Transcript Best Practice in Writing Instruction

Integrating Best Practice
into Effective Writing Instruction
Troy Hicks and Rita Maddox
Mid-Michigan Consortium Conference
April 11, 2005
Red Cedar Writing Project
 K-16 Teachers of Writing
 K-12 Students
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What Does Best Practice Look
Like in ELA Classrooms?
 Please review the two
handouts:
 Zemelman et al.’s Best
Practices in Reading and
Writing
 CELA’s (National Research
Center on English
Learning and
Achievement)
Uncommonly Successful
ELA Programs
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What does Best Practice look like
in ELA classrooms?
Seven Best Practice Structures (from a.m. session)
 Reading-As-Thinking
 Representing-to-Learn
 Small Group Activities
 Classroom workshop
 Authentic Expression
 Reflective Assessment
 Integrative Units
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ELA Best Practice
at Your Grade Level
• Please read the articles.
• Discuss content and connection of articles to one
another and Best Practice information from
morning session
• Based on your reading and discussion, create a
graphic representation of Best Practice at your
grade level
• Be prepared to present your thinking to the large
group.
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CELA
Learning from Different Lesson
Types
 Students learn skills and knowledge in multiple
lesson types
 Separated – direct instruction through a distinct lesson
 A mini-lesson on using prepositional phrases
 Simulated – examining concept within the context of
the lesson
 Looking for prepositional phrases in a text
 Integrated – teaching a direct skill and integrating it
immediately with the lesson
 Inviting students to mimic the author’s technique of using
prepositional phrases
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ELA Instructional Implications
from the MEAP Office

Teachers integrate test preparation into
instruction (CELA)
 Guidelines from MEAP Office
1. Provide direct instruction and modeling in literacy
processes and strategies.
2. Provide opportunities for students to read silently
and listen for extended periods of time.
3. Allow students to read, listen to, and create texts in a
variety of genres (short stories, essays, drama,
speeches, newspaper articles, biographies, graphs,
technical writing, etc.) in all content areas.
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ELA Instructional Implications
from the MEAP Office
4. Provide daily opportunities for writing done in
support of reading, i.e., literature response
logs and writing in which students reflect on
and evaluate their personal growth as authors.
5. Encourage students to read, listen to and
discuss a variety of selections that present
different perspectives on the same theme,
issue, question, or problem.
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ELA Instructional Implications
from the MEAP Office
6. Invite students to connect, synthesize,
compare, and summarize ideas and
information from more than one text.
7. Help students to generate focus questions
based on a theme studied in class and provide
many opportunities for them to discuss and
write about the focus questions.
8. Ask students to take a stand on issues related
to the focus questions and to articulate their
position in a written or oral presentation
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CELA –
Classrooms that Foster Cognitive
Collaboration
 “School is the place where kids come to
watch adults do lots of work.”
 We want to encourage students to do the
thinking in authentic literacy experiences
 Writing about topics they have some degree of
freedom in choosing
 Getting appropriate and timely response to their
own writing
 Offering response to peers’ writing that is valued
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 Break
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Bringing Our Brains
Together
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Revising and Editing
in Context
 Beginning in the fall of 2005, the 3-8
MEAP test will include a section called
Revising and Editing in Context
 Multiple choice questions about
grammar/mechanics
 Peer response section (using revision to show
thinking)
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Writing
GLCE-Genre, Process, Personal Style, Grammar and Usage, Spelling
Writing from Knowledge and Experience to a prompt
related to appropriate grade level knowledge
and experience
1 Paper scored holistically
with comments
6 point rubric
(x2=12 possible points)
35-40 minutes
Two page limit
No resources
Scored as first draft writing
Revising and Editing in Context-a writing selection appropriate to grade
level
10 Multiple Choice items in
response to writing selection
Short Constructed
Response to writing
selection,
scored holistically with
comments
4 point rubric
(x2=8 possible points)
35-45 minutes
Revising (based on use and
understanding of rubric)
Editing (based on use and
understanding of GLCE related
to grammar, usage, mechanics,
spelling)
Reading
GLCE-Word Study, Narrative Text, Informational Text, Comprehension/Critical Standards
(Reading Selections 1 and 2 connected)
Reading Selection 1
Reading Selection 2
5-10 Multiple Choice items
based on Reading Selection 1
5-10 Multiple Choice items
based on Reading Selection 2
5-10 Cross text Multiple Choice
items based on Reading
Selections 1 and 2
Writing Response to reading
connecting the selections
Paper scored holistically with
comments
6 point rubric
(6 possible points)
Multiple Choice items based
on GLCE
Thematic statement or
direct question or scenario
prompt
Two to Four Additional Independent Texts
5-10 Multiple Choice items for
each text
Multiple Choice items based
on GLCE
Reading Genre from GLCE up to and including the grade level being assessed
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Preparing to “Take the Test”


Please look at your GLCE
Identify GLCE that relate to revising,
editing and peer responding
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During the test
 As you take the grade level test, note (in the
margins or with sticky notes):
1. What cognitive tasks you are engaging in
(student brain)?
2.What GLCE are being assessed and to what
degree you teach these already (teacher brain)?
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Discuss at Grade Level
1. What cognitive tasks did you engage in
(student brain)?
2. What GLCE were assessed and to what
degree you teach these already (teacher
brain)?
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Revising and Editingdiscuss at grade level
 Backward Mapping
 What GLCE do you think were assessed?
 What would be difficult for students?
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Revising and Editingdiscuss at grade level
 What are the limitations of the test itself ?
 Can it effectively capture a social interaction?
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Revising and Editingdiscuss at grade level
 What are the instructional implications for
your findings?
 Please be prepared to share. . .
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The Rubric
Holistic Scorepoint Descriptions
Here is an explanation of what readers think about as they score your writing.
 The written response demonstrates the ability to reflect critically on a provided piece
of writing. Ideas are supported by specific examples or details from the provided
piece. Organization and form enhance the central ideas and move the reader through
the text. The voice and tone are authentic and compelling. There may be surface
feature errors, but they do not interfere with meaning.
 The written response demonstrates the ability to reflect on a provided piece of writing.
Ideas are somewhat supported by examples or details from the provided piece.
Organization and form are appropriate and present the ideas coherently. The voice
and tone support the ideas conveyed. Surface feature errors may be noticeable.
 The written response demonstrates limited ability to reflect on a provided piece of
writing. Ideas are supported with limited details and examples from the provided
piece. The voice and tone may be inappropriate or uneven. Surface feature errors may
make the writing awkward to read.
 The written response demonstrates the attempt to reflect on a provided piece of
writing. Ideas may be presented as generalizations about the writing sample. There is
little discernible shape or direction. There is little control over voice and tone. Surface
feature errors may make the writing difficult to read.
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The Rubric
Condition codes for unratable papers:
A
Copies and/or revises student sample, making no
connection to the question asked.
B
Insufficient, Off-topic, Illegible
C
Written in a language other than English
D
Blank/refused to respond
E
Summarizes the student sample, making no connection to
the question asked.
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The Rubric
 Update on the 4-Point Rubric
 Based on HS Reporting and Reflecting from
one’s own writing
 Attempting to measure cognitive tasks :
 Peer response ability through revision
 Using the qualities of effective introductions,
conclusions, transitions, details and examples
 How well do you think the test measures
these attributes?
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Connecting To Best Practice
 Connect concepts of Best Practice from
the morning to the idea of peer revision
 Identify key GLCE that you teach/do not
teach currently that are on the test
 What reading GLCE are covered as well?
 Return to graphic representations and add
additional ideas based on taking the test
 Report out before break
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Looking
at Multiple Choice Items
 Map these to GLCE
 Review Cognitive Domain and GLCE key
 What did you notice?
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Break…
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Think about. . .
 The GLCE you observed would be
challenging to students
 Instructional implications as you review
these resources
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Instructional ImplicationsResources
 http://www.marcopoloeducation.org/home.aspx
Marco Polo
 http://www.readwritethink.org/index.asp
Read/Write/Think
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Instructional ImplicationsResources
 http://www.writingfix.com/
Writing Fix
 http://webster.commnet.edu/grammar/in
dex.htm
Guide to Grammar and Writing
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Instructional ImplicationsResources
 http://www.educationworld.com/index.sh
tml
Education World
 http://webster.commnet.edu/grammar/p
owerpoint.htm
PowerPoint presentations
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Instructional ImplicationsResources
 http://www.misd.net/Languageart/profiles.ht
m
Macomb ISD Profiles Project
 http://www.michigan.gov/mde/0,1607,7-14022709_31168---,00.html
MEAP Resources, including Released Items
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Using the resources. . .
 Select the resource(s) that best connect to
challenging GLCE you noticed earlier
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Time to Write!
 Now, we will go through the writing
process and invite you to respond to a
MEAP-like prompt
 4th Grade 2003 Released Prompt
 How People Show They Care for Others
 Writing to a six point rubric
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Peer Writing Response
 Peer response
model
 MAPS
 4 Steps
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MAPS to Writing
• Mode
•
•
Persuasive essay, research paper, narrative
What are the particular “rules” for this mode?
• Audience
•
Teacher, classmates, parents
• Purpose
•
Persuade, inform, summarize, describe
• Situation
•
•
What you bring to the writing task
Specific requirements for the writing task
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Scaffolding Writing Instruction
 Now, we will look at a
sample student paper
and read it, keeping
the MAPS of this
particular assignment
in mind.
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Peer Response Groups
 Now that we have looked at a sample paper
and thought about how to respond to it, we
will try the process in a group
 Four Steps
 Author identifies focus areas/questions
 Author reads while responders listen
attentively and take notes
 Responders discuss while author takes notes
 Author joins in the conversation
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Peer Response Groups
 Debrief response group experience
 How could you use this in classroom practice?
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Next steps. . .
 Identify area of need (from GLCE review)
 Develop or select a brief lesson related to
that need
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Lesson Instruction Plan
Learning targets and outcome(s) of lesson:
Alignment with GLCE:
Instructional strategies to be used:
Research supporting strategies:
Method(s) for differentiating instruction:
Resources needed:
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Reflection and planning
Review Best Practice representation with your
grade level group
 What have you learned?
 How will you use your learning to improve
student learning?
 Write answers to the two questions on sticky
notes.
 Find two individuals with whom you can share
your thinking.
 When finished, post sticky notes on white board.
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Contact information
 Troy Hicks, Red Cedar Writing Project
[email protected]
 Rita Maddox, Language Arts Consultant
[email protected]
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