Morgan, Margaret Patricia
Four Dimensions of the Collaborative Composing Processes of Student Writers
School: PURDUE UNIVERSITY (0183)
Degree: PHD
Date: 1988 pp:189
Advisor: Lauer, Janice M.
Source: DAI-A 50/03, p. 640, Sep 1989
Subject: EDUCATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE (0279)
ISBN:
UMI Number: AAT 8911959
Abstract:
To date, no case study research has examined the collaborative composing processes of college student writers using a shared document model of collaboration. In this study, four student groups, each preparing a research proposal, were videotaped while they planned and drafted their documents. Group interactions were analyzed along four dimensions: problem identification, group organizing patterns, drafting behaviors, and leadership. Findings show that (1) the group writing the highest ranked proposal used first-hand evidence to identify a problem; (2) groups drafted either by dividing the text into parts with each member writing a part or by drafting together as a group; (3) groups used 29 different speaking, writing, and reading behaviors during drafting; and (4) the group members writing the highest ranked proposals shared leadership in the group. Before there can be effective teaching using a collaborative pedagogy, there must be a greater understanding of how groups write collaboratively.
