Neat points, Paul.  I've found that students who do a lot of reading typically
have a MUCH better command of the syntactic resources of the language as
writers, though not necessarily a  good command of traditional usage or
editing skills.  This is just an informal observation, though; it would be
great to investigate it more formally.  I doubt, however, that you'll
necessarily find a connection between students' CONSCIOUS awareness of
grammar, or lack of conscious awareness, and his/her reading ability.  Again,
though, this is based just on my personal experience with students and with
colleagues who write stories for publication.  And yes, of course, the same
could and should be done with students' gaps in reading strategies and skills
(reading is my other major area, and how to do such assessment and teaching is
a major part of my reading courses).

Connie Weaver
Western Michigan University

"Paul E. Doniger" wrote:

> I agree with Brock that Connie's idea of assessing individual grammar needs
> based on student writing is "interesting." In fact, I believe that many
> individual teachers, if not schools, do just that. I wonder if the same
> could be done based on student gaps in reading skills? It seems to me that
> the connection between a student's awareness of grammar and his or her
> reading ability would be an area that deserves some study. What do you all
> think?
>
> Paul E. Doniger
> The Gilbert School
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Haussamen, Brock <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Thursday, June 15, 2000 7:03 AM
> Subject: Re: Putting grammar back into the curriculum
>
> > Connie,
> >      Your recommendation here sounds interesting.  Could you say more
> about
> > it?  Do (or would) school systems come up with signficantly different
> needs
> > and plans?  How does (or could) the approach affect the choice of
> textbooks?
> >
> > Brock Haussamen
> > Raritan Valley Community College
> > [log in to unmask]
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > But I think the most important thing is for
> > school
> > systems to assess the "grammar" needs of their own students, based upon
> > writing
> > samples, and plan teaching experiences based on that assessment.
> >