Written Communication Jul 1989 Open Access

Traversing the Topical Landscape: Reading and Writing as Ways of Knowing

WILLIAM McGINLEY ; ROBERT J. TIERNEY

Abstract

In light of recent theoretical and empirical developments in the areas of reading, writing, and learning, this article proposes a view of literacy learning in which various forms of reading and writing are conceptualized as unique ways of thinking about and exploring a topic of study en route to acquiring knowledge. Throughout this article, we take the theoretical position that a topic of study is analogous to a conceptual “landscape” about which knowledge is best acquired by “traversing” it from a variety of perspectives. In this system, different forms of reading and writing represent the “traversal routes” through which an individual can explore a given content domain. Specifically, we wish to argue that more complex or diverse combinations of different forms of reading and writing provide a learner with the means to conduct a more critical inquiry of a topic by virtue of the multiple perspectives or ways of “seeing” and thinking that these reading and writing exchanges permit. Finally, in light of this theoretical orientation, we contend that the ability to direct dynamically one's own reading and writing engagements en route to learning is central to conducting an inquiry of this nature. This perspective suggests a reexamination of a line of research that has pursued the question of how writing in combination with reading influences thinking and learning.

Journal
Written Communication
Published
1989-07-01
DOI
10.1177/0741088389006003001
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
OA PDF Green
Topics
literacy studies
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (9)

  1. Hirvela (2005)
    Computer-based reading and writing across the curriculum: Two case studies of L…
    Computers and Composition
  2. YOUNG et al. (1998)
    Writing from Primary Documents: A Way of Knowing in History
    Written Communication
  3. PRIOR (1994)
    Response, Revision, Disciplinarity: A Microhistory of a Dissertation Prospectus…
    Written Communication
  4. NEWELL (1994)
    The Effects of Written Between-Draft Responses on Students' Writing and Reasoni…
    Written Communication
  5. WINSOR (1994)
    Invention and Writing in Technical Work: Representing the Object
    Written Communication
Show all 9 →
  1. ACKERMAN (1993)
    The Promise of Writing to Learn
    Written Communication
  2. PRIOR (1991)
    Contextualizing Writing and Response in a Graduate Seminar
    Written Communication
  3. STOTSKY (1991)
    On Developing Independent Critical Thinking: What We Can Learn From Studies of …
    Written Communication
  4. CUMMING (1990)
    Metalinguistic and Ideational Thinking in Second Language Composing
    Written Communication

References (66) · 5 in this index

  1. Anderson, R. C.
    Handbook of reading research
  2. Applebee, A. N.
    Writing in the secondary school: English and the content areas
  3. Applebee, A. N.
    Contexts for learning to write
  4. 10.3102/00346543054004577
     ↗
  5. Aristotle
    The art of rhetoric
Show all 66 →
  1. Barthes, R.
    S/Z
  2. Bleich, D.
    Readings and feelings
  3. Britton, J.
    Explorations in children's writing
  4. Brown, A. L.
    Advances in instructional psychology
  5. Brown, A. L.
    Handbook of child psychology
  6. Collins, A.
    Theoretical issues in reading comprehension
  7. Colvin-Murphy, C.
    National Reading Conference
  8. Copeland, K. A.
    Research in the Teaching of English
  9. Dansereau, D.
    Thinking and learning skills
  10. 10.2307/356095
     ↗
  11. Ennis, R., H.
    Teaching for thinking
  12. Flavell, J. H.
    Structural/process theories of complex human behavior
  13. Freire, P.
    Education for critical consciousness
  14. Fulweiler, T.
    Language connections: Writing and reading across the curriculum
  15. Gadamer, H.
    Philosophical hermeneutics
  16. Gage, J.
    The teaching of writing
  17. Gere, A. R.
    Roots in the sawdust
  18. Giroux, H. A.
    Teachers as intellectuals: Toward a critical pedagogy of learning
  19. Guthrie, J.
    Excellence in education
  20. Iser, W.
    The act of reading: A theory of aesthetic response
  21. Katz, M.
    The public school monopoly
  22. KENNEDY (1985)
    The Composing Process of College Students Writing from Sources
    Written Communication
  23. KUCER (1985)
    The Making of Meaning: Reading and Writing as Parallel Processes
    Written Communication
  24. LANGER (1986)
    Reading, Writing, and Understanding: An Analysis of the Construction of Meaning
    Written Communication
  25. Langer, J. A.
    Children reading and writing: Structures and strategies
  26. Langer, J. A.
    How writing shapes thinking: A study of teaching and learning
  27. 10.2307/747248
     ↗
  28. Luria, A. R.
    Speech and the development of mental processes in the child
  29. Marshall, J. D. (1987)
    Research in the Teaching of English
  30. Martin, N.
    Writing across the curriculum
  31. Mayher, J. S.
    Learning to write, writing to learn
  32. McGinley, W. (1989). The role of reading and writing in the acquisition of knowledge: A…
  33. McGinley, W.
    Toward a view of reading and writing as ways of knowing
  34. McPeck, J. E.
    Critical thinking and education
  35. Nelson, J.
    How the writing context shapes college students' strategies for writing from sources
  36. Newell (1984)
    Learning from Writing in Two Content Areas: A Case Study/Protocol Analysis
    Research in the Teaching of English
  37. Newkirk, T.
    Understanding writing: Ways of observing, learning, and teaching
  38. Nostrand, V. A. D. (1979)
    Social Education
  39. O'Flahavan, J. F.
    Dimensions of thinking and cognitive instruction
  40. 10.1016/0361-476X(83)90018-8
     ↗
  41. 10.1016/0273-2297(86)90002-X
     ↗
  42. Perl (1979)
    The Composing Processes of Unskilled College Writers
    Research in the Teaching of English
  43. Pintrich, P.
    Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association
  44. Pokey, P. A. (1988). Predicting achievement in geometry early and late in the semester:…
  45. 10.1086/461396
     ↗
  46. Rosenblatt, L. M.
    The reader, the text, the poem
  47. Rumelhart, D. E.
    Understanding reading comprehension: Cognition, language and the structure of prose
  48. Salvatori, M.
    Facts, artifacts, and counterfacts
  49. Shepard, C.
    Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association
  50. Smith, F.
    Joining the literacy club
  51. Spiro, R. J.
    Theoretical issues in reading comprehension
  52. Spiro, R. J.
    Knowledge acquisition for application: Cognitive flexibility and transfer in complex cont…
  53. 10.2307/818019
     ↗
  54. Tierney, R. J.
    Composing and comprehending
  55. Tierney, R. J.
    Reading Research Quarterly
  56. Van DeWeghe, R. (1987)
    English Quarterly
  57. Vygotsky, L. S.
    Thought and language
  58. Walters, K. (1987)
    10.58680/la198725602
    Language Arts  ↗
  59. Weinstein, C.
    The handbook of research on teaching
  60. Wittgenstein, L.
    Philosophical investigations
  61. Wittrock, M. C.
    Composing and comprehending
CrossRef global citation count: 37 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Computers and Composition Jun 2026
    Conversing computers, composition, and culture: Lessons on multilingualism and multiliteracies from Indigenous Voices in Digital Spaces ↗
    Analeigh E. Horton; Cindy Tekobbe
    digital rhetoric literacy studies
  2. Computers and Composition Jun 2026
    Beyond paying attention: Praxis for critical digital literacy ↗
    Amber M. Buck
    digital rhetoric literacy studies
  3. Assessing Writing Apr 2026
    Developing students’ feedback literacy in disciplinary academic writing through generative artificial intelligence ↗
    Jianda Liu; Zihao Shi; Wanqing Li
    artificial intelligence literacy studies
  4. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication Mar 2026
    Surveys as UXR: Using Design Thinking to Shape a Survey-Based UX Assessment for Rural Audiences ↗
    Kaitlin J. Coyle; Derek G. Ross
    assessment technical communication qualitative research literacy studies
  5. Business and Professional Communication Quarterly Feb 2026
    Feedback-Only AI for Writing Instruction: A Constrained-Generative Tool That Preserves Authorship ↗
    Heidi Schultz
    rhetorical criticism writing pedagogy revision professional writing artificial intelligence literacy studies