of the variance in written output for students in the
intermediate grades (e.g., Graham, Berninger, Abbott, Abbott, & Whitaker, 1997). If students do
not possess accurate and fluent text transcription skills, the time and effort they need to produce
a draft will be considerable and undermine their willingness to abandon text produced with
“blood, sweat, and tears” and to spend more time and effort transcribing additional text.