Transcript + “Writing to Learn” - Alabama Best Practices Center

Powerful
Conversations
Network
preparation
practice
policy
3rd Quarterly Meeting
February, 2014
2
Partners with the
Alabama State Department of Education Initiatives
Alphabet Soup!
•
ABPC
Alabama Best Practices Center
•
KLN
•
PCN
•
SLN
•
IP
Instructional Partners Pilot
•
ACCRS
Alabama’s College-and Career-Ready
Standards
•
FA Formative Assessment
Key Leaders Network
Powerful Conversations Network
Superintendent Leaders Network
+
Learning Outcomes
1.To
deepen our understanding of the ACCRS
Writing Standards and their connection to
student thinking and learning across the
curriculum
2.To
reflect on where we are individually, and as
a school, in addressing the ACCRS Writing
Standards
3.To
explore three tools for “writing to learn”
and assess their potential for use in our school
+
Learning Outcomes, Cont’d
4.
To analyze identified thinking skills and
think about ways in which they connect to
and might be supportive of student thinking
and writing
5.
To look at a piece of student writing using a
protocol for collaborative examination of
student work
6.
To conclude work with our cross-district
design teams and share products and
learnings with other colleagues
6
Organize Your Teams
•
•
•
Facilitator
Recorder/Reporter
Time Monitor/Materials Manager
•
Directions Clarifier
7
Ground Rules/Group Norms
•
Be open to and respect all points of view
•
Listen with an open mind & expect to learn
•
Accept responsibility for active & equitable participation
•
Check for understanding
•
Allow think time
•
Welcome questions
•
Avoid “cyber” and sidebar conversations
•
Take care of creature comforts
+ Increased Emphasis on Writing in
ACCRS
“Writing is treated as an
equal partner to reading, and
more than this, writing is
assumed to be the vehicle
through which a great deal of
reading work and reading
assessments will occur.”
Lucy Calkins, et al., Pathways to the Common
Core
+ Rationale for Increased Emphasis
on Writing in ACCRS
What do you think?
“In this day and age, the ability to convey knowledge
is becoming as important as knowledge itself.”
Lucy Calkins, et al., p. 110, Pathways to the Common
Core
“Though writing is an active learning endeavor, not
passive as in listening, the act of writing involves more
of the entire body in the process and thus will
increase the likelihood of learning. What makes
writing to learn powerful is the process of reading,
thinking, writing, rereading, and rewriting that occurs
over time.”
Edutopia, College Readiness: Writing to Learn,
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/
college-readiness-writing-to-learn-ben-johnson
+ Rationale for Increased Emphasis
on Writing in ACCRS
What do you think?
“Writing is thinking. To write well is to think
clearly. That’s why it’s so hard.”—David
McCullough
“How can writing help students learn content?
Because writing, by its nature, forces students
to articulate ideas and reasoning, it can help
them deepen, develop, and revise their
thinking about the subject material.”
http://writing.mit.edu/wac/teachingresources/integrating/
firstprinciples/writinglearncontent
+
Writing, Thinking, Speaking
•
Select one of the four quotes from the
previous two slides.
•
In the next minute, write down your
thoughts about the quote.
•
When directed, share thoughts aloud
as directed.
+
Areas of Emphasis in the
ACCRS Writing Standards
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Three types of writing
•
The writing process
•
The quality of student
writing
•
Writing as integral even
for very young students
•
Writing across all
disciplines and for real
purposes
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Three Types of Writing
•
Opinion and Argument Writing
•
Informational Writing
•
Narrative Writing
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Writing as a Process
•
“Write routinely over extended time frames
(time for research, reflection, and revision)
and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a
day or two)” (ACCRS Writing Anchor
Standard 10)
•
“Develop and strengthen writing as needed
by planning, revising, [and] editing” (ACCRS
Anchor Writing Anchor Standard 5)
+
Quality of Student Writing
“Produce clear and coherent writing in which
the development and organization are
appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.”
(ACCRS Writing Anchor Standard 4)
+
Writing as Integral
Even for Young Students
“All of the skills that are
considered essential
for high school
students actually have
their beginnings in the
early grades.”
Calkins, p. 109
+ Writing Across All Disciplines and
For Real Purposes
“Writing standards [are] a shared
responsibility within the school that all subject
areas support.”
Calkins, et al., Pathways to the Common Core, p. 110
Activity 1: Individual Review of
+ ACCRS Writing Standards, School
Team Assessment, and Sharing
Across Network
WHAT?
Review, reflection, and dialogue
about writing standards
WHY?
To make personal meaning, learn
from others, and self-assess
HOW?
Follow directions on pages 3-4 of
Activity Packet
+
Link to Writing Standards
http://alex.state.al.us/ccrs/sites/alex.stat
e.al.us.ccrs/files/DOC.PDF
Begins on p. 26
+ What insights, if any, did you gain
from colleagues?
•
That enhance your
understanding of one or
more of the writing
standards?
•
About school-wide
approaches to improving
student writing?
•
About classroom practices
to improve student writing?
+ Activity 2: Tools for Use in “Writing to
Learn”—Jigsaw Cooperative Learning
WHAT?
Learn about three tools associated
with “writing to learn”
WHY?
for
To assess potential of these tools
use with your students
HOW?
Follow directions on page 5 of
Activity Packet as you engage in a
modified jigsaw cooperative
learning activity
+
“Writing to Learn”
A Classroom Example
https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/writing
-to-learn
+ Activity 3: Exploring Additional Thinking
Skills from How to Teach Thinking Skills
Within the Common Core—School Team
Dialogue and Review
WHAT?
writing
Investigate selected thinking skills
and their relationship to mastery of
standards
WHY?
To make connections between
thinking skills and writing
HOW?
Follow directions on pages 9-10 as
you choose thinking skills to
explore
+
Embedding Thinking Skills in
Writing Instruction
Which did you explore?
•
Generate (Chapter 4, pages 41-47)
•
Associate (Chapter 5, pages 49-55)
•
Reason (Chapter 16, pages 139-145)
•
Connect (Chapter 17, pages 147-153)
+
Activity 4: Examining A Student Writing
Sample—Looking At Student Work
WHAT?
Collaborative examination of a
student writing sample
WHY?
To get behind student thinking and
understanding in order to decide
next steps in writing instruction
upon
HOW?
Follow protocol for looking at
student work on pages 11-12 of
Activity Packet
+
What did you learn from LASW?
•
What did you learn about the student’s
thinking and understanding?
•
How well did the process work? What went
well? What could be improved?
•
What might be the benefits of using this type
protocol in your PLCs or grade- departmentlevel meetings?
+
Looking at Student Work Resources
The Reading and Writing Project, Teachers College,
Columbia U.
http://readingandwritingproject.com/resources/student-work.html
Achieve the Core
http://www.achievethecore.org/page/507/in-common-effectivewriting-for-all-students
The Teaching Channel
https://www.teachingchannel.org/
Achieve
http://www.achieve.org/achieving-common-core
The Aspen Institute
http://www.aspeninstitute.org/publications/toolsforteachers
+
Break-Out Sessions:
Principals and Design Teams