Real World Writing for Secondary Students

by Early, Jessica Singer; Decosta, Meredith; Bazerman, Charles

• ISBN13: 9780807753866
• ISBN10: 0807753866
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-11-09
• Publisher: Teachers College Pr

Summary

One of the most important ways to scaffold a successful transition from high school to college is to teach real-world, gate-opening writing genres, such as college admission essays. This book describes a writing workshop for ethinically and linguistically diverse high school students, where students receive instruction on specific genre features of the college admission essay. The authors present both the theoretical grounding and the concrete strategies teachers crave including an outline of specific workshop lessons, teaching calendars, and curricular suggestions. This text encourages secondary teachers to think of writing as a vital tool for all students to succeed academically and professionally.

Author Biography

Jessica Singer Early is an assistant professor of English education in the Department of English at Arizona State University and the director of the Central Arizona Writing Project. Meredith DeCosta is a teaching fellow of the Louisville Writing Project and also teaches writing courses at Arizona State University.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. ix
Acknowledgments	p. xi
Setting the Stage for a Study of Writing	p. 1
Research Questions	p. 2
Studying Across Boundaries	p. 3
The Power of Language: Defining Key Terms	p. 3
A Place for Real World Writing in the Curriculum	p. 8
Invitation to Readers	p. 9
Overview of the Book	p. 10
Why Writing Matters	p. 12
The Neglected "R"	p. 12
Improving Writing and Writing Instruction	p. 14
Writing as Cultural Currency	p. 15
Constructing Our Case Study	p. 23
Libertad High School	p. 24
The Students	p. 25
The Teachers	p. 27
The Research and Teaching Team	p. 28
Demystifying the College Admission Essay Genre	p. 30
The Importance of the College Admission Essay	p. 30
Overview of the College Admission Essay Workshop	p. 33
Introducing the Workshop	p. 35
Key Genre Elements of the College Admission Essay	p. 43
Concluding the Workshop	p. 55
Extension Activities and Professional Resources	p. 57
Summing Up	p. 58
Using Points of Tension as Turning Points	p. 60
Shifting Practices to Support Learning	p. 60
Building Writing Confidence	p. 69
The Power of Access	p. 72
Confronting Roadblocks About Attending College	p. 75
Lingering Questions	p. 77
Summing Up	p. 78
Drawing on Cultural Capital to Build Writing Capital	p. 80
Themes That Emerged from Our Analysis	p. 80
Valuing Student's Languages	p. 92
Empowering Students to Tell Their Stories	p. 93
Summing Up	p. 95
Creating a Culture That Supports Real World, Gate-Opening Writing	p. 96
Learning from Adolescents as Real World Writers	p. 98
Learning from Teachers Working in Tumultous Times	p. 102
Arizona Politics as a Backdrop	p. 102
Learning from the Research Process	p. 105
Considering Next Steps	p. 108
Summing Up	p. 110
College Admission Essay Workshop Schedule	p. 112
Post-Workshop Reflection	p. 114
References	p. 115
Index	p. 125
About the Authors	p. 131
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