AJC.com > Blogs > Get Schooled > Archives > 2005 > February > 23 > Entry
Writing: Are Kids Getting It?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I recently bumped into a friend who is teaching freshman composition at a metro Atlanta college. She said she’s surviving her first semester in the classroom, even enjoying it at times. But many of her students are struggling.
Several are taking this course - required of basically every college freshman on the planet - for the second time. They need a lot of help. “If only I could get them to come to class,” she lamented. Other students try hard but lack the foundation.
The thing about writing, it’s not something a teacher can demonstrate once then expect students to be able to do it. There is no foolproof way to teach writing (Or is there? Readers?), no ideal method for getting a student without a strong writing background up to speed quickly. Mainly, teachers like my friend just try to encourage their students to keep putting words on paper.
A Wall Street Journal story recently stated, without attribution, that high school teachers have a hard time getting students to do any writing these days, much less a term paper. The story said parents and students revolt when a teacher expects them to labor over a long writing assignment.
This does not match my observations in Georgia classrooms, where I see student writing posted on bulletin boards and hear from teachers that they are madly trying to prepare their students for the writing portion of the New SAT.
But I am concerned that the emphasis is too much on short writing assignments and less on longer, more in-depth ones, the type a student is likely to be assigned in college. My fear is that shorter assignments focus more on writing mechanics and not enough on content. The point of writing is to say something. If you fail to do that, it doesn’t matter whether you put the commas in the right places.
Thoughts?
Comments
By Diane Tavegia
February 23, 2005 04:40 PM | Link to this
A love of reading is key to raising a child who can write creatively. Parents should begin reading to their child during infancy and should read for enjoyment in front of their child.
My ten year old son read ‘The House on Hackman Hill’ by Joan Lowery Nixon in its entirety today for enjoyment. He’s home schooled.
By T. R.
February 24, 2005 08:28 AM | Link to this
I have always felt that good writing, especially creative writing, is a talent rather than a skill.
For example, in High School I took AP English for 2 years. The writing assignments for the first year were mostly analytical, non-fiction pieces. I was told I was a talented writer and that coupled with my natural language skills I should consider a career in journalism.
Year 2 however, was focused more on creative writing - stories, poetry, etc. This time I was told that I “didn’t put effort” into my projects, and that I “sorely lacked writing ability.”
No, I just wasn’t a creative writer!
I also personally think that the verbal portion of the SAT should be removed, because grading a writing project is subjective, and nobody’s SAT score should hinge on an opinion.
As a homeschooler, we require no creative writing of our children (unless inspired by them) and instead focus on real-world writing such as correspondence, instructional, journaling, business letters, etc.
The result is that they do not fear writing, like so many of their public-schooled counterparts.
By Tony W.
February 24, 2005 09:09 AM | Link to this
It appears to me that the goal our education system is to teach with the end result of knowing what to expect and hopefully pass a test such as the CRCT or even the SAT. I think what is lacking is teaching kids/people how to think. The article is right on in that you can’t show someone how to write well, nor can you just teach the mechanics of writing. Most people have “poor” writing skills because they don’t know what to say, or how to put their thoughts into words on paper. In some cases you can say as the previous commenter, that they lack creativity. Knowing how to think and express oneself should be priority one. This will beget people who can solve problems, resolve issues, use imagination and creativity to their benefit, and be able to document it.
By C.M.
February 24, 2005 09:24 AM | Link to this
Tony W. I believe you are right to an extent. There is high focus on test grades in Georgia schools. But, reading has become a priority in elementary schools in Georgia. SO, maybe there will be a new generation of readers than pass test too.
By Jennifer
February 24, 2005 09:50 AM | Link to this
When it comes to analytical writing, which is the basis for term papers and college essays, there actually IS a structured approach that can be used to help struggling students learn how to write.
In schools, there is an emphasis on one paragraph responses to open-ended questions. However, that practice is an ideal way to teach kids the structure of what is essentially a supporting paragraph of a longer paper.
Here’s a good instructional key that I used in Maryland. It was highly effective in our schools:
FUSE
Find and underline the key words in the question. Use the key words in a topic sentence that answers the question. Support your position with examples from the text. Explain how and why your examples answer the question.
You essentially create a fill-in-the-blank paragraph for them, and it helps them organize their ideas. I would spell it out for my kids this way:
Answer “x” question in a 6-sentence paragraph. Your paragraph should include the following parts: 1. Topic sentence 2. Quote 3. Explanation of 1st quote 4. 2nd Quote 5. Explanation of 2nd quote 6. Conclusion
You cannot expect a kid to write well if you don’t teach them how to do it. I certainly don’t support applying so much structure to creative writing; however, having an actual rubric and clear expectations for kids regarding analytical writing is essential for their success in high school and college.
By Richard
February 24, 2005 01:27 PM | Link to this
Jennifer said: “…however, having an actual rubric and clear expectations for kids…”
Just in case anyone else was wondering what it means… ;)
rubric 1 a : an authoritative rule; especially : a rule for conduct of a liturgical service … 3 : an established rule, tradition, or custom
By smithy
February 24, 2005 02:19 PM | Link to this
As a child I was always taught proper grammar and sentence structure by my parents. Not on paper, but in speaking. This gave me a wonderful foundation when it came to my English classes and writing, and enabled me to know everything from the proper usage of “who” vs. “whom”, down to the proper usage of “I” vs. “me”. I think a huge part of the problem in children not knowing how to write is that they are learning improper language at home, and therefore have absolutely no personal reference on which to base their lessons. The use of slang and improper English is so rampant today, especially in the black culture, I hear and see it on radio, TV, in print, everywhere, and nobody seems to care. Poorly performing children is simply the logical next step in the vicious cycle of ignorance perpetuated by their parents. Good sentence structure CAN be learned and taught. Perhaps creative writing is like art - you either have the talent for it or you don’t - but when it comes to proper usage of English and grammar, there is absolutely no excuse for not knowing it. It’s nothing but laziness and bad parenting. Plain and simple.
By Lynn
February 25, 2005 08:40 AM | Link to this
As a high school English teacher for many years, it is almost impossible to have students write properly at all. Even if they have a decent idea or a workable plan, they will not take the time to develop it into a good paper. Students are getting the basics of reading and writing, but television, Play Station, and other instant gratification activites dominiate their time and efforts.
By chuck
February 25, 2005 10:00 AM | Link to this
My second year as a teacher was in a self-contained 4th grade class. I had to teach all of the subjects to my kids. When I began teaching Language Arts, which includes grammar and literature, I used the only method that I knew how to use. My degree was in Secondary Social Science and I had tacked on middle grades certification to make it somewhat easier to find a job. I had taken a class on Reaing Workshop and Writing Workshop, an idea developed by Nancy Atwell. When we began the year my students had trouble writing complete sentences. By the end of the year they could write a 5 paragraph essay or a 2 page “story”. Now at the 8th grade level I just teach social studies, but I have my students write what we call a “Sandwich Essay”, a 5 paragraph essay with each paragraph having 5 sentences. We use this format to prepare our students for the 8th grade writing assessment. Last year over 98% of our students passed the state assessment thanks to some great language arts teachers AND the focus on writing across the curriculum. Our format is something like the following:
The top “slice of bread” is an introduction (catch the reader’s attention and then 3 sentences, each one addressing some aspect of the topic. 5th sentence is transition.
The “meat” is the body of the essay. This is three paragraphs, each one coming from the middle three sentences in the introduction. These paragraphs support with details, the introduction.
The “bottom slice of bread” is the conclusion. It restates the main points from the three middle paragraphs.
It is a relatively simple process and is very successful for us. It is not original to our school, but I’m not sure who developed the idea originally, so I can’t give them credit.
By Felicia
February 25, 2005 11:03 AM | Link to this
Smithy, I’m sorry to see your generalization of people who don’t use “proper” English at home. Yes, the ability to speak standard English is an important one, especially if we want to develop good writers, but it is not a necessity for them to speak that way at home. As a black child who grew up in a home where slang was used daily, I still learned how to “code-switch”, using vernacular for home, and standard English at school. My parents were far from lazy, and cared deeply for my education as a child. Whether or not they were able to demonstrate standard English at home, they insisted that I learn it to be successful at school.
By Amanda
February 28, 2005 01:07 PM | Link to this
It’s so funny to me that we are all talking about these templates for writing. Haven’t we all seen these at some point? Actually, I took a Strategic Business Writing course last year presented by my copororate training department that taught basically the same approach - there is a template based on your audience and purpose and you basically fill in the blanks with what you want to talk about. In my opinion, it shows that these templates are always helpful at any stage of life - not just when we are in school.
By Ernest
February 28, 2005 01:25 PM | Link to this
Jennifer and Chuck, thanks for offering solutions in teaching basic writing skills. As Amanda mentioned, we’ve seen these in some form over the years. It’s good having that ‘refresher’ so we can offer alternatives to our kids if they are having problems with this.