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Computers are used in the music field for generation of sound, for composing music, for analysis of music, and for musicological applications, such as cataloguing a bibliography of music literature. These areas are relatively new aspects of computer usage, and research is being conducted to stay abreast of current technological advancements. Avant-garde composers are challenged by new advances in music. Computer-generated music is one of the new trends, but the composer is usually limited in the use of the medium for two reasons: there are no computers to which he may have access, and/or there is not enough knowledge about computer-generated music. The composer sometimes feels that he must have vast knowledge of the computer before he can attempt to use it in musical composition; however, a limited amount of investigation of computer-generated music has shown that methods can be codified to the point where great technical knowledge is not required of the composer.

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This study searches twenty composition readers' table of contents for the degree of inclusivity of queer people and issues. Four means of erasure are labeled as possible erasing of queer identity: presuming heteronormativity, overt homophobia, perpetuating tokenism, and pathologizing queer identity. The presence of other differences are compared to the number of times that queer identity is referenced in the table of contents. The final portion of the analysis examines the two most inclusive composition readers to understand more clearly how the readers present queer individuals and issues. In a sense, I want to explore the question of how often queer people are discussed or addressed and in what forms within these composition readers. My hope is to develop a means for instructors and students to investigate whether or not, and in what ways a composition reader prescribes presence for the queer individual.

According to educational theory, learning to write necessitates self-belief that one is capable of performing required tasks. This belief is called self-efficacy, a component of human agency. Students who enter First-Year Composition (FYC), are often unaware of the writing challenges that lie ahead, and many educational psychologists posit that self-efficacy beliefs are the most important factor in meeting these writing challenges. While socio-cognitive theory shapes views of self-efficacy in education literature, to date, measures of self-efficacy in writing have focused only on the individual cognitive beliefs as they influence writing performance outcomes. However, current research in writing studies as well as posthuman theories of agency point to a broader, more contextually-bound view of agency for writing as emergent and enacted in socially constructed systems. This dissertation challenges the current view of self-efficacy as it is described in the educational literature as well as the ways in which self-efficacy in writing is measured, suggesting instead that self-efficacy beliefs and learning to write are deeply contextualized. In this dissertation, I examine student self-efficacy in writing using the lens of activity theory, not only as a set of stated individual beliefs but also as belief-in-action measured as images on writing maps, subtle shifts in language and talk about writing, as well as changes in writing practices. More importantly, I examine the agency that is constructed in the social system of FYC classrooms which may only later become internalized individual beliefs about abilities to write. My study suggests that self-efficacy beliefs are not bound by inside the head as belief about performing certain rules for writing, but instead self-efficacy beliefs about writing are emergent and enacted and bound to particular writing systems. Lingering feelings of agency for iii working in particular systems can move with students to similar systems; however, strong beliefs about writing as fixed and rule-bound can actually hinder how much students learn in FYC. The evidence suggests that self-efficacy in writing may be better theorized as writing efficacy, emergent agency for writing that strengthens as participants become engaged in working toward the motives of a writing system.