beyond “just writing out the facts”:. students often don’t see research as connected to their...
TRANSCRIPT
USING SEQUENCED RESEARCH PAPERS AND CONTEXTUALIZED PROMPTS WITH SECOND LANGUAGE WRITERS
Beyond “Just Writing Out the Facts”:
EXPRESSIVE VS. ACADEMIC WRITING
Students often don’t see research as connected to their own thoughts or experiences: “A research paper is just writing out the
facts. It's not really what you think about it all those deep thoughts, is just writing out the facts.”~Ling Wei
FALSE DICHTOMY
The purpose of this presentation is to show how these types of writing can compliment each other and help second language (L2) writers overcome the challenges associated with each type of writing.
OVERVIEW
To do this, I willA). Present L2 scholarship on the debates
between expressive and academic writing.B). Share findings from my research with
multilingual writers that indicate the benefits of connecting expressive and academic writing.
C). Suggest ways to design assignments that blend these types of writing
WHAT IS EXPRESSIVE WRITING
John (1995, p. 159): Focus on voice, identity, personal interests,
meaning making. Limited number of genres (e.g. personal
essay, literary texts)
CRITIQUES
Christie (1993)-Are “cruelly unfair” to language minority
students Academic writing is critical for success in
school and beyond. L2 writers are less familiar than their NES
peers with the language, culture, audience, and genres used within academic writing.
Academic conventions need to be made explicit to L2 writers.
IMPORTANCE OF EXPRESSIVE WRITING FOR L2 WRITERS
Severino, Gilchrist, & Rainey (2010): Benefits of expressive writing for L2
writers: Increase agency Negotiate a sense of self that encompasses
multiple identities
FINDINGS FROM MY RESEARCH
Worked with four adolescent L2 writers in a summer college preparatory program
Their experiences with writing confirm the importance of both expressive and academic writing opportunities.
DATA COLLECTION
Four Interviews Observations in English classes
College Admissions Essay for Common Application
Compare/Contrast College Research Paper Artifact collection
Student writing samples Assignment sheets
LING WEI
Native Language Background L1: Cantonese (also Mandarin) Moved to US in 7th Grade (Currently a Senior) Studied English in China (age 10) Tested out of ESL in 9th grade
Resources Interests in track and science Abilities in lab reports and research papers
Challenges Creative/Personal Writing Vocabulary Grammar
MARIE
Native Language Background L1: French and Khran Came to the US in 3rd grade Started learning English in refugee camp in Ghana at age 5
Strengths Interest in music/songwriting Imagery Rhythm Word choice/code switching
Challenges Selecting appropriate details Engagement with academic writing
JARED
Native Language Background L1: Spanish Moved from Peru at age 6
Strengths Interests in sports, music/songwriting Sensory detail Tone Rhythm
Challenges Timed Writing Elaboration Invention
GABRIELLA
Native Language Background L1: Spanish Moved to US from Dominican Republic in 6th Grade Mix of ELL and mainstream classes
Strengths School yearbook staff Strong Voice
Challenges Vocabulary/Grammar (in both Spanish and English)
SEQUENCED WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
Leki (1991/1992) Develops authorial expertise (p. 19):
“avoids atomism implied by asking students to repeatedly gear up for different topics”
“seeks instead to link together all writing assignments
TOPIC SELECTION
Students choose topics that meet these criteria: Sustain interest Connect to personal experience
5 LINKED ASSIGNMENTS
1). Current Knowledge What they already know about the topic and their personal
involvement 2). Summaries
Synthesize the summaries of three sources in an essay format 3). Survey
Survey at least 20 people about the topic and report the results
4). Interview Interview an expert on the topic and write up the results
5).Final report Combine findings from steps 1-4 into coherent report
BENEFITS TO STUDENTS IN MY STUDY
Ling Wei and Gabriella Allow them to develop a richer vocabulary and
syntactic repertoire for writing about their own experiences by seeing how others write about similar topics
Marie Increase engagement with research
Jared Overcome writers block by building on prior
knowledge and supplying plenty of content for writing
CONTEXTUALIZED WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
Ortmeier-Hooper, 2013 Let’s get CRAFTy
Context/purpose Role Audience Form Topic
STRENGHTS AND STRETCHES
Entering/Incoming What Students already know
Bridging What students need to know to succeed in
school Advancing
What students need to know to succeed in real world contexts and their future roles
RANGE OF DIFFICULTY
Beginning AdvancedFormSingle Step/Familiar Multi Step/Unfamiliar-Journal entry -Research paper
AudienceSmall/Immediate Large/Distant- Friend - General
Public
PurposeSingular/Low Stake Multiple/High Stake-Learn about topic -Inform/persuade
BRIDGING AND ADVANCING
Address a new context/topic through familiar Role, Audience, and Form Context: Use research for evaluation and
persuasion Role: Son/daughter Audience: Parent Form: Letter Topic: College Selection
BRIDGING AND ADVANCING
Learn new forms with familiar topics/audiences/roles Context: Persuasion Role: Student Audience: Principal Form: Compare/Contrast essay Topic: Dress code
ACTIVITY
Design a CRAFT prompt for second language writers with whom you have or currently are working.
STUDENTS DIRECT THEIR CRAFT
Literacy Scavenger Hunt (Ortmeir-Hooper, 2013): Students and teachers bring in writing samples Small-group then whole class-discussion on
Context Role Audience Form Topic
Create a master list to display in classroom