UNSTATISFACTORY WRITING SKILLS AT I.S. 52

 

_{MS. LINSON}

_{I.S. 52M}

 

 

 

INTRODUCTION

More and more middle school students are struggling academically with writing effectively from social studies passages.  Students are entering 6^th grade at I.S. 52 totally unprepared to evaluate social studies content, because they are having difficulty with comprehension.    Thus, they find it hard to analyze, write critically and seldom are able to express their ideas in a coherent manner.  As a result, the students are failing in Middle School because of their inability to write and express themselves on a Middle School level that demonstrates comprehension of content materials.

 

 

TASK

Your Social Studies teacher is asking you to help yourself to achieve academic success in writing and comprehension.  She does not want you to continue to struggle or face failure in Middle School.  She wants you to focus on academic preparedness for middle school writing, which will enable you to be successful in High School.

Your task is to write an Action Plan consisting of 1 to 2 double space papers stating accurate details of your writing including strategies you used.

 

 

 

PROCESS

How will you get this accomplish?

• You will work in pre-assigned groups of four. 
• You will name your group “Middle School Comprehension/Writing Prep” (name maybe changed if desired)
• You will do guided reading in the groups with each member having an opportunity to demonstrate their reading and comprehension of the passage.
• You will assist others in proof reading their writing.
• Identify the best strategies necessary to assist in improving each member of the group deficiency.
• Identify and give an example of how to improve (each member) writing and comprehension.
• Design a program that will address the specific needs for each member and that is tailored to promote academic excellence in comprehension and writing.
• Write a research paper that will be presented to the class. (using a power point with 6-slide minimum).
• Identify 2 or more different writing steps, (follow writing rubric) implementing necessary strategies that demonstrate a better knowledge of writing skills and mechanics that allow clearer usage of content information while expressing ideas effectively.

 

Student Responsibilities

Team Writing Folders: Evidence gathering of peers that show initial writing along with revision of work materials. (drafts and peer responses with comments) 

Research Paper:  2 to 3 doubled space paper stating the problem and providing numerous solutions along with your recommendations for best process or solution (as listed above)

Must include bibliography, footnotes and quotations.

 

 

Group Roles

Student 1 – Organizer/Presenter ill Pick group team members and keep the group on track. He/she will assign/negotiate group roles with members and make sure all members are aware of the task, the process, and the group’s responsibilities. Makes sure the group meets teacher made deadlines and schedules, assist in the research, lead & coordinate group meetings to assess and evaluate group progress.

As presenter, this student will be responsible to meet with the teacher and other group organizers and convey their group’s findings and progress. He/she will be the main speaker in the Oral Presentation and will assign others their subordinate roles for the oral presentation. The written report should be used as part of this presentation. The presenter will coordinate the oral report but all members will take part in some form.

Student 2 – Researcher This student will do the research, with the help of other members and resources provided. He/she will coordinate and lead the research team. He/she will assign research jobs to search the Internet and gather information from the resources that will be used to complete the public policy worksheets. The information gathered would be focused on the problem and impact of poor writing skill on college success and solutions that are student and teacher related. (If needed the research may include interviewing)

 

Student 3 – Recorder Writing This student will take notes on information gathered by group members and write an outline for the written and oral report. Each member to write the paper will also use these notes. This student will be responsible for completing the Public Policy Analyst Worksheets and assist with research.

 

Student 4 - Art Editor/Time Keeper This student will cover all aspects of layout, design, and artwork.  He/She will discuss design and layout ideas with the other group members and will oversee the designing of the posters and assist t with research.

 

 

Complete the Public Policy Analyst worksheets, which will help you with your project by using the websites in the resources section

          #1- Defining the Social Problem

          What is the problem that you plan on addressing?  After you have read this page, click the hyperlink to the Worksheet #1 page (MS WORD Document) and complete. 

         

           #2- Gather evidence of the problem

          How do we know that this is a problem?  Once again, read this page and complete Worksheet #2 (MS WORD)

 

          #3- Identify the causes of the problem  

          What causes this problem that you plan on addressing?  Read this page and complete Worksheet # 3 (MS WORD)

 

          #4- Identify and evaluate the existing public policies  

          What policies already exist on your problem?   Read and complete Worksheet #4 (MS WORD)      

 

          #5- Developing public policy solutions 

          What new public policy do you want to create?  Read and complete Workshop # 5 (MS WORD)      

 

           #6- Selecting the best policy solution  

           Decide with your group the best policy to use for the problem.  Read this page and complete Workshop # 6 (MS WORD)

This worksheet can also be accessed through the links of the steps listed above.

 

Worksheet #1 – Identifying the social issue

Worksheet #2 – Gathering Evidence

Worksheet #3 – Determining Causes

Worksheet #4 – Evaluate Present Policies

Worksheet #5 – Developing New Policies

Worksheet #6 – Choose the Best Solution

 

 

RESOURCES

Tip: When reading the resources, focus on gathering information by annotating/highlighting information to address the six public policy analyst steps and the task

 

Topics

1)   Memo to Students:  Writing Skills Matter      “SCARY NUMBERS. … too often, undergraduates enter -- and leave ---school without the basic knowledge needed to write effectively, which can hinder their academic and job success. Now, spurred by low test scores and recruiter demand, some schools are taking action.”

 

2)   Helping college students succeed: a model for effective      intervention   By Glenn Hirsch    Professionals can assist students to maximize their chances of success by helping them strengthen study skills and motivation by correcting thinking,  managing time, and academic anxiety and stress

  

3)   The Crayola Curriculum by Mike Schmoker   “kids are given more coloring assignments than mathematics and writing assignments.”  

 

4)   Oregon Study Outlines Standards for College Preparedness       The pattern emerges every year on campuses with the regularity of homecoming games and parents' weekends: Students who finished high school with strong grade point averages and top-notch test scores struggle upon entering college, buckling under the new rigors of freshman English or entry-level calculus.” This month, researchers at the University of Oregon are unveiling the results of a project aimed at helping students overcome the traditional divide between success at the K-12 level

5) Politics of peer response   Active critical reflection is necessary in every aspect of our teaching, not only in front of the class. We must try to reevaluate our own values and experiences as they relate to our teaching. Our assumptions and theories about teaching composition must remain open to inspection, evaluation, and revision, a condition that requires an active inquiry paralleling the inquiry in which we engage our students. (217)

 

6)       The ABCs or the writing process       The purpose of this site is to provide a user friendly online resource, for students or teachers, no matter what they are being challenged to write.

 

7)       Teach students to write more-grade less    For more than 30 years, Marzano and others have demonstrated that conventional grading practices are not only unnecessarily time-consuming for teachers, but also have a negative impact on student writing performance.    

 

8)       How to set up and write your research paper for this assignment using the MLA style          Summary: MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities.    

 

9)       How to: Presenting Writing            7 Things to remember when making a presentation   

10) How to: Essay/Research writing center    writing is a good way to stimulate learning and critical thinking. There are numerous forms of writing that students face everyday. This site was designed to help you in achieving better results with your writing assignment.

 

 

EVALUATION/RUBRIC

YOUR GRADE WILL BE BASED ON THE FOLLOWING RUBRIC

 

 

Common Core State Standards NYS Performance Standards:

This web quest focuses on the following English Language Arts Performance Standards:

E1c: Read and comprehend informational materials.

E2a: Produce a report of information.

E3c: Prepare and deliver an individual presentation.

E4b: Analyze and subsequently revise work to improve its clarity and effectiveness.