I would also argue that any type (and different types) of writing practice are good for students. For example, low-stakes “free-writing” in a personal journal that no one ever sees, that may not even be in complete sentences, is helpful for students when they are trying to just get some ideas out. Blogging or the old-school version of writing and trading papers in class in a sort of peer-review process is another important form of writing, involving complete sentences, coherent thoughts, and easy-going feedback. More formal compositions that demand appropriate grammar, sentence structure, and organization of the central argument are also essential to practice. Which of these is more important? Or better? Hard to say, they all have their benefits. But writing can improve in many ways, such as by scribbling on the back of a napkin at a restaurant, jotting down notes in a notebook while sitting in a tree, or by typing on a computer.

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