LISSTS: Literacy in Social studies, Science, and Technical Subjects

Technical Subject:GeoscienceTopic:Fracking

Graduate Course: Literacy in Technical Subjects: Reading and Writing Strategies

LISSTS Writing Strategies Topics & Assignments Deductive & Inductive

Texts Integrating Evidence Rubrics

Instructors:

Dorothea M. Susag(Dottie)

Adjunct Instructor, MSU Northern, Reading/Writing Strategies dotsusag@3rivers.net

Christopher C. Matson(Chris)

Geoscience Instructor, Helena College University of MontanaChris.matson@umhelena.edu

Janice L. Clinard, Ed.D.(Jan)

Director, College Readiness Programs, Helena CollegeJan.clinard@umhelena.edu

(406-447-6951

Today’s Agenda

• Debriefing Reading Strategies• From topic to hypothesis to claim or purpose• Evaluating digital resources and citations• Deductive and Inductive Organization/Formats• Assignments: Role, Audience, Format, Topic• Revision strategies• Integrating Evidence• Critical review and rubrics

Objectives of Workshop Two

• Learn key features of writing in a technical subject, such as geoscience

• Develop and narrow topics• Learn to integrate evidence to maintain flow of ideas• Learn writing strategies to develop understanding

and analysis of these texts• Explore applicable rubrics• Apply Common Core State Standards

Debrief Reading Strategies

1) What did your students read?2) What reading strategies did you use?3) What worked best?4) What didn’t work?5) What adaptations did you make?

Modeling in a Technical SubjectLast month:Geoscience-Hydrofracking

The Scientific method review• Create a set of observations (facts, data) of the phenomenon being studied. • Abduction step: A is the consequence of B

• Guessing, from data, at the cause of a observations• Illogical but useful: post hoc ergo propter hoc

• Inductive step: B from A where B does not follow necessarily from A• Form a hypothesis (H1) that might explain the observations.• Identify the implications and outcomes that must follow, if the

hypothesis is to be true• Perform other experiments or observations to see if any of the predicted

outcomes (H1) fail (H0). • Deductive step:

• If any predicted outcomes fail, the hypothesis is rejected since if A implies B, then not B implies not A. Frequently, H1 is modified and re-tested. If H1 is not rejected, the hypothesis is not proved, but rather can be said to be consistent with known data.

More Topics in Geoscience• Oil and gas/hydrofracturing• Climate change/global warming• Geochronology • Paleontology and evolution• Carbon sequestration • Green energy• Clean coal• Ocean acidification

Questions?

Skeptical students ask questions • Example: Ocean acidification

• What is acidity, alkalinity, pH?• How is oceanic pH measured?• What is the magnitude of ocean acidification?• Is acidification global or localized?• How has ocean pH changed through time?• What natural factors govern ocean chemistry,

specifically pH?• What is the consequence of increased acidity in

oceans?• What causes increased acidity in ocean water?

Questions turn into hypotheses

• Falsifiable, declarative (if/than) statement with testable and outcomes.

• Example: Ocean acidification• If urban development and activity increases

ocean acidity, then average surface pH levels will be measurably lower than the mid-ocean average surface pH.

• What are the assumptions of this hypothesis?

Objectivity: assumptions• Ocean pH is naturally uniform at the surface.• Ocean surface pH is a reliable proxy for whole

ocean pH.• Ocean pH is a function of proximity to urban

development and activity.• Anthropogenic influences on ocean pH do not

extend far into the ocean. • Ocean pH is invariable through out the year.

What other questions?

• Oil and gas/hydrofracturing• Climate change/global warming• Geochronology • Paleontology and evolution• Carbon sequestration • Green energy• Clean coal• Ocean acidification

CCSS: Literacy in Social studies, Science, and Technical Subjects1. Write arguments focused on discipline-specific content

a. Introduce precise, knowledgeable claim(s), establish the significance of the claim(s), distinguish the claim(s) from alternative or opposing claims, and create an organization that logically sequences claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and evidence.

2. Write informative/explanatory texts, including scientific procedures/experiments, or technical processes

b. Introduce a topic and organize complex ideas…c. Develop the topic thoroughly by selecting the most significant

and relevant facts

CCSS: Literacy in Social studies, Science, and Technical Subjects

7. Conduct short as well as sustained research projects to

answer a question; narrow or broaden the inquiry; synthesize multiple sources on the subject….

8. Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources….integrate information into the text ..

9. Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis, reflections, and research.

Methods of writing science

Deductive

• Begin with Claim• Thesis statement (based on

significant claims)

• Reasons• Supporting evidence

• Taken from experts• Relevant

See Wheatmore HS Rubric

Inductive

• Begin with background of previous research

• State purpose• Hypotheses (and null)

• Explicitly state testable outcomes

• Explicitly state assumptions

See ENST 230 Rubric

Purpose Statements and Claims • Inductive path:

• Hypothesis:• If urban development and activity increases ocean acidity,

then average surface pH levels will be measurably lower than the mid-ocean average surface pH.

• Purpose Statement: • This study seeks to understand the relationship between

localized ocean acidification and urban development by...

• Deductive path:• Claim:

• Human activities in cities, towns, and urban centers on coasts pose a great threat to ocean health by depressing oceanic pH outside of ocean ecosystem tolerances.

Example: Hydrofracturing

• Purpose of study:• ‘This study seeks to evaluate the potential impact of gas drilling

and hydraulic fracturing on shallow groundwater quality by comparing areas that are currently exploited for gas (defined as active—one or more gas wells within 1 km) to those that are not currently associated with gas drilling (nonactive; no gas wells within 1 km), many of which are slated for drilling in the near future.’

Osborn et al. 2011. Methane contamination of drinking water accompanying gas-well drilling and hydraulic fracturing. PNAS 108(20).

Activity

• Examine the articles in your LISSTS notebook.

• Which articles are deductive in nature?• How do you know?

• Which articles are inductive in nature?• How do you know?

DiscussionWhat writing formats fall under each category?• Deductive:

• Inductive:

What might be the possible Role of the writer; Audience, and Purpose of each Format listed above for the Topic?

Discussion

•What are the attributes of a good assignment?

• If you were to develop a scoring rubric for assignments, what features would it include?

Activity

Generate one deductive and one inductive assignment that your students could complete based on the reading you have assigned.

Activity: Revising Assignments• Regroup• Writers: Read your assignments to new partners• Partners: Listen, then Praise, Question, and Suggest

• Questions—use attributes of good assignments, and: • Inductive vs deductive……• Does it have an important learning objective?• Is it clear?• Is it focused?• Is it manageable?• Does it describe a role, audience, format, topic, and

purpose?

Working Lunch

• Decide how you will incorporate the feedback you received on your assignments and how/when you will actually make assignment to your students.

• Discuss what will you need to accomplish this task.

Some Patterns of Thesis Statements

1. Declarative statement -- The incidence of …2. Occasion/Position Statement -- a complex two-

part sentence that begins with an adverb clause (after, although, as, if, since, though, because)

3. Power (Number) Statement -- contains a number word that is the focus of the sentence -- informs the read of a list of information that will follow

4. However statement -- A compound sentence with the first part the reason for writing, and the second part the position or what you plan to prove or explain.

Integrating Textual Evidence

SummarizeParaphraseUse DetailsQuoteUse Graphics (visual representation of data)…

Remember the Methane Article?

How/where are the findings summarized?

Your students may be able to model just this introductory section.

Activity: Integrating Evidence“The Truth About Fracking” by Chris Mooney

• How does Mooney introduce experts, highlighted in yellow?

• How does Mooney integrate evidence?

“Methane contamination of drinking water…..” Osborn et al. 2011

• How are experts cited in the Methane article?

• How does this article integrate evidence?

Note-taking Guide from Smarter Balanced

Research Source Published by; date? How objective is this source?

Inductive or Deductive?

Arguments for Arguments against

Revision & Editing Strategies

Text—concreteness (enough detail--find the balance)

Vague• Buildings• Many• We will fill your

order within the next few weeks.

Concrete• Bank, supermarket• 5000 to 20,000• We will ship COD your

order for three, 4-drawers, 36-in high by 45 in deep by 14 in wide, beige filing cabinets on 2 September 2009. You should receive them no later than 30 September.

Courtesy of Cathy Corr, UM COT

ToneInterpretative

While not looking where she was going, Polly clumsily caught her heel on a CRT tri-stand and crashed to the floor.

Detached and objective

While approaching the door, Ms. Black caught her heel on an equipment stand and fell on her left side.

Conciseness• Try to eliminate all sentence starters like

THERE IS, THERE ARE, IT IS, THIS IS, THAT IS.

• Try to edit out unnecessary THAT, THAT IS, THAT ARE within the sentence.

• Cross out or edit words which do not add anything to your sentence -- words which don’t create a specific sensory image.

Visual Impact: White Space(Tech Writing for Dummies 56 – 84)

Paper Documents: 1 to 1½” marginsElectronic Documents: ¼ - ½” margins all

aroundDouble Space between paragraphsEmphasize key pieces of text with white space or

a different fontRagged Right margins in short documentsSlightly More Space above heading than below

Visual Impact (Tech Writing for Dummies 56 – 84)

Text• Sentences – Succinct (25 words) • Paragraphs – Dense

• Headlines – Guideposts for what’s important

Visual Impact (Tech Writing for Dummies 56 – 84)

Lists• Bulleted lists, when rank and sequence

aren’t important

• Numbered lists, when priority or steps in a procedure or quantity are important

Visual Impact (Tech Writing for Dummies 56 – 84)

Parallel Structure in Lists• Grammatical structure

• Use all gerunds, all nouns, all participle phrases, or all sentences in each list.

• Punctuation• Use a colon to introduce a list that is preceded by

the following or as follows.• Use a period after each item only if each item is a

complete sentence.• Use a period at the end of the list when the items

complete a sentence.

Visual Impact (Tech Writing for Dummies 56 – 84)

FontsPaper Documents: Serif typeface, such as

Times Roman

Electronic Documents, and headings on Paper Documents: Sans Serif, such as Arial

The purpose of a font is to make it easier for the audience to read and comprehend.

Charts and Graphs• Pie Chart

Shows relationshipsBetween parts

Use for money or percentages

• Line Chart Telegraphs trends

1st Qtr2nd Qtr3rd Qtr4th Qtr

Catego

ry 1

Catego

ry 2

Catego

ry 3

Catego

ry 4

0

2

4

6

Series 1Series 2Series 3

Visual Impact (Pocket Guide to Technical Communication 109 – 141)

• Bar Chart Shows relationshipsBetween parts Allows for technical detail,Particularly comparisons

Catego

ry 1

Catego

ry 2

Catego

ry 3

Catego

ry 4

0

2

4

6

Series 1Series 2Series 3

“Strategies for Improving Sentence Fluency”

using Richard Lanham’s 8-step

Paramedic Method

Find the prepositional and infinitive phrases.“Latham says to start by looking at the sentences

in each paragraph from the point of view of the number of prepositions used by the author for the purpose of expressing his or her ideas.”

“Latham says to start by looking at the sentences

in each paragraph from the point of view of the number of prepositions used by the author for the purpose of expressing his or her ideas.”

Remove as many prepositions and prepositional phrases as you can--by, at, in, from, of, by, for.

Preposition--anywhere a mouse can go

 

“Latham says to start by looking at the sentences in each paragraph from the point of view of the number of prepositions used by the author for the purpose of expressing his or her ideas.”

“Latham says, “take each sentence and find all the prepositions.”

Find the “is” forms.

Sentences using “is” forms (is, are, am, was, were, be, been, become, being) as the main verb can sound uninspired or dead.

“Creating a good newsletter as an addition to your web site would be a rewarding investment of your time and energy.”

is, are, am, was, were, be, been, become, being

Use action verbs.

Look for words that you may use as the main verbs in sentences.

“Creating a good newsletter as an addition to your web site would be a rewarding investment of your time and energy.”

“If you have a web site, create a good newsletter and reward your efforts.”

Start fast – no slow windups.

Lanham recommends sentences that start with a bang, not preliminary waffling like “with respect to,” whereas,” in addition to,” “based on,” “in order to.”

“With respect to the 76-minute interruption of service on August 15 due to unexpected levels of user demand which coincided with scheduled maintenance of our backup systems and unrelated technical problems at our customer call center, we offer apologies to any of our valued customers who experienced inconvenience as a result.”

“Technical problems on August 15 interrupted service. We apologize for the inconvenience.”

Remember science is writing• Inductive or deductive,

the real business of science is writing.

• Aside from the Abstract, science articles are written inductively: from the bottom up.

Sample Rubrics

• Thesis Statement DRAFT Rubric• ENST 230 Guide• Technical Writing Rubric• College writing rubrics• Science writing rubrics• Smarter Balanced Rubric

Activity

• Find new partners and read your revised assignments.

• Ask one another, “How will you grade this assignment?” Do you have a rubric in mind? What will be the most important objective for your students to learn?

Interim Assignment

Implement one of the assignments developed today.Send or bring samples of student work to March 26 meeting.Send or bring a rubric that you’ve used/modified.If possible, apply a rubric to some samples and send them (scored) to Jan so they can be copied and discussed by the whole group.

March 26 agenda:Debrief interim assignment Examine 3-4 samples of student work collaborativelyScore, discuss additional samples in small groupsPractice giving students feedback