Education Commons^™

It Takes A Community: One Nwp Site's Approach To Establishing And Sustaining A Writing Community, H. Michelle Kreamer

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

In this article, one National Writing Project (NWP) site director details the process for establishing and nurturing a writing community that extends beyond school walls. This article details various events that have helped the site to grow and sustain a local writing community and includes recommendations for adapting these ideas for a variety of contexts and audiences.

The Embedded Scaffolded Writing Mini-Course (Teswmc): An Approach To Improve Teacher Candidates’ Writing Skills And Attitudes, Vicky Giouroukakis Ph.D., Laurie Bocca

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

High-quality academic writing is critical to student success in graduate-level education courses and professional advancement in our field. The Embedded Scaffolded Writing Mini-Course (TESWMC) was designed to both improve teacher candidates’ skills in writing critically and effectively and to positively influence teacher candidates’ attitudes towards writing. The 7-week mini-course was taught by the teacher educator/researcher as a “push-in” into a semester-long graduate Education course. The mini-course also served as a pilot study to determine its efficacy. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected and analyzed. Data revealed that teacher candidates reported that their writing skills and attitudes towards writing improved. …

The Path To Self-Authorship: The Pre-Service Teacher-Writer, Shari L. Daniels Dr., Pamela Beck

Literacy Practice and Research

This literature review examined the relationship between the development of a teacher who writes (teacher-writer) and the phases of self-authorship, “the internal capacity to define one's beliefs, identity and social relations” (Baxter Magolda, 2001, p. 269). The narratives of three teacher-writer-authors show a correlation to Magolda’s self-authorship phases. The purpose of this examination was to explore the question: How might a writing support teachers in personally and professionally? Research suggests new teachers are unprepared for today’s classrooms. Could this unpreparedness may be related to a lack of self-authorship? Might a consistent writing practice propel teachers through the phases of self-authorship …

A Spark Of Light In The Darkness: A Framework Of Habits And Routines That Grow Literacy Identities, Andy Schoenborn

Michigan Reading Journal

Using familiar and flexible classroom routines, authentic literacy habits, and encouragement, his students moved from "I hate reading and writing" to self-identifying as readers and writers in a matter of eighteen weeks.

Learning About Teaching Writing: The Use Of Roles To Support Preservice Teachers Pedagogical Knowledge And Practices, Kristine Pytash, Denise N. Morgan, Elizabeth Testa

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

If teacher educators are fortunate to be able to teach a writing methods class, they encounter challenges in designing field experiences that support what preservice teachers are learning in their course. In this article, we described how we developed a unique field placement where the preservice teachers worked in teams and rotated roles each week. We found that these taking on these roles provided preservice teachers with unique lenses to learning about writing, students, and general teaching pedagogies.

Using The “Card” Response Technique To Assist Middle School Students In The Revision Process, Katherine E. Batchelor

Journal of Response to Writing

Although revision is essential to the writing process, it is often neglected in schools. However, when revision is taught successfully, through reflection, conferencing, positive teacher feedback, specific instruction linked to reading strategies, and time between drafts in order for students to think about their writing (including the expectation of multiple drafts), students not only revise more, but at a deeper level. This study investigates how middle school students’ writing drafts as well as attitudes and beliefs toward revision changed based on introducing a specific revision strategy called the CARD response technique, which is both a self-response and peer-response strategy. CARD …

Teaching With The Genius In Mind: Enacting Literacy As A Civil Right, Katie Glupker, Pam Gower, Angela Knight

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

Because literacy is a civil right, educators are responsible for designing and implementing literacy education that is designed with the excellence of all students in mind. In order to learn about ways to ensure that literary practices are equitable for all students, the authors joined an educators’ book club to read Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Gholdy Muhammad. Muhammad describes the Black literary societies of the past and challenges educators of today to enhance classrooms by upholding equity and excellence through a five-layered framework: Identity, Skills, Intellect, Criticality, and Joy.

We studied Muhammad’s …

Writing As A Vessel For Thinking: Incorporating Self-Regulation, Metacognition, And Formative Assessment In The Middle School Ela Classroom, Alyssha N. Ginzel

Michigan Reading Journal

This article examines three approaches to teaching writing: self-regulated instruction (Graham, 2018; Graham, 2020; Graham & Perin, 2007), metacognitive strategies (Hacker, 2018; Madison et al., 2019), and formative assessment (Black & Wiliam, 1998; Fleischer, 2013; Madison et al., 2019). Implementing these approaches, secondary ELA teachers can strike a balance between order and chaos while empowering adolescents to recognize, develop, and take ownership of their thinking and writing. Writing can and should be about grappling with big ideas that ultimately help us come to deeper, fuller understandings of ourselves and the world. This article explores how secondary ELA teachers can help …

Amplifying Rural Voices: Defining, Reading, And Writing Rural Stories, Chea L. Parton

The Montana English Journal

This pedagogical piece introduces teachers to Literacy In Place - a resource that supports the readingand teaching of rural young adult literature. It also outlines an example unit to highlight how secondary ELA teachers could use Literacy in Place to support students' reading of Nora Shalaway Carpenter's (2020) Rural Voices anthology.

How Padlet Encouraged Student Collaboration And Engagement In My Virtual Classroom, Annie Yon

New Jersey English Journal

With the growth of virtual classes, it is crucial for teachers to integrate strategies and resources that foster student engagement and build a sense of community in an online environment. One way to augment synchronous and asynchronous communication is to implement an online discussion board, which can provide rich opportunities for students to share insights, ask clarifying questions, collaborate, create multimodal projects, and have their voices heard. By incorporating an interactive discussion board, such as Padlet, as part of class resources, teachers can facilitate discourse among students that transcends the physical boundaries of the classroom, create a motivational environment, improve …

The Dimensions Of Teachers Who Write And The Essence Of A Writing Life, Shari L. Daniels, Pamela Beck

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

The purpose of this grounded theory case study was to explore the perceptions among ten K-12 teachers who teach writing and also write themselves. What are the key essentials for teachers to sustain a writing life? What habits of mind or attitudes are necessary for teachers to sustain a writing life? Interviews served as the primary data source along with writing artifacts from the participants’ own writing life. Findings indicate that teacher-writers committed to a writing life do so for the purpose of 1) discovering meaning, 2) connections to others 3) commitment to learning and 4) well-being, with an overall …

Keeping Things Going: Reflections On Teaching “Teaching Writing” Online, Emily S. Meixner

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

What does it mean to “keep things going online” in an undergraduate teacher education course on teaching writing? In this article, a teacher educator describes how, in consultation with her students, she adapted a secondary English methods course on teaching writing to teach it online. While highlighting and celebrating what worked, she also reflects on lessons learned and teaching questions that continue to persist.

Yellow Pads And The Return Of The Writer, Gregory Shafer

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

No abstract provided.

Speakup: The Power Of Writing And Turning Toward Trouble With Young People, James E. Fredricksen, Amanda Micheletty, Nicholas Darlinton

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

When a group of rural teens meet regularly out-of-school to write for social change in their communities, they inquire into those recent moments when they did or did not choose to speak up. This article describes some of the conceptual tools and practical classroom implications for three teachers who participate with SpeakUP. In particular, this piece argues that when young people turn toward trouble together, specifically when they do or do not decide to speak up, they can identify their assumptions and expectations, notice how power is working in both visible and invisible ways, and consider multiple possibilities for future …

Teaching Peer Feedback As Ethical Practice, Derek Miller, Troy Hicks, Susan Golab

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

Even with weeks of building a classroom community and deliberate instructional scaffolding, students may not engage in thoughtful peer review. One teacher discovers how he must place a deep, intentional value on the feedback itself—and the writers who provided it to one another.

Student-Centered Approaches To Teaching Grammar And Writing, Lindsay J. Jeffers

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

This article questions the continued reliance on traditional approaches to the teaching of grammar, particularly the memorization of parts of speech and grammar rules. Years of studies show that grammar instruction out of the context of writing is detrimental to students. Despite much progress toward student-centered instruction, traditional methods of teaching grammar are still a cornerstone of writing instruction in many English classes. The article suggests more effective, student-centered approaches that focus on students developing as writers and readers. Through modeling and inquiry, students focus on writing as a craft and make choices as writers. It’s essential that research about …