First of all, I received the grant I applied for last June, which would give me five computers in my tiny classroom. By word processing , I mean much more than just typing up an already-prepared paper. Ideally the students would use the computer for the entire writing process as I believe computers were designed to be used. Practically, with 120 students every day , this is a balancing act. We have a 25 computer school lab, and once or twice a month I'm able to get my classes in there for usually a two-day block.
Students then work singly or in pairs to prepare work.
In the classroom, students rotate turns with the machines. I also purchased an Apple presentation unit to hook up my classroom television unit to the computer so all can see the writing. As the students improve the appearance of their writing, hopefully they will pay more attention to the quality of their work, and by giving the students as many opportunities as possible I hope to encourage them to develop their writing skills. By revision , I mean teaching students the value of revising their work and the skills they need to accomplish that. My goal is to teach students how to revise their papers and develop the desire to work on revision.