Written expression as recontextualization: Children write in social time

A capacity theory of writing: Working memory in composition

“…This is not to suggest that children are unable to engage in writing strategies more sophisticated than knowledge telling, nor that knowledge telling is an optimal strategy. Indeed, with appropriate instruction, children can learn to plan and revise (Cameron et al, 1996;Graves, 1983;MacArthur, Harris, and Graham, 1994); however, they do so only with considerable external support (see also Beal, 1996). That is, good instructional environments provide external support for many processes that become internal for skilled writers.…”

“…During acquisition, however, planning, translating, and reviewing do not seem to develop simultaneously; translating is the first to emerge McCutchen, in press). Young children typically do relatively little planning or reviewing (Bereiter and Scardamalia, 1987; but see Graves, 1983;and Cameron, Hunt, and Linton, 1996, for counterexamples); thus, much of the developmental research relating working memory to writing has focused on translating. Even Kellogg's (1987) college-age writers spent half their writing time engaged in translating, so translating appears central to the writing process, regardless of the writer's age.…”

The role of comprehension monitoring in Children's revision

“…One important factor to be considered with regard to this apparent discrepancy is the nature of the writing environment and the degree of support that is provided to young writers for specific components of the writing process (Cameron, Hunt, and Linton, 1996). Within the classroom, children may appear to be highly proficient authors in part because they have a great deal of adult and peer guidance; for example, teachers may emphasize the need for children to review and revise their work, and create an environment that encourages revision (Graves, 1983(Graves, , 1991.…”

“…In contrast, in experimental situations and large-scale assessments, adult guidance and support is generally lacking, and children's performance may appear to be much less impressive as a result (Applebee et al, 1986(Applebee et al, , 1990Bereiter and Scardamalia, 1987;Feldman, 1984;National Assessment of Educational Progress, 1986). Thus, evaluations of children's competence as writers must be defined in terms of the context, the specific writing skills involved, and the degree of structure and support that has been made available for those skills (Cameron et al, 1996).…”

Research in Writing, Preschool Through Elementary, 1983-2003

“…Young children show high levels of selfregulation during composing in settings that encourage it (Cameron, Hunt, & Linton, 1996). Perry's (1998) study of self-regulation in writing in grades 2 and 3 found that children in high self-regulated learning (SRL) classrooms, in comparison to low SRL classrooms, commented more often on meaning-related aspects of writing and the intrinsic value of their writing.…”