Responding to our students' writing

Responding to our students’ writing: What’s good for us and for them? Dr. JoEllen M. Simpson, Ph.D.

Why is writing important at all levels of language development? ,[object Object],Writing practice should NOT be grammar practice The first level of responding to student essays must be to talk about WHAT the students wrote

[object Object],Robertson, M. (1986). Staffroom interchange: “Is anybody listening?” Responding to student writing. College Composition and Communication, 37, 1, 87-91.

Grammar correction in writing assignments has no effect on students

[object Object],Knoblauch, C.H. & Brannon, L. (1981). Teacher commentary on student writing. Freshman English News, 10, 1-4.

[object Object],Marzano, R.J. & Arthur, S. (1977). Teacher comments on student essays: It doesn’t matter what you say. Study at the University of Colorado, Denver. ERIC Document 147 864.

[object Object],Leki, I. (1991). The preferences of ESL students for error correction in college-level writing classes. Foreign Language Annals, 24, 3, 203-218.

Negative Effects ,[object Object],[object Object],[object Object],[object Object]

Teacher as Mentor vs. Judge ,[object Object],Mentors comment on content Mentors encourage Mentors explain how to become better writers by giving positive and constructive feedback

How should we respond? ,[object Object],“ How exciting that must have been!” Mirror the student’s attitudes about the topic “ I can imagine that you must have been very worried.” Give an experience of your own that parallels what the student has written “ That reminds me of when I…”

Other alternatives for giving feedback ,[object Object],Checklists Personal interviews

Subject-verb agreement Plural adjectives Verb form Verb tense Conclusion Supporting ideas Topic sentence Main idea Essay 5 Essay 4 Essay 3 Essay 2 Essay 1

What about structural feedback? ,[object Object],If the structural problems do not interfere with the message, they do not need to be addressed. Language teachers are notoriously inconsistent when marking errors, which causes a lot of confusion for students.

In summary ,[object Object],[object Object]

[object Object],Ways to give good responses First read the writing sample without using a pen Look for strengths and comment on them Help students see what to do next Allow peer evaluations

Responding to our students' writing

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