Why Teach Writing to Adolescents?

“Literacy Stampede” In the last 30 years, more info has been produced than in the past 5,000 years combined The NY Times weekday edition has more info each day than a 17 th century person would encounter in a lifetime Information is doubling every 4 years Getting into college is more competitive Unskilled jobs are disappearing – technology and outsourcing The internet is the fastest growing communications media in world history

How do our students perform? 31% of Eighth graders performed at or above the proficient level 24% of Twelfth graders performed at or above the proficient level In other words, two-thirds of middle school students and three-fourths of high school students performed below proficiency level The writing scores of twelfth graders declined between 1998 – 2002 The gender gap has widened in that time span A race/ethnicity gap exists and has remained the same

What is Wrong? 1. Students are not doing enough writing. 2. Writing is sometimes assigned rather than taught. 3. Below grade-level writers are asked to write less than others instead of more than others. 4. English language learners are shortchanged as well. 5. Grammar instruction is ineffective or ignored. 6. Students are not given enough timed writing instruction or practice. 7. Some teachers have little or no knowledge of district and state writing standards. 8. Writing topics are often mandated with little thought about the prior knowledge and interests of the students. 9. Teachers are doing too much of the work. Students are not doing enough work. 10. Teachers need help assessing student writing.

The Pillars of Writing Success: 1. Students need a lot more writing practice. 2. Students need teachers who model good writing. 3. Students need the opportunity to read and study other writers. 4. Students need choice when it comes to writing topics. 5. Students need to write for authentic purposes and for authentic audiences. 6. Students need meaningful feedback from both the teacher and their peers.

The key is to motivate your adolescent writers!

Writing Reasons: 1. Writing is hard, but hard is rewarding. 2. Writing helps you sort things out. 3. Writing helps to persuade others. 4. Writing helps to fight oppression. 5. Writing makes you a better reader. 6. Writing makes you smarter. 7. Writing helps you get into and through college. 8. Writing prepares you for the world of work.

Harness the POWER of your students’ Writing!