Topic: Teachers and Writing

One-minute review: “Reports a survey study among 361 high school teachers in the United States about the way they teach writing. The writing practices in three disciplines were examined: language arts, social studies and science. Finds that most writing assignments involve writing without composing (short answers, worksheets, and lists) and/or writing to understand reading material (responding to reading and writing summaries). Teachers were not positive about the quality of the preparation they received to teach writing from the colleges and universities they attended.”

Title: “Teaching Writing to High School Students; A National Survey.” SA Kiuhara, et al. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101 (1), 136-160, 2009.

Comment: According to this research, most writing assignments do not involve composing. Teacher preparation for the teaching of writing is unsatisfactory according to teachers.

Does this type of writing support or conflict with the writing required in college courses? What types of writing assignments are required across the disciplines at the college level?

Given the kinds of writing assessment at the state, national, SAT and ACT levels, I find this report on the kinds of writing surprising, at least in language arts. I would also expect more uses of the research paper and essay exams in social studies and science. RayS.