The article addresses an ongoing need with tweens and teens which is the lack of adequate writing and grammar skills. The author connects this lack of skills to the pervasiveness of text messaging and online social communication sites where the shortcuts to written language dominate the entries.
Writing Coach is a high-tech tool created by Pearson, a global education and technology company. The foundation of the tool is the ability to assess each student’s writing and grammar skills individually and then customize a program which provides immediate feedback. Writing Coach “looks at a student's work in progress, one paragraph at a time, and analyzes the ideas, topic support, and organization in their essay.”
The results of working with this tool are dramatic. Middle school students in one district saw an increase in fluency, length of written responses and quality of writing. The claim is that these students “improved their proficiency as writers from 65 percent to 97 percent during the 2009-2010 school year.”
My experience as a public high school teacher certainly confirms the need for improvement in writing and grammar skills of students. I have seen the need overwhelmingly in English learners. There is no doubt that text messaging and online social communication is pervasive among tweens and teens. I don’t know that the author provided enough support for the contention that the use of these shortened writing forms “causes” poor writing skills. I use text messaging daily and I include the shortened forms and abbreviations for words, however this would never spill over into or decrease my writing skills in a formal setting.
The improvement claimed in increases in student performance are not supported by research - at least the article does not cite or present the data. If these increases can be attained, let’s implement them, but they must be supported by research. One missing element in the article that stands out for me is that there is no mention of the cost of the program. I don’t have the sense that Pearson has developed this tool and is now gifting it to the world. Education is in dire financial crisis and cost is critical to all programs. It is certainly worthy of a closer look.
No comments:
Post a Comment