A Comparison of Students' Attitudes and Success in Writing

Abstract

In 1984, widespread discussion continues among teachers concerning students who find it difficult to attain writing competency. The remainder of the decade may find, however, a decline in the amount of public attention given to this subject because of the increased number of government writing projects available for teachers and the flood of print and non-print media. To date, educators have explored various factors which may contribute to success or lack of success in writing. For example, on campuses with a large number of minority students, it is often concluded that widespread inefficiency in writing results because these students come from homes and environments where language versatility has not been practiced. In. addition, it is assumed that students in these universities and others have attended elementary and secondary schools where teachers have not provided enough opportunities for individuals to learn the art of composing. This study was designed to explore still another factor-attitude-which, until recent times, was seldom mentioned as an issue in writing success but which is probably of far greater significance than many persons have surmised. Based on the premise that many students have apprehensions about writing which hinder their success in composition courses, Daly and Miller constructed an instrument to measure writing apprehension.1 The instrument is composed of twenty-six items (13 positive and 13 negative). Scores range from a low of 26 to a high of 130. After revising, scoring, and testing the instrument in several