Writing
Writing is an often overlooked component of literacy, but the ability to write clearly and communicate effectively is critical to students — classroom and workplace success. And writing assignments can provide a means to enhance students' vocabulary, comprehension, and spelling skills.
« Return to topic list
Sort by: Date Title
A Student's Perspective on Writing
Eli tells us what it is like to have dysgraphia. Regina Richards, a well-known expert on dysgraphia (and Eli's mom), explains how to help children who struggle with the challenges Eli describes. Practical techniques discussed include POWER (Prepare, Organize, Write, Edit, Revise) and providing authentic positive comments that move the child forward.
Academic Language: Everyone's "Second" Language
Being able to speak English fluently does not guarantee that a student will be able to use language effectively in academic settings. Fluency must be combined with higher order thinking skills to create an "academic language," which allows students to effectively present their ideas in a way that others will take seriously. The author, an ELL teacher, describes her use of "protocols" (a cheat sheet of sentence starters) to build students' cognitive academic language proficiency.
Cognitive Strategies Tool Kit
This article describes eight cognitive strategies—including monitoring, tapping prior knowledge, and making predictions—to help readers develop their comprehension skills.
Guidelines for Teaching Middle and High School Students to Read and Write Well: Six Features of Effective Instruction
Building on research in secondary classrooms, the Center on English Learning and Achievement has developed a practical booklet that describes six essential features of effective literacy instruction and spells out how teachers can enact them.
Making Writing Instruction a Priority in America's Middle and High Schools
Sometimes writing is seen as the "flip side" of reading, and it is assumed that students who are proficient readers will naturally be proficient writers. While reading and writing are complementary skills, students do not become skilled writers without explicit instruction. This policy brief from the Alliance for Excellent Education examines how writing can be taught in secondary schools, and how policy can encourage more teachers to undertake writing instruction.
Spelling Supports Reading
Many readers are puzzled by the rules and exceptions of spelling. Research has shown, however, that learning to spell and learning to read rely on much of the same underlying knowledge. Read this article to learn more about the relationships between letters and sounds, and how a proper understanding of spelling mechanics can lead to improved reading.
Teaching Writing to Diverse Student Populations
Writing is a complex operation requiring knowledge of text structure, syntax, vocabulary, and topic, and sensitivity to audience needs; so it is not surprising that many teens find writing challenging. This article identifies the qualities of strong writing instruction, and offers advice to teachers for incorporating writing instruction into their practice, using tools like notebooks and journals, and sharing strategies that reinforce the importance of pre-writing and revision.
Teaching Writing to Students with LD
Effective writing instruction for students with disabilities incorporates three components: adhering to a basic framework of planning, writing, and revision; explicitly teaching critical steps in the writing process; and providing feedback guided by the information explicitly taught. Learn more about methods for using these components in this article.
The Nation's Report Card: Writing 2007
U.S. Department of Education. Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics.
This report presents the results of the 2007 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) writing assessment, which was administered to a sampling of 8th and 12th graders in U.S. public and private schools. Average writing scores were higher in 2007 than in previous assessments in 2002 and 1998.
For 8th graders:
- The average writing score was 3 points higher than in 2002 and 6 points higher than in 1998.
- The percentage of students performing at or above the Basic level increased from 85 percent in 2002 to 88 percent and was also higher than in 1998
- The percentage of students performing at or above the Proficient level was higher than in 1998 but showed no significant change since 2002.
For 12th graders:
- The average writing score was 5 points higher than in 2002 and 3 points higher than in 1998.
- The percentage of students performing at or above the Basic level increased from 74 percent in 2002 to 82 percent and was also higher than in 1998.
- The percentage of students performing at or above the Proficient level was higher than in 1998 but showed no significant change since 2002.
Time is Not on Our Side: Literacy and Literature for High School Language Learners
Given that teachers often have too much to teach and too little time, Dana Dusbiber suggests an alternative approach to teaching literature for secondary ELLs: the introduction of more multicultural literature in the classroom.
