Chapter 7, page 152
As this study illustrates, more effective writers plan at the outset of their work, often by outlining or
jotting down ideas in some other way (R. T. Kellogg, 1994; Ronald T. Kellogg, 2006; McCutchen, 2000).
Planning includes both generating ideas and organizing those ideas (Hayes & Flower, 1986; R. T.
Kellogg, 1994). Generating ideas refers to coming up with ideas that could be included in the written
document. When generating ideas, effective writers typically generate more ideas than they will actually
use, so that they have a pool of ideas from which to select. When generating ideas on a persuasive column
on global warming, the learner may begin brainstorm by writing down everything that comes to mind. She
might also consult other sources such as the Internet or magazine articles to generate further ideas.
Organization is the process of deciding which ideas to include in the final paper and working out how to
arrange them. The student writing on global warming decides which arguments to include, what evidence is
most persuasive, and what order to put them in. Planning can suffer either from generating too few ideas to
work with or from failing to fashion these ideas into a coherent whole.
Highly effective writers spend a substantial amount of time planning before they begin to write
(Ronald T. Kellogg, 2006). Before writing, they may spend significant time thinking about the problem,
mulling it over, and trying out different possible ways of writing the paper (Hayes & Flower, 1986).
Ineffective writers tend to start right in with their first or second idea and follow this idea to completion.
Expert writers often start out by developing some very general plans. They don’t get detailed at the
beginning of the process. Instead of focusing on the details, they start off making general plans, fully
aware that they may revise these plans. They realize that there is no point in spending a great deal of time
on details when they may change their overall plan later on. Thus, effective writers are also open to
changing the overall plan for the paper even after they begin writing it (Bryson et al., 1991, p. 61).
Planning among younger writers. The research we have discussed so far concerns planning with
secondary and postsecondary student writers. Bereiter and Scardamalia (1987) examined the typical
writing of younger students. Table 7.3 illustrates two approaches to planning for writing. Both writers were
writing about the influence of TV programs on children. They were thinking aloud as they were planning
their essays. The expert writer was an adult. The novice writer was a sixth grader. Before you read on,
think about how you would characterize the differences between these two writers’ planning.