The paper presents a historical overview of theories of written composition in schools from 1850
to the present, including four important turning points: first, the originator of composition writing
Majar (1850) and further work by Praprotnik; second, the period when Bezjak and Lichtenwallner
(1908) strive to promote a new approach to the teaching of writing. Also originating from this period
are textbooks by Bezjak and Schreiner, as well as readers by Bajec, Rupel, Sovre and Kolari~. The
third period is represented by [ilih (1955), who tries to re-evaluate the old way of teaching
composition writing and to create a new one. This is followed by Trdina (1955–1964) and Silvester
(1959/60) and is followed by a time in which writing in schools emphasises the text as the product of
writing and the linguistic correctness of written compositions. The 1980s and 1990s mark the
beginning of creative workshops encouraged not only by the influence of American schools but also
by the development of the educational system, mother-tongue didactics and literature, a greater
democratisation of teaching and a new conception of the child. This leads to a division between
poetry and prose workshops on the one hand and creative writing in school on the other. The end of
the twentieth century marks the emergence of contemporary theories of writing.
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