Announcements
The eighth meeting of the National Conference on College Learning Assistance Centers will take place from May 15 to 17, 1986 on the Brooklyn Campus of Long Island University. This conference is sponsored by The Office of Special Academic Services.
Paper proposals for this conference should be practical in nature, between 200-250 words in length, and focus on topics such as computer- assisted instruction, program evaluation, critical-thinking skills, basic skills, English as a second language, cognitive skills, and materials development. Workshops should be planned for 75 minute sessions.
Guidelines for proposals:
1. Submit three copies.
2. Include your title, department, office and home telephone numbers.
3. Describe equipment needs.
4. Attach a brief biography or resume.
Please submit all proposals by January 15, 1986 by mailing them to the following address:
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People teaching grammar and basic composition skills may be interested in a computer disk that has just been published to accompany English Skills, Third Edition (McGraw-Hill, 1985). There are 36 activities on the disk, providing students with supplementary work on topic sentences, unity, support, coherence, and a number of sentence skills. A unique feature of these activities is that explanations are provided for both correct and incorrect answers. The explanations reinforce learning when a student gives a correct answer, and they provide guidance when a student gives an incorrect answer.
A disk is available for the Apple II series (Apple 11, 11+, IIe, and IIc); there is also a disk for the IBM PC. The disk can be ordered for $12.95 from Soft Productions, 100 Center Professional Building, Mishawaka, IN 46544 (telephone (219) 255-3911). Teachers using English Skills may be able to secure a complimentary diskette from McGraw-Hill by contacting their local McGraw representative or the McGraw English Editor. I suspect, though, that Soft Productions is a speedier way to go.
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In addition, a Guide to the Diskette has been prepared for English Skills, The Guide includes suggestions for making the software a part of an English skills course, and it reproduces almost all of the material on the diskette--for instructors who want to get a quick overview of the material without spending several hours in front of a computer. The guide can be obtained at no charge by writing to John Langen at 50 Holly Oak, Voorhees, New Jersey 08043.
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The University of Pittsburgh announces a Conference on Computers and Writing May 2-4, 1986. This conference on computer applications for writing instruction and research will explore current and future technologies for writing teachers, administrators, and students.
Topics for panels and software demonstrations will include: computer-assisted instruction in writing, computerized text analysis, word processing for the classroom, natural-language processing, intelligent computer tutors.
The University of Pittsburgh Conference on Computers and Writing is sponsored by the Learning Research and Development Center and the Department of English. Glynda Hull is Conference Coordinator. Registration forms will be mailed in November. For more information, please contact Terri Yousko at (412) 624-3898.
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The Instructional Resource Center Office of Academic Affairs and The Professional Staff Congress of The City University of New York are pleased to announce a national conference on Microcomputers and Basic Skills in College (November 11-14, 1985) to be held at the Vista International Hotel, in New York, New York.
Program strands in the conference are organized around such topics as writing, mathematics (arithmetic through precalculus), reading, English as a second language, science, and other areas of developmental education.
Major speakers at this conference include John Kemeny, Dartmouth College; Alfred Bork, University of California, Irvine; Bruce Vogeli, Columbia University; and Helen Schwartz, Oakland University.
Conference highlights include pre-conference workshops; panels and talks covering many aspects of college-level instruction on basic skills for both the beginning and experienced user of microcomputers; exhibits sponsored by major computer companies, software distributors, and publishers; swapping sessions for public-domain software; and special-interest group meetings to encourage networking.
For further information on the Conference contact Dr. Geoffrey Akst, Conference Chair, Instructional Resource Center, The City University of New York, 535 E. 80th St., New York, NY 10021. Telephone (212) 794-5425.
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The third annual summer conference for computer professionals, Writing for the Computer Industry, will be held in Plymouth, New Hampshire on Saturday, June 7, 1986. The conference is designed to meet the needs of writers, documentation analysts, editors, designers, free-lancers, consultants, publications managers in the computer industry, teachers of technical communication, and managers of computing services.
The conference will be held on the campus of Plymouth State College in the lake and mountain region of New Hampshire, two hours' drive north of Boston. The conference will focus on new ways to deal with the perennial problems of communicating in the computer industry: writing, editing, updating, and publishing documentation; writing for special audiences; managing publications; and training of writers. In addition to traditional topics and approaches, conference presentations will cover electronic user aids, the visual design of computer screens, and psychological aspects of computer-document design
Experienced professional communicators in the computer industry are invited to submit proposals for presentations. Approximately 20 speakers will be selected on the basis of the quality and suitability of their proposals.
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Papers and presentations may be on any aspect of communication in the computer industry; topics of both general and specialized interest are solicited. Papers and presentations must include recent material of interest to experienced professional communicators. Two formats are available: a) a 30-minute presentation (illustrated talk), or b) a 60-minute workshop with hands-on audience participation. All presentations should be delivered in a lively manner (not read directly) and must not be commercial or sales-oriented.
Proposals must be submitted in writing by January 3, 1986. Presenters who are selected will be notified within six weeks of the submission date. The submission of a proposal implies a firm intention to make a presentation at the conference. The registration fee is waived for presenters.
For further information please contact Dr. Richard Chisholm, 6 Read House, Plymouth State College, Plymouth, New Hampshire 03264 Telephone New Hampshire (603) 536-1550 ext. 301; or (603) 786-9759 (evenings).
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The National Testing Network in Writing, The City University of New York, and Cuyahoga Community College announce the fourth annual Conference on Writing Assessment (April 16, 17 and 18) in Cleveland, Ohio. This national conference for educators, administrators, and assessment personnel will be devoted to critical issues in assessing writing in elementary, secondary, and post-secondary settings. Discussion topics will include theories and models of writing assessment, assessing writing across the curriculum, the politics of testing, computer applications in writing assessment, the impact of testing on minority students and on ESL students, and research on writing assessment. The keynote speaker is Rexford Brown (Education Commission of the States) and the closing speaker is Elaine Maimon (Beaver College).
For information and registration materials, please write Professor Mary Lou Conlin, Cuyahoga Community College, 2900 Community College Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44115.
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The Assembly on Computers in English (ACE) wants to combine the best aspects of computer technology with the best principles of language learning, thinking, and communication to bring our schools and youngsters (of all ages) into the 21st century.
If the technology isn't exactly there yet, it certainly is coming. That is why ACE now publishes a newsletter to reach all teachers of English and language arts, to provide a support medium through which ideas and information--and the whole spirit of the changing education scene--can be shared.
ACE also plans to undertake projects on an international scale, projects such as the responsible development and use of computer software, which requires fresh, original thinking based on wide and varied experience
For more information, write to the ACE President, Audrey Roth, Miami-Dade Community College, 11011 S.W. 104 St., Miami, Florida, 33176.