Revision: History, Theory, and Practice

Edited by Alice Horning and Anne Becker

Cover Revision: History, Theory, and Practice explores the wide range of scholarship on revision while bringing new light to bear on enduring questions. Starting with its overview of conventional definitons and misconceptions about revision, whether surface or deep, Revision then offers both theoretical and practical strategies designed to facilitate post-secondary writing instruction.

The twelve contributors examine recent cognitive writing models and the roles of long- and short-term memory in the writing process, demonstrating theoretically why revision is difficult for novices. Revision pays close attention to the meaning and function of revision for various writers, from basic to professional, creative, and second language writers. Revision concludes with a detailed presentation of practical pedagogical strategies for teaching revision, with emphasis on revision in textbooks, technology-rich contexts, and peer review.

About the Editors

Alice Horning directs the Rhetoric Program at Oakland University and is a professor of Rhetoric and Linguistics. Her research interests focus on the nature of readable text from theoretical and practical perspectives. On the theoretical side, she is chiefly interested in the psycholinguistic aspects of text processing and those features of text form and structure that facilitate readability. On the practical side, she is interested in how readers and writers meet effectively in text. She has published several books on the nature of texts and on human literacy, including, most recently, Revision Revisited (Hampton Press, 2002).

Anne Becker is a special instructor and the coordinator for journalism and communication internships at Oakland University. She has taught freshman composition at OU since 1981, and supervised the internship program since 1984. She also teaches an introductory public relations course. Her classroom and research interests focus on problem-solving approaches to writing; she is also interested in how computer technology impacts writing instruction. Another area of interest involves non-profit public relations activities, especially publications editing and design. Her postsecondary degrees include a BA in English from the University of Michigan and an MA in English from Oakland University.

Open the entire book: 1394K

Front Matter and Table of Contents (73K)

Preface (51K)

1. Introduction and Overview, Catherine Haar and Alice Horning (68K)

2. Definitions and Distinctions, Catherine Haar (101K)

3. A Review of Writing Model Research Based on Cognitive Processes, Anne Becker (294K)

4. Basic Writers and Revision, Alice Horning and Jeanie Robertson (91K)

5. Revision and ESL Students, Kasia Kietlinska (148K)

6. What's in a Textbook? Robert Lamphear (104K)

7. Revising with Word Processing/Technology/Document Design, Douglas Eyman and Colleen Reilly (94K)

8. Professional Writers and Revision, Alice Horning (133K)

9. Creative Writers and Revision, David Stephen Calonne (182K)