Theresa M. Lillis is Lecturer in language and education at the Centre for Language and Communications at the Open University

'Despite the seemingly ever-increasing concern with widening participation to higher education and extending opportunities to older adults, it is surprising how little impact the work on academic literacies has had. If there is a text that can help redress that balance and encourage a wider debate, then this is it.' - Richard Edwards, Studies in the Education of Adults, Vol. 33 (2) 2001'Lillis' work makes a valuable contribution to a process of re-evaluation which is long overdue.' - Elaine Millard, Teaching in Higher Education

• List of figures and tables, Preface: why write this book?, Acknowledgements, Introduction: focus and research background, 1 Language, literacy and access to higher education, 2Student writing as social practice, 3 Restricted access to a privileged practice, 4 The regulation of authoring, 5 Essayist literacy, gender and desire, 6 Dialogues of participation, 7 Re-thinking student writing in higher education, Appendices, References, Index

Theresa M. Lillis is Lecturer in language and education at the Centre for Language and Communications at the Open University

'Despite the seemingly ever-increasing concern with widening participation to higher education and extending opportunities to older adults, it is surprising how little impact the work on academic literacies has had. If there is a text that can help redress that balance and encourage a wider debate, then this is it.' - Richard Edwards, Studies in the Education of Adults, Vol. 33 (2) 2001'Lillis' work makes a valuable contribution to a process of re-evaluation which is long overdue.' - Elaine Millard, Teaching in Higher Education

• List of figures and tables, Preface: why write this book?, Acknowledgements, Introduction: focus and research background, 1 Language, literacy and access to higher education, 2Student writing as social practice, 3 Restricted access to a privileged practice, 4 The regulation of authoring, 5 Essayist literacy, gender and desire, 6 Dialogues of participation, 7 Re-thinking student writing in higher education, Appendices, References, Index