ADOLESCENT WRITING: A COMPONENT OF THE 21 ST CENTURY DEFINITION OF LITERACY

1. ADOLESCENT WRITING: A COMPONENTOF THE 21ST CENTURY DEFINITIONOF LITERACY Presenter: Mary Stout ELA Program Manager Georgia Department of Education

2. Section One: Beliefs and Strategies

3. THE NEED FOR WRITING “If students are to make knowledge their own, they must struggle with the details, wrestle with the facts, and rework raw information and dimly understood concepts into language they can communicate to someone else. In short, if students are to learn, they must write.” • The National Commission on Writing

4. Every year in the United States large numbers of adolescents graduate from high school unable to write at the basic levels required by colleges or employers. In addition, every school day 7,000 young people drop out of high school (Alliance for Excellent Education,2006), many of them because they lack the basic literacy skills to meet the growing demands of the high school curriculum (Kamil, 2003; Snow & Biancarosa, 2003). Because the definition of literacy includes both reading and writing skills, poor writing proficiency should be recognized as an intrinsic part of this national literacy crisis. Source: Graham, S. & Perin, D. (2007). Writing Next: Effective strategies to improve writing of adolescents in middle and high schools. Alliance for Education. Carnegie Corporation of New York.

5. Activity 1: What do I believe as a writing teacher? • In Participant’s Guide, turn to pages 2-4. • Write 5 effective writing strategies for adolescent writers. • Write 5 beliefs about the teaching of writing.

6. Activity 1: What do I believe as a writing teacher? • Write 5 things that you think writers do? • Describe a challenging writing assignment you gave your students. • Share with the group.

7. Activity 2: What do other people say about writing? • Examine the effective strategies as identified in the 2007 Writing Next report. • Examine the beliefs about the Teaching of Writing from NCTE (2004). PG pages 5-7, plus the vertically aligned standards.

8. Activity 2: What do other people say about writing? • Examine what Tim Shanahan says all writers should do. • Examine what Georgia expects of high school writers. PG pages 5-7, plus the vertically aligned standards.

9. Why do students need to experience continued growth in writing? "It has always been our belief that writing skills are essential for postsecondary success, and these points show that the introduction of the SAT writing section is leading to tangible and valuable change in the classroom," said Caperton. "Even though we're heading in the right direction, we must do a better job of providing teachers with the time and tools they need to teach writing well.“ Source: Number and diversity of SAT® takers at all time-high new College Board survey shows increased focus on writing in high school. (2007). College Board Press Release.

10. Why do students need to experience continued growth in writing? Based on research from The National Commission on Writing (2004), • People who cannot write and communicate clearly will not be hired, and if already working, are unlikely to last long enough to be considered for promotion. Half of responding companies reported that they take writing into consideration when hiring professional employees and when making decisions about promotions. • Two-thirds of salaried employees in large American companies have some writing responsibility.

11. Why do students need to experience continued growth in writing? • Eighty percent or more of the companies in the services and the finance, insurance, and real estate (FIRE) sectors, the corporations with greatest employment growth potential, assess writing during hiring. • More than 40 percent of responding firms offer or require training for salaried employees with writing deficiencies.

12. Is this new information? “Competent writers do not simply generate sentences. They generate them after thinking about purposes, content, and so forth. . . . The point is that if the study of grammar and mechanics is brought to bear on the composing process at all, it is likely to influence only the most concrete levels, the planning and editing of specific sentences. But such study would have no effect on the higher-level processes of deciding on intentions and generating and organizing ideas. Yet, clearly these higher-level processes give rise to the content, organization, and flavor of individual sentences.” • Source: The following comes from Research on Written Composition, by George Hillocks, Jr. (ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading and Communications Skills, 1986). This book surveys the research on writing and the teaching of writing from 1963 to the mid-80’s, summarizes it, analyzes it, draws inferences and conclusions from it.

13. Is this new information? • “The writing of visualized sentences should begin in the fifth month of the first term. The material for the work is to be taken from review reading matter, either directly or in rearrangement.” • “The writing of dictated sentences is to begin in the middle of the first year, second half. The material is to be taken from review reading matter.” Source: Burchill, G. & Ettinger, W. (1909). Plan of work for the progressive road to reading. Boston.

14. Morning Break • Please return in 15 minutes.

15. The Key to Making Writing Relevant The Reading and Writing connection

16. Children appear to be more likely to derive learning benefits across reading and writing when they understand that a connection exists. • Reading is the receptive side of knowledge, while writing is the productive side. Thus, reading and writing are reciprocal processes. • Writing skill is a predictor of academic success along with reading comprehension. Reading Research in Action, 2008

17. Strategies for integrating reading and writing across the curriculum • “Effective teachers will recognize where their students are in reading and writing development and will tailor instruction accordingly.” • ~Louisa C. Moats

18. Reading + Writing =Literacy • Each skill contributes to the other. • Both skills enhance engagement and reasoning. • Reading and writing involve using knowledge of language structure, including word structure, and text structure (syntax and style). ~Reading Research in Action, 2008.

19. Traits of proficient readers • Make connections • Self-question • Visualize • Determine importance • Make inference • Synthesize • Monitor comprehension

20. How do the reading traits translate to writing? • Make connections • Self-question • Visualize • Determine importance • Connect to topic/thesis • Writing process/organization drafts 3. Create a picture/plan 4. Must determine the evidence/supporting details

21. How do the reading traits translate to writing? 5. Make inference 6. Synthesize 7. Monitor comprehension • Audience, readers’ concerns, counter-arguments 6. Research/include/create 7. Diction, syntax, cohesiveness

22. Less Effective Introductions • Dictionary Introductions—not a particularly authoritative work—(formulaic) • Introduction space fillers—vague statements that are circular—(formulaic) • Mere restatement of the prompt—(formulaic) • Broad sweeping statements-too general in nature—(formulaic) • “The Book Report” introduction—(formulaic) www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb

23. Writing an Effective Conclusion Strategies to Avoid Strategies for Effective Conclusion Peer question: “So What?” or “Why should anybody care?” Key words/parallel concepts from introduction Synthesize, not summarize Provocative insight/quotation Propose a course of action, solution to an issue, questions for further study Point to broader implication • Beginning with unnecessary, overused phrase (in conclusion, etc.) • Stating thesis for the very first time • Introducing a new idea • Ending with a rephrased thesis statement • Making sentimental appeals • Including evidence that should be in the body www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb

24. Studying Good Content Specific Writing • Analyze a story’s Hooks and Tails (beginnings and endings) to call attention to a variety of effective techniques used by professional writers (see handouts). • Study the author’s craft by looking at how he or she formulates the BODY of information or argument, too. • Ask students to identify TAP for everything they read. • Ask students to identify organizational pattern.

25. Activity 3: Strategy 1: “Hooks and Tails” • Participate in a “Hooks and Tails” model in the Participant’s Guide (pages 8-9). • Explore a “Hooks and Tails” lesson plan that you can use in your classroom. Discuss with a peer how you can use this. PG (pages 10-13)

26. Activity 4: Strategy 1: “Hooks and Tails” • Take your text and create three models for your classroom. (Always remember to connect to the standards.)

27. Accountability Piece • Include in your portfolio a sample of a “hooks and tails” activity. • Be sure to identify the standards and elements.

28. Lunch Break • Please return in 75 minutes.

29. Evidence: The Key to Success in Writing • Know what type of evidence is needed for the assignment (Relevance) • Know the difference between primary and secondary sources • Be able to IDENTIFY, ANALYZE, AND CONNECT • Read, read, read

30. Activity 5: Strategy 2: Evidence Gathering • Examine an annotated evidence paragraph in persuasive writing. (PG) page 14 • Examine the 4 model paragraphs. (PG) pages 15-16 (For Student) • Annotate each paragraph and evaluate the types of evidence the writer used to prove his point. (For Student)

31. Activity 6: Strategy 2: Evidence Gathering • Create your own model annotation lesson. • Choose an evidence paragraph from a reading in your text. • Be sure to use the LOTS.

32. Evidence Gathering Journals PG (Pages 17-22) • The importance of informational (nonfiction) reading • The importance of critically thinking about an issue • The importance of connecting reading and writing

33. Accountability Piece • Include evidence gathering student work in your writing portfolio. • Be sure to identify the standards and elements.

34. Reading for Understanding:Writing on TopicKnowing the AudienceUnderstanding Purpose

35. Understanding Prompts • TAP (Topic, Audience, Purpose) • Give the students different prompts from different sources and for different reasons. • Have the students mark the words or phrases that indicate the following: (Be sure to explain implicit and explicit intentions.) a. Topic b. Audience c. Purpose

36. Understanding Prompts • Then have the students rewrite their prompts in their own words. • Have students discuss their rewrites with each other (share/pair). • As a teacher, check the students’ rewrites. This will quickly provide information on which students are misreading prompts.

37. Activity 7: Create a model for student’s TAP activity (T=Topic; A=Audience; P=Purpose) • Refer to pages 23-24 in the PG. • Step 1: Highlight the words or phrases that help you identify and understand the topic. • Step 2: Underline the words or phrases that help you identify the audience. • Step 3: Place a box around the words or phrases that tell you the purpose. • Step 4: Rewrite the prompt in your own words.

38. Accountability Piece • Create a sample lesson, or use the one provided in the Participant’s Guide (pages 25-28 ). • Then have the students to choose one of the prompts, find two bodies of research evidence, and write according to the prompt. (may want to time the students on this writing: Standard that deals with research, as well as ELA9W4 (timed writings). • Place their writing samples in your portfolio.

39. Afternoon Break • Please return in 15 minutes.

40. Ideas and ResourcesSample Lessons and Tools

41. Implications about Writing • Create assignments that build on students’ experiences and strengths. • At the same time, make sure students are working to develop proficiency in school-based literacies. Source: Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory (2004).

42. Implications about Writing • Be sure that directions and purposes of writing assignments are clear, (both to you and the students). • Give students multiple opportunities to revise, receive targeted feedback, and continue to work on both content and style. Source: Tim Shanahan (2004).

43. Implications about Writing • Provide students authentic contexts for writing that go beyond simply writing to the teacher for a grade. • Provide students models, different strategies, and real world opportunities.

44. Three Types of Writing for Every Classroom • Writing-to-Learn • Writing-to-Demonstrate Learning • Authentic Writing Source: Dick, Elizabeth. “Weekly Writing.” Literacy Across the Curriculum: Setting and Implementing Goals for Grades Six through 12. Guide #12. Atlanta: Southern Regional Education Boards (SREB), 77-99.

45. Writing-to-Learn • Journals • Learning logs • Writer’s Notebooks • Exit and Entry (Admit) Slips • Inquiry logs • Mathematics logs • Study guides PG (page 29)

46. Writing-to-Demonstrate Learning • Paragraphs • Essays • Essays and open-response questions • Lab reports • Research assignments • Creative tasks • On-demand writing (timed writing) • Project reports (PG page 30)

47. Authentic Writing • Articles • Editorials • Letters to the editor • Speeches • Letters • Proposals • Reviews • Scripts • Business plans • How-to manuals • Memorandums

48. Activity 8: Writing Activity (PG Page 32 ) • Using these examples as a springboard for your own ideas, develop one strategy from each of these three types of writing that would enhance one of your units of study. • For example: Reader Response Journal Prompt, Timed Writing Essay question, Informational Brochure.

49. Types of High School Writing: Many Cross Genres

50. Types of High School Writing: Many Cross Genres