a long time to develop a robust orthographic lexicon that coordinates phonology, orthography, and morphology and supports word-specific, conventional spelling. PMID:22473834
Effect of Inclusion versus Segregation on Reading Comprehension of EFL Learners with Dyslexia: Case of Lebanon

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Awada, Ghada M.; Gutiérrez-Colón, Mar

2017-01-01

This study reports the relative effectiveness of the inclusion theory when the combined strategy instruction on improving the reading comprehension of narrative and expository texts for students with dyslexia is implemented. A total sample of 298 students of English as a foreign language from both public and private schools participated in the…
Selective Benefits of Question Self-Generation and Answering for Remembering Expository Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bugg, Julie M.; McDaniel, Mark A.

2012-01-01

The present study examined possible memory and metacomprehension benefits of using a combined question self-generation and answering technique, relative to rereading, as a study strategy for expository passages. In the 2 question self-generation and answering conditions (detail or conceptual questions), participants were prompted on how to…
Vocabulary Self-Selection: A Study of Middle-School Students' Word Selections from Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harmon, Janis; Hedrick, Wanda; Wood, Karen; Gress, Michelle

2005-01-01

This study investigated students' decision-making as they self-selected important words from expository texts. Participants were 94 eighth graders and six adult readers. Data sources included students' written responses containing their word selections and reasons for selecting words from eight informational passages, student interviews, and word…
Processing and Memory of Information Presented in Narrative or Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wolfe, Michael B. W.; Woodwyk, Joshua M.

2010-01-01

Background: Previous research suggests that narrative and expository texts differ in the extent to which they prompt students to integrate to-be-learned content with relevant prior knowledge during comprehension. Aims: We expand on previous research by examining on-line processing and representation in memory of to-be-learned content that is…
The Evaluation of Effectiveness of Reciprocal Teaching Strategies on Comprehension of Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pilten, Gulhiz

2016-01-01

The purpose of the present research is investigating the effects of reciprocal teaching in comprehending expository texts. The research was designed with mixed method. The quantitative dimension of the present research was designed in accordance with pre-test-post-test control group experiment model. The quantitative dimension of the present…
Methodological Status and Trends in Expository Text Structure Instruction Efficacy Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bohaty, Janet J.; Hebert, Michael A.; Nelson, J. Ron; Brown, Jessica A.

2015-01-01

This systematic descriptive historical review was conducted to examine the status and trends in expository text structure instruction efficacy research for first through twelfth grade students. The analysis included sixty studies, which spanned the years 1978 to 2014. Descriptive dimensions of the research included study type, research design,…
Effects of a Tree Diagram on Students' Comprehension of Main Ideas in an Expository Text with Multiple Themes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guri-Rozenblit, Sarah

1989-01-01

Examines the effect of a tree diagram on college students' comprehension of main ideas in a social sciences expository text. Concludes that the tree diagram significantly improved comprehension of main ideas and relations between elements, irrespective of the students' initial verbal and visual aptitudes. (RS)
Discourse Formulation in Children with Closed Head Injury

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hay, Emma; Moran, Catherine

2005-01-01

In this study, narrative and expository discourse-retelling abilities were compared in 9 children with closed head injury (CHI) age 9;5-15;3 (years;months) and 9 typically developing age-matched peers. Narrative and expository retellings were analyzed according to language variables (i.e., number of words, number of T-units, and sentential…
Comprehending Expository Texts: The Role of Cognitive and Motivational Factors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tarchi, Christian

2017-01-01

This study explored the differential contribution of cognitive and motivational factors on the comprehension of an expository text in secondary school students. One hundred and fifty-five 7th and 8th grade students were assessed in prior knowledge, inferences, metacognition, reading motivation, topic interest, and reading comprehension of history…
Navigation and Comprehension of Digital Expository Texts: Hypertext Structure, Previous Domain Knowledge, and Working Memory Capacity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burin, Debora I.; Barreyro, Juan P.; Saux, Gastón; Irrazábal, Natalia C.

2015-01-01

Introduction: In contemporary information societies, reading digital text has become pervasive. One of the most distinctive features of digital texts is their internal connections via hyperlinks, resulting in non-linear hypertexts. Hypertext structure and previous knowledge affect navigation and comprehension of digital expository texts. From the…
Using Concept Mapping to Improve Poor Readers' Understanding of Expository Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morfidi, Eleni; Mikropoulos, Anastasios; Rogdaki, Aspasia

2018-01-01

The present study examined whether the use of concept mapping is more effective in teaching expository material in comparison to a traditional, lecture only, approach. Its objective was threefold. First, to determine if multimedia concept mapping produces differential learning outcomes compared to digital text-based concept mapping. Secondly, to…
The Relation of Moral Judgment Development and Educational Experience to Recall of Moral Narratives and Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Narvaez, Darcia; Gleason, Tracy

2007-01-01

Moral text processing was used as an ecologically valid method for assessing implicit and explicit moral understanding and development. The authors tested undergraduates, seminarians, and graduate students in political science and philosophy for recall of moral narratives and moral expository texts. Multivariate analyses of covariance using…
Integrating Concept Mapping and the Learning Cycle To Teach Diffusion and Osmosis Concepts to High School Biology Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Odom, Arthur L.; Kelly, Paul V.

2001-01-01

Explores the effectiveness of concept mapping, the learning cycle, expository instruction, and a combination of concept mapping/learning cycle in promoting conceptual understanding of diffusion and osmosis. Concludes that the concept mapping/learning cycle and concept mapping treatment groups significantly outperformed the expository treatment…
Effects of the TWA Strategy on Expository Reading Comprehension of Students with Autism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howorth, Sarah; Lopata, Christopher; Thomeer, Marcus; Rodgers, Jonathan

2016-01-01

High-functioning students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been shown to have significant reading comprehension difficulty. This multiple baseline study examined the effect of the think before reading, think while reading, and think after reading (TWA) strategy on expository text comprehension of four boys with ASD. Following baseline,…
Intervention to Improve Expository Reading Comprehension Skills in Older Children and Adolescents with Language Disorders

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward-Lonergan, Jeannene M.; Duthie, Jill K.

2016-01-01

With the recent renewed emphasis on the importance of providing instruction to improve expository discourse comprehension and production skills, speech-language pathologists need to be prepared to implement effective intervention to meet this critical need in older children and adolescents with language disorders. The purpose of this review…
Supporting Children's Reading of Expository Text in the Geography Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gregg, Madeleine; Sekeres, Diane Carver

2006-01-01

If children are to read to learn, they must acquire skill in processing and comprehending expository texts. However, teaching children to read and comprehend informational texts takes time, because there are so many complex skills associated with this reading. Building children's knowledge of the content to be studied and introducing new…
Effects of Expository Text Structure Interventions on Comprehension: A Meta-Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pyle, Nicole; Vasquez, Ariana C.; Lignugaris/Kraft, Benjamin; Gillam, Sandra L.; Reutzel, D. Ray; Olszewski, Abbie; Segura, Hugo; Hartzheim, Daphne; Laing, Woodrow; Pyle, Daniel

2017-01-01

This meta-analysis synthesizes results from expository text structure interventions designed to increase comprehension for students in kindergarten to grade 12 published between 1970 and 2013. Twenty-one studies were identified, 19 of which met criteria for a meta-analysis, including 48 studywise effect sizes that were meta-analyzed to determine…

The Azimuth Project: an Open-Access Educational Resource

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baez, J. C.

2012-12-01

The Azimuth Project is an online collaboration of scientists, engineers and programmers who are volunteering their time to do something about a wide range of environmental problems. The project has several aspects: 1) a wiki designed to make reliable, sourced information easy to find and accessible to a technically literate nonexperts, 2) a blog featuring expository articles and news items, 3) a project to write programs that explain basic concepts of climate physics and illustrate principles of good open-source software design, and 4) a project to develop mathematical tools for studying complex networked systems. We discuss the progress so far and some preliminary lessons. For example, enlisting the help of experts outside academia highlights the problems with pay-walled journals and the benefits of open access, as well as differences between how software development is done commercially, in the free software community, and in academe.
Fifty psychological and psychiatric terms to avoid: a list of inaccurate, misleading, misused, ambiguous, and logically confused words and phrases.

PubMed

Lilienfeld, Scott O; Sauvigné, Katheryn C; Lynn, Steven Jay; Cautin, Robin L; Latzman, Robert D; Waldman, Irwin D

2015-01-01

The goal of this article is to promote clear thinking and clear writing among students and teachers of psychological science by curbing terminological misinformation and confusion. To this end, we present a provisional list of 50 commonly used terms in psychology, psychiatry, and allied fields that should be avoided, or at most used sparingly and with explicit caveats. We provide corrective information for students, instructors, and researchers regarding these terms, which we organize for expository purposes into five categories: inaccurate or misleading terms, frequently misused terms, ambiguous terms, oxymorons, and pleonasms. For each term, we (a) explain why it is problematic, (b) delineate one or more examples of its misuse, and (c) when pertinent, offer recommendations for preferable terms. By being more judicious in their use of terminology, psychologists and psychiatrists can foster clearer thinking in their students and the field at large regarding mental phenomena.
Comparative Effects of Computer-Based Concept Maps, Refutational Texts, and Expository Texts on Science Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adesope, Olusola O.; Cavagnetto, Andy; Hunsu, Nathaniel J.; Anguiano, Carlos; Lloyd, Joshua

2017-01-01

This study used a between-subjects experimental design to examine the effects of three different computer-based instructional strategies (concept map, refutation text, and expository scientific text) on science learning. Concept maps are node-link diagrams that show concepts as nodes and relationships among the concepts as labeled links.…
The Effectiveness of Modified Multi-Component Cognitive Strategy Instruction in Expository Text Comprehension of Students with Mild Intellectual Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bilgi, Arzu Doganay; Özmen, E. Rüya

2018-01-01

This study investigates the effectiveness of Modified Multi-Component Cognitive Strategy Instruction (MMCSI) on expository text comprehension skills of students with mild intellectual disability (ID). Three students participated from inclusion classes of three different secondary schools in Turkey. The study was conducted using a multiple probe…
Peer Conflict Explanations in Children, Adolescents, and Adults: Examining the Development of Complex Syntax

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nippold, Marilyn A.; Mansfield, Tracy C.; Billow, Jesse L.

2007-01-01

Purpose: Expository discourse, the use of language to convey information, requires facility with complex syntax. Although expository discourse is often employed in school and work settings, little is known about its development in children, adolescents, and adults. Hence, it is difficult to evaluate this genre in students who have language…
Do Films Make You Learn? Inference Processes in Expository Film Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tibus, Maike; Heier, Anke; Schwan, Stephan

2013-01-01

The present article examines how suitable expository films are for learning. This question was motivated by the assumption that films are processed in a superficial manner. However, previous research has been dominated by the analyses of outcome measures and has never taken a look at online measures so that no clear conclusions have been drawn.…
Going beyond the Author: What Retellings Tell Us about Comprehending Narrative and Expository Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kucer, Stephen B.

2011-01-01

This research examines the nature of comprehended meanings that do not match those of the author. These meanings were generated by two groups of fourth graders after reading a narrative or expository text. Readers read their respective texts aloud, followed by a recall and probes. Reading behaviours were examined to establish that processing…
Effects of the Paraphrasing Strategy on Expository Reading Comprehension of Young Adults with Intellectual Disability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hua, Youjia; Woods-Groves, Suzanne; Ford, Jeremy W.; Nobles, Kelly A.

2014-01-01

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of teaching a three-step paraphrasing strategy on expository reading comprehension of young adults with intellectual disability. Ten learners from a postsecondary education program for individuals with disability participated in the study. They were randomly assigned to the control and…
Guiding Students through Expository Text with Text Feature Walks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelley, Michelle J.; Clausen-Grace, Nicki

2010-01-01

The Text Feature Walk is a structure created and employed by the authors that guides students in the reading of text features in order to access prior knowledge, make connections, and set a purpose for reading expository text. Results from a pilot study are described in order to illustrate the benefits of using the Text Feature Walk over…
Do You Want to Know What I Learned? Using Informational Trade Books as Models to Teach Text Structure

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Read, Sylvia; Reutzel, D. Ray; Fawson, Parker C.

2008-01-01

Informational text is an important resource for classroom teachers that places unique comprehension demands on young students. Research on teaching expository text structure to young children shows that explicit instruction improves student comprehension. This practical article addresses how to use "well-structured" expository trade book titles to…
Feedback That Corrects and Contrasts Students' Erroneous Solutions with Expert Ones Improves Expository Instruction for Conceptual Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Asterhan, Christa S. C.; Dotan, Aviv

2018-01-01

In the present study, we examined the effects of feedback that corrects and contrasts a student's own erroneous solutions with the canonical, correct one (CEC&C feedback) on learning in a conceptual change task. Sixty undergraduate students received expository instruction about natural selection, which presented the canonical, scientifically…
Effects of Vocabulary Instruction Using Constant Time Delay on Expository Reading of Young Adults with Intellectual Disability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hua, Youjia; Woods-Groves, Suzanne; Kaldenberg, Erica R.; Scheidecker, Bethany J.

2013-01-01

We investigated the effectiveness of using constant time delay (CTD) with young adults with intellectual disability on their vocabulary acquisition and retention, as well as expository reading comprehension. Four learners, ages 19 to 21 years, from a postsecondary education program for individuals with disabilities participated in the study.…
Overcoming the Inert Knowledge Problem in Learning from Expository Text.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cote, Nathalie

Students often fail to store new information in memory in a way that is accessible or useful. The information they have acquired is inert. This paper examines the inert knowledge problem in the context of learning from informational expository text. Kintsch and van Dijk (1978) have suggested a framework for understanding learning from expository…
Implementing an Evidence-Based Instructional Routine to Enhance Comprehension of Expository Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wexler, Jade; Reed, Deborah K.; Mitchell, Marisa; Doyle, Brie; Clancy, Erin

2015-01-01

To graduate from high school and become competitive in the workplace and other postsecondary endeavors, adolescents are required to meet rigorous standards, such as the Common Core State Standards. To meet such standards, teachers must teach students to read and make sense of increasingly complex content-area expository text. Secondary teachers,…
Mathematics Literacy on Problem Based Learning with Indonesian Realistic Mathematics Education Approach Assisted E-Learning Edmodo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wardono; Waluya, S. B.; Mariani, Scolastika; Candra D, S.

2016-02-01

This study aims to find out that there are differences in mathematical literacy ability in content Change and Relationship class VII Junior High School 19, Semarang by Problem Based Learning (PBL) model with an Indonesian Realistic Mathematics Education (called Pendidikan Matematika Realistik Indonesia or PMRI in Indonesia) approach assisted Elearning Edmodo, PBL with a PMRI approach, and expository; to know whether the group of students with learning PBL models with PMRI approach and assisted E-learning Edmodo can improve mathematics literacy; to know that the quality of learning PBL models with a PMRI approach assisted E-learning Edmodo has a good category; to describe the difficulties of students in working the problems of mathematical literacy ability oriented PISA. This research is a mixed methods study. The population was seventh grade students of Junior High School 19, Semarang Indonesia. Sample selection is done by random sampling so that the selected experimental class 1, class 2 and the control experiment. Data collected by the methods of documentation, tests and interviews. From the results of this study showed average mathematics literacy ability of students in the group PBL models with a PMRI approach assisted E-learning Edmodo better than average mathematics literacy ability of students in the group PBL models with a PMRI approach and better than average mathematics literacy ability of students in the expository models; Mathematics literacy ability in the class using the PBL model with a PMRI approach assisted E-learning Edmodo have increased and the improvement of mathematics literacy ability is higher than the improvement of mathematics literacy ability of class that uses the model of PBL learning with PMRI approach and is higher than the improvement of mathematics literacy ability of class that uses the expository models; The quality of learning using PBL models with a PMRI approach assisted E-learning Edmodo have very good category.
Exploring elementary school teachers' perception of their role in teaching content literacy in the elementary science and social studies classrooms: A mixed methods study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones-Moore, Lisa Michelle

2011-12-01

This mixed-methods study explored third, fourth, and fifth grade teachers' perceptions of their role in teaching content literacy in the elementary science and social studies classroom. The rationale for this study was the growing number of studies questioning the reliance on the inoculation theory for content area literacy comprehension. The study was a mixed methods study so as to provide insight into the participants' thought processes in decision making and instructional planning. Data sources included timed instructional observations, tiered checklist to identify strategy instruction, and prompted critical reflections. The three-tiered observation instrument categorized strategies used by teachers in tiers according to the focus of the strategy. Tier I strategies were those identified as strategies good readers use, typically taught with narrative text. The inoculation theory posits these skills transfer to reading informational and expository text. Tier II strategies were those identified as strategies appropriate for informational or expository text. Use of these strategies acknowledged that narrative and informational/expository text require different strategies, but does not differentiate between expository text drawn from particular content area. Tier III strategies were those identified as strategies particularly suited to informational or expository text drawn from specific content areas. These strategies embody cognitive processes used to comprehend text drawn from specific content areas. The findings showed the participating teachers used a preferential Tier of strategy instruction. Some participants felt that reading comprehension was more important than content. They viewed reading as a subject instead of an integral part of science and social studies instruction.
The Effects of Listening to Expository Text on First Graders' Listening Comprehension and Book Choice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kraemer, Linda A.

2009-01-01

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the effects of listening to expository text on first graders' listening comprehension and book choice. The participants for this study included 77 first grade students from four heterogeneous classes at a suburban elementary school in the New York City metropolitan area. During the pretest and…
Improving Mathematical Problem-Solving Ability and Self-Confidence of High School Students through Contextual Learning Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Surya, Edy; Putri, Feria Andriana; Mukhtar

2017-01-01

The purposes of this study are: (1) to know if students' mathematical problem-solving ability taught by contextual learning model is higher than students taught by expository learning, (2) to know if students' self-confidence taught by contextual learning model is higher than students taught by expository learning, (3) to know if there is…
Expository Discourse in Children, Adolescents, and Adults: Development and Disorders. New Directions in Communication Disorders Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nippold, Marilyn A., Ed.; Scott, Cheryl M., Ed.

2009-01-01

School success in the 21st century requires proficiency with expository discourse--the use and understanding of informative language in spoken and written modalities. This occurs, for example, when high school students read their textbooks and listen to their teachers' lectures, and later are asked to demonstrate their knowledge of this complex…
Impact of a Teacher-Led Intervention on Preference for Self-Regulated Learning, Finding Main Ideas in Expository Texts, and Reading Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stoeger, Heidrun; Sontag, Christine; Ziegler, Albert

2014-01-01

We examined the impact of a teacher-led intervention, implemented during regular classroom instruction and homework, on fourth-grade students' preference for self-regulated learning, finding main ideas in expository texts, and reading comprehension. In our quasi-experimental study with intact classrooms, (a) students (n = 266, 12 classrooms) who…

Investigation of a Study Technique To Increase Learning Disabled Students' Reading Comprehension of Expository Text. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCormick, Sandra; Cooper, John O.

The study reported in this paper investigated the effects of a frequently recommended study technique on the comprehension of expository text by high-school students having learning disabilities. The instructional procedure studied was "Survey, Question, Read, Recite, Review" (SQ3R). Six experiments were conducted over a 3-year period,…
Comparison of Two Different Presentations of Graphic Organizers in Recalling Information in Expository Texts with Intellectually Disabled Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ozmen, Ruya Guzel

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of two different presentations of graphic organizers on recalling information from compare/contrast text which is a kind of expository text in intellectually disabled students. The first presentation included graphic organizers which were presented before reading whereas in the second…
The Effects of Text Structure Instruction on Expository Reading Comprehension: A Meta-Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hebert, Michael; Bohaty, Janet J.; Nelson, J. Ron; Brown, Jessica

2016-01-01

In this meta-analysis of 45 studies involving students in Grades 2-12, the authors present evidence on the effects of text structure instruction on the expository reading comprehension of students. The meta-analysis was deigned to answer 2 sets of questions. The first set of questions examined the effectiveness of text structure instruction on…
The Effects of a Story-Mapping Procedure to Improve the Comprehension Skills of Expository Text Passages for Elementary Students with Learning Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stagliano, Christina; Boon, Richard T.

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of using a story-mapping procedure to improve and enhance the reading comprehension skills using expository text passages for 3 fourth-grade students with learning disabilities (LD). The study was conducted in the resource classroom in which the participants regularly received reading…
Sequence Text Structure Intervention during Interactive Book Reading of Expository Picture Books with Preschool Children with Language Impairment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Breit-Smith, Allison; Olszewski, Arnold; Swoboda, Christopher; Guo, Ying; Prendeville, Jo-Anne

2017-01-01

This study explores the outcomes of an interactive book reading intervention featuring expository picture books. This small-group intervention was delivered by four practitioners (two early childhood special education teachers and two speech-language pathologists) three times per week for 8 weeks to 6 preschool-age children (3 years 1 month to 4…
Effects of Training in Constructing Graphic Organizers on Disabled Readers' Summarization and Recognition of Expository Text Structure.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weisberg, Renee; Balajthy, Ernest

A study investigated the effects of training in the use of graphic organizers on the summarization strategies of disabled readers. Subjects, 21 disabled readers (with a mean age of 13 years, 7 months) from a reading clinic, received 5 hours of training in the use of graphic organizers to map expository passages. Instruction included training in…
Assessing the Reliability and Use of the Expository Scoring Scheme as a Measure of Developmental Change in Monolingual English and Bilingual French/English Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bird, Elizabeth Kay-Raining; Joshi, Nila; Cleave, Patricia L.

2016-01-01

Purpose: The Expository Scoring Scheme (ESS) is designed to analyze the macrostructure of descriptions of a favorite game or sport. This pilot study examined inter- and intrarater reliability of the ESS and use of the scale to capture developmental change in elementary school children. Method: Twenty-four children in 2 language groups (monolingual…
Assessing reading comprehension with narrative and expository texts: Dimensionality and relationship with fluency, vocabulary and memory.

PubMed

Santos, Sandra; Cadime, Irene; Viana, Fernanda L; Chaves-Sousa, Séli; Gayo, Elena; Maia, José; Ribeiro, Iolanda

2017-02-01

Reading comprehension assessment should rely on valid instruments that enable adequate conclusions to be taken regarding students' reading comprehension performance. In this article, two studies were conducted to collect validity evidence for the vertically scaled forms of two Tests of Reading Comprehension for Portuguese elementary school students in the second to fourth grades, one with narrative texts (TRC-n) and another with expository ones (TRC-e). Two samples of 950 and 990 students participated in Study 1, the study of the dimensionality of the TRC-n and TRC-e forms, respectively. Confirmatory factor analyses provided evidence of an acceptable fit for the one-factor solution for all test forms. Study 2 included 218 students to collect criterion-related validity. The scores obtained in each of the test forms were significantly correlated with the ones obtained in other reading comprehension measures and with the results obtained in oral reading fluency, vocabulary and working memory tests. Evidence suggests that the test forms are valid measures of reading comprehension. © 2016 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
EFL Learners' Levels of Comprehension Across Text Structures: A Comparison of Literal and Inferential Comprehension of Descriptive and Enumerative Expository Texts.

PubMed

Saadatnia, Mahmood; Ketabi, Saeed; Tavakoli, Mansoor

2016-12-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between text structure and two levels of reading comprehension, namely literal and inferential, in Iranian EFL learners. Studies have generally found that learners perform differently after they have read different text structures (Amiri et al. in Proc Soc Behav Sci 66:402-409, 2012). The text structures in focus were descriptive and enumerative expository texts. One hundred eighty upper-intermediate EFL learners were assigned four reading passages, two including descriptive and the other two enumerative text structure, followed by both literal and inferential multiple-choice items. A number of paired-samples t tests were run to provide answers to the research questions of this study. The results indicated that the participants meaningfully outperformed on the descriptive texts at both levels of literal and inferential comprehension. The findings also revealed that in both text structures of description and enumeration, literal comprehension significantly outweighed inferential comprehension. Implications were made for L2 materials developers, language teachers, and language testers regarding the consideration of text typical features in their practice.
Effects of Experiment Learning Strategy versus Expository and Cognitive Style for Physical Learning Result for Senior High School Student at Class XI of Senior High School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Prayekti

2016-01-01

The research was aimed to know Effects of Experiment Learning Strategy versus Expository and Cognitive Style for Physical Learning Result of Senior High School Student at Class XI of Senior High School. Data was collected by test and observation. It is processed by ANCOVA and different test (t-test). (1) The result showed that all learning system…
Fifty psychological and psychiatric terms to avoid: a list of inaccurate, misleading, misused, ambiguous, and logically confused words and phrases

PubMed Central

Lilienfeld, Scott O.; Sauvigné, Katheryn C.; Lynn, Steven Jay; Cautin, Robin L.; Latzman, Robert D.; Waldman, Irwin D.

2015-01-01

The goal of this article is to promote clear thinking and clear writing among students and teachers of psychological science by curbing terminological misinformation and confusion. To this end, we present a provisional list of 50 commonly used terms in psychology, psychiatry, and allied fields that should be avoided, or at most used sparingly and with explicit caveats. We provide corrective information for students, instructors, and researchers regarding these terms, which we organize for expository purposes into five categories: inaccurate or misleading terms, frequently misused terms, ambiguous terms, oxymorons, and pleonasms. For each term, we (a) explain why it is problematic, (b) delineate one or more examples of its misuse, and (c) when pertinent, offer recommendations for preferable terms. By being more judicious in their use of terminology, psychologists and psychiatrists can foster clearer thinking in their students and the field at large regarding mental phenomena. PMID:26284019
Comprehending expository texts: the dynamic neurobiological correlates of building a coherent text representation

PubMed Central

Swett, Katherine; Miller, Amanda C.; Burns, Scott; Hoeft, Fumiko; Davis, Nicole; Petrill, Stephen A.; Cutting, Laurie E.

2013-01-01

Little is known about the neural correlates of expository text comprehension. In this study, we sought to identify neural networks underlying expository text comprehension, how those networks change over the course of comprehension, and whether information central to the overall meaning of the text is functionally distinct from peripheral information. Seventeen adult subjects read expository passages while being scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). By convolving phrase onsets with the hemodynamic response function (HRF), we were able to identify regions that increase and decrease in activation over the course of passage comprehension. We found that expository text comprehension relies on the co-activation of the semantic control network and regions in the posterior midline previously associated with mental model updating and integration [posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and precuneus (PCU)]. When compared to single word comprehension, left PCC and left Angular Gyrus (AG) were activated only for discourse-level comprehension. Over the course of comprehension, reliance on the same regions in the semantic control network increased, while a parietal region associated with attention [intraparietal sulcus (IPS)] decreased. These results parallel previous findings in narrative comprehension that the initial stages of mental model building require greater visuospatial attention processes, while maintenance of the model increasingly relies on semantic integration regions. Additionally, we used an event-related analysis to examine phrases central to the text's overall meaning vs. peripheral phrases. It was found that central ideas are functionally distinct from peripheral ideas, showing greater activation in the PCC and PCU, while over the course of passage comprehension, central and peripheral ideas increasingly recruit different parts of the semantic control network. The finding that central information elicits greater response in mental model updating regions than peripheral ideas supports previous behavioral models on the cognitive importance of distinguishing textual centrality. PMID:24376411
Transformational Play as a Curricular Scaffold: Using Videogames to Support Science Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barab, Sasha A.; Scott, Brianna; Siyahhan, Sinem; Goldstone, Robert; Ingram-Goble, Adam; Zuiker, Steven J.; Warren, Scott

2009-08-01

Drawing on game-design principles and an underlying situated theoretical perspective, we developed and researched a 3D game-based curriculum designed to teach water quality concepts. We compared undergraduate student dyads assigned randomly to four different instructional design conditions where the content had increasingly level of contextualization: (a) expository textbook condition, (b) simplistic framing condition, (c) immersive world condition, and (d) a single-user immersive world condition. Results indicated that the immersive-world dyad and immersive-world single user conditions performed significantly better than the electronic textbook group on standardized items. The immersive-world dyad condition also performed significantly better than either the expository textbook or the descriptive framing condition on a performance-based transfer task, and performed significantly better than the expository textbook condition on standardized test items. Implications for science education, and consistent with the goals of this special issue, are that immersive game-based learning environments provide a powerful new form of curriculum for teaching and learning science.
The everyday meets the academic: How bilingual Latino/a third graders use sociocultural resources to learn in science and social studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McIntosh Ciechanowski, Kathryn E.

Driven by questions surrounding the documented "fourth-grade slump" in student test scores and about the content learning of English language learners, this dissertation examines the science and social studies literacy practices of third grade bilingual Latino/as in an urban school. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, I examined three questions: (a) What content area demands are evident in instruction and in the assigned texts that children read? (b) What sociocultural knowledge do students draw on in the reading and writing of content area texts? How does it shape their reading and writing? and (c) What linguistic knowledge do students draw on in the reading and writing of content area texts? How does it shape their reading and writing? These questions are premised on three key tenets from the extant research literature. First, research has documented that middle grade students struggle to make sense of content texts, which could be caused by not only a scarcity of expository texts in early grades but also by discipline-specific demands in the content texts. Second, although all students may struggle to read specialized texts, students from non-mainstream backgrounds may struggle more because they do not possess the social and linguistic capital valued in mainstream schools. Third, sociocultural research has documented the importance of social and cultural funds of knowledge in classroom learning and knowledge construction. Guided by these tenets, I observed for six months in 2 classes and recorded field notes, interviewed participants, collected artifacts, and conducted pre- and post-unit assessments. Analytic methods included quantitative evaluation of assessments and constant comparative and discourse analyses. Findings indicate that the textbooks posed linguistic and conceptual demands and represented multiple discourses including the discourses of the natural and social sciences. To make sense of texts, students drew from various sociocultural resources such as popular culture, family, and children's literature. The teacher was more likely to take up these resources (although briefly) when they tightly aligned with instructional goals. Bilingual students faced great complexity as they drew upon linguistic resources to learn technical language and content in two languages and within multiple academic and everyday discourses.
Analysis of critical thinking ability of VII grade students based on the mathematical anxiety level through learning cycle 7E model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Widyaningsih, E.; Waluya, S. B.; Kurniasih, A. W.

2018-03-01

This study aims to know mastery learning of students’ critical thinking ability with learning cycle 7E, determine whether the critical thinking ability of the students with learning cycle 7E is better than students’ critical thinking ability with expository model, and describe the students’ critical thinking phases based on the mathematical anxiety level. The method is mixed method with concurrent embedded. The population is VII grade students of SMP Negeri 3 Kebumen academic year 2016/2017. Subjects are determined by purposive sampling, selected two students from each level of mathematical anxiety. Data collection techniques include test, questionnaire, interview, and documentation. Quantitative data analysis techniques include mean test, proportion test, difference test of two means, difference test of two proportions and for qualitative data used Miles and Huberman model. The results show that: (1) students’ critical thinking ability with learning cycle 7E achieve mastery learning; (2) students’ critical thinking ability with learning cycle 7E is better than students’ critical thinking ability with expository model; (3) description of students’ critical thinking phases based on the mathematical anxiety level that is the lower the mathematical anxiety level, the subjects have been able to fulfil all of the indicators of clarification, assessment, inference, and strategies phases.
Considerations in the use of reflective writing for student assessment: issues of reliability and validity.

PubMed

Moniz, Tracy; Arntfield, Shannon; Miller, Kristina; Lingard, Lorelei; Watling, Chris; Regehr, Glenn

2015-09-01

Reflective writing is a popular tool to support the growth of reflective capacity in undergraduate medical learners. Its popularity stems from research suggesting that reflective capacity may lead to improvements in skills such as empathy, communication, collaboration and professionalism. This has led to assumptions that reflective writing can also serve as a tool for student assessment. However, evidence to support the reliability and validity of reflective writing as a meaningful assessment strategy is lacking. Using a published instrument for measuring 'reflective capacity' (the Reflection Evaluation for Learners' Enhanced Competencies Tool [REFLECT]), four trained raters independently scored four samples of writing from each of 107 undergraduate medical students to determine the reliability of reflective writing scores. REFLECT scores were then correlated with scores on a Year 4 objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) and Year 2 multiple-choice question (MCQ) examinations to examine, respectively, convergent and divergent validity. Across four writing samples, four-rater Cronbach's α-values ranged from 0.72 to 0.82, demonstrating reasonable inter-rater reliability with four raters using the REFLECT rubric. However, inter-sample reliability was fairly low (four-sample Cronbach's α = 0.54, single-sample intraclass correlation coefficient: 0.23), which suggests that performance on one reflective writing sample was not strongly indicative of performance on the next. Approximately 14 writing samples are required to achieve reasonable inter-sample reliability. The study found weak, non-significant correlations between reflective writing scores and both OSCE global scores (r = 0.13) and MCQ examination scores (r = 0.10), demonstrating a lack of relationship between reflective writing and these measures of performance. Our findings suggest that to draw meaningful conclusions about reflective capacity as a stable construct in individuals requires 14 writing samples per student, each assessed by four or five raters. This calls into question the feasibility and utility of using reflective writing rigorously as an assessment tool in undergraduate medical education. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Developmental and Individual Differences in Chinese Writing

PubMed Central

Guan, Connie Qun; Ye, Feifei; Wagner, Richard K.; Meng, Wanjin

2015-01-01

The goal of the present study was to examine the generalizability of a model of the underlying dimensions of written composition across writing systems (Chinese Mandarin vs. English) and level of writing skill. A five-factor model of writing originally developed from analyses of 1st and 4th grade English writing samples was applied to Chinese writing samples obtained from 4th and 7th grade students. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to compare the fits of alternative models of written composition. The results suggest that the five-factor model of written composition generalizes to Chinese writing samples and applies to both less skilled (Grade 4) and more skilled (Grade 7) writing, with differences in factor means between grades that vary in magnitude across factors. PMID:26038631
Multidimensional Motivation and Engagement for Writing: Construct Validation with a Sample of Boys

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Collie, Rebecca J.; Martin, Andrew J.; Curwood, Jen Scott

2016-01-01

Given recent concerns around boys' literacy, this study examined multidimensional writing motivation and engagement among boys. We explored internal and external validity of 11 adaptive (e.g. self-efficacy for writing) and maladaptive (e.g. disengagement from writing) factors of writing motivation and engagement. The sample comprised 781 male…
Genetic Counseling, Professional Values, and Habitus: An Analysis of Disability Narratives in Textbooks.

PubMed

Reed, Amy R

2016-10-19

This article analyzes narrative illustrations in genetic counseling textbooks as a way of understanding professional habitus--the dispositions that motivate professional behavior. In particular, this analysis shows that there are significant differences in how the textbooks' expository and narrative portions represent Down syndrome, genetic counseling practice, and patient behaviors. While the narrative portions of the text position the genetic counseling profession as working in service to the values of genetic medicine, the expository portions represent genetic counselors as neutral parties. Ultimately, this article argues that this ambiguity is harmful to the production of a professional habitus that is consistent with espoused professional values concerning respect for persons with disabilities and the promotion of psychosocial counseling.
Genetic and Environmental Influences on Writing and their Relations to Language and Reading

PubMed Central

Olson, Richard K.; Hulslander, Jacqueline; Christopher, Micaela; Keenan, Janice M.; Wadsworth, Sally J.; Willcutt, Erik G.; Pennington, Bruce F.; DeFries, John C.

2011-01-01

Identical and fraternal twins (N = 540, age 8 to 18 years) were tested on three different measures of writing (Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement-Writing Samples and Writing Fluency; Handwriting Copy from the Group Diagnostic Reading and Aptitude Achievement Tests), three different language skills (Phonological Awareness, Rapid Naming, and Vocabulary), and three different reading skills (Word Recognition, Spelling, and Reading Comprehension). Substantial genetic influence was found on two of the writing measures, Writing Samples and Handwriting Copy, and all of the language and reading measures. Shared environment influences were generally not significant, except for vocabulary. Non-shared environment estimates, including measurement error, were significant for all variables. Genetic influences among the writing measures were significantly correlated (highest between the speeded measures Writing Fluency and Handwriting Copy), but there were also significant independent genetic influences between Copy and Samples and between Fluency and Samples. Genetic influences on writing were significantly correlated with genetic influences on all of the language and reading skills, but significant independent genetic influences were also found for Copy and Samples, whose genetic correlations were significantly less than 1.0 with the reading and language skills. The genetic correlations varied significantly in strength depending on the overlap between the writing, language, and reading task demands. We discuss implications of our results for education, limitations of the study, and new directions for research on writing and its relations to language and reading. PMID:21842316

Effects of the Integrated Online Advance Organizer Teaching Materials on Students' Science Achievement and Attitude

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Korur, Fikret; Toker, Sacip; Eryılmaz, Ali

2016-08-01

This two-group quasi-experimental study investigated the effects of the Online Advance Organizer Concept Teaching Material (ONACOM) integrated with inquiry teaching and expository teaching methods. Grade 7 students' posttest performances on the light unit achievement and light unit attitude tests controlled for gender, previous semester science grade, and pretest scores were analyzed. No significant treatment effects were found between the inquiry and expository approaches. However, both groups demonstrated significant pretest-posttest gains in achievement and attitude. Independent from the method used, ONACOM was judged effective in both groups as students demonstrated increased achievement and attitude scores. ONACOM has a social and semantic network-aided infrastructure that can be adapted to both methods to increase students' achievement and improve their attitude.
Comparison of L1 and L2 Pre and Post Writing Samples of Bilingual Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reyes, Maria de la Luz

A sample of 15 eighth-grade Hispanic students in a bilingual classroom were used for a descriptive analysis of students' writing samples to compare their growth between pre- and post- writing samples in Spanish and English. This was accomplished by juxtaposing English and Spanish pre- and post-tests using the same holistic rubric developed by the…
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…
Learning to Write in Braille: An Analysis of Writing Samples from Participants in the Alphabetic Braille and Contracted (ABC) Braille Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erin, Jane N.; Wright, Tessa S.

2011-01-01

This article reports the results of data from 114 writing samples of 39 children who read braille and who were included in the Alphabetic Braille and Contracted Braille (ABC) Study between 2002 and 2005. Writing characteristics, miscues, and composition characteristics are analyzed, and two case studies are included. (Contains 1 box and 2 tables.)
The Common Core Writing Standards: A Descriptive Study of Content and Alignment with a Sample of Former State Standards

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Troia, Gary A.; Olinghouse, Natalie G.; Wilson, Joshua; Stewart, Kelly A.; Mo, Ya; Hawkins, Lisa; Kopke, Rachel A.

2016-01-01

Many students do not meet expected standards of writing performance, despite the need for writing competence in and out of school. As policy instruments, writing content standards have an impact on what is taught and how students perform. This study reports findings from an evaluation of the content of a sample of seven diverse states' current…
Social Impact Studies: An Expository Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shields, Mark A.

1975-01-01

Analyzed are some selected studies on the social impact of resources development and construction projects including dams, highways, nuclear power plants and strip mines. The analytical and methodological problem of assessing differential impacts is stressed. (BT)
The Words in My Pencil: Considering Children's Writing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Anne

Methods of eliciting writing from children are explored in this monograph, which includes samples of nine- and ten-year-old students' writing. The monograph offers four recommendations for improving writing skills: make writing a daily activity; take children's writing seriously; maintain flexible standards of form and language; and identify group…
Third and Fourth Grade Teacher's Classroom Practices in Writing: A National Survey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brindle, Mary; Graham, Steve; Harris, Karen R.; Hebert, Michael

2016-01-01

A random sample of teachers in grades 3 and 4 (N = 157) from across the United States were surveyed about their use of evidence-based writing practices, preparation to teach writing, and beliefs about writing. Teachers' beliefs included their efficacy to teach writing, their orientations to teach writing, their attitude about teaching writing, and…
Learning from an Owl.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Greeves, Adrian

1988-01-01

Describes one creative writing teacher's use of an owl as a focal point for writing activities and how the writing activities aided the students' personal and creative development. Provides samples of student writing. (ARH)
The Relative Effectiveness of Expository Methods of Teaching Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Babikian, Elijah

1973-01-01

Two methods of instruction (question-answer and question-incomplete-answer) are utilized in teaching a unit on thermal energy. Effectiveness, as measured by a posttest, confirmed significant differences in the two modes of instruction. (DF)
Structure and strategies in children's educational television: the roles of program type and learning strategies in children's learning.

PubMed

Linebarger, Deborah L; Piotrowski, Jessica Taylor

2010-01-01

Educational TV has been consistently linked to children's learning. In this research, educational TV characteristics were identified, coded, and tested for their influence on children's program-specific comprehension and vocabulary outcomes. Study 1 details a content analysis of TV features including a program's macrostructure (i.e., narrative or expository) and learning strategies embedded in the macrostructure that support learning in print-based contexts. In Study 2, regression analyses were used to predict outcomes involving 71 second and third graders (average age=7.63 years). Strategies were categorized as organizing, rehearsing, elaborating, or affective in function. Outcomes were uniformly higher for narrative macrostructures. Strategies used in narratives predicted relatively homogenous relations across outcomes, whereas strategies in expositories predicted quite heterogeneous relations across outcomes. © 2010 The Authors. Child Development © 2010 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.
More than a "Basic Skill": Breaking down the Complexities of Summarizing for ABE/ESL Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ouellette-Schramm, Jennifer

2015-01-01

This article describes the complex cognitive and linguistic challenges of summarizing expository text at vocabulary, syntactic, and rhetorical levels. It then outlines activities to help ABE/ESL learners develop corresponding skills.
Students' Responses to Teacher Comments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gee, Thomas C.

1972-01-01

In an investigation of the effects of praise, negative comment and no comment on expository compositions of eleventh grade students, author hypothesized that praise might increase motivation more than criticism or no comment. He suggests an experiment to test this phypothesis. (NL)
Reliability and Validity of Rubrics for Assessment through Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rezaei, Ali Reza; Lovorn, Michael

2010-01-01

This experimental project investigated the reliability and validity of rubrics in assessment of students' written responses to a social science "writing prompt". The participants were asked to grade one of the two samples of writing assuming it was written by a graduate student. In fact both samples were prepared by the authors. The…
The Write Stuff: Teaching the Introductory Public Relations Writing Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Cynthia M.

2001-01-01

Outlines an introductory public relations writing course. Presents course topics and objectives, and assignments designed to meet them. Provides a sample grading rubric and evaluates major public relations writing textbooks. Discusses learning and assessment strategies. (SR)
Impact of Diagrams on Recalling Sequential Elements in Expository Texts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guri-Rozenblit, Sarah

1988-01-01

Examines the instructional effectiveness of abstract diagrams on recall of sequential relations in social science textbooks. Concludes that diagrams assist significantly the recall of sequential relations in a text and decrease significantly the rate of order mistakes. (RS)
On Some Conjuncts Signalling Dissonance in Written Expository English.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Autonomous Metropolitan Univ., Mexico City (Mexico).

Traditional studies of contrastive connectives (for example "yet,""in contrast,""however,""nevertheless," and "on the other hand") emphasized the logical relationship expressed by these connectives as they connect two sections of text. In harmony with this approach, constrastive connectives are…
Assessing Intercultural Training Designs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Graf, Andrea

2004-01-01

Training designs are critical to the success of intercultural training programmes. A common typology for classifying intercultural training designs distinguishes among the following dimensions: experiential discovery versus didactic expository and culture-specific versus culture-general training. The purpose of this paper is to assess different…
Exercise and Self-esteem: Recommendations for Expository Research.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sonstroem, Robert J.

1981-01-01

A review of selected research in the area of exercise and self-esteem illustrates recommendations made for improving research in this area. Studies concerning self-esteem theory and static and dynamic relationships between exercise and self-esteem are reported. (CJ)
Successful ETV Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cramer, Robert E.; Boehm, Richard G.

1971-01-01

Three series of eight fifteen-minute programs each were made conceptual and process oriented. Data was presented and divergent questions asked about it, but not answered. New ways of using traditional materials were demonstrated as was the adaptability of TV to non-expository teaching. (NH)

Holistic Evaluation of Writing Samples for Placement in Post-Secondary English Composition Courses.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guerrero, Barry J.; Robison, Ruth E.

A study was conducted by the Student Development Center of the University of Hawaii at Hilo to develop a writing placement procedure in a community college setting which would be practical, reliable, and valid. The key to this procedure was an English composition placement device that could help readers rate, holistically, writing samples written…
Learner Characteristics and Writing Performance in a Community College English as a Second Language Course: Some Unexpected Findings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lambert, Olga D.

2015-01-01

This study investigates the relationships between individual learner characteristics and gain in writing performance as measured by a standardized writing assessment in a sample of community college academic English as a Second Language (ESL) students in the United States. The ethnically and linguistically diverse convenience sample included 76…
Writing To Be Read. Revised Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Macrorie, Ken

The free-writing program presented in this book and illustrated with student writing samples emphasizes student writing which is alive and valuable and which is to be read by real persons, who respond. New material in this second edition focuses especially on these points, in three chapters: writing in and for a group of helping commenters…
Dialogue Journal Writing and the Mediated Development of Writing: How Do Second Language Learners Engaged in Authentic Writing Activities Develop as Writers?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ulanoff, Sharon

This study examined the writing development of two language minority students over 3 school years, in particular, students' writing samples in the form of dialogue journals. Analyses focus on the function of content features (pragmatics) in their writing, the development of mechanical control (surface features), and the change in content over…
Program of Research on Legal Writing: Phase II: Research on a Writing Exercise. LSAC Research Report Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Breland, Hunter M.; Carlton, Sydell T.; Taylor, Susan

Based on the results of a Phase 1 investigation into the nature of legal writing, a prototype writing assessment, the Diagnostic Writing Skills Test (DWST) for entering law students was developed. The DWST is composed of two multiple-choice testlets based on prompts and responses to the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) Writing Sample. It contains…
What Is Applied Linguistics?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

James, Carl

1993-01-01

Ostensive and expository definitions of applied linguistics are assessed. It is suggested that the key to a meaningful definition lies in the dual articulation of applied linguistics: it is an interface between linguistics and practicality. Its role as an "expert system" is suggested. (45 references) (Author/LB)
Reaching All of Your Students in Social Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Twyman, Todd; Tindal, Gerald

2005-01-01

Students with disabilities often have difficulty understanding expository history texts in high school. This article presents an integrated curriculum/instruction/assessment approach to teaching history that increases content comprehension and problem-solving skills of students with learning disabilities in inclusive classrooms. Concept-based…
What about Writing? A National Exploratory Study of Writing Instruction in Teacher Preparation Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Myers, Joy; Scales, Roya Q.; Grisham, Dana L.; Wolsey, Thomas DeVere; Dismuke, Sherry; Smetana, Linda; Yoder, Karen Kreider; Ikpeze, Chinwe; Ganske, Kathy; Martin, Susan

2016-01-01

This small scale, exploratory study reveals how writing instruction is taught to preservice teachers across the United States in university-based preservice teacher education programs based on online survey results from 63 teacher educators in literacy from 50 institutions. Despite the growing writing demands and high stakes writing sample testing…
Idea Generation in Student Writing: Computational Assessments and Links to Successful Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crossley, Scott A.; Muldner, Kasia; McNamara, Danielle S.

2016-01-01

Idea generation is an important component of most major theories of writing. However, few studies have linked idea generation in writing samples to assessments of writing quality or examined links between linguistic features in a text and idea generation. This study uses human ratings of idea generation, such as "idea fluency, idea…
Developmental and Individual Differences in Chinese Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guan, Connie Qun; Ye, Feifei; Wagner, Richard K.; Meng, Wanjin

2013-01-01

The goal of the present study was to examine the generalizability of a model of the underlying dimensions of written composition across writing systems (Chinese Mandarin vs. English) and level of writing skill. A five-factor model of writing originally developed from analyses of 1st and 4th grade English writing samples was applied to Chinese…
The Carleton University Writing Tutorial Service.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freedman, Aviva

Carleton University's writing tutorial service is staffed by trained graduate students and provides free individual instruction for students having problems writing academic English. The students submit writing samples before the first session at which both student and tutor map out a strategy for improvement. Analysis of the tutors' perceptions…
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…
Students' Metacomprehension Knowledge: Components That Predict Comprehension Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zabrucky, Karen M.; Moore, DeWayne; Agler, Lin-Miao Lin; Cummings, Andrea M.

2015-01-01

In the present study, we assessed students' metacomprehension knowledge and examined the components of knowledge most related to comprehension of expository texts. We used the Revised Metacomprehension Scale (RMCS) to investigate the relations between students' metacomprehension knowledge and comprehension performance. Students who evaluated and…
"Essential Principles of Economics:" A Hypermedia Textbook.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCain, Roger A.

2000-01-01

Discusses an electronic textbook called "Essential Principles of Economics." Explains that economic concepts are found by following links from the table of contents, while each chapter includes both expository information and interactive material including online multiple-choice drill questions. States that the textbook is a "work…
Modeling Narrative Discourse

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elson, David K.

2012-01-01

This thesis describes new approaches to the formal modeling of narrative discourse. Although narratives of all kinds are ubiquitous in daily life, contemporary text processing techniques typically do not leverage the aspects that separate narrative from expository discourse. We describe two approaches to the problem. The first approach considers…
Rigorous Mathematical Thinking Approach to Enhance Students’ Mathematical Creative and Critical Thinking Abilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hidayat, D.; Nurlaelah, E.; Dahlan, J. A.

2017-09-01

The ability of mathematical creative and critical thinking are two abilities that need to be developed in the learning of mathematics. Therefore, efforts need to be made in the design of learning that is capable of developing both capabilities. The purpose of this research is to examine the mathematical creative and critical thinking ability of students who get rigorous mathematical thinking (RMT) approach and students who get expository approach. This research was quasi experiment with control group pretest-posttest design. The population were all of students grade 11th in one of the senior high school in Bandung. The result showed that: the achievement of mathematical creative and critical thinking abilities of student who obtain RMT is better than students who obtain expository approach. The use of Psychological tools and mediation with criteria of intentionality, reciprocity, and mediated of meaning on RMT helps students in developing condition in critical and creative processes. This achievement contributes to the development of integrated learning design on students’ critical and creative thinking processes.
Predicting reading comprehension of narrative and expository texts among Hebrew-speaking readers with and without a reading disability.

PubMed

Primor, Liron; Pierce, Margaret E; Katzir, Tami

2011-12-01

The aim of this study was to investigate which cognitive and reading-related linguistic skills contribute to reading comprehension of narrative and expository texts. The study examined an Israeli national database of Hebrew-speaking readers in fourth grade, from which a subsample of 190 readers with a reading disability (RD) and 190 readers with no reading disability (NRD) was selected. IQ, text reading, reading comprehension, and various linguistic and cognitive skills were assessed. Structural equation modeling results suggested that both groups rely on lower level processes such as text reading accuracy and orthographic knowledge for reading comprehension of both genres. However, RD readers depend more heavily upon these lower level processes compared with NRD for whom higher level processes contribute more to reading comprehension. The various variables accounted for only 25-34% of reading comprehension variance, and possible explanations are discussed. Taken together, these findings highlight the variety of factors influencing reading comprehension and its multidimensional nature.
Why risk is not variance: an expository note.

PubMed

Cox, Louis Anthony Tony

2008-08-01

Variance (or standard deviation) of return is widely used as a measure of risk in financial investment risk analysis applications, where mean-variance analysis is applied to calculate efficient frontiers and undominated portfolios. Why, then, do health, safety, and environmental (HS&E) and reliability engineering risk analysts insist on defining risk more flexibly, as being determined by probabilities and consequences, rather than simply by variances? This note suggests an answer by providing a simple proof that mean-variance decision making violates the principle that a rational decisionmaker should prefer higher to lower probabilities of receiving a fixed gain, all else being equal. Indeed, simply hypothesizing a continuous increasing indifference curve for mean-variance combinations at the origin is enough to imply that a decisionmaker must find unacceptable some prospects that offer a positive probability of gain and zero probability of loss. Unlike some previous analyses of limitations of variance as a risk metric, this expository note uses only simple mathematics and does not require the additional framework of von Neumann Morgenstern utility theory.
Science education in an urban elementary school: Case studies of teacher beliefs and classroom practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

King, Ken; Shumow, Lee; Lietz, Stephanie

2001-03-01

Through a case study approach, the state of science education in an urban elementary school was examined in detail. Observations made from the perspective of a science education specialist, an educational psychologist, and an expert elementary teacher were triangulated to provide a set of perspectives from which elementary science instruction could be examined. Findings revealed that teachers were more poorly prepared than had been anticipated, both in terms of science content knowledge and instructional skills, but also with respect to the quality of classroom pedagogical and management skills. Particularly significant, from a science education perspective, was the inconsistency between how they perceived their teaching practice (a hands-on, inquiry-based approach) and the investigator-observed expository nature of the lessons. Lessons were typically expository in nature, with little higher-level interaction of significance. Implications for practice and the associated needs for staff development among urban elementary teachers is discussed within the context of these findings.
Learning to Write and Loving It! Preschool-Kindergarten

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trehearne, Miriam P.

2011-01-01

"Learning to Write and Loving It!" equips teachers of young children with practical strategies, assessment tools, and motivating writing activities that are based on current research and proven practice and are easily applicable to all kinds of learning environments. Included are many authentic writing samples and photos to illustrate effective,…

Keys to Improving Writing in the Primary Grades.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bassett, Diane; DeVine, Denise; Perry, Nancy; Rueth, Catherine

This action research describes a program for improving writing skills. The targeted population consisted of first and third graders in two middle class communities in the southern suburbs of Chicago. The need for improvement in writing skills was documented through observation checklists, writing samples, and surveys. Data revealed a need for…
What If They Just Want To Write?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gilmar, Sybil

1979-01-01

Writing workshops are held for gifted students (7 to 15 years old) and include journalism, guidebook, and fiction work with critical analysis of each other's writing. Sample exercises and brainstorming techniques are discussed. (CL)
Writing for Distance Education. Samples Booklet.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

International Extension Coll., Cambridge (England).

Approaches to the format, design, and layout of printed instructional materials for distance education are illustrated in 36 samples designed to accompany the manual, "Writing for Distance Education." Each sample is presented on a single page with a note pointing out its key features. Features illustrated include use of typescript layout, a comic…
Playing with Words: Investigating the Use of Language Play in the Persuasive Writing of 9-11-Year-Olds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burrell, Andrew; Beard, Roger

2018-01-01

There has been little research into how children use language play in writing. The unprompted language play of 36 children was investigated through their writing of a short advertisement. The sample comprised three attainment sub-groups from a larger repeat-design study of persuasive writing in the 9-11 age-range. The writing was analysed using…
The Effect of Primary School Students' Writing Attitudes and Writing Self-Efficacy Beliefs on Their Summary Writing Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bulut, Pinar

2017-01-01

In this study, the effect of writing attitude and writing self-efficacy beliefs on the summarization achievement of the 4th grade primary school students was examined using the structural equation modeling. The study employed the relational survey model. The study group constructed by means of simple random sampling method is comprised of 335…
The Nation's Report Card: Writing 2011. National Assessment of Educational Progress at Grades 8 and 12. NCES 2012-470

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Center for Education Statistics, 2012

2012-01-01

This report presents results of the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in writing at grades 8 and 12. In this new national writing assessment sample, 24,100 eighth-graders and 28,100 twelfth-graders engaged with writing tasks and composed their responses on computer. The assessment tasks reflected writing situations common to…
Writing a Writing Assessment: Saying What You Want to Say Isn't as Simple as It Seems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Escoe, Adrienne

Since acceptable writing is essential to success in job training programs and in many entry-level jobs, a writing sample was included in the Training and Employment Prerequisites Survey, a multiple-choice test about skills like mechanics, usage, and spelling. The two writing prompts asked students to give directions for finding a location in a…
Signaling Hierarchical and Sequential Organization in Expository Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lorch, Robert; Lemarie, Julie; Grant, Russell

2011-01-01

Four experiments tested a hypothesized function of signaling devices, namely, to communicate information about text organization. Experiments 1 and 2 compared headings that communicated the hierarchical organization of text topics with headings that did not communicate the hierarchical organization. Signaling organization led to more complete and…
Biology Textbook Graphics and Their Impact on Expectations of Understanding

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wiley, Jennifer; Sarmento, David; Griffin, Thomas D.; Hinze, Scott R.

2017-01-01

Graphics presented alongside expository science texts can have a number of positive effects for instruction, including facilitating engagement, arousing interest, and improving understanding. However, because students harbor expectations about which contexts are likely to support better understanding, the mere presence of graphics also has the…
Who Benefits from Mastery Learning?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lai, Patrick; Biggs, John

1994-01-01

Data from 95 educationally disadvantaged Hong Kong students placed in mastery-learning classes were compared with 64 control students in expository-learning classes. Results indicate that under mastery learning, deep- and surface-biased learners increasingly diverge in performance and attitude, with surface learners doing better unit to unit, and…
Blended Course Design for Multi-Campus Technology Instruction: An Expository Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thrasher, Evelyn; Coleman, Phillip; Willis, Jeffrey

2014-01-01

This manuscript shares the results of an experimental blended course design that combines online and synchronous technology instruction across four geographically dispersed computer classrooms using ITV technology. Lessons learned include equipment requirements, both in the main classroom and remote classrooms, taking insufficient bandwidth into…
Classroom Assessment of Reading Processes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swearingen, Rebecca; Allen, Diane

For use by K-12 teachers or specialists, this book presents an informal classroom tool for assessing reading processes which is rooted in contemporary research and practice. The book features separate assessments for narrative and expository retelling, portfolio checklists to help analyze results, modeled "think-alouds," and an annotated…
Pleasure and Pain: Teaching Neuroscientific Principles of Hedonism in a Large General Education Undergraduate Course

PubMed Central

Bodnar, Richard J.; Stellar, James R.; Kraft, Tamar T.; Loiacono, Ilyssa; Bajnath, Adesh; Rotella, Francis M.; Barrientos, Alicia; Aghanori, Golshan; Olsson, Kerstin; Coke, Tricia; Huang, Donald; Luger, Zeke; Mousavi, Seyed Ali Reza; Dindyal, Trisha; Naqvi, Naveen; Kim, Jung-Yo

2013-01-01

In a large (250 registrants) general education lecture course, neuroscience principles were taught by two professors as co-instructors, starting with simple brain anatomy, chemistry, and function, proceeding to basic brain circuits of pleasure and pain, and progressing with fellow expert professors covering relevant philosophical, artistic, marketing, and anthropological issues. With this as a base, the course wove between fields of high relevance to psychology and neuroscience, such as food addiction and preferences, drug seeking and craving, analgesic pain-inhibitory systems activated by opiates and stress, neuroeconomics, unconscious decision-making, empathy, and modern neuroscientific techniques (functional magnetic resonance imaging and event-related potentials) presented by the co-instructors and other Psychology professors. With no formal assigned textbook, all lectures were PowerPoint-based, containing links to supplemental public-domain material. PowerPoints were available on Blackboard several days before the lecture. All lectures were also video-recorded and posted that evening. The course had a Facebook page for after-class conversation and one of the co-instructors communicated directly with students on Twitter in real time during lecture to provide momentary clarification and comment. In addition to graduate student Teaching Assistants (TAs), to allow for small group discussion, ten undergraduate students who performed well in a previous class were selected to serve as discussion leaders. The Discussion Leaders met four times at strategic points over the semester with groups of 20–25 current students, and received one credit of Independent Study, thus creating a course within a course. The course grade was based on weighted scores from two multiple-choice exams and a five-page writing assignment in which each student reviewed three unique, but brief original peer-review research articles (one page each) combined with expository writing on the first and last pages. A draft of the first page, collected early in the term, was returned to each student by graduate TAs to provide individual feedback on scientific writing. Overall the course has run three times at ful or near enrollment capacity despite being held at an 8:00 AM time slot. Student-generated teaching evaluations place it well within the normal range, while this format importantly contributes to budget efficiency permitting the teaching of more required small-format courses (e.g., freshman writing). The demographics of the course have changed to one in which the vast majority of the students are now outside the disciplines of neuroscience or psychology and are taking the course to fulfill a General Education requirement. This pattern allows the wide dissemination of basic neuroscientific knowledge to a general college audience. PMID:24319388
Pleasure and pain: teaching neuroscientific principles of hedonism in a large general education undergraduate course.

PubMed

Bodnar, Richard J; Stellar, James R; Kraft, Tamar T; Loiacono, Ilyssa; Bajnath, Adesh; Rotella, Francis M; Barrientos, Alicia; Aghanori, Golshan; Olsson, Kerstin; Coke, Tricia; Huang, Donald; Luger, Zeke; Mousavi, Seyed Ali Reza; Dindyal, Trisha; Naqvi, Naveen; Kim, Jung-Yo

2013-01-01

In a large (250 registrants) general education lecture course, neuroscience principles were taught by two professors as co-instructors, starting with simple brain anatomy, chemistry, and function, proceeding to basic brain circuits of pleasure and pain, and progressing with fellow expert professors covering relevant philosophical, artistic, marketing, and anthropological issues. With this as a base, the course wove between fields of high relevance to psychology and neuroscience, such as food addiction and preferences, drug seeking and craving, analgesic pain-inhibitory systems activated by opiates and stress, neuroeconomics, unconscious decision-making, empathy, and modern neuroscientific techniques (functional magnetic resonance imaging and event-related potentials) presented by the co-instructors and other Psychology professors. With no formal assigned textbook, all lectures were PowerPoint-based, containing links to supplemental public-domain material. PowerPoints were available on Blackboard several days before the lecture. All lectures were also video-recorded and posted that evening. The course had a Facebook page for after-class conversation and one of the co-instructors communicated directly with students on Twitter in real time during lecture to provide momentary clarification and comment. In addition to graduate student Teaching Assistants (TAs), to allow for small group discussion, ten undergraduate students who performed well in a previous class were selected to serve as discussion leaders. The Discussion Leaders met four times at strategic points over the semester with groups of 20-25 current students, and received one credit of Independent Study, thus creating a course within a course. The course grade was based on weighted scores from two multiple-choice exams and a five-page writing assignment in which each student reviewed three unique, but brief original peer-review research articles (one page each) combined with expository writing on the first and last pages. A draft of the first page, collected early in the term, was returned to each student by graduate TAs to provide individual feedback on scientific writing. Overall the course has run three times at ful or near enrollment capacity despite being held at an 8:00 AM time slot. Student-generated teaching evaluations place it well within the normal range, while this format importantly contributes to budget efficiency permitting the teaching of more required small-format courses (e.g., freshman writing). The demographics of the course have changed to one in which the vast majority of the students are now outside the disciplines of neuroscience or psychology and are taking the course to fulfill a General Education requirement. This pattern allows the wide dissemination of basic neuroscientific knowledge to a general college audience.
Toward defining good writing: A rhetorical analysis of the words, sentences, and paragraphs in 16 industrial scripts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Freisinger, R. R.; Petersen, B. T.

1981-01-01

The assumption that teachers of technical writing agree on a definition of good writing was found to be without basis. Resolution of disagreements arising from close reading and textual analysis is described. Writing samples from corporate sources including IBM, ALCOA, Exxon, Weyerhaeuser, Bell Labs, Underwriters Laboratories, Dow Chemical, and US Steel were requested. A mixture of informative and persuasive examples, and examples directed at lay and specialist audiences were received. Analyses of 16 writing samples are reported. Analysis of word level, sentence level, and paragraph level, was completed. Syllabism, verb selection, nominalizations, vocabulary choices, t-units, subordination, sentence and clause length, syntactic order, patterns, development, topic sentences, propositional order, and transitions were analyzed.
Framework for Disciplinary Writing in Science Grades 6-12: A National Survey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Drew, Sally Valentino; Olinghouse, Natalie G.; Faggella-Luby, Michael; Welsh, Megan E.

2017-01-01

This study investigated the current state of writing instruction in science classes (Grades 6-12). A random sample of certified science teachers from the United States (N = 287) was electronically surveyed. Participants reported on their purposes for teaching writing, the writing assignments most often given to students, use of evidence-based…
Writing to Learn Statistics in an Advanced Placement Statistics Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Northrup, Christian Glenn

2012-01-01

This study investigated the use of writing in a statistics classroom to learn if writing provided a rich description of problem-solving processes of students as they solved problems. Through analysis of 329 written samples provided by students, it was determined that writing provided a rich description of problem-solving processes and enabled…
The Effectiveness of Using Online Blogging for Students' Individual and Group Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alsamadani, Hashem A.

2018-01-01

The current research study investigates the effectiveness of online blogging for students' individual and group writing skills. The participants were divided into individual learners and group learners. They produced pre-writing and post-writing samples through blogging practices. The study conducted lasted for 14 weeks so that blogging could be…
The Predictive Validity of CBM Writing Indices for Eighth-Grade Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amato, Janelle M.; Watkins, Marley W.

2011-01-01

Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) is an alternative to traditional assessment techniques. Technical work has begun to identify CBM writing indices that are psychometrically sound for monitoring older students' writing proficiency. This study examined the predictive validity of CBM writing indices in a sample of 447 eighth-grade students.…
Genetic and Environmental Influences on Writing and Their Relations to Language and Reading

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Olson, Richard K.; Hulslander, Jacqueline; Christopher, Micaela; Keenan, Janice M.; Wadsworth, Sally J.; Willcutt, Erik G.; Pennington, Bruce F.; DeFries, John C.

2013-01-01

Identical and fraternal twins (N = 540, age 8 to 18 years) were tested on three different measures of writing (Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement--Writing Samples and Writing Fluency; Handwriting Copy from the Group Diagnostic Reading and Aptitude Achievement Tests), three different language skills (phonological awareness, rapid naming, and…

Expressive writing interventions in cancer patients: a systematic review.

PubMed

Merz, Erin L; Fox, Rina S; Malcarne, Vanessa L

2014-01-01

Decades of research have suggested that expressive writing produces physical and psychological benefits in controlled laboratory experiments among healthy college students. This work has been extended to clinical and medical populations, including cancer patients. Although expressive writing could be a promising and inexpensive intervention for this population, the effects have not been systematically examined in oncology samples. A systematic review using PRISMA guidelines was conducted for experimental trials of cancer patients who participated in an expressive writing intervention. PsycINFO and PubMed/Medline were searched for peer-reviewed studies. Thirteen articles met the inclusion/exclusion criteria. Although the majority of the intervention effects were null, there were several main effects for expressive writing on sleep, pain, and general physical and psychological symptoms. Several moderators were identified, suggesting that expressive writing may be more or less beneficial based on individual characteristics such as social constraints. The reviewed studies were limited due to representativeness of the samples, performance, detection and patient-reported outcomes biases, and heterogeneity of the intervention protocol and writing prompts. Future studies with rigorous designs are needed to determine whether expressive writing is therapeutically effective in cancer patients.
Effect of a coteaching handwriting program for first graders: one-group pretest-posttest design.

PubMed

Case-Smith, Jane; Holland, Terri; Lane, Alison; White, Susan

2012-01-01

We examined the effects of a cotaught handwriting and writing program on first-grade students grouped by low, average, and high baseline legibility. The program's aim was to increase legibility, handwriting speed, writing fluency, and written expression in students with diverse learning needs. Thirty-six first-grade students in two classrooms participated in a 12-wk handwriting and writing program cotaught by teachers and an occupational therapist. Students were assessed at pretest, posttest, and 6-mo follow-up using the Evaluation Tool of Children's Handwriting-Manuscript (ETCH-M) and the Woodcock-Johnson Writing Fluency and Writing Samples tests. Students made large gains in ETCH-M legibility (η² = .74), speed (η²s = .52-.65), Writing Fluency (η² = .58), and Writing Samples (η² = .59). Students with initially low legibility improved most in legibility; progress on the other tests was similar across low-, average-, and high-performing groups. This program appeared to benefit first-grade students with diverse learning needs and to increase handwriting legibility and speed and writing fluency. Copyright © 2012 by the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.
Common Core Writing and Language Standards and Aligned State Assessments: A National Survey of Teacher Beliefs and Attitudes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Troia, Gary A.; Graham, Steve

2016-01-01

A random sample of 482 teachers in grades 3 through 8 from across the United States were surveyed about (a) their perceptions of the version of the Common Core writing and language standards adopted by their state and their state's writing assessment, (b) their preparation to teach writing, and (c) their self-efficacy beliefs for teaching writing.…
Improving Text Recall with Multiple Summaries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van der Meij, Hans; van der Meij, Jan

2012-01-01

Background. QuikScan (QS) is an innovative design that aims to improve accessibility, comprehensibility, and subsequent recall of expository text by means of frequent within-document summaries that are formatted as numbered list items. The numbers in the QS summaries correspond to numbers placed in the body of the document where the summarized…
Interactions among Elaborative Interrogation, Knowledge, and Interest in the Process of Constructing Knowledge from Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ozgungor, Sevgi; Guthrie, John T.

2004-01-01

The authors examined the impact of elaborative interrogation on knowledge construction during expository text reading, specifically, the interactions among elaborative interrogation, knowledge, and interest. Three measures of learning were taken: recall, inference, and coherence. Elaborative interrogation affected all aspects of learning measured,…
Expository Text and Middle School Students: Some Lessons Learned.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Street, Chris

2002-01-01

Presents the "Structured Reading Lesson" as one simple way to structure reading activities so that the before, during, and after phases of the reading experience are all touched upon. Considers how reading strategies that students have developed to comprehend fictional narratives do not always help them with textbooks. Presents…
Personal and Environmental Influences on Students' Beliefs about Effective Study Strategies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nolen, Susan Bobbitt; Haladyna, Thomas M.

1990-01-01

A model of personal and environmental influences on students' valuing of two deep-processing strategies for studying expository texts is described. Questionnaire data from 281 high school science students indicated that students' task orientation and perceptions about teacher expectations were central to students' attitudes. (TJH)
Reprint Series: Prime Numbers and Perfect Numbers. RS-2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schaaf, William L., Ed.

This is one in a series of SMSG supplementary and enrichment pamphlets for high school students. This series makes available expository articles which appeared in a variety of mathematical periodicals. Topics covered include: (1) the prime numbers; (2) mathematical sieves; (3) the factorgram; and (4) perfect numbers. (MP)
Collaborative Strategic Reading: "Real-World" Lessons From Classroom Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Klingner, Janette K.; Vaughn, Sharon; Arguelles, Maria Elena; Hughes, Marie Tejero; Leftwich, Suzette Ahwee

2004-01-01

The present study extends 8 years of previous research using Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR), a set of comprehension strategies designed to improve understanding of expository text. We examined teachers' year long implementation of CSR. Five intervention and five control teachers from five schools participated along with their students.…
Listening to Narratives: An Experimental Examination of Storytelling in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Glonek, Katie L.; King, Paul E.

2014-01-01

In an age of PowerPoint, much everyday public communication is semantically organized as an expository presentation. This contrasts with traditional approaches such as storytelling that are episodically organized and presented as narratives. The constructivist theory of narrative comprehension, along with other theoretical perspectives, suggests…
Systematically Teaching Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder about Expository Text Structures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carnahan, Christina R.; Williamson, Pamela

2016-01-01

Students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) represent an increasing number of learners in general education classrooms. While reading comprehension instruction has received growing attention, learners with ASD continue to experience poor academic outcomes. This article describes a research-based approach to teaching students with ASD to…
Tools to Support Expository Video Capture and Access

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carter, Scott; Cooper, Matthew; Adcock, John; Branham, Stacy

2014-01-01

Video tends to be imbalanced as a medium. Typically, content creators invest enormous effort creating work that is then watched passively. However, learning tasks require that users not only consume video but also engage, interact with, and repurpose content. Furthermore, to promote learning across domains where content creators are not…
Values in Geography.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buttimer, Annette

This resource paper on values in geography is one of several developed by the Commission on College Geography as expository documents for the use of both the student and instructor at the college level. They are designed to supplement existing texts and to fill a gap between significant research in geography and readily accessible materials. The…
Instructional Strategies for Enhancing Learning Disabled Students' Reading Comprehension and Comprehension Test Performance.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wong, Bernice Y. L.

1986-01-01

Successful instructional strategies for enhancing the reading comprehension and comprehension test performance of learning disabled students are described. Students are taught to self-monitor their comprehension of expository materials and stories through recognition and analysis of recurrent elements and problem passages, content summarization,…
Environmental Service Learning: Outcomes of Innovative Pedagogy in Baja California Sur, Mexico

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schneller, Andrew Jon

2008-01-01

This article reports on a longitudinal study of a two-semester middle school environmental learning course that departs from traditional Mexican expository pedagogies through the incorporation of experiential and service learning approaches. In the short term, course participants acquired a heightened awareness of environmental issues, augmented…
Children's Ability to Comprehend Main Ideas After Reading Expository Prose.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baumann, James F.

A study was conducted to evaluate children's ability to comprehend main ideas after reading connected discourse and to develop and validate a straightforward and intuitively simple system for identifying main ideas in prose. Three experimental passages were randomly selected from third and sixth grade social studies textbooks, and education…
Instructional and Learning Modes in Math. Module CMM:006:02.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rexroat, Melvin E.

This is the second module in a series on mathematics methods and materials for preservice elementary teachers. This module focuses on three instructional and learning modes: expository, guided discovery, and inquiry (pure discovery). Objectives for the module are listed, the prerequisites are stated, pre- and post-assessment standards are…
Listening versus Reading in Monitoring Comprehension.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yussen, Steven R.; And Others

Noting the differences in processing information by reading and by listening, two studies examined subjects' ability to detect errors in written and oral prose. In both experiments, college students were presented with four expository passages drawn from different written sources. All passages were approximately 300 words and 5 paragraphs long,…
Air Pollution. Resource Paper No. 2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bryson, Reid A.; Kutzbach, John E.

These Resource Papers have been developed as expository documents for the use of both the student and the instructor in undergraduate college geography courses at the introductory and advanced level. They are designed to supplement existing texts and to fill a gap between significant research in American geography and readily accessible materials.…
Student Progress in a Social Work Writing Course: Self-Efficacy, Course Objectives, and Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Woody, Jane D.; Zeleny, Mary G.; D'Souza, Henry J.; Harder, Jeanette; Reiser, Jacqueline; Szto, Peter

2014-01-01

Although instructors express concerns about social work students' writing skills, little research has been conducted. One remedy is a social work-focused writing course. This study assessed a required writing course with a sample of 49 baccalaureate students. From online pre- and posttest surveys, 2 student outcomes improved significantly:…

College Writing in China and America: A Modest and Humble Conversation, with Writing Samples

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sullivan, Patrick; Zhang, Yufeng; Zheng, Fenglan

2012-01-01

This article is a pragmatic, classroom-focused conversation about the teaching of writing among three teachers living in the United States and China, separated by many thousands of miles and many centuries of tradition and culture. Our focus here is on classroom concerns: actual student writing, assignment design, and assessment. We seek to…
Text-Based Writing of Low-Skilled Postsecondary Students: Relation to Comprehension, Self-Efficacy and Teacher Judgments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perin, Dolores; Lauterbach, Mark; Raufman, Julia; Kalamkarian, Hoori Santikian

2017-01-01

Summarization and persuasive writing are important in postsecondary education and often require the use of source text. However, students entering college with low literacy skills often find this type of writing difficult. The present study compared predictors of performance on text-based summarization and persuasive writing in a sample of…
Word Processor versus "The Pencil" Effects on Writing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schanck, Emily T.

In a study to determine the effects of writing on the computer versus traditional writing by hand, 22 fourth grade students were randomly assigned to samples using either a computer or paper and pencil. The study hypothesized that (1) children are not more willing to revise and improve their writing using a word processor when compared to the…
Operationalizing the Rubric: The Effect of Benchmark Selection on the Assessed Quality of Writing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Popp, Sharon E. Osborn; Ryan, Joseph M.; Thompson, Marilyn S.; Behrens, John T.

The purposes of this study were to investigate the role of benchmark writing samples in direct assessment of writing and to examine the consequences of differential benchmark selection with a common writing rubric. The influences of discourse and grade level were also examined within the context of differential benchmark selection. Raters scored…
Development of Writing: Key Components of Written Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kantor, Patricia Thatcher

2012-01-01

This study utilized confirmatory factor analyses and latent change score analyses to model individual and developmental differences in a longitudinal study of children's writing. Participants were 158 children who completed a writing sample each year from 1st through 4th grade. At all four time points, a four-factor model of writing provided…
Biometric verification in dynamic writing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

George, Susan E.

2002-03-01

Pen-tablet devices capable of capturing the dynamics of writing record temporal and pressure information as well as the spatial pattern. This paper explores biometric verification based upon the dynamics of writing where writers are distinguished not on the basis of what they write (ie the signature), but how they write. We have collected samples of dynamic writing from 38 Chinese writers. Each writer was asked to provide 10 copies of a paragraph of text and the same number of signature samples. From the data we have extracted stroke-based primitives from the sentence data utilizing pen-up/down information and heuristic rules about the shape of the character. The x, y and pressure values of each primitive were interpolated into an even temporal range based upon a 20 msec sampling rate. We applied the Daubechies 1 wavelet transform to the x signal, y signal and pressure signal using the coefficients as inputs to a multi-layer perceptron trained with back-propagation on the sentence data. We found a sensitivity of 0.977 and specificity of 0.990 recognizing writers based on test primitives extracted from sentence data and measures of 0.916 and 0.961 respectively, from test primitives extracted from signature data.
Writing to the Common Core: Teachers' Responses to Changes in Standards and Assessments for Writing in Elementary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilcox, Kristen Campbell; Jeffery, Jill V.; Gardner-Bixler, Andrea

2016-01-01

This multiple case study investigated how the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for writing and teacher evaluation system based in part on CCSS assessments might be influencing writing instruction in elementary schools. The sample included nine schools: Six achieved above-predicted performance on English Language Arts (ELA) as well as prior ELA…
Using Lexical Profiling Tools to Investigate Children's Written Vocabulary in Grade 3: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roessingh, Hetty; Elgie, Susan; Kover, Pat

2015-01-01

Research in the study of students' writing concludes that vocabulary use is a key variable in determining the holistic quality of the writing. In the present study, 77 writing samples from a mixed group of Grade 3 children were analyzed for features of linguistic diversity using public domain vocabulary-profiling software. The writing was also…
High School Teachers Use of Writing to Support Students' Learning: A National Survey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gillespie, Amy; Graham, Steve; Kiuhara, Sharlene; Hebert, Michael

2014-01-01

A random sample of language arts, social studies, science, and math high school teachers from across the United States were surveyed about their use of writing to support student learning. Four out of every five teachers reported they used writing to support student learning, applying on average 24 different writing activities across the school…
Writing Mechanics, 1969-1974: A Capsule Description of Changes in Writing Mechanics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Education Commission of the States, Denver, CO. National Assessment of Educational Progress.

This report, part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) survey, describes one facet of the national assessment of writing. The students--9-, 13-, and 17-year-olds who constitute the sample for the NAEP studies--were told to use their best writing but were not told that their papers would be examined for mechanical correctness.…
Evidence of Two Theoretical Models Observed in Young Children with Disabilities Who Are Beginning to Learn to Write

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Staples, Amy; Edmister, Evette

2012-01-01

This study examined the composing process and communication of students aged 5-8 identified with intellectual disabilities. An open-ended writing activity called Big Paper was implemented at least once every 2 weeks for a 6-month period. Qualitative methods were utilized to analyze writing samples, videotapes of writing sessions, and transcripts…
From Santa Fe and Back, or Bust: Developing Exit Level Writing Competencies for Third and Fifth Grades.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scheiber, Howard J.

In conjunction with the New Mexico State Department of Education's Writing Appraisal Program for high school students, a project was designed whose central goal was to identify and clearly delineate writing competencies for students in the younger grades. A pilot project first collected student writing samples and descriptive data from third and…
Writing-Reading Relationships: Effectiveness of Writing Activities as Pre-Reading Tasks to Enhance L2 Inferential Reading Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wickramaarachchi, Thilina Indrajie

2014-01-01

The study examines the interaction between reading and writing processes in general and more specifically the impact of pre-reading tasks incorporating writing tasks (referred to as "prw tasks") in helping the development of inferential reading comprehension. A sample of 70 first year ESL students of the University of Kelaniya were…
Modeling the Development of L1 and EFL Writing Proficiency of Secondary School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schoonen, Rob; van Gelderen, Amos; Stoel, Reinoud D.; Hulstijn, Jan; de Glopper, Kees

2011-01-01

This longitudinal study investigates the development of writing proficiency in English as a foreign language (EFL), in contrast to the development of first language (L1) writing proficiency in Dutch L1, in a sample of almost 400 secondary school students in the Netherlands. Students performed several writing tasks in both languages in three…
Students' Genre Expectations and the Effects of Text Cohesion on Reading Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schmitz, Anke; Gräsel, Cornelia; Rothstein, Björn

2017-01-01

This study raises the question what makes school texts comprehensible by analyzing whether students' genre expectations about literary or expository texts moderate the impact of different forms of text cohesion on reading comprehension, even when the texts are similar regarding their genre. 754 students (Grade 9) from comprehensive schools read…
Strategic Key Word Instruction: Increasing Fluency in Connected Expository Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coulter, Gail; Lambert, Michael C.

2015-01-01

The effects of preteaching key words on fluency in connected text were examined with three third-grade general education participants. Researchers used a multiple base-line design (i.e., Baseline and Wordlist Intervention) and found that preteaching increased fluency in connected text written above the participant's instructional level of reading…
A Multidimensional Investigation of Deep-Level and Surface-Level Processing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dinsmore, Daniel L.; Alexander, Patricia A.

2016-01-01

This study examines the moderating effects of a situational factor (i.e., text type) and an individual factor (i.e., subject-matter knowledge) on the relation between depth of processing and performance. One-hundred and fifty-one undergraduates completed measures of subject-matter knowledge, read either an expository or persuasive text about the…
Designating Reader Perspective to Increase Comprehension and Interest

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ramsay, Crystal M.; Sperling, Rayne A.

2010-01-01

In three experiments we examined whether reader perspective on a long expository text could be manipulated such that increased text interest and enhancement of two comprehension outcomes would result. In Experiment 1 we verified the viability of a new text for experimental purposes. We then assigned readers a perspective before reading in…
The Discourse of the Middle Ground: Citizen Shell Commits to Sustainable Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Livesey, Sharon M.

2002-01-01

Uses Foucauldian theory to interpret the Royal Dutch/Shell Group's first annual "report to society" and an expository text by Shell's expert consultant. Analyzes the document and the emerging phenomenon of social reporting in the context of a larger sociopolitical struggle over sustainable development. Reveals how Shell both accommodated…
Developing the Practising Model in Physical Education: An Expository Outline Focusing on Movement Capability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barker, D. M.; Aggerholm, K.; Standal, O.; Larsson, H.

2018-01-01

Background: Physical educators currently have a number of pedagogical (or curricular) models at their disposal. While existing models have been well-received in educational contexts, these models seek to extend students' capacities within a limited number of "human activities" (Arendt, 1958). The activity of "human practising,"…

The Effects of Oral and Silent Reading on Reading Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schimmel, Naomi; Ness, Molly

2017-01-01

This study examined the effects of reading mode (oral and silent) and text genre (narrative and expository) on fourth graders' reading comprehension. While controlling for prior reading ability of 48 participants, we measured comprehension. Using a repeated measured design, data were analyzed using analysis of covariance, paired t-tests, and…
Trigonometry from a Different Angle

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cavanagh, Michael

2008-01-01

The mathematics methodology subjects the author undertook in the early 1980s encouraged him to adopt a very expository style of teaching in which each new concept is introduced by its formal definition. The teacher should then explain a few carefully chosen examples for students to copy into their books, and then provide plenty of graded practice…
I.D.G. Bulletin 1979/80.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meijer, Henk, Comp.

This document focuses on the history and organization of physical planning in the Netherlands. It is part of a series of bulletins on the human and physical geography of the Netherlands. Information, presented in expository, tabular, photographic, and cartographic form, is arranged in four major sections. Section I, which contains the bulk of the…
Cognitive Strategies for Learning from Static and Dynamic Visuals.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewalter, D.

2003-01-01

Studied the effects of including static or dynamic visuals in an expository text on a learning outcome and the use of learning strategies when working with these visuals. Results for 60 undergraduates for both types of illustration indicate different frequencies in the use of learning strategies relevant for the learning outcome. (SLD)
The Effects of a Water Conservation Instructional Unit on the Values Held by Sixth Grade Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aird, Andrew; Tomera, Audrey

1977-01-01

Sixth grade students were divided into two groups. Students in one group received instruction on water conservation using expository and discovery activities. The students in the control group received none. Results gave evidence that students' values could be changed by this mode of water conservation instruction. (MA)
Do Active Learning Approaches in Recitation Sections Improve Student Performance? A Case Study from an Introductory Mechanics Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tobin, R. G.

2018-01-01

Abundant research leaves little question that pedagogical approaches involving active student engagement with the material, and opportunities for student-to-student discussions, lead to much better learning outcomes than traditional instructor-led, expository instructional formats, in physics and in many other fields. In introductory college…
Uncovering the Effect of Text Structure in Learning from a Science Text: An Eye-Tracking Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ariasi, Nicola; Mason, Lucia

2011-01-01

This study examined whether reading a refutational or non-refutational text would induce different cognitive processing, as revealed by eye-movement analyses. Unlike a standard expository text, a refutational text acknowledges a reader's alternative conceptions about a topic, refutes them, and then introduces scientific conceptions as viable…
Teaching Energy Awareness. Environmental Education Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gore, Patrick D.; And Others

The major objective of the 32 activities in this teaching guide is to make students aware of energy issues. Although the activities are designed for students in grades 4-12, they can be adapted for younger students and for adults. Departing from the standard expository approaches found in most curriculum materials, these teaching strategies…
Why Traditional Expository Teaching-Learning Approaches May Founder? An Experimental Examination of Neural Networks in Biology Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Jun-Ki; Kwon, Yong-Ju

2011-01-01

Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), this study investigates and discusses neurological explanations for, and the educational implications of, the neural network activations involved in hypothesis-generating and hypothesis-understanding for biology education. Two sets of task paradigms about biological phenomena were designed:…
The Application of Programmed Instruction in Fulfilling the Physiology Course Requirements

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stanisavljevic, Jelena; Djuric, Dragan

2013-01-01

The aim of this study is to compare the effectiveness of models of programmed instruction and conventional (informative-illustrative) expository teaching in terms of fulfilling the aims of the course "Human anatomy and physiology" which is included in the physiology programme and designed for undergraduate students majoring in biology…
The Effectiveness of Giving Rules in Forming Concepts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shanlin, Norman T.

The value of verbal rules given to learners as an instructional aid in forming desired concepts was investigated in this study. Two programs dealing with the concept of conservation of energy in heat exchange between liquids were prepared in the form of self-instructional booklets. One presentation used a picture-rule or expository treatment, and…
Psychology on Computers: Simulations, Experiments and Projects.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Belcher, Duane M.; Smith, Stephen D.

PSYCOM is a unique mixed media package which combines high interest projects on the computer with a written text of expository material. It goes beyond most computer-assisted instruction which emphasizes drill and practice and testing of knowledge. A project might consist of a simulation or an actual experiment, or it might be a demonstration, a…
Increasing Comprehension of Expository Science Text for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carnahan, Christina R.; Williamson, Pamela; Birri, Nicole; Swoboda, Christopher; Snyder, Kate K.

2016-01-01

Using a multiple baseline single-subject design, this study evaluated the effects of a text structure intervention package on the ability of students with autism to comprehend traditional science texts. Three high school students with high-functioning autism and their teacher participated in this study. The intervention package included…
Remarks on the Non-Linear Differential Equation the Second Derivative of Theta Plus A Sine Theta Equals 0.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fay, Temple H.; O'Neal, Elizabeth A.

1985-01-01

The authors draw together a variety of facts concerning a nonlinear differential equation and compare the exact solution with approximate solutions. Then they provide an expository introduction to the elliptic sine function suitable for presentation in undergraduate courses on differential equations. (MNS)
The Power of Fiction: Reading Stories in Abnormal Psychology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Janit, Adrian S.; Hammock, Georgina S.; Richardson, Deborah S.

2011-01-01

We compared the instructional efficacy of a narrative text (i.e., a story) and an expository text (i.e., a textbook excerpt). Students enrolled in Abnormal Psychology classes read about the disorder, "dissociative fugue" from a story, a textbook, or both. The story contained literary elements that increased transportation into the story…
Age Differences in Learning from Text: The Effects of Content Preexposure on Reading

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Noh, Soo Rim; Shake, Matthew C.; Parisi, Jeanine M.; Joncich, Adam D.; Morrow, Daniel G.; Stine-Morrow, Elizabeth A. L.

2007-01-01

This study investigated age differences in the way in which attentional resources are allocated to expository text and whether these differences are moderated by content preexposure. The organization of the preexposure materials was manipulated to test the hypothesis that a change in organization across two presentations would evoke more…
Effects of the Integrated Online Advance Organizer Teaching Materials on Students' Science Achievement and Attitude

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Korur, Fikret; Toker, Sacip; Eryilmaz, Ali

2016-01-01

This two-group quasi-experimental study investigated the effects of the Online Advance Organizer Concept Teaching Material (ONACOM) integrated with inquiry teaching and expository teaching methods. Grade 7 students' posttest performances on the light unit achievement and light unit attitude tests controlled for gender, previous semester science…
Beyond Motivation: Exploring Mathematical Modeling as a Context for Deepening Students' Understandings of Curricular Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zbiek, Rose Mary; Conner, Annamarie

2006-01-01

Views of mathematical modeling in empirical, expository, and curricular references typically capture a relationship between real-world phenomena and mathematical ideas from the perspective that competence in mathematical modeling is a clear goal of the mathematics curriculum. However, we work within a curricular context in which mathematical…
The High School Mathematics Library. Seventh Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schaaf, William L.

This document was designed as a guide for the selection of library books for high school students of all levels of ability. It also contains materials dealing with the professional interests of students and teachers involved with mathematics in junior and community colleges. The material is categorized into: (1) Expository Mathematics; (2)…
Narrative vs. Expository Texts. Water in Africa.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garrett, Carly Sporer

The Water in Africa Project was realized over a 2-year period by a team of Peace Corps volunteers. As part of an expanded, detailed design, resources were collected from over 90 volunteers serving in African countries, photos and stories were prepared, and standards-based learning units were created for K-12 students. This unit, "Narrative…

Helping Students Succeed within Secondary-Level STEM Content: Using the "T" in STEM to Improve Literacy Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kennedy, Michael J.; Wexler, Jade

2013-01-01

Literacy and other content-specific demands presented within science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) coursework can overwhelm all students and especially students with learning challenges. Although STEM content is often complex in itself (e.g., numerous multisyllabic words, lengthy expository texts, abstract concepts), some…
The Usefulness of a Suggested Paradigm for Improving Paragraph Coherence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Siu, Fiona Kwai-peng

2016-01-01

This study aims to explore the effectiveness of a paradigm to teach native Cantonese-speaking university students the hierarchical structure of expository prose to improve paragraph coherence. Most of the diagnostic argumentative essays the participants in this study wrote in the course were incoherent, failing to meet readers' expectation of…
Predictions and the Limiting Effects of Prequestions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shanahan, Timothy

A study examined the effects of teacher questioning and student prediction (purpose-setting procedures) upon the reading comprehension of 188 students in grades 3 through 6. Thirty-two constructed-answer questions were developed for use with an article about kangaroos, written in an expository style and approximately 900 words in length. Half of…
Read-Aloud Accommodations, Expository Text, and Adolescents with Learning Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meyer, Nancy K.; Bouck, Emily C.

2017-01-01

Adolescents with learning disabilities in reading have difficulties with reading and understanding difficult gradelevel curricular material. One frequently used method of support is using read-aloud accommodations, which can be live read-alouds or text-to-speech (TTS) read-alouds. A single case alternating treatment design was used to examine the…
Problem-Based Learning and Creative Instructional Approaches for Laboratory Exercises in Introductory Crop Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Teplitski, Max; McMahon, Margaret J.

2006-01-01

The implementation of problem-based learning (PBL) and other inquiry-driven educational techniques is often resisted by both faculty and students, who may not be comfortable with this learning/instructional style. We present here a hybrid approach, which combines elements of expository education with inquiry-driven laboratory exercises and…
The Influence of National Culture toward Learner Interaction: Shanghai TV University and Wawasan Open University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bing, Wu; Ai-Ping, Teoh

2008-01-01

The authors conducted a comparative analysis to examine learners' interaction in the Web-based learning environment of 2 distance education institutions. The interaction was critically analyzed based on social, procedural, expository, explanatory, and cognitive dimensions, across 7 categories of exchanges between course coordinator to groups,…
Applying Silvia's Model of Interest to Academic Text: Is There a Third Appraisal?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Connelly, Daniel A.

2011-01-01

Recent research, treating interest as an emotion, indicates the cognitive appraisals of novelty-complexity and coping potential predict interest. This appraisal-based model of interest has not yet been applied to educational research. The present study evaluated the significance of the model regarding the activity of reading expository,…
James-Stein Estimation. Program Statistics Research, Technical Report No. 89-86.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brandwein, Ann Cohen; Strawderman, William E.

This paper presents an expository development of James-Stein estimation with substantial emphasis on exact results for nonnormal location models. The themes of the paper are: (1) the improvement possible over the best invariant estimator via shrinkage estimation is not surprising but expected from a variety of perspectives; (2) the amount of…
Educating Geographers in Spain: Geography Teaching Renewal by Implementing the European Higher Education Area

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Miguel González, Rafael; de Lázaro y Torres, Maria Luisa

2016-01-01

This article discusses the current state of the geography discipline in Spanish Universities after putting into action the European Higher Education Area. After decades of geography teaching, following theoretical and expository discourse models, the so-called "Bologna Process" has been a great opportunity to reflect what geography…
Differentiation of black writing ink on paper using luminescence lifetime by time-resolved luminescence spectroscopy.

PubMed

Suzuki, Mototsugu; Akiba, Norimitsu; Kurosawa, Kenji; Akao, Yoshinori; Higashikawa, Yoshiyasu

2017-10-01

The time-resolved luminescence spectra and the lifetimes of eighteen black writing inks were measured to differentiate pen ink on altered documents. The spectra and lifetimes depended on the samples. About half of the samples only exhibited short-lived luminescence components on the nanosecond time scale. On the other hand, the other samples exhibited short- and long-lived components on the microsecond time scale. The samples could be classified into fifteen groups based on the luminescence spectra and dynamics. Therefore, luminescence lifetime can be used for the differentiation of writing inks, and luminescence lifetime imaging can be applied for the examination of altered documents. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Teaching Writing to Middle School Students in Portugal and in Brazil: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Veiga Simão, Ana Margarida; Malpique, Anabela Abreu; Frison, Lourdes Maria Bragagnolo; Marques, André

2016-01-01

Learning how to write is a challenging process, typically developed in schools. Teachers' practices in teaching writing, however, have been under researched. The aim of this study was to survey a sample of teachers from Portugal (n = 96) and Brazil (n = 99) about their practices for and perceptions about writing instruction. Teachers reported on…
Associated Effects of Automated Essay Evaluation Software on Growth in Writing Quality for Students with and without Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilson, Joshua

2017-01-01

The present study examined growth in writing quality associated with feedback provided by an automated essay evaluation system called PEG Writing. Equal numbers of students with disabilities (SWD) and typically-developing students (TD) matched on prior writing achievement were sampled (n = 1196 total). Data from a subsample of students (n = 655)…
Validity of Scores for a Developmental Writing Scale Based on Automated Scoring

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Attali, Yigal; Powers, Donald

2009-01-01

A developmental writing scale for timed essay-writing performance was created on the basis of automatically computed indicators of writing fluency, word choice, and conventions of standard written English. In a large-scale data collection effort that involved a national sample of more than 12,000 students from 4th, 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th grade,…
Examining the impact of the Guided Constructivist teaching method on students' misconceptions about concepts of Newtonian physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibrahim, Hyatt Abdelhaleem

The effect of Guided Constructivism (Interactivity-Based Learning Environment) and Traditional Expository instructional methods on students' misconceptions about concepts of Newtonian Physics was investigated. Four groups of 79 of University of Central Florida students enrolled in Physics 2048 participated in the study. A quasi-experimental design of nonrandomized, nonequivalent control and experimental groups was employed. The experimental group was exposed to the Guided Constructivist teaching method, while the control group was taught using the Traditional Expository teaching approach. The data collection instruments included the Force Concept Inventory Test (FCI), the Mechanics Baseline Test (MBT), and the Maryland Physics Expectation Survey (MPEX). The Guided Constructivist group had significantly higher means than the Traditional Expository group on the criterion variables of: (1) conceptions of Newtonian Physics, (2) achievement in Newtonian Physics, and (3) beliefs about the content of Physics knowledge, beliefs about the role of Mathematics in learning Physics, and overall beliefs about learning/teaching/appropriate roles of learners and teachers/nature of Physics. Further, significant relationships were found between (1) achievement, conceptual structures, beliefs about the content of Physics knowledge, and beliefs about the role of Mathematics in learning Physics; (2) changes in misconceptions about the physical phenomena, and changes in beliefs about the content of Physics knowledge. No statistically significant difference was found between the two teaching methods on achievement of males and females. These findings suggest that differences in conceptual learning due to the nature of the teaching method used exist. Furthermore, greater conceptual learning is fostered when teachers use interactivity-based teaching strategies to train students to link everyday experience in the real physical world to formal school concepts. The moderate effect size and power of the study suggest that the effect may not be subtle, but reliable. Physics teachers can use these results to inform their decisions about structuring learning environment when conceptual learning is important.
Singaporean Kindergartners' Phonological Awareness and English Writing Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dixon, L. Quentin

2011-01-01

This article describes the phonological awareness and English writing skills among a sample of 297 Singaporean kindergarten children, stratified by ethnicity (Chinese, Malay, and Indian), and examines the relationship between oral language and writing skills in this multilingual population. Overall, Singaporean kindergartners, nearly all of whom…
75 FR 22418 - FHA TOTAL Mortgage Scorecard

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-04-28

... and requirements to provide reports and loan samples at FHA's request, and appeals in writing for loss... requirements to provide reports and loan samples at FHA's request, and appeals in writing for loss of privilege... INFORMATION CONTACT: Leroy McKinney, Jr., Reports Management Officer, QDAM, Department of Housing and Urban...
Why Sketching May Aid Learning From Science Texts: Contrasting Sketching With Written Explanations.

PubMed

Scheiter, Katharina; Schleinschok, Katrin; Ainsworth, Shaaron

2017-10-01

The goal of this study was to explore two accounts for why sketching during learning from text is helpful: (1) sketching acts like other constructive strategies such as self-explanation because it helps learners to identify relevant information and generate inferences; or (2) that in addition to these general effects, sketching has more specific benefits due to the pictorial representation that is constructed. Seventy-three seventh-graders (32 girls, M = 12.82 years) were first taught how to either create sketches or self-explain while studying science texts. During a subsequent learning phase, all students were asked to read an expository text about the greenhouse effect. Finally, they were asked to write down everything they remembered and then answer transfer questions. Strategy quality during learning was assessed as the number of key concepts that had either been sketched or mentioned in the self-explanations. The results showed that at an overall performance level there were only marginal group differences. However, a more in-depth analysis revealed that whereas no group differences emerged for students implementing either strategy poorly, the sketching group clearly outperformed the self-explanation group for students who applied the strategies with higher quality. Furthermore, higher sketching quality was strongly related to better learning outcomes. Thus, the study's results are more in line with the second account: Sketching can have a beneficial effect on learning above and beyond generating written explanations; at least, if well deployed. Copyright © 2017 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.
Analysis of creative mathematic thinking ability in problem based learning model based on self-regulation learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Munahefi, D. N.; Waluya, S. B.; Rochmad

2018-03-01

The purpose of this research identified the effectiveness of Problem Based Learning (PBL) models based on Self Regulation Leaning (SRL) on the ability of mathematical creative thinking and analyzed the ability of mathematical creative thinking of high school students in solving mathematical problems. The population of this study was students of grade X SMA N 3 Klaten. The research method used in this research was sequential explanatory. Quantitative stages with simple random sampling technique, where two classes were selected randomly as experimental class was taught with the PBL model based on SRL and control class was taught with expository model. The selection of samples at the qualitative stage was non-probability sampling technique in which each selected 3 students were high, medium, and low academic levels. PBL model with SRL approach effectived to students’ mathematical creative thinking ability. The ability of mathematical creative thinking of low academic level students with PBL model approach of SRL were achieving the aspect of fluency and flexibility. Students of academic level were achieving fluency and flexibility aspects well. But the originality of students at the academic level was not yet well structured. Students of high academic level could reach the aspect of originality.
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.
Do Children Who Read More Books Know "What is Good Writing" Better Than Children Who Read Less? A Comparison Between Grade Levels and SES Groups

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Korat, Ofra; Schiff, Rachel

2005-01-01

We investigated how SES, grade level, and book reading experiences are related to children's writing self-efficacy as well as to their knowledge of "good writing" and "writing difficulties." The sample included 199 middle-high (HSES) and low (LSES) SES children (63 second graders, 67 fourth graders, and 69 sixth graders).…

Procedures for Obtaining and Analyzing Writing Samples of School-Age Children and Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Price, Johanna R.; Jackson, Sandra C.

2015-01-01

Purpose: Many students' writing skills are below grade-level expectations, and students with oral language difficulties are at particular risk for writing difficulties. Speech-language pathologists' (SLPs') expertise in language applies to both the oral and written modalities, yet evidence suggests that SLPs' confidence regarding writing…
Apprehension and Effective Writing in the Principalship.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Podsen, India J.

1991-01-01

A random sample of 305 principals was drawn from the membership roosters of 4 Principal Centers. Responses from 100 principals (33 percent) show that there is a relationship between writing apprehension level on performance of job writing skills. Advises school administrators to take courses in current written communication practices. (six…
Unconventional Word Segmentation in Emerging Bilingual Students' Writing: A Longitudinal Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sparrow, Wendy

2014-01-01

This study explores cross-language and longitudinal patterns in unconventional word segmentation in 25 emerging bilingual students' (Spanish/English) writing from first through third grade. Spanish and English writing samples were collected annually and analyzed for two basic types of unconventional word segmentation: hyposegmentation, in…
Teaching Technical Report Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

De Pasquale, Joseph A.

1977-01-01

A high school electronics teacher describes the integration of technical report writing in the electronics program for trade and industrial students. He notes that the report writing rather than just recording data seemed to improve student laboratory experience but further improvements in the program are needed. A sample lab report is included.…
Incorporating Writing into the Science Curriculum: A Sample Activity.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Totten, Samuel; Tinnin, Claire

1988-01-01

Presents a lesson on introducing writing into the science curriculum by using an experiment to illustrate the detrimental effect of tobacco smoke on human lungs. Outlines the materials, procedures, a summary of the project, extension activities, and additional information about the writing process. Two handout sheets are included. (RT)
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.
Certification Testing Methodology for Composite Structure. Volume 2. Methodology Development

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-10-01

parameter, sample size and fa- tigue test duration. The required input are 1. Residual strength Weibull shape parameter ( ALPR ) 2. Fatigue life Weibull shape...INPUT STRENGTH ALPHA’) READ(*,*) ALPR ALPRI = 1.O/ ALPR WRITE(*, 2) 2 FORMAT( 2X, ’PLEASE INPUT LIFE ALPHA’) READ(*,*) ALPL ALPLI - 1.0/ALPL WRITE(*, 3...3 FORMAT(2X,’PLEASE INPUT SAMPLE SIZE’) READ(*,*) N AN - N WRITE(*,4) 4 FORMAT(2X,’PLEASE INPUT TEST DURATION’) READ(*,*) T RALP - ALPL/ ALPR ARGR - 1
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.
Examining the Association between Language, Expository Discourse and Offending Behaviour: An Investigation of Direction, Strength and Independence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hopkins, Thomas; Clegg, Judy; Stackhouse, Joy

2018-01-01

Background: A high prevalence of Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) is reported in the population of Young Offenders (YO). However, little is known about the extent of the association between language and offending behaviour relative to social disadvantage, education attendance and non-verbal intelligence (IQ), and neither has this association…
The Effects of Modality, Information Type, and Language Experience on Recall by Foreign Language Learners of Spanish.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mecartty, Frances H.

2001-01-01

Investigated the effects of modality, information type, and language experience on recall by foreign language learners of Spanish. Fifty-four intermediate and advanced level university students participated in the study by reading and listening to an expository passage, and then performing a recall task. The protocols were then statistically…
Psyching Out the Science Teacher: Student Motivation, Perceived Teacher Goals and Study Strategies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nolen, Susan Bobbitt; Haladyna, Thomas M.

This paper describes a model of the influence of personal and environmental factors on students' valuing of two deep-processing strategies for studying expository texts. In the model, task orientation (a form of intrinsic motivation in which learning and understanding are the major goals) interacts with perceptions of the teacher's goals to…
The Use of Narrative to Promote Primary School Children's Understanding of Evolution

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Browning, Emma; Hohenstein, Jill

2015-01-01

This study explores learning about evolution when information is presented in either a narrative or an expository text (ET). Narratives engage the imagination, and consequently may allow children to overcome conceptual constraints that make evolution difficult to comprehend. Participants were 16 Year One, 21 Year Two and 25 Year Three pupils from…
Two Approaches of Studying Singularity of Projective Conics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Broyles, Chris; Muller, Lars; Tikoo, Mohan; Wang, Haohao

2010-01-01

The singularity of a projective conic can be determined via the associated matrix to the implicit equation of the projective conic. In this expository article, we will first derive a known result for determining the singularity of a projective conic via the associated matrix. Then we will introduce the concepts of [mu]-basis of the parametric…
Stimulating Situational Interest and Student Questioning through Three Types of Historical Introductory Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Logtenberg, Albert; van Boxtel, Carla; van Hout-Wolters, Bernadette

2011-01-01

This study investigates questions students ask related to an introductory text about a new topic in the history classroom. The effects of a narrative, problematizing, and expository introductory text on the situational interest of students and the number and type of student-generated questions, are compared. Participants are 174 students in higher…
The Influence of Question Type, Text Availability, Answer Confidence and Language Background on Student Comprehension of an Expository Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marmolejo-Ramos, Fernando; Miller, Julia; Habel, Chad

2014-01-01

Reading is an essential activity for learning at university, but lecturers are not always experienced in setting appropriate questions to test understanding of texts. In other words, their assessments may not be "constructively aligned" with the learning outcomes they hope their students to exhibit. In examination conditions, questions…
Reform in a General Chemistry Laboratory: How Do Students Experience Change in the Instructional Approach?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chopra, I.; O'Connor, J.; Pancho, R.; Chrzanowski, M.; Sandi-Urena, S.

2017-01-01

This qualitative study investigated the experience of a cohort of students exposed consecutively to two substantially different environments in their General Chemistry Laboratory programme. To this end, the first semester in a traditional expository programme was followed by a semester in a cooperative, problem-based, multi-week format. The focus…
Stochastic Estimation via Polynomial Chaos

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-10-01

AFRL-RW-EG-TR-2015-108 Stochastic Estimation via Polynomial Chaos Douglas V. Nance Air Force Research...COVERED (From - To) 20-04-2015 – 07-08-2015 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER Stochastic Estimation via Polynomial Chaos ...This expository report discusses fundamental aspects of the polynomial chaos method for representing the properties of second order stochastic
Enhancing Summarization Skills Using Twin Texts: Instruction in Narrative and Expository Text Structures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Furtado, Leena; Johnson, Lisa

2010-01-01

This action-research case study endeavors to enhance the summarization skills of first grade students who are reading at or above the third grade level during the first trimester of the academic school year. Students read "twin text" sources, meaning, fiction and nonfiction literary selections focusing on a common theme to help identify…
What Is the Basis for Self-Assessment of Comprehension When Reading Mathematical Expository Texts?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Österholm, Magnus

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to characterize students' self-assessments when reading mathematical texts, in particular regarding what students use as a basis for evaluations of their own reading comprehension. A total of 91 students read two mathematical texts, and for each text, they performed a self-assessment of their comprehension and…
Meta-Analysis of Inquiry-Based Learning: Effects of Guidance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lazonder, Ard W.; Harmsen, Ruth

2016-01-01

Research has consistently shown that inquiry-based learning can be more effective than other, more expository instructional approaches as long as students are supported adequately. But what type of guidance is adequate, and for whom? These questions are difficult to answer as most previous research has only focused on one type of guidance and one…

The Effects of Syntactic and Lexical Complexity on the Comprehension of Elementary Science Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arya, Diana J.; Hiebert, Elfrieda H.; Pearson, P. David

2011-01-01

In this study we examined the effects of syntactic and lexical complexity on third-grade students' comprehension of science texts. A total of 16 expository texts were designed to represent systematic differences in levels of syntactic and lexical complexity across four science-related topics ("Tree Frogs, Soil, Jelly Beans and…
Students, Tasks and Emotions: Identifying the Contribution of Emotions to Students' Reading of Popular Culture and Popular Science Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ainley, Mary; Corrigan, Matthew; Richardson, Nicholas

2005-01-01

In this investigation young adolescent students (N=181) engaged in an interactive computer reading task. The aim was to explore sequences of students' affective responses to expository texts by identifying their character, intensity and their relationship with further text processing. Affective responses were measured using probes consisting of…
Close Analysis of Texts with Structure (CATS): An Intervention to Teach Reading Comprehension to At-Risk Second Graders

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Joanna P.; Kao, Jenny C.; Pao, Lisa S.; Ordynans, Jill G.; Atkins, J. Grant; Cheng, Rong; DeBonis, Daniel

2016-01-01

We developed and evaluated an intervention that teaches reading comprehension via expository text structure training to second graders in urban public schools at risk for academic failure. Fifty lessons on 5 basic text structures (sequence, comparison, causation, description, and problem-solution) were embedded in a social studies curriculum that…
Reprint Series: Nature and History of Pi. RS-6.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schaaf, William L., Ed.

This is one in a series of SMSG supplementary and enrichment pamphlets for high school students. This series makes available expository articles which appeared in a variety of mathematical periodicals. Topics covered include: (1) the history of the number pi; (2) what's new about pi; (3) the number pi; (4) pi and probability; and (5) from the…
Reprint Series: Computation of Pi. RS-7.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schaaf, William L., Ed.

This is one in a series of SMSG supplementary and enrichment pamphlets for high school students. This series makes available expository articles which appeared in a variety of mathematical periodicals. Topics covered include: (1) the latest about pi; (2) a series useful in the computation of pi; (3) an ENIAC determination of pi and e to more than…
Evaluating Learning Outcomes in Introductory Chemistry Using Virtual Laboratories to Support Inquiry Based Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mallory, Cecile R.

2012-01-01

In the U.S., future economic viability is being challenged by an increasing inability to replace retiring engineers and scientists through the year 2020 due to declines in learner motivation and proficiency in science. The expository laboratory appears to be linked with non-engagement and is one possible contributing factor to this problem…
Summer Reading: Predicting Adolescent Word Learning from Aptitude, Time Spent Reading, and Text Type

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawrence, Joshua Fahey

2009-01-01

Mostly low-income African American and Hispanic teens (N = 192) were tested in (a) passage comprehension, (b) vocabulary ability, (c) cloze task performance, and (d) listening comprehension in the spring and vocabulary in the fall. Students were surveyed about reading (a) narrative, (b) expository, (c) teen culture, and (d) online texts.…
The Impact of Strategy Instruction and Timing of Estimates on Low and High Working-Memory Capacity Readers' Absolute Monitoring Accuracy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Linderholm, Tracy; Zhao, Qin

2008-01-01

Working-memory capacity, strategy instruction, and timing of estimates were investigated for their effects on absolute monitoring accuracy, which is the difference between estimated and actual reading comprehension test performance. Participants read two expository texts under one of two randomly assigned reading strategy instruction conditions…
Expository Content Area Texts, Cognitive Style and Gender: Their Effects on Reading Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hite, Clare E.

2004-01-01

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if cognitive style (field dependence/independence [FD/I]) and gender interact with passage content to affect reading comprehension. Research on FD/I and its relationship to reading-related and other academic tasks served as the theoretical and empirical basis for the study. While most of the…
The Interplay between Text-Based Vocabulary Size and Reading Comprehension of Turkish EFL Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Güngör, Fatih; Yayli, Demet

2016-01-01

Reading is an indispensable skill for learners who desire success throughout their academic lives, and vocabulary knowledge is a sine qua non companion of reading comprehension. Despite being inextricably related entities, very little has been written about the necessary vocabulary coverage to understand an expository text and its equivalent in…
Do Focused Self-Explanation Prompts Overcome Seductive Details? A Multimedia Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Zhe; Adesope, Olusola

2017-01-01

Research on the seductive details effect on reading expository texts in multimedia learning environments has grown over the past few decades. However, less is known when seductive details are encountered in learning through worked-examples to solve problems. Thus, it is necessary to examine the seductive details effect when solving problems in a…
Text Difficulty Affects Metacomprehension Accuracy and Knowledge Test Performance in Text Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vössing, J.; Stamov-Roßnagel, C.; Heinitz, K.

2017-01-01

Metacomprehension as reflected in judgements of one's learning is crucial for self-regulated study, yet their accuracy is often low. We investigated text difficulty as a constraint on metacomprehension accuracy in text learning. A total of 235 participants studied a 10-section expository text and afterwards took a knowledge test. They made…
The Contribution of Knowledge about Anaphors, Organisational Signals and Refutations to Reading Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

García, J. Ricardo; Bustos, Andrea; Sánchez, Emilio

2015-01-01

Expository texts contain rhetorical devices that help readers to connect text ideas (within a text and with prior knowledge) and to monitor reading. Rhetorical competence addresses readers' skill in detecting, understanding and using these devices. We examined the contribution of rhetorical competence to reading comprehension on two groups of 11-…
Teaching Students Who Struggle with Learning to Think before, while, and after Reading: Effects of Self-Regulated Strategy Development Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mason, Linda H.

2013-01-01

Explicit strategy instruction combined with student-directed self-regulation in conjunction with cognitive strategies has proven effective in supporting low-achieving students' reading comprehension. Experts have extended 1 such approach, self-regulated strategy development (SRSD) for the expository reading comprehension Think before reading,…
Using Graphic Organizers to Teach Content Area Material to Students with Learning Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dexter, Douglas D.

2012-01-01

A pretest-posttest comparison group design was used to investigate the effects of a semantic mapping lesson plus visual display versus a semantic mapping lesson alone on adolescents' with learning disabilities (LD) ability to gain and maintain factual knowledge from expository social studies material. In addition, a posttest only comparison group…
A Review and Introduction to Higher Education Price Response Studies. Working Paper Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chisholm, Mark; Cohen, Bethaviva

Background information needed to understand the literature on the impact of price on college attendance (i.e. price-response literature) is provided. After briefly introducing price theory and its use in demand studies in higher education, the major expository articles are reviewed, and major analytical methods used by researchers are examined.…
Instructional Effectiveness of a Computer-Supported Program for Teaching Reading Comprehension Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ponce, Hector R.; Lopez, Mario J.; Mayer, Richard E.

2012-01-01

This article examines the effectiveness of a computer-based instructional program (e-PELS) aimed at direct instruction in a collection of reading comprehension strategies. In e-PELS, students learn to highlight and outline expository passages based on various types of text structures (such as comparison or cause-and-effect) as well as to…
Family Planning: Its Impact on the Health of Women and Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maine, Deborah

This document explores risks to the health and lives of women and children that can be avoided or reduced by family planning. Emphasis throughout is on case studies and statistics from developing nations. Data are presented in expository and chart form. Information is presented in four chapters. Chapter I, Child Health and Family Planning,…
The Relations among Summarizing Instruction, Support for Student Choice, Reading Engagement and Expository Text Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Littlefield, Amy Root

2011-01-01

Research on early adolescence reveals significant declines in intrinsic motivation for reading and points out the need for metacognitive strategy use among middle school students. Research indicates that explicit instruction involving motivation and metacognitive support for reading strategy use in the context of a discipline is an efficient and…
Does Rhetorical Competence Moderate the Effect of Rhetorical Devices on the Comprehension of Expository Texts beyond General Comprehension Skills?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sánchez, Emilio; García, J. Ricardo; Bustos, Andrea

2017-01-01

Many studies have demonstrated the facilitating role of rhetorical devices in text comprehension, but there are also studies where rhetorical devices have not shown such effect. The present study sets out to explore whether readers' knowledge of rhetorical devices (that is, rhetorical competence) moderates their effectiveness beyond general…

Understanding Fluorescence Measurements through a Guided-Inquiry and Discovery Experiment in Advanced Analytical Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilczek-Vera, Grazyna; Salin, Eric Dunbar

2011-01-01

An experiment on fluorescence spectroscopy suitable for an advanced analytical laboratory is presented. Its conceptual development used a combination of the expository and discovery styles. The "learn-as-you-go" and direct "hands-on" methodology applied ensures an active role for a student in the process of visualization and discovery of concepts.…
How Does the Type of Task Influence the Performance and Social Regulation of Collaborative Learning?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Acuña, Santiago Roger; López-Aymes, Gabriela; Acuña-Castillo, Silvia T.

2018-01-01

In this paper we analyze the effects of the type of collaborative task (elaboration of concept map vs elaboration of expository summary) on the performance and on the level of collaboration achieved by Mexican university students in the multimedia learning of a social sciences content (Communication Psychology). Likewise, the processes of social…
Have Recommended Book Lists Changed to Reflect Current Expectations for Informational Text in K-3 Classrooms?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dreher, Mariam Jean; Kletzien, Sharon B.

2016-01-01

Despite both longstanding and recent calls for more informational text in K-3 classrooms, research indicates that narrative text remains in the majority for read alouds, classroom libraries, and instruction, thus limiting children's opportunity to experience the demands of expository text. Because national associations' recommended book lists are…
Text Cohesion and Comprehension: A Comparison of Prose Analysis Systems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Varnhagen, Connie K.; Goldman, Susan R.

To test three specific hypotheses about recall as a function of four categories of logical relations, a study was done to determine whether logical relations systems of prose analysis can be used to predict recall. Two descriptive passages of naturally occurring expository prose were used. Each text was parsed into 45 statements, consisting of…
Recall and Intervening Mental Activities Involved in Listening to Expository Information.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aaronson, Shirley

A study was conducted to examine the various mental processes that occur during listening. Fifteen volunteers at an eastern United States college listened to a 14-minute taped lecture. The participants pressed a button, connected to a light hidden from their view, each time their minds wandered from the specifics of the lecture. They were then…
A Window into Bilingual Reading: The Bilingual Reading Practices of Fourth-Grade, Mexican American Children Who Are Emergent Bilinguals

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

García, Georgia Earnest; Godina, Heriberto

2017-01-01

A qualitative think-aloud study, informed by social literacies and holistic bilingual perspectives, was conducted to examine how six emergent bilingual, Mexican American, fourth graders approached, interacted with, and comprehended narrative and expository texts in Spanish and English. The children had strong Spanish reading test scores, but…
Error Identification, Labeling, and Correction in Written Business Communication

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Quible, Zane K.

2004-01-01

This article used a writing sample that contained 27 sentence-level errors of the type found by corporate America to be annoying and bothersome. Five categories of errors were included in the sample: grammar, punctuation, spelling, writing style, and business communication concepts. Students in a written business communication course were asked…
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…
Colorado Student Assessment Program: 2001 Released Passages, Items, and Prompts. Grade 4 Reading and Writing, Grade 4 Lectura y Escritura, Grade 5 Mathematics and Reading, Grade 6 Reading, Grade 7 Reading and Writing, Grade 8 Mathematics, Reading and Science, Grade 9 Reading, and Grade 10 Mathematics and Reading and Writing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Colorado State Dept. of Education, Denver.

This document contains released reading comprehension passages, test items, and writing prompts from the Colorado Student Assessment Program for 2001. The sample questions and prompts are included without answers or examples of student responses. Test materials are included for: (1) Grade 4 Reading and Writing; (2) Grade 4 Lectura y Escritura…
The influence of the guided constructivist instructional model on attitudes toward secondary-level physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dallal, Kamel Salim

The effect of guided constructivism (bridging analogies) and expository instructional methods on the attitudes of students toward physics was investigated. A nonrandomize nonequivalent pretest-posttest control group quasi- experimental design was employed. The sample consisted of 127 eleventh-grade and twelfth-grade students from five selected classes from two private high schools in Beirut, Lebanon. Two intact classes were assigned to the control group and three classes to the experimental group. The experimental group was exposed to the bridging analogies instructional method, and the control group was taught using the traditional expository method. A Likert-type instrument, the Physics Attitude Index, was used to measure attitudes on four dimensions. The 40-item Physics Attitude Index (PAI) is a questionnaire using a five response scale. Performance in the assigned topics in physics, cognitive developmental levels, and gender were used as covariants and to examine interaction effects. The experimental groups had significantly higher means than the control groups on all criterion variables. A significant interaction was found between groups and performance levels in the following cases: (a) criterion variable of attitude toward physics; (b) views toward physics learning; and (c) enjoyment of physics. This result indicated that the low performing students among the experimental group had greater gain in attitude toward physics than the high performing students in same group. On the other hand, no interaction occurred between treatment groups and gender, which shows that in this study gender has no significant effect on attitude toward physics. Significant interactions between the treatment groups and cognitive levels were found on the criterion variable of beliefs about physics as a process of learning and enjoyment of physics. In both cases, the difference between the group means were widely different among students at the concrete and transitional levels, but narrowly different among students at the formal level.
Reliability and Generalizability of Ratings of Compositions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lehmann, Rainer H.

A total of 1,487 eleventh grade students from the Hamburg (West Germany) school system were asked to complete four writing assignments used in an International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) study of writing assessment. In analyzing the writing samples, the study focused on: (1) between-rater effects; (2)…
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…
Looking beyond Undergraduates' Attitude about a University-Wide Writing Requirement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Plata, Maximino

2008-01-01

A sample of 263 junior and senior undergraduates (101 males, 162 females) participated in a study to determine relationships between their agreement/disagreement about a university-wide writing competency graduation requirement and (1) level of writing capability as measured by the Texas Higher Education Assessment (THEA) test, (2) attitudes …
Emotional Disclosure through Writing or Speaking Modulates Latent Epstein-Barr Virus Antibody Titers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Esterling, Brian A.; And Others

1994-01-01

Healthy Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) seropositive undergraduates (n=57) completed personality inventory, provided blood samples, and were randomly assigned to write/talk about stressful events, or to write about trivial events. Those assigned to verbal/stressful condition had significantly lower EBV antibody titers (suggesting better cellular immune…
Developing Academic Identities: Persuasive Writing as a Tool to Strengthen Emergent Academic Identities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carbone, Paula M.; Orellana, Marjorie Faulstich

2010-01-01

This paper examines how writing samples produced by middle school students reveal their emerging academic identities through their rhetorical choices in writing. Analyses of two texts produced by each student revealed students' implicit understandings of the requirements of academic voice. Through comparisons of each student's texts, strategies…
Curriculum-Based Measures of Writing for High School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diercks-Gransee, Barbara; Weissenburger, Jacalyn Wright; Johnson, Cindy L.; Christensen, Paul

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether technically adequate curriculum-based measures of writing could be identified for use with high school students. The participants included 10th-grade general and special education students from two public school districts in Wisconsin. Students (n = 82) completed two narrative writing samples in…
Writing Motivation of Students with Language Impairments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brouwer, Kyle L.

2012-01-01

This study compared the writing motivation of students with language impairments (LI) and their typically developing (TD) peers. For the study 272 students (33 students with language impairments, 242 TD peers) aged 8-10 years, in 11 elementary schools, were sampled. The two groups completed self-report measures of writing motivation and 20…
Assessing the Overall Value of an Online Writing Community

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mohapatra, Sanjay; Mohanty, Sukriti

2017-01-01

The advent of internet has brought in changes to many existing stable business models. With the technological shift, the concept of community writing has undergone several changes. Using a sample of 181 participants, it was found that online community, of late, has been greatly impacted by technology. Community writing involves amalgamation of…
On the Contribution of Kindergarten Writing to Grade 1 Literacy: A Longitudinal Study in Hebrew.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shatil, Evelyn; Share, David L.; Levin, Iris

2000-01-01

This longitudinal study examined the relationship between kindergarten word writing and Grade 1 literacy in a large sample of Israeli children. Kindergarten writing significantly predicted variance in all three measures of Grade 1 literacy, even after controlling for intelligence. Also examined the role of alphabetic skills and socioliteracy…
Tier 3 Specialized Writing Instruction for Students with Dyslexia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berninger, Virginia W.; Winn, William D.; Stock, Patricia; Abbott, Robert D.; Eschen, Kate; Lin, Shin-Ju; Garcia, Noelia; Anderson-Youngstrom, Marci; Murphy, Heather; Lovitt, Dan; Trivedi, Pamala; Jones, Janine; Amtmann, Dagmar; Nagy, William

2008-01-01

Two instructional experiments used randomized, controlled designs to evaluate the effectiveness of writing instruction for students with carefully diagnosed dyslexia, which is both an oral reading and writing disorder, characterized by impaired "word" decoding, reading, and spelling. In Study 1 (4th to 6th grade sample and 7th to 9th grade…

Can We Prepare Effective Writing Teachers for Academically Diverse Classrooms?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Uyar, Yusuf

2016-01-01

This study examines whether preservice teachers, who provide writing instruction in native language education, are ready to teach students with different learning needs effectively. This study used a survey research design and qualitative data collection tools. An interview form and writing samples from students in the same class with different…
Problem-Based Learning Pedagogy Fosters Students' Critical Thinking about Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kumar, Rita; Refaei, Brenda

2017-01-01

Convinced of the power of PBL to promote students' critical thinking as demonstrated by its application across disciplines, we designed a series of problems for students in a second-year writing course. We collected samples of their writing before and after implementation of the problems. We were concerned about whether PBL pedagogy would…
Assessing Student Writing on Tablets

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Laurie Laughlin; Orr, Aline; Kong, Xiaojing; Lin, Chow-Hong

2015-01-01

There is increasing expectation that schools should be able to use tablets for a range of instructional and assessment purposes. This article considers the comparability of student writing on tablets and laptops to ensure that writing assessment is conducted in a way that is fair to all students. Data were collected from a sample of 826 students…
The Nevada Proficiency Examination Program: Evaluating the Writing Samples.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howard, Edward H.

Writing tests are part of the mandated statewide proficiency examination in Nevada. The ninth-grade screening test and the eleventh-grade diploma-certifying test require that a student write a paragraph and a business letter, each on an assigned topic and each at an acceptable level of proficiency. Pilot tests, extended discussion, and statistical…
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
Towards an understanding of dimensions, predictors, and gender gap in written composition

PubMed Central

Kim, Young-Suk; Al Otaiba, Stephanie; Wanzek, Jeanne; Gatlin, Brandy

2014-01-01

We had three aims in the present study: (1) to examine the dimensionality of various evaluative approaches to scoring writing samples (e.g., quality, productivity, and curriculum based writing [CBM]) , (2) to investigate unique language and cognitive predictors of the identified dimensions, and (3) to examine gender gap in the identified dimensions of writing. These questions were addressed using data from second and third grade students (N = 494). Data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis and multilevel modeling. Results showed that writing quality, productivity, and CBM scoring were dissociable constructs, but that writing quality and CBM scoring were highly related (r = .82). Language and cognitive predictors differed among the writing outcomes. Boys had lower writing scores than girls even after accounting for language, reading, attention, spelling, handwriting automaticity, and rapid automatized naming. Results are discussed in light of writing evaluation and a developmental model of writing. PMID:25937667
Using Compositional Writing Samples to Explore Student Usage Patterns in a Learning Management System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kokensparger, Brian Jay

2013-01-01

This study explored relationships between writing sample features and LMS usage patterns for 366 college students who enrolled in Theology courses, junior-level courses cross-listed with theology courses, or Senior Perspective Program courses in the fall semester of 2012. These hybrid courses were managed inside the Canvas(TM) learning management…
Attitudes of Indian Children as Revealed by the Analysis of the Free Writing Test.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mitchell, Mary J.

Writing samples of 100 elementary and 100 secondary students from each of 12 American Indian tribal groups in attendance at Bureau of Indian Affairs schools were analyzed to determine whether there were: differences between age and tribal groups that could be assessed via analysis of the "Free Writing Test"; certain attitudinal trends…
Using Evidence in L2 Argumentative Writing: A Longitudinal Case Study across High School and University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kibler, Amanda K.; Hardigree, Christine

2017-01-01

This 8-year longitudinal case study of Fabiola, a Spanish-English bilingual, investigated her argumentative writing development, focusing on her use of evidence to support and develop arguments over time from high school through university. Data sources included 36 writing samples. Texts across grade levels and course types were analyzed to…
Empowering Students to Write and Re-Write: Standards-Based Strategies for Middle and High School Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Combs, Warren E.

2009-01-01

In this book, the author provides teachers with detailed strategies and lesson plans, along with real student writing samples. He describes effective routines of formative self-assessment, and shows teachers how to form a professional learning team with their colleagues using the 6-session professional learning guide. Contents include: (1)…
Using Parody to Read and Write Original Poetry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bintz, William P.

2012-01-01

This article describes an instructional lesson the author developed to help students use parody to read and write original poetry. The author begins this article with an introduction to parody and a rationale for using it as an instructional strategy. Then, he describes materials and procedures he used and he shares samples of student writing. He…
A Study on Critical Thinking Assessment System of College English Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dong, Tian; Yue, Lu

2015-01-01

This research attempts to discuss the validity of introducing the evaluation of students' critical thinking skills (CTS) into the assessment system of college English writing through an empirical study. In this paper, 30 College English Test Band 4 (CET-4) writing samples were collected and analyzed. Students' CTS and the final scores of collected…
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…
Written Feedback and Scoring of Sixth-Grade Girls' and Boys' Narrative and Persuasive Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peterson, Shelley; Childs, Ruth; Kennedy, Kerrie

2004-01-01

This study examined the possible gender differences in teachers' scoring and written feedback on two narrative and two persuasive writing samples sent to 108 grade six teachers throughout one Canadian province. Participating teachers read a narrative and a persuasive piece of writing from one boy, and a narrative and persuasive piece written by…
Using Convergent and Divergent Tasks to Improve Writing and Language Learning Motivation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marashi, Hamid; Tahan-Shizari, Parissa

2015-01-01

This study was an attempt to investigate the comparative impact of convergent and divergent condition tasks on EFL learners' writing and motivation. Sixty female intermediate EFL learners were selected from among a total number of 90 through their performance on a sample piloted PET and further homogenized in terms of their writing and motivation.…
Writing Begins at Home: Preparing Children for Writing before They Go to School.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clay, Marie

Intended for parents of preschoolers, this book offers samples of children's "writing" (defined as the funny signs and symbols that pencils make) and attempts to show how parents can support and expand children's discovery of printed language before children begin school. Each of the eight chapters contains numerous examples of young…
National Assessment of Writing Proficiency among Norwegian Students in Compulsory Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fasting, Rolf B.; Thygesen, Ragnar; Berge, Kjell Lars; Evensen, Lars Sigfred; Vagle, Wenche

2009-01-01

The paper reports and discusses a government-initiated nationwide assessment of writing proficiency among Norwegian compulsory school students. A sample-study of 7th and 10th grade students are discussed and reported with regard to challenges in measuring writing skills in a valid and reliable manner. For the 7th graders the results showed a…
Perceptions of Memo Quality: A Case Study of Engineering Practitioners, Professors, and Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amare, Nicole; Brammer, Charlotte

2005-01-01

One goal of college technical writing courses is to prepare students for real-world writing situations. Business writing textbooks function similarly, using guidelines, sample assignments, and model documents to help students develop rhetorical strategies to use in the workplace. Students attend class, or read and perform exercises in a textbook,…
Improving Writing: Comparing the Responses of Eighth-Graders, Preservice Teachers and Experienced Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grisham, Dana L.; Wolsey, Thomas D.

2005-01-01

This study investigates how middle school students and teachers in preservice and master of arts classes analyze writing samples. Three sets of participants analyzed and scored a common set of writings. Findings indicate that several intact classroom groups of eighth-graders, preservice teachers, and veteran teachers in a graduate reading program…
Reflections Beneath the Surface: We Are More than You See.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bass, Bruce; And Others

This volume is a sampling of 18 pieces of writing by students in a workplace education writing course called Advanced Writing. It contains the following poems, fiction, and nonfiction written in and outside of class: "Artist" (Bruce Bass); "Tuesday Morning" (Kathy Colon); "House" (Lee Christian); "Life" (Alice Chapin); "A Cat Story" (Jane E.…

When Do Pictures Help Learning from Expository Text? Multimedia and Modality Effects in Primary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herrlinger, Simone; Höffler, Tim N.; Opfermann, Maria; Leutner, Detlev

2017-01-01

Adding pictures to a text is very common in today's education and might be especially beneficial for elementary school children, whose abilities to read and understand pure text have not yet been fully developed. Our study examined whether adding pictures supports learning of a biology text in fourth grade and whether the text modality (spoken or…
Mapping Processing Strategies in Learning from Expository Text: An Exploratory Eye Tracking Study Followed by a Cued Recall

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Catrysse, Leen; Gijbels, David; Donche, Vincent; De Maeyer, Sven; Van den Bossche, Piet; Gommers, Luci

2016-01-01

This study starts from the observation that current empirical research on students' processing strategies in higher education has mainly focused on the use of self-report instruments to measure students' general preferences towards processing strategies. In contrast, there is a rather limited use of more direct and online observation techniques to…
Representing Science through Historical Drama: "Lord Kelvin and the Age of the Earth Debate"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Begoray, Deborah L.; Stinner, Arthur

2005-01-01

This paper presents a defense for the use of historical scripted conversations in science. We discuss drama's use of both expository and narrative text forms to expand the language forms available for a variety of learners, the use of scripted conversations as a defensible curriculum design to foster learning in general and science in particular,…
High School Readers: A Profile of above Average Readers and Readers with Learning Disabilities Reading Expository Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wigent, Catherine Ann

2011-01-01

High school students are challenged to meet higher standards in order to ensure that they are prepared to face the literacy demands of our twenty-first century society (Beaufort, 2009; A. S. Erickson, Kleinhammer-Tramill, & Thurlow, 2007; Vernon, Baytops, McMahon, Padden, & Walther-Thomas, 2003). This study examined both above average high school…
Assiduous String-Savers: The Idea-Generating Strategies of Professional Expository Writers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Root, Robert L., Jr.

A study was conducted over a two-year period to investigate the idea-generating strategies of six professional writers and their implications for students. Because finding an idea that leads to a journal or newspaper column is so important to a writer, an attempt was made to learn ways professional writers establish working plans and develop a…
Sex, Death, and the Education of Children: Our Passion for Ignorance in the Age of AIDS. The Politics of Identity and Education Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Silin, Jonathan G.

This book is a collection of expository essays examining the "silence" in early childhood classrooms concerning AIDS. The book also addresses questions of gender, sexuality, psychology, epistemology, and ethics in childhood and adolescent education. The introduction details how a gay, AIDS educator and advocate came to his current…
Evaluating a Brief Measure of Reading Comprehension for Narrative and Expository Text: The Convergent and Predictive Validity of the Reading Retell Rubric

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Lisa B.

2012-01-01

Reading comprehension is a critical aspect of the reading process. Children who experience significant problems in reading comprehension are at risk for long-term academic and social problems. High-quality measures are needed for early, efficient, and effective identification of children in need of remediation in reading comprehension. Substantial…
An Evaluation of Two Hands-On Lab Styles for Plant Biodiversity in Undergraduate Biology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Basey, John M.; Maines, Anastasia P.; Francis, Clinton D.; Melbourne, Brett

2014-01-01

We compared learning cycle and expository formats for teaching about plant biodiversity in an inquiry-oriented university biology lab class (n = 465). Both formats had preparatory lab activities, a hands-on lab, and a postlab with reflection and argumentation. Learning was assessed with a lab report, a practical quiz in lab, and a multiple-choice…
Discourse on Discourse. Workshop Reports from the Macquarie Workshop on Discourse Analysis (Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, February 21-25, 1983). Occasional Papers Number 7.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hasan, Ruqaiya, Ed.

Four group summary papers from an Australian national workshop on discourse analysis discuss verbal and written discourse and the classroom. Papers reflect the four workshop discussion groups of casual conversation, classroom discourse, expository discourse, and literary narrative. They include: "On Casual Conversation" (M. A. K.…
Can Differences in Word Frequency Explain Why Narrative Fiction is a Better Predictor of Verbal Ability than Nonfiction?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCreath, Graham A.; Linehan, Cormac M. J.; Mar, Raymond A.

2017-01-01

Individuals who read more tend to have stronger verbal skills than those who read less. Interestingly, what you read may make a difference. Past studies have found that reading narrative fiction, but not expository nonfiction, predicts verbal ability. Why this difference exists is not known. Here we investigate one possibility: whether fiction…
Access to General Education Curriculum: The Effect of Preteaching Key Words Upon Fluency and Accuracy in Expository Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coulter, Gail A.; Lambert, Michael C.

2015-01-01

The effects of preteaching key words on accuracy and fluency in connected text were examined with three fifth-grade participants identified with learning disability and reading two grade levels below their same age peers. Researchers incorporated a multiple baseline design (i.e., Baseline and Wordlist Intervention) and found that preteaching…
Effects of Four Instructional Sequences on Application and Transfer. IDD&E Working Paper No. 12

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chao, Chun-I; And Others

Using the Component Display Theory as an analyzing tool, this study compared the effects of expository and discovery methods of instruction on two learning outcomes, application and transfer. One hundred ninth grade students in each of four earth science classes were randomly assigned to five groups--four experimental groups designed to test four…
Literacy Access: An Examination of the Picture Plus Discussion (PPD) Intervention Using Typical and Age Appropriate Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shurr, Jordan C.

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of the picture plus discussion (PPD) intervention on the comprehension abilities of high school students with moderate intellectual disability when read a variety of expository texts aloud. A multiple probe single subject design was employed to measure the effect of the intervention across three…
The Very Hungry Caterpillar Turned into a Butterfly: Children's and Parents' Enjoyment of Different Book Genres

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Robertson, Sarah-Jane L.; Reese, Elaine

2017-01-01

This study aimed to examine which genres parents are reading to children and for themselves. Furthermore, it aimed to examine mothers' and fathers' shared reading strategies for different book genres in relation to children's language and literacy development. Parents shared a narrative and an expository book with their preschool-aged children.…
A Comparison of Narrative and Expository Text Comprehension for Students at Varying Levels of SES: A Latent Growth Curve Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Briggs, Laura Clark

2017-01-01

Research on secondary student reading comprehension performance is scant, yet demands for improved literacy at college and career levels indicate that an understanding of trends and growth patterns is necessary to better inform teaching and learning for high school students. To improve understanding of reading performance at the secondary level,…
Effects of Topic Headings on Text Processing: Evidence from Adult Readers' Eye Fixation Patterns

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hyona, Jukka; Lorch, Robert F.

2004-01-01

Effects of topic headings on the processing of multiple-topic expository texts were examined with the help of readers' eye fixation patterns. Adult participants read two texts, one in which topic shifts were signaled by topic headings and one in which topic headings were excluded. The presence of topic headings facilitated the processing of topic…
Evidence of an Intelligent Tutoring System as a Mindtool to Promote Strategic Memory of Expository Texts and Comprehension with Children in Grades 4 and 5

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wijekumar, Kausalai; Meyer, Bonnie J. F.; Lei, Puiwa; Cheng, Weiyi; Ji, Xuejun; Joshi, R. M.

2017-01-01

Reading and comprehending content area texts require learners to effectively select and encode with hierarchically strategic memory structures in order to combine new information with prior knowledge. Unfortunately, evidence from state and national tests shows that children fail to successfully navigate the reading comprehension challenges they…
The Effects of Reading Purpose and Working Memory Capacity on the Processing of Expository Text.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Linderholm, Tracy; van den Broek, Paul

2002-01-01

Examines the extent to which low- and high-WMC (working memory capacity) readers adjust cognitive processes to fit the reading purpose. When reading to study, low-WMC readers emphasized less demanding processes over more demanding processes to a greater extent than high-WMC readers and recalled less. When reading for entertainment, patterns of…
The Increase of Critical Thinking Skills through Mathematical Investigation Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sumarna, N.; Wahyudin; Herman, T.

2017-02-01

Some research findings on critical thinking skills of prospective elementary teachers, showed a response that is not optimal. On the other hand, critical thinking skills will lead a student in the process of analysis, evaluation and synthesis in solving a mathematical problem. This study attempts to perform an alternative solution with a focus on mathematics learning conditions that is held in the lecture room through mathematical investigation approach. This research method was Quasi-Experimental design with pre-test post-test design. Data analysis using a mixed method with Embedded design. Subjects were regular students enrolled in 2014 at the study program of education of primary school teachers. The number of research subjects were 111 students consisting of 56 students in the experimental group and 55 students in the control group. The results of the study showed that (1) there is a significant difference in the improvement of critical thinking ability of students who receive learning through mathematical investigation approach when compared with students studying through expository approach, and (2) there is no interaction effect between prior knowledge of mathematics and learning factors (mathematical investigation and expository) to increase of critical thinking skills of students.
Sherlock Holmes and the case of the plagiarised paper.

PubMed

Kennedy, David

2011-07-01

Narrative pedagogy has the power to explore issues in a way that expository teaching cannot match. Moon and Fowler (2008, p.236), for example, point out that fiction has much to offer in focusing creatively on issues, exploring subtleties and discussing related emotional dynamics. But they comment that in nurse education fiction is 'a relatively untapped' (though valuable) resource for teaching. 'Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Plagiarised Paper' is a fictional account that responds to Moon and Fowler's challenge. It explores a controversial issue--student plagiarism. The narrative sets the discussion in a fictional context--an interaction between fictional characters and a real character. It explores difficulties that novice writers have in avoiding plagiarism. It debates how teachers may respond to student plagiarism. It contextualises student plagiarism in the wider world of academic plagiarism. Its purpose is to enable the reader to identify and act on these issues in a way that an expository examination of student plagiarism could not achieve. In response to suggestions from reviewers, the article has an Appendix which outlines some of the issues and techniques associated with the use of fiction in nursing education. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of Listening Comprehension Tests with Narrative and Expository Texts for Portuguese Students.

PubMed

Santos, Sandra; Viana, Fernanda Leopoldina; Ribeiro, Iolanda; Prieto, Gerardo; Brandão, Sara; Cadime, Irene

2015-03-03

This investigation aimed to develop and collect psychometric data for two tests assessing listening comprehension of Portuguese students in primary school: the Test of Listening Comprehension of Narrative Texts (TLC-n) and the Test of Listening Comprehension of Expository Texts (TLC-e). Two studies were conducted. The purpose of study 1 was to construct four test forms for each of the two tests to assess first, second, third and fourth grade students of the primary school. The TLC-n was administered to 1042 students, and the TLC-e was administered to 848 students. The purpose of study 2 was to test the psychometric properties of new items for the TLC-n form for fourth graders, given that the results in study 1 indicated a severe lack of difficult items. The participants were 260 fourth graders. The data were analysed using the Rasch model. Thirty items were selected for each test form. The results provided support for the model assumptions: Unidimensionality and local independence of the items. The reliability coefficients were higher than .70 for all test forms. The TLC-n and the TLC-e present good psychometric properties and represent an important contribution to the learning disabilities assessment field.
The secret life of pronouns: flexibility in writing style and physical health.

PubMed

Campbell, R Sherlock; Pennebaker, James W

2003-01-01

Numerous disclosure studies have demonstrated that individuals randomly assigned to write about emotional topics evidence improved physical health compared with those who write about superficial topics. The writing samples from three previously published studies of 74 first-year students, 50 upper-division students, and 59 maximum-security prisoners were reanalyzed using Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA) to explore possible relationships of writing content and style to changes in frequency of physician visits following the disclosure intervention. LSA revealed that flexibility in the use of common words-particularly personal pronouns--when writing about traumatic memories was related to positive health outcomes. The findings point to the importance of the role of discussing the self and social relationships in writing and, at the same time, to the remarkable potential of techniques such as LSA.
A comparison between DART-MS and DSA-MS in the forensic analysis of writing inks.

PubMed

Drury, Nicholas; Ramotowski, Robert; Moini, Mehdi

2018-05-23

Ambient ionization mass spectrometry is gaining momentum in forensic science laboratories because of its high speed of analysis, minimal sample preparation, and information-rich results. One such application of ambient ionization methodology includes the analysis of writing inks from questioned documents where colorants of interest may not be soluble in common solvents, rendering thin layer chromatography (TLC) and separation-mass spectrometry methods such as LC/MS (-MS) impractical. Ambient ionization mass spectrometry uses a variety of ionization techniques such as penning ionization in Direct Analysis in Real Time (DART), and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization in Direct Sample Analysis (DSA), and electrospray ionization in Desorption Electrospray Ionization (DESI). In this manuscript, two of the commonly used ambient ionization techniques are compared: Perkin Elmer DSA-MS and IonSense DART in conjunction with a JEOL AccuTOF MS. Both technologies were equally successful in analyzing writing inks and produced similar spectra. DSA-MS produced less background signal likely because of its closed source configuration; however, the open source configuration of DART-MS provided more flexibility for sample positioning for optimum sensitivity and thereby allowing smaller piece of paper containing writing ink to be analyzed. Under these conditions, the minimum sample required for DART-MS was 1mm strokes of ink on paper, whereas DSA-MS required a minimum of 3mm. Moreover, both techniques showed comparable repeatability. Evaluation of the analytical figures of merit, including sensitivity, linear dynamic range, and repeatability, for DSA-MS and DART-MS analysis is provided. To the forensic context of the technique, DART-MS was applied to the analysis of United States Secret Service ink samples directly on a sampling mesh, and the results were compared with DSA-MS of the same inks on paper. Unlike analysis using separation mass spectrometry, which requires sample preparation, both DART-MS and DSA-MS successfully analyzed writing inks with minimal sample preparation. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Curriculum-Based Measurement in Writing: Predicting the Success of High-School Students on State Standards Tests

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Espin, Christine; Wallace, Teri; Campbell, Heather; Lembke, Erica S.; Long, Jeffrey D.; Ticha, Renata

2008-01-01

We examined the technical adequacy of writing progress measures as indicators of success on state standards tests. Tenth-grade students wrote for 10 min, marking their samples at 3, 5, and 7 min. Samples were scored for words written, words spelled correctly, and correct and correct minus incorrect word sequences. The number of correct minus…
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.
Re-learning how to write: student successes and challenges in a targeted geoscience communication course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elwood Madden, M.; Miller-Deboer, C.; Eodice, M.; Miller, J.; Johnson, J.; Rifenburg, M.

2013-12-01

Students in OU's Geology and Geophysics (G&G) program must complete either English Technical Writing or a major-specific Geowriting class as sophomores or juniors. We asked students in Geowriting and students in a G&G colloquium course (required for G&G scholarship students and an elective for others) to complete surveys reporting their writing experiences and attitudes, as well as write an abstract for a Scientific American story to assess writing skills at the beginning and end of the semester. Geowriting students had stronger writing skills and more positive attitudes towards writing at the beginning of the semester than their colloquium peers, suggesting that students who were already interested and skilled in writing were self-selecting into the class. During the semester, Geowriting focused on improving the clarity, organization, efficiency, and mechanics of student writing and discussed how science writing is similar in some ways (argument, sentence structure, etc.), but also different in many aspects (concise, forthright, repetitive, etc) from writing tactics taught in high school and some college composition courses. Colloquium students attended the weekly scientific talks, but did not write in the class; however, some students were enrolled in freshman-level composition courses and Technical Writing. End-of-semester surveys showed Geowriting students had a more positive change in attitude and expectations towards writing than their colloquium peers. However, one significant difference in attitude towards writing was indicated by negative feelings towards in-class writing, which may be a result of 'writing fatigue' within the Geowriting group. This writing fatigue could be explained by student end-of -semester cognitive overload. Through other measures, colloquium students showed a greater improvement in writing skills (concise, clear, organized, etc) compared to Geowriting students; however, Geowriting students maintained higher skill levels than the Colloquium group at the end of the semester. Geowriting students reported in self-assessments that they had 're-learned' how to write as geoscientists in the class and had developed new writing tactics that they could apply to writing projects in other science courses. Based on these reports, we assessed abstract samples to determine if students were employing commonly taught prose style techniques (catchy intro, final summary statement, etc.), which are not usually appropriate in abstracts. Results show that Geowriting students used fewer prose style techniques at the end of the semester, resulting in more professional abstracts, while Colloquium students used more prose style techniques compared to the initial sample, resulting in less appropriate writing for the genre. In other words, Colloquium students may have lacked an explicit introduction to the genre conventions of abstracts and thus relied on a familiar genre and its stylistic devices. These results highlight the effectiveness of science-specific writing instruction within the major to guide students into the norms of the geoscience discourse community and help students learn how to 'write like a geoscientist.' However, as an elective course, only students already interested and skilled in writing were affected.
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.…
Examining the Impact of Explicit Language Instruction in Writers Workshop on ELL Student Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wiley, Adrienne; McKernan, Jonathan

2017-01-01

In the context of our work as literacy specialists, we taught teachers to use sentence frames to support ELL students' writing. We then studied the impact of their instruction on students. Our analysis of student writing samples revealed no group wide developmental trends so we posed deeper questions about their work using the data analysis…
"Hey! Today I Will Tell You about the Water Cycle!": Variations of Language and Organizational Features in Third-Grade Science Explanation Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Avalos, Mary A.; Secada, Walter G.; Zisselsberger, Margarita Gómez; Gort, Mileidis

2017-01-01

This study investigated third graders' use and variation of linguistic resources when writing a science explanation. Using systemic functional linguistics as a framework, we purposefully selected and analyzed writing samples of students with high and low scores to explore how the students' use of language features (i.e., lexicogrammatical…
"This Is My Best": The Report of Vermont's Writing Assessment Program, Pilot Year 1990-91.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vermont State Dept. of Education, Montpelier.

A study examined the background, methods, and results of the pilot year of Vermont's Writing Assessment program. Students and teachers from 46 Vermont schools were invited to participate in the 1990-91 pilot year of portfolio assessment. Students in grades 4 and 8 chose samples of their best writing from the school year. Each portfolio was…
What They Take with Them: Findings from the Peer Writing Tutor Alumni Research Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hughes, Bradley; Gillespie, Paula; Kail, Harvey

2010-01-01

Through the Peer Writing Tutor Alumni Research Project (PWTARP), the authors have set out to explore and document what peer tutors take with them from their training and experience. The Peer Writing Tutor Alumni Research Project has made it possible for the authors to sample and analyze more systematically the reflections of 126 former tutors from…
Exploring Writing Workshop in the K-2 Classroom: Discovering Our Voices. Bill Harp Professional Teachers Library Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rickards, Debbie; Hawes, Shirl

This book is meant as a resource that can be used by experienced writing teachers as a practical reference when planning writing lessons. The book includes a sequence of instruction, lesson ideas, enrichment options, literature and poetry connections, student samples, and all the ready-to-use materials teachers need to implement the…
E-Story and Writing Skill among Second Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abd Rahim, Normaliza; Abdul Halim, Hazlina; Mansor, Nor Shahila

2017-01-01

The study focused on the use of e-story and writing skill among the second language Korean learners. The objectives of the study were to identify and discuss the students' writing in the second language by using e-story. The samples of the study involved all 21 participants from two classes of Malay language at one of the universities in South…
Strong surface enhanced Raman scattering from gold nanoarrays obtained by direct laser writing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ivanov, V. G.; Todorov, N. D.; Petrov, L. S.; Ritacco, T.; Giocondo, M.; Vlakhov, E. S.

2016-10-01

We report for surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) from arrays of gold nanoparticles produced by 2-photons photo-reduction of the metallic precursor (HAuCl4) hosted in a Poly-Vinyl Alcohol (PVA) matrix, on glass substrates. Samples with the same pattern but featuring different nanoparticles size and density were obtained by varying the writing laser power and scanning speed. The Raman spectra were recorded from samples immersed in a solution of rhodamine-6G (R6G), as well as, after exposure of the samples in xylene. SERS enhancement factors of up to ∼104 were obtained for both analytes. The measurements show that the SERS enhancement is maximized on golden strips produced at higher writing laser power and lower scanning speed, where closer nanoparticles packing is obtained..
Experiential self-focus writing as a facilitator of processing an interpersonal hurt.

PubMed

Liao, Kelly Yu-Hsin; Wei, Meifen; Russell, Daniel W; Abraham, W Todd

2012-10-01

This study examined the effects of experiential self-focus writing on changes in psychological outcomes (i.e., unforgiveness and negative affect) after an interpersonal hurt and the buffering effects of experiential self-focus writing on the association between anger rumination and these psychological outcomes. A sample of 182 college students who had experienced interpersonal hurt were randomly assigned to either the experiential self-focus writing condition, in which participants wrote about their feelings and experiences related to the hurt, or to a control writing condition in which they wrote about a recent neutral event. Latent growth curve analyses indicated that changes in unforgiveness over time did not differ between the experiential self-focus writing and the control writing conditions. However, relative to the control writing condition, negative affect decreased faster during writing and increased more slowly at follow-ups in the experiential self-focus writing condition. The results supported the hypothesis that negative affect resulting from an interpersonal hurt would significantly decrease over time among participants in the experiential self-focus writing group compared with the control group. Implications of experiential self-focus writing for interpersonal hurt and directions for future studies are discussed. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Computerized Presentation of Text: Effects on Children's Reading of Informational Material. Special Issue on Reading Comprehension ? Part II

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kerr, Matthew A.; Symons, Sonya E.

2006-01-01

This study examined whether children's reading rate, comprehension, and recall are affected by computer presentation of text. Participants were 60 grade five students, who each read two expository texts, one in a traditional print format and the other from a computer monitor, which used a common scrolling text interface. After reading each text,…
Let's SQUiNK about It! A Metacognitive Approach to Exploring Text in a Second Grade Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Capraro, Karen

2011-01-01

In this article the author describes SQUiNK, a useful tool in interacting with text for all children and at varying levels and abilities. Initially the author sought to address the needs of readers with strong skills by more fully engaging them with expository text. But through the introduction to a strategy for addressing the needs of "all"…
Effect of the Blended Learning Environment and the Application of Virtual Class upon the Achievement and the Attitude against the Geography Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dikmenli, Yurdal; Unaldi, Ulku Eser

2013-01-01

This study involves the elucidation of the effect of the virtual classroom application and blended learning medium upon the academic achievement of the students and their attitudes against the geography curse compared to the face to face expository (traditional) method. The study was carried out according to pre-test--post-test experimental design…
Role of Epistemological Understanding and Interest in Interpreting a Controversy and in Topic-Specific Belief Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mason, Lucia; Boscolo, Pietro

2004-01-01

This study focuses on the influence of high school students' (10th and 11th grade) epistemological understanding and topic interest on their interpretation of a dual-position expository text about genetically modified food, as well as on the change in their beliefs about the topic. After reading, students were given different tasks: (1) to write…
Lexical Noun Phrases in Texts Written by Deaf Children and Adults with Different Proficiency Levels in Sign Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van Beijsterveldt, Liesbeth Maria; van Hell, Janet

2010-01-01

We report an analysis of lexical noun phrases (NPs) in narrative and expository texts written by Dutch deaf individuals from a bimodal bilingual perspective. Texts written by Dutch deaf children and adults who are either proficient in Sign Language of the Netherlands (SLN) or low-proficient in SLN were compared on structures that either overlap in…

Differences in Strategy Use in the Reading Comprehension of Narrative and Science Texts among Students with and without Learning Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Botsas, George

2017-01-01

The aim of the study was to investigate differences in cognitive and metacognitive strategy use in the reading comprehension of narrative and expository texts among students with learning disabilities (SLD) and without learning disabilities (SWOLD). A total of 122 fifth and sixth graders took part in the study. Half of them (n = 61) were SLD…
Reading Aloud Expository Text to First- and Second-Graders: A Comparison of the Effects on Comprehension of During- and After-Reading Questioning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heisey, Natalie Denise

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of questioning "during" a read-aloud and questioning "after" a read-aloud, using science-related informational tradebooks with first-and second-graders. Three thematically-related tradebooks were used, each portraying a scientist involved in authentic investigation. Students in two first/second…
The Use of E-Dictionary to Read E-Text by Intermediate and Advanced Learners of Chinese

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Jing

2012-01-01

This study focuses on the pedagogical outcomes connected with the use of an e-dictionary by intermediate and advanced learners of Chinese to aid in reading an expository Chinese e-text. Twenty intermediate and advanced participants read an e-text twice aided by an e-dictionary and wrote recalls of the text in English. In addition to low frequency…
Competences of Dominican College Students in the Comprehension of Superstructure and Macrostructure of Expositive Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tavarez, Pedro J.; Gomez, Jorge; Mercedes, Arismendy

2016-01-01

The objective of this research is to determine the competences of students of Basic Spanish Language II (Let. 012) in the comprehension of the superstructure and macrostructure of expository texts, in two college Campuses; the UASD San Francisco de Macorís Campus, and the UASD Bonao Campus for the semester 2015-2. The theory is based on the…
Magazine Editors and the Writing Process: An Analysis of How Editors Work with Staff and Free-Lance Writers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schierhorn, Ann B.; Endres, Kathleen L.

Editors of business and consumer magazines chosen by a random sample were asked in a mail survey what method they used in working with staff writers and free-lance writers. They were asked how they work with writers in the five stages of the writing process--idea, reporting, organizing, writing and rewriting. The first mailing to consumer…
Building the Foundation the WRITE WAY: Mini-Lessons with Practical Strategies for Teaching the Personal Narrative, Feature Article, "How-to..." Article, and Persuasive Letter.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Susan A.; Vincent, Donna

This book presents strategies for teaching the personal narrative, feature article, how-to article, and persuasive letter, and for teaching fiction and reflective thinking and writing. It includes definitions, lesson plans, originals for transparencies and photocopies, and sample student writing. The first four sections are: Teaching the Personal…
Children's Dreams Viewed through the Prism of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Medcalf, Neva Ann; Hoffman, Thomas J.; Boatwright, Cassie

2013-01-01

During a regular free writing time in class, children in Kindergarten through sixth grade in various areas of the city were given the writing prompt,"My dreams for the world". Writing samples were collected from an elementary school in an affluent area of the city, an elementary and a middle school in a low socio-economic area, and an…
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…
Writing Essays on a Laptop or a Desktop Computer: Does It Matter?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ling, Guangming; Bridgeman, Brent

2013-01-01

To explore the potential effect of computer type on the Test of English as a Foreign Language-Internet-Based Test (TOEFL iBT) Writing Test, a sample of 444 international students was used. The students were randomly assigned to either a laptop or a desktop computer to write two TOEFL iBT practice essays in a simulated testing environment, followed…
The Effects of Using a Critical Thinking Graphic Organizer to Improve Connecticut Academic Performance Test Interdisciplinary Writing Assessment Scores

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Higgins, Patrick D.

2012-01-01

Effective communication skills are a vital component of student academic achievement and success, yet students often struggle with them. This study utilized an organizational writing graphic organizer based on a critical thinking model to determine the impact of its use on the persuasive writing scores of 9th-grade students. A sample of…
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.
Tests of various colorants for application of a Fourier transform infrared imaging system to deciphering obliterated writings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sugawara, Shigeru

2015-10-01

Obliterated writing is writing that has been obscured by different-colored materials. There are obliterated writings that cannot be detected by conventional methods. A method for deciphering such obliterated writings was developed in this study. Mid-infrared spectroscopic imaging in the wavelength range of 2.5-14 μm was used for deciphering because the infrared spectrum differs among different brands of colorants. Obliterated writings were made by pressing information protection stamps onto characters written by 4 kinds of colorants. The samples were tested for deciphering by the Fourier-transform infrared imaging system. Two peak areas of two specific wavenumber regions of each reflectance spectrum were calculated and the ratio of the two values is displayed as a unique gray scale in the spectroscopic image. As a result, the absorption peak at various wavenumbers could be used to decipher obliterated writings that could not be detected by the conventional methods. Ten different parameters for deciphering obliterated writing were found in this study.
Effectiveness of an integrated handwriting program for first-grade students: a pilot study.

PubMed

Case-Smith, Jane; Holland, Terri; Bishop, Beth

2011-01-01

We developed and piloted a program for first-grade students to promote development of legible handwriting and writing fluency. The Write Start program uses a coteaching model in which occupational therapists and teachers collaborate to develop and implement a handwriting-writing program. The small-group format with embedded individualized supports allows the therapist to guide and monitor student performance and provide immediate feedback. The 12-wk program was implemented with 1 class of 19 students. We administered the Evaluation of Children's Handwriting Test, Minnesota Handwriting Assessment, and Woodcock-Johnson Fluency and Writing Samples test at baseline, immediately after the Write Start program, and at the end of the school year. Students made large, significant gains in handwriting legibility and speed and in writing fluency that were maintained at 6-mo follow-up. The Write Start program appears to promote handwriting and writing skills in first-grade students and is ready for further study in controlled trials.
The problems inherent in teaching technical writing and report writing to native Americans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zukowski/faust, J.

1981-01-01

Teaching technical writing to Native Americans contending with a second language and culture is addressed. Learning difficulties arising from differences between native and acquired language and cultural systems are examined. Compartmentalized teaching, which presents the ideals of technical writing in minimal units, and skills development are considered. Rhetorical problems treated include logic of arrangement, selection of support and scope of detail, and time and space. Specific problems selected include the concept of promptness, the contextualization of purpose, interpersonal relationships, wordiness, mixture of registers, and the problem of abstracting. Four inductive procedures for students having writing and perception problems are included. Four sample exercises and a bibliography of 13 references are also included.
Apprendre a raconter? Comment lisons-nous les textes des auteurs eleves (Learning To Tell Stories? How Do We Read the Texts of Student Authors)?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Francois, Frederic

1998-01-01

The ways that adults have of reading and interpreting students' writing are examined, using for illustration six writing samples of one 13-year-old student. The student's instructions were to tell, in writing, an imaginary story, a true story, a personal history, a favorite dream, the most awful nightmare, and the worst memory. Different attitudes…
Fluency and Accuracy in Alphabet Writing by Keyboarding: A Cross-Sectional Study in Spanish-Speaking Children with and without Learning Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

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

2017-01-01

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,…
"¿Cómo Lo Escribo en Inglés o en Español?" Writing in Dual-Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gillanders, Cristina

2018-01-01

The purpose of this article is to describe the development of writing in young dual language learners, who are children under 5 years old who are learning the dominant language and another language at the same time. Early writing has been associated with literacy outcomes in the later years of elementary school. The article presents samples of…
Examining the Value of a Scaffolded Critique Framework to Promote Argumentative and Explanatory Writings Within an Argument-Based Inquiry Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jang, Jeong-yoon; Hand, Brian

2017-12-01

This study investigated the value of using a scaffolded critique framework to promote two different types of writing—argumentative writing and explanatory writing—with different purposes within an argument-based inquiry approach known as the Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) approach. A quasi-experimental design with sixth and seventh grade students taught by two teachers was used. A total of 170 students participated in the study, with 87 in the control group (four classes) and 83 in the treatment group (four classes). All students used the SWH templates as an argumentative writing to guide their written work and completed these templates during the SWH investigations of each unit. After completing the SWH investigations, both groups of students were asked to complete the summary writing task as an explanatory writing at the end of each unit. All students' writing samples were scored using analytical frameworks developed for the study. The results indicated that the treatment group performed significantly better on the explanatory writing task than the control group. In addition, the results of the partial correlation suggested that there is a very strong significantly positive relationship between the argumentative writing and the explanatory writing.
Effects of Problem-Based Learning Model versus Expository Model and Motivation to Achieve for Student's Physic Learning Result of Senior High School at Class XI

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Prayekti

2016-01-01

"Problem-based learning" (PBL) is one of an innovative learning model which can provide an active learning to student, include the motivation to achieve showed by student when the learning is in progress. This research is aimed to know: (1) differences of physic learning result for student group which taught by PBL versus expository…
UNC Collaboratory Project: Overview

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-11-01

technical, and other expository documents. Crucial to our success has been the selection of driving problems whose solutions have been of significance not...systems, and with the growing necessity for "team science", we believe the time is right to select a new driving problem -- support for multiple...the WE computer system. The WE system includes sensors imbedded within it that record each users’ action These records include each menu selection

An evaluation of reading comprehension of expository text in adults with traumatic brain injury.

PubMed

Sohlberg, McKay Moore; Griffiths, Gina G; Fickas, Stephen

2014-05-01

This project was conducted to obtain information about reading problems of adults with traumatic brain injury (TBI) with mild-to-moderate cognitive impairments and to investigate how these readers respond to reading comprehension strategy prompts integrated into digital versions of text. Participants from 2 groups, adults with TBI (n = 15) and matched controls (n = 15), read 4 different 500-word expository science passages linked to either a strategy prompt condition or a no-strategy prompt condition. The participants' reading comprehension was evaluated using sentence verification and free recall tasks. The TBI and control groups exhibited significant differences on 2 of the 5 reading comprehension measures: paraphrase statements on a sentence verification task and communication units on a free recall task. Unexpected group differences were noted on the participants' prerequisite reading skills. For the within-group comparison, participants showed significantly higher reading comprehension scores on 2 free recall measures: words per communication unit and type-token ratio. There were no significant interactions. The results help to elucidate the nature of reading comprehension in adults with TBI with mild-to-moderate cognitive impairments and endorse further evaluation of reading comprehension strategies as a potential intervention option for these individuals. Future research is needed to better understand how individual differences influence a person's reading and response to intervention.
Professional medical writing support and the quality of randomised controlled trial reporting: a cross-sectional study

PubMed Central

Gattrell, William T; Hopewell, Sally; Young, Kate; Farrow, Paul; White, Richard; Winchester, Christopher C

2016-01-01

Objectives Authors may choose to work with professional medical writers when writing up their research for publication. We examined the relationship between medical writing support and the quality and timeliness of reporting of the results of randomised controlled trials (RCTs). Design Cross-sectional study. Study sample Primary reports of RCTs published in BioMed Central journals from 2000 to 16 July 2014, subdivided into those with medical writing support (n=110) and those without medical writing support (n=123). Main outcome measures Proportion of items that were completely reported from a predefined subset of the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) checklist (12 items known to be commonly poorly reported), overall acceptance time (from manuscript submission to editorial acceptance) and quality of written English as assessed by peer reviewers. The effect of funding source and publication year was examined. Results The number of articles that completely reported at least 50% of the CONSORT items assessed was higher for those with declared medical writing support (39.1% (43/110 articles); 95% CI 29.9% to 48.9%) than for those without (21.1% (26/123 articles); 95% CI 14.3% to 29.4%). Articles with declared medical writing support were more likely than articles without such support to have acceptable written English (81.1% (43/53 articles); 95% CI 67.6% to 90.1% vs 47.9% (23/48 articles); 95% CI 33.5% to 62.7%). The median time of overall acceptance was longer for articles with declared medical writing support than for those without (167 days (IQR 114.5–231 days) vs 136 days (IQR 77–193 days)). Conclusions In this sample of open-access journals, declared professional medical writing support was associated with more complete reporting of clinical trial results and higher quality of written English. Medical writing support may play an important role in raising the quality of clinical trial reporting. PMID:26899254
Stylistic Reformulation: Theoretical Premises and Practical Applications.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schultz, Jean Marie

1994-01-01

Various aspects of writing style are discussed to propose concrete methods for improving students' performance. Topics covered include the relationship between syntactic and cognitive complexity and classroom techniques and the reformulation technique as applied to student writing samples. (Contains 20 references.) (LB)
Creative C.O.W. or a Moo Is Worth a Thousand Words.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowers, Arla

1987-01-01

A teacher details a method, the Creative Concrete Operational Writing (Creative C.O.W.) program to provide an individualized structured approach to creative writing in the primary grades. Sample story plans and worksheets are included. (DB)
Predictors of writing competence in 4- to 7-year-old children.

PubMed

Dunsmuir, Sandra; Blatchford, Peter

2004-09-01

This longitudinal study sought to improve understanding of the factors at home and school that influence children's attainment and progress in writing between the ages of 4 and 7 years. (i) To investigate the relationship between home variables and writing development in preschool children; (ii) to determine associations between child characteristics and writing development (iii) to conduct an analysis of the areas of continuity and discontinuity between variables at home and at school, and influences on subsequent writing development. Sixty children attending four urban primary schools participated in this study. Semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, observation schedules and standardized assessments were used. Writing samples were collected each term. Associations between measures and continuity over time were assessed using multiple regression analysis. Preschool variables that were found to be significantly associated with writing proficiency at school entry included mother's educational level, family size, parental assessment of writing and a measure of home writing. Child characteristics, skills and competencies were measured at school entry and those found to be significantly associated with writing at 7 years included season of birth, vocabulary score, pre-reading skills, handwriting and proficiency in writing name. The only preschool variable that maintained its significant relationship to writing at 7 years was home writing. Teacher assessments of pupil attitudes to writing were consistently found to be significantly associated with writing competence. This comprehensive study explored the complex interaction of cognitive, affective and contextual processes involved in learning to write, and identified specific features of successful writers. Results are discussed in relation to educational policy and practice issues.
The Utility, Reliability, and Validity of Holistic Scoring for Writing Assessment Samples. Symposium Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Mid-South Educational Research Association (Knoxville, Tennessee, November 11-13, 1992).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McLean, James E., Comp.

Four papers describe a study of the use of holistic writing assessment procedures in a pretest and posttest manner to determine improvement of 10th graders' writing skills. "Problem and Context" (James E. McLean) briefly describes the project and introduces the other three papers. "Holistic Scoring Procedures for Scoring Writing…
Regression models for linking patterns of growth to a later outcome: infant growth and childhood overweight.

PubMed

Wills, Andrew K; Strand, Bjørn Heine; Glavin, Kari; Silverwood, Richard J; Hovengen, Ragnhild

2016-04-08

Regression models are widely used to link serial measures of anthropometric size or changes in size to a later outcome. Different parameterisations of these models enable one to target different questions about the effect of growth, however, their interpretation can be challenging. Our objective was to formulate and classify several sets of parameterisations by their underlying growth pattern contrast, and to discuss their utility using an expository example. We describe and classify five sets of model parameterisations in accordance with their underlying growth pattern contrast (conditional growth; being bigger v being smaller; becoming bigger and staying bigger; growing faster v being bigger; becoming and staying bigger versus being bigger). The contrasts are estimated by including different sets of repeated measures of size and changes in size in a regression model. We illustrate these models in the setting of linking infant growth (measured on 6 occasions: birth, 6 weeks, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months) in weight-for-height-for-age z-scores to later childhood overweight at 8y using complete cases from the Norwegian Childhood Growth study (n = 900). In our expository example, conditional growth during all periods, becoming bigger in any interval and staying bigger through infancy, and being bigger from birth were all associated with higher odds of later overweight. The highest odds of later overweight occurred for individuals who experienced high conditional growth or became bigger in the 3 to 6 month period and stayed bigger, and those who were bigger from birth to 24 months. Comparisons between periods and between growth patterns require large sample sizes and need to consider how to scale associations to make comparisons fair; with respect to the latter, we show one approach. Studies interested in detrimental growth patterns may gain extra insight from reporting several sets of growth pattern contrasts, and hence an approach that incorporates several sets of model parameterisations. Co-efficients from these models require careful interpretation, taking account of the other variables that are conditioned on.
Evaluating undergraduate nursing students' self-efficacy and competence in writing: Effects of a writing intensive intervention.

PubMed

Miller, Louise C; Russell, Cynthia L; Cheng, An-Lin; Skarbek, Anita J

2015-05-01

While professional nurses are expected to communicate clearly, these skills are often not explicitly taught in undergraduate nursing education. In this research study, writing self-efficacy and writing competency were evaluated in 52 nontraditional undergraduate baccalaureate completion students in two distance-mediated 16-week capstone courses. The intervention group (n = 44) experienced various genres and modalities of written assignments set in the context of evidence-based nursing practice; the comparison group (n = 8) received usual writing undergraduate curriculum instruction. Self-efficacy, measured by the Post Secondary Writerly Self-Efficacy Scale, indicated significant improvements for all self-efficacy items (all p's = 0.00). Writing competency, assessed in the intervention group using a primary trait scoring rubric (6 + 1 Trait Writing Model(®) of Instruction and Assessment), found significant differences in competency improvement on five of seven items. This pilot study demonstrated writing skills can improve in nontraditional undergraduate students with guided instruction. Further investigation with larger, culturally diverse samples is indicated to validate these results. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Writing-to-Learn

PubMed Central

Balachandran, Shreedevi; Venkatesaperumal, Ramesh; Clara, Jothi; Shukri, Raghda K.

2014-01-01

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to assess the attitude of Omani nursing students towards writing-to-learn (WTL) and its relationship to demographic variables, self-efficacy and the writing process Methods: A cross-sectional design was used to evaluate attitudes towards WTL by Sultan Qaboos University nursing students. A convenience sample of 106 students was used and data collected between October 2009 and March 2010. A modified version of the WTL attitude scale developed by Dobie and Poirrier was used to collect the data. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for analysis. Results: Senior and junior students had more positive attitudes to WTL than mid-level students who tended to have negative attitudes towards writing. Although 52.8% students had negative attitudes towards the writing process, the median was higher for attitudes to the writing process compared to the median for self-efficacy. There was a positive correlation between self-efficacy and writing process scores. Conclusion: Overall, students had negative attitudes towards WTL. Attitudes are learnt or formed through previous experiences. The incorporation of WTL strategies into teaching can transform students’ negative attitudes towards writing into positive ones. PMID:24516740
Writing-to-Learn: Attitudes of nursing students at Sultan Qaboos University.

PubMed

Balachandran, Shreedevi; Venkatesaperumal, Ramesh; Clara, Jothi; Shukri, Raghda K

2014-02-01

The objectives of this study were to assess the attitude of Omani nursing students towards writing-to-learn (WTL) and its relationship to demographic variables, self-efficacy and the writing process. A cross-sectional design was used to evaluate attitudes towards WTL by Sultan Qaboos University nursing students. A convenience sample of 106 students was used and data collected between October 2009 and March 2010. A modified version of the WTL attitude scale developed by Dobie and Poirrier was used to collect the data. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for analysis. Senior and junior students had more positive attitudes to WTL than mid-level students who tended to have negative attitudes towards writing. Although 52.8% students had negative attitudes towards the writing process, the median was higher for attitudes to the writing process compared to the median for self-efficacy. There was a positive correlation between self-efficacy and writing process scores. Overall, students had negative attitudes towards WTL. Attitudes are learnt or formed through previous experiences. The incorporation of WTL strategies into teaching can transform students' negative attitudes towards writing into positive ones.
Writing Process Products in Intermediate-Grade Children With and Without Language-Based Learning Disabilities.

PubMed

Koutsoftas, Anthony D

2016-12-01

Difficulties with written expression are an important consideration in the assessment and treatment of school-age children. This study evaluated how intermediate-grade children with and without written language difficulties fared on a writing task housed within the Hayes and Berninger (2014) writing process framework. Sixty-four children completed a writing task whereby they planned, wrote, and revised a narrative story across 3 days. Children had extended time to produce an outline, first draft, and final copy of their story. Language transcription approaches were used to obtain measures reflecting writing productivity, complexity, accuracy, and mechanics, in addition to measures of planning and revision. Results indicated that children with writing difficulties produced poorer quality stories compared with their peers yet were not significantly different across all measures. Children with typical development produced longer stories with better spelling accuracy. Writing process measures predicted significant amounts of variance in writing quality across the sample. Writing should be considered as part of language assessment and intervention, whether as the sole language difficulty or alongside difficulties with speaking, listening, or reading in children with language-based learning difficulties. Implications for translation of research to practice and service delivery are provided.
A Critique of the Theoretical and Empirical Literature of the Use of Diagrams, Graphs, and Other Visual Aids in the Learning of Scientific-Technical Content from Expository Texts and Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carifio, James; Perla, Rocco J.

2009-01-01

This article presents a critical review and analysis of key studies that have been done in science education and other areas on the effects and effectiveness of using diagrams, graphs, photographs, illustrations, and concept maps as "adjunct visual aids" in the learning of scientific-technical content. It also summarizes and reviews those studies…
Equivariant Gromov-Witten Invariants of Algebraic GKM Manifolds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Chiu-Chu Melissa; Sheshmani, Artan

2017-07-01

An algebraic GKM manifold is a non-singular algebraic variety equipped with an algebraic action of an algebraic torus, with only finitely many torus fixed points and finitely many 1-dimensional orbits. In this expository article, we use virtual localization to express equivariant Gromov-Witten invariants of any algebraic GKM manifold (which is not necessarily compact) in terms of Hodge integrals over moduli stacks of stable curves and the GKM graph of the GKM manifold.
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.
The 1963 Hip-Hop Machine: Hip-Hop Pedagogy as Composition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rice, Jeff

2003-01-01

Proposes an alternative invention strategy for research-based argumentative writing. Investigates the coincidental usage of the term "whatever" in hip-hop, theory, and composition studies. Presents a "whatever-pedagogy" identified as "hip-hop pedagogy," a writing practice that models itself after digital sampling's…
The Macintosh Lab Monitor, Numbers 1-4.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wanderman, Richard; And Others

1987-01-01

Four issues of the "Macintosh Lab Monitor" document the Computer-Aided Writing Project at the Forman School (Connecticut) which is a college preparatory school for bright dyslexic adolescents. The project uses Macintosh computers to teach outlining, writing, organizational and thinking skills. Sample articles have the following titles:…
The composing process in technical communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hertz, V. L.

1981-01-01

The theoretical construct under which technical writing exercises operate and results from a survey distributed to a random sample of teachers of technical writing are described. The survey, part of a study to develop materials that did not stress prescriptive formats, drew on diverse elements in report writing to enhance writing as a process. Areas of agreement and disagreement related to problem solving, paper evaluation, and individualizing instruction were surveyed. Areas of concern in contemplating the composition process include: (1) the need to create an environment that helps students want to succeed, (2) the role of peer group activity in helping some students who might not respond through lecture or individual study, and (3) encouraging growth in abilities and helping motivate students' interest in writing projects through relevant assignments or simulations students perceive as relevant.
Neural Signatures of the Reading-Writing Connection: Greater Involvement of Writing in Chinese Reading than English Reading.

PubMed

Cao, Fan; Perfetti, Charles A

2016-01-01

Research on cross-linguistic comparisons of the neural correlates of reading has consistently found that the left middle frontal gyrus (MFG) is more involved in Chinese than in English. However, there is a lack of consensus on the interpretation of the language difference. Because this region has been found to be involved in writing, we hypothesize that reading Chinese characters involves this writing region to a greater degree because Chinese speakers learn to read by repeatedly writing the characters. To test this hypothesis, we recruited English L1 learners of Chinese, who performed a reading task and a writing task in each language. The English L1 sample had learned some Chinese characters through character-writing and others through phonological learning, allowing a test of writing-on-reading effect. We found that the left MFG was more activated in Chinese than English regardless of task, and more activated in writing than in reading regardless of language. Furthermore, we found that this region was more activated for reading Chinese characters learned by character-writing than those learned by phonological learning. A major conclusion is that writing regions are also activated in reading, and that this reading-writing connection is modulated by the learning experience. We replicated the main findings in a group of native Chinese speakers, which excluded the possibility that the language differences observed in the English L1 participants were due to different language proficiency level.
Neural Signatures of the Reading-Writing Connection: Greater Involvement of Writing in Chinese Reading than English Reading

PubMed Central

Cao, Fan; Perfetti, Charles A.

2016-01-01

Research on cross-linguistic comparisons of the neural correlates of reading has consistently found that the left middle frontal gyrus (MFG) is more involved in Chinese than in English. However, there is a lack of consensus on the interpretation of the language difference. Because this region has been found to be involved in writing, we hypothesize that reading Chinese characters involves this writing region to a greater degree because Chinese speakers learn to read by repeatedly writing the characters. To test this hypothesis, we recruited English L1 learners of Chinese, who performed a reading task and a writing task in each language. The English L1 sample had learned some Chinese characters through character-writing and others through phonological learning, allowing a test of writing-on-reading effect. We found that the left MFG was more activated in Chinese than English regardless of task, and more activated in writing than in reading regardless of language. Furthermore, we found that this region was more activated for reading Chinese characters learned by character-writing than those learned by phonological learning. A major conclusion is that writing regions are also activated in reading, and that this reading-writing connection is modulated by the learning experience. We replicated the main findings in a group of native Chinese speakers, which excluded the possibility that the language differences observed in the English L1 participants were due to different language proficiency level. PMID:27992505
The Effect of Carrying out Writing to Learn Activities on Academic Success of Fifth Grade Students in Secondary School on the Subject of "Force and Motion"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seven, Sabriye; Koksal, Asiye Pinar; Kocak, Gulsen

2017-01-01

The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of writing poems and keeping a journal as writing-to-learn activities on the academic achievement of students in teaching the Force and Motion unit in the Science class of fifth grade students in secondary school. Sample of the study consists of 50 students who study in the fifth grade of two…

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