Using Cultural Understandings to Improve Teaching, part 4

(photo by S. B.)

I hope that my previous essays on teaching might help all teachers, but this essay is focused on teaching writing to students who can put together a few paragraphs in English by explaining the benefits of doing daily in-class writing. I also discuss the benefits of having students use rubrics, come up with their own topics and share papers.

In-class Writing – for classes such as Introduction to Creative Writing and Writing Workshop, just telling students HOW to do something is not effective unless students have a text to work off of, so I ask that every student brings a large notebook to class every day. They write the date at the top of page, I give a prompt to help them get started, then let them write for 10-15 minutes.

For creative writing class, I might ask them to write a poem about the weather, then the next day, ask them to take that poem and change it so the weather itself is the narrator, i.e. the “rain” or the “sun” speaks and explains their feelings. If we are doing drama, I might ask for a dialog between two people who are very different ages or a dialog in which someone is trying to get something in a sneaky way.

For a writing workshop class, I might ask them to explain something they want to change about our university. Then I ask them to take that topic and change their writing so they are talking to other students, then change it again so they are talking to administration. This kind of practice allows them to get a handle on “audience” and how to craft arguments depending on who you are writing for.

Writing daily means that when it is time to think of topics for their main papers, they have pages of writing to look through to help them come up with ideas. Also, as the semester goes on, students are able to write more quickly so that a student who managed a few sentences in 10 minutes during the first class might be able to write two paragraphs after two months. When I ask them to review their journals and they can see their progress, it improves their writing confidence for doing midterms and papers in other classes.

A really important part of doing daily journals is that I do not comment when a student does not write in class one day. From friendships with Omanis who are not connected to the university, I can see how students are sometimes subject to enormous pressures at home. For most North American/ UK/ EU students, college is seen as the most significant factor and while some students might have a job, there is a general understanding that school work comes first.

In Oman, if older relatives come to visit on the night before an exam, students might be expected to sit in the salle or majlis with them. Sometimes a family decides that a student will be married in the middle of the semester, or a beloved sister is married so a student is busy for weeks with the preparations, then has to cope with the sadness that the sister is no longer living in the house. There might be a death in the family or sometimes a student has to sit up all night with a sick child. And sometimes a student is simply out of ideas.

At the start of the semester I say, “you need to write at least half a page every class period, but if you can’t write in class a few times during the semester, that’s fine. Sit quietly and take care of yourself. But you will have to do the writing at some point. I will put the prompt on Moodle (the on-line teaching program) in case you miss class, you still have to do the writing.”

Knowing they have to do the work, but they can take a break if they are having a bad day, eliminates scolding, arguments and unhappiness. When I am walking around the room to check progress and I see a blank page, I quietly say, “do it later tonight with a cup of tea” and walk on. I have never had a student abuse this by not writing for several days in a row, but every semester I have students who simply can’t focus. Sometimes they look at me and shake their heads, and I whisper, “it’s ok.” Sometimes they will try to explain what’s wrong and I say, “you don’t need to tell me the reason. No phone, don’t talk to anyone, draw a picture if you want. Make up the work later.” Of course for tests, students need to do the work at the correct time, but I don’t think it’s helpful to force students by pretending there is something magically useful about writing EVERY day.

The journal work is usually worth 10 points (from a class total of 100). I collect the journals three times during the semester without advance notice and skim though them. If the students’ journals are organized and have 1/2 page of writing for each class period, they get full credit. If not, I write what the issue is and give a lower grade. Then I hand them back at the start of the next class period.

Writing papers

Some people advise giving out sample papers and students usually want a sample but I don’t think it’s a good idea for students who are at the level of being able to write 3 or 4 connected paragraphs. A sample is too easy to copy. On the other hand, it’s never helpful to give vague assignments such as “give me a 5-paragraph argument essay.”

The happy middle ground is a three-step process: create and discuss a rubric, have students hand in topic choices and do an in-class workshop day. This drastically cuts down on the chances to cheat/ plagiarize and improves students ability to think and write from themselves.

using rubrics – Three weeks before a major paper is due, I always give out a detailed rubric (see example below) which gives all the relevant dates and explains the sections of the paper. Using a table format means I can write the points the students earn next to the explanation, so they can see where they have made a mistake. I also add examples of quotes because some students have not used quotes before and having the sample sentences right on the rubric means they don’t have to look elsewhere for help. Lastly, I put the late-paper policy so, again, students have all the information they need in one paper.

choosing topics – On the day I hand out the rubric, I tell students that they need to think of at least three topics, and write them out on a paper with a few bullet points and hand it on by the due date. I review the topics and put a check next to the topics which are ok for them to use. This cuts down on over-used topics (on-line teaching!) and allows me to make sure no two students are doing the same idea.

sharing writing – A week before the paper is due, I set up a “workshop” day in which students read each other’s writing. The two most important aspects are to start small and provide a framework. Nothing could be less helpful than simply giving a student’s paper to another student.

In classes in which I use peer groups, I always try to put students in groups with a task to work on several times at the start of the semester so they can start to get to know each other. If we are doing daily in-class writing, I will announce (BEFORE THEY START TO WRITE!) that they are going to share that day’s work with another student. I let them write, then assign everyone a pair and they switch notebooks and talk about what they wrote. Doing this a few times allows students to get to work together and feel more comfortable about sharing papers.

The second step is to give students a review sheet to fill in (see sample below) instead of simply asking students to read or “comment.” Having a worksheet allows them to read with a purpose and check that the student has done all the assigned parts, which makes them reflect on their own writing.

I explain to students that another student in the class (they will not know which one) will read their paper and if they don’t want to use their real name, that’s fine. They need to make sure that there is either a name or title on the paper. When I walk around the room to pick up the drafts, I can verify that each student handed in a draft, then I mix up the papers and hand them back with the peer review sheet.

As students finish reading and filling out a sheet, I give them a second paper to work on which helps stop the “do the worksheet in a hurry and then just sit” syndrome. They know if they finish one paper, they will get another one to work on.

And I make sure to explain that students who do not come with a draft will be given the chance to work on their assignment on their own. If a student comes in without a paper, I don’t ask, “Why didn’t you do the work?” I ask them to sit at the back of the class, make sure they have paper and a pen and ask them to start writing. After I have distributed papers to the rest of the class, I will sit next to every student who did not come prepared and ask if they have any questions. Then I will give them a peer-review sheet and remind them that they have to have someone else read their paper and they need to turn in their drafts and peer-review sheet with their final paper.

example rubric for writing class:

Assessment 3 – May 14 – 10 points – due in class

topics due April 30, counts as a homework grade

peer review May 9, counts as class participation grade

	Explanation	possible score	student score
Essay	· a complete, realistic, original, thought-provoking argument paper on a topic that PERSONALLY impacts the author· must have clear AUDIENCEtopics NOT allowed:· not smoking · not cheating · driving (too fast or who drives) · on-line teaching · cell phones/ social media · where to take a vacation · correct grammar and spelling · at least 4 pages long	· creative, interesting argument explained in introduction – 1· compelling conclusion (restatement, positive or negative if this doesn’t happen, story, expand topic, etc.) – 1· at least 2 points supporting the argument based on author’s reasoning – 2· at least 2 points supporting the argument based on interviews/ external sources with quotes – 2 · at least 1 rebuttal (anticipating counter-argument) – 1 · 1 points deducted if not long enough
Draftsand documents	· at least THREE drafts with evidence of substantial revision · at least one peer review sheet· topic sheet with teacher approval	· 2
Format	Paper should be:· neatly handwritten in blue or black ink on plain white, large, lined paper· each paragraph indented with between 3 and 6 sentences unless it is dialog	points deducted if not done correctly
total score