Tressler’s Relevance Today

 Looking at Tressler’s “Twelve Planks,” listed in the last log, we find these concepts of teaching English were generally lost from the late forties through the seventies. Instead of language practice, teachers were stressing the “forms,” rules of grammar, with a profusion of red “proofreading marks” and a dearth of practical instruction. The actual content, organization and style were not considered material one should teach. The feeling was largely that if one knew the rules, one could apply them without instruction. English instruction works like a pendulum, swinging from an analytical (rules are all that matter) mentality to a global (what the student writes is all that matters) viewpoint. (The same is true in the highly politicized global (whole approach) versus analytical (phonics approach) found in the teaching of reading.

In the sixties and followed up in the eighties and in 2007 (noted earlier), all major meta-analyses of English instruction have shown the complete incompetency of the analytical writing instructional approach. We still, however, find that it is what teachers feel more comfortable using, squawking like crows if the new materials don’t have the oh so handy grammar practice book… This is easily “taught” (and soon forgotten), easy to grade, and doesn’t require any more knowledge of the language than a cat would have. We must, however, remember, that it is just as good to have a student just sit and talk than waste time in an English drill book. At least, when a student is talking, a student is practicing the language in a way that is useful. Remember “Plank 3” from Tressler: “Practice is of little value unless or until a person sees a need of it.” A lesson purporting to teach the difference between, for instance, a noun and a pronoun, with exercises requesting the student discriminate between the two is completely useless. The student should be using the words, not picking them from a basket!

Remember also the aim of an English program. It is not to teach a student to recognize various “parts of speech” but to teach a student to use the words, in conversation and in writing. Remember that a student uses language far more when talking than writing! A perfectly quiet “language arts” class is an oxymoronic situation! “Creative expression – that is, translating experience into words in order to share what is too good to keep to oneself – is a vital and valuable part of an English program” (Tressler’s “9^th Plank”). This needs to emphasize written as well as oral expression. English is the art of language, the skill of communication, not the memorization of rules with exceptions.

English is Action – English in Action

In the 1930’s, JC Tressler wrote a series of English books entitled English in Action. Never more than in the last decade have his ideas been needed. This is a summary of what he called his “twelve planks” of using the language, in his words: 

1. Explanation without illustration and practice is valueless.

2. Good speech and writing habits are more to be desired – and harder to secure – than a knowledge of correct forms.

3. Practice is of little value unless or until a person sees a need of it.

4. As an example or model, a good piece of pupil writing is ordinarily more stimulating than a literary masterpiece, since it sets a standard in which the pupil can hope to reach.

5. The aims of grammar teaching are to help pupils (1) to write and speak correct sentences (2) to construct effective sentences, (3) to punctuate correctly, and (4) to extract thought from the printed page.

6. The best way to study grammar is by applying it. Pupils learn grammar rapidly and thoroughly when they use it in building sentences.

7. The criteria for the selection of drill material and the determination of how much emphasis should be placed on each point selected are the frequency of use and the frequency, persistency, and social seriousness of error. Only errors to which society attaches a penalty are included.

8. An English textbook should furnish training in the language activities ordinarily carried on in school and also well-selected activities paralleling present and future out-of-school experiences.

9. Creative expression – that is, translating experience into words in order to share what is too good to keep to oneself – is a vital and valuable part of an English program.

10. A maintenance program is essential in effective English instruction.

11. Intelligent self-appraisal is necessary in the development of skills.

12. The best way to help pupils to learn about grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and the effective sentence is to “test, teach, test, teach, test, teach to the point of mastery.”

 More later…

Said what??

 

Another problem I find with dependent writers who are discovering the narrative is that they become enamored, at one point or another, with dialogue. Most of their world is a world of dialogue, from the television and movies they watch to their everyday conversations. Fortunately, in this world, their mind is attuned to the context – the setting, how the characters are reacting (facial and body expressions), and the action. Unfortunately, this “mind’s view,” when one is writing, is not available to the reader of the narrative. Showing the student that one has to contextualize dialogue can be difficult and a bothersome thing for some students.

I like to break the story down for the student, adding questions to the student’s paper the student must answer on the paper before continuing. Gradually, the student becomes aware that dialogue, while generally essential, has to be surrounded by framework. Sometimes, I might model a lousy story, one that has no context, merely dialogue and ask the student to explain the “where” and “what’s happening.”

Another problem I have found with students who are using dialogue is that every sentence starts with “She said” or “He said.” Though “said” is not a bad word to use, it can become very repetitious. I have been very successful in having a group endeavor, where the students brainstorm for words to use instead of the “S” word. These we catalog on a bulletin board, with students adding to it throughout the year.

Also, when a student is writing, many times the actual identity of the character becomes obscured by the constant use of “he” or “she.” While this poses no problem to the writer, it can make a narrative rather incoherent at times. This normally can be solved by pointing out the problem to the student.

 Dialogue, especially for middle graders (4-8) can open a new world for developing writers. With close attention, the teacher can mold this into a skill that is very impressive. Without attention, the writer will write reams that no one really understands or CARES to understand.

Useless Words… A few Prepositional Examples

It is perhaps appropriate to continue my logs with a few words about useless ones. Style in writing refers to how we say what we say.  A style that communicates without repetition is effective.  Many times, we find dependent writers ending sentences with prepositions, or using preposition when other words will work:

“She hit the ball with passion” is infinitely weaker than “She hit the ball passionately.” Passion is meant to describe how she hit the ball, thus the writer should use the adverbial form. Using a prepositional phrase to describe a verb should be avoided!  

“Where did he go to?” This sentence has a totally useless preposition dangling at the end. Do not end the sentence with a preposition!

“I met with my boss for a briefing” is infinitely weaker than “I met my boss for a briefing.” In this case, boss is the object of met. With is entirely unnecessary. When there is an object of the verb, do not convolute manners by adding a preposition. Furthermore, do not compound the error by adding prepositional phrase to prepositional phrase.

This is an interesting and challenging exercise I have used. I have asked my students to look through their papers and to rid their papers of as many prepositional phrases as is possible. (An example using the previous sentence: “I have asked my students to survey their papers and to excise all the prepositional phrases.”) 

This somewhat overlooked aspect of writing writing skill enables the writer’s becoming of a more precise, a more independent writer. In the beginning First, this might prove a challenge to the writer this might challenge the writer. As time passes, Eventually, the writer will craft his or her writing with force  forcefully.

English Across the Curriculum

 

 Perhaps “Writing across the curriculum” should be renamed “English across the curriculum.”

 In the second half of the twentieth century, “English” as a subject somehow became disconnected from “experience.” What is the purpose of English, or of language arts? It should make possible the learner to communicate. The learner should converse (listen and speak) intelligibly, read with understanding and write coherently. This is as important in science, social studies and math as it is in English. In order to do this, “grammar” should be reduced to its lowest denominator: speaking, and writing of clear sentences, developing these into coherent thoughts that are easily understandable. It is, according to the research, debatable as to whether disconnected “grammar” lessons ever did anything to accomplish this. (There have been three meta-analyses of writing. One was in the sixties, the second in the eighties and yet another in 2007. All three show that, when the emphasis of the English class is grammar, the students show little if any improvement in their ability to write, to communicate their ideas on paper.) A framework of speaking and writing built into science and social studies facilitates this growth in a way that connects to the experiences of the students. In the English classroom, if the majority of time is spent in disconnected grammar lessons, the teacher is wasting the students’ time.

 Practice in the art of writing and speaking has a perfectly natural forum in a social studies class, where the subjects range from cultures to geography to history and government. The same is true about science, whether it is knowledge of earth, physical or life science. Most students have interests and have knowledge brought from their life experiences, precious experiences that can be shared. I would submit that, by connecting these experiences, this knowledge to the class, the student will more quickly understand the state curricular benchmarks and objectives. It is truly a winning combination for student and for teacher. Writing about these experiences and conversing about this knowledge is certainly more important than merely reading a disconnected section of the book and taking a multiple guess test on that material.

 I taught groups of language arts students in one school for a period of time (around fourteen years) in which their writing was their text. They wrote every day and worked on their writings every day. The subject? Whatever interested them. Most of them  improved their abilities to write by around one standard deviation in a year, two in two years. Of those considered learning disabled in writing, over the time I had them, over 90% were not considered learning disabled in writing at the end of the period. Obviously, one cannot spend all of one’s time in science or social studies writing. If, however, the students are wasting time in a language arts class where the bulk of the student’s time is spent parsing sentences and completing rote drills, introducing and maintaining the writing connection in science and social studies would be of incredible benefit for the student.

 Remember: Grammar instruction is a waste of time in the middle grades! If teaching that through disconnected lessons is the major of the language arts teacher, the science and social studies teachers can at least make a huge impact on the ability of the student to communicate.

Writing Across the Curriculum – Propaganda

“This modern system of communications, which makes possible a sympathetic and friendly sharing of ideas and culture among nations, can be a powerful agent for world understanding and harmony. Unfortunately, however, the means of disseminating friendly ideas is often utilized by unprincipled individuals and governments to spread distorted gospels of prejudice, hate, and violence. Consequently there wages today on the air and in print a conflict between truth and falsehood, right and wrong, blind emotionalism and reasonable judgment. The ultimate fate of civilization will depend upon our ability to discern the true from the false, the rational from the irrational, the good from the bad.” Are you hearing this, radio talk show hosts and talking heads of cable “news” organizations? Actually, this was written in 1940, in an English book entitled, “English in Action, Course Four,” by JC Tressler. It opened the section on propaganda.

Nothing has changed, inasmuch as propaganda is concerned. “Congregatio de propaganda fide,” congregation for the propagation of the faith. If there is one thing that American schools should teach, it is how to understand the free press. The techniques used, not only in the news and political commercials, but in advertisements and even subliminally through the shows, are the same as they were in 1940: Name calling, glittering generalities, transfer, testimonial, plain folks, card stacking and bandwagon. It seems, however, looking that the polarity found within the United States these days, that the lessons, if taught over the past fifty years, haven’t been learned by any except those who seek to get extreme points of view across.

Could lessons in propagandic techniques be learning in social studies and in science classes, as part of writing assignments? It seems to be a natural fit in the middle grades. A few ideas:

1. What are the terms used in the texts that the authors use to get their views across? How can this be re-written to show a bias?

2. How can one take a rather neutral point of view, and using one or more of the propagandic techniques, re-write this to show bias?

3. In state politics (Georgia teaches Georgia history and government in the eighth grade), how do current events found in the newspaper show the bias of the writer or the newspaper? Give examples showing how this is accomplished.

4. In “cultures,” how do the writers bias their selections in favor of the American culture?

5. How might the science text be biased? How might one make a controversial issue found in the science text swayed toward one or another bias?

6. Debate done right is an excellent writing tool. In argument, propagandic techniques are generally a very effective way to get one’s point across. Debate is a formal discussion, in which material is gathered, placed into a coherent message, and aired. It includes, for each side, introduction (history of the question, definitions, points at issue), body of argument (facts, examples, opinions and reason), and conclusion (summary of argument).

7. The Internet is an exellent tool (if the school board policy is not repressive) for garnering bias in blogs and editorials and writing cogent pieces outlining why the article or blog is biased.

 In the middle grades, students are still (to some degree) parroting their parents, but they are looking for their own opinions. Understanding propaganda by using it as a tool to teach writing can be powerful, not only to improve a student’s writing, but to help a student to recognize the tools by which opinions are molded.

School – The New CDC???

It was with both a bit of humor and a bit of resignation that I read an article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, obviously by a naive reporter with nothing better to do, who was questioning why schools didn’t report incidences of flu to, I suppose, the community and the world. This reporter would, I suppose, assume that schools knew why students were absent and would have the clinical equipment to ascertain the exact cause of a student’s absence, if the student attended while ill. What a fool!

Students come to school ill. Neither teachers nor school nurses (those who haven’t been released because of educational budget cuts) can diagnose flu. Students are absent from school. Some bring excuses from parents, some from doctors and some bring none. In my years as a teacher, I can’t remember a single doctor’s note having the diagnosis of the student’s illness. They are usually, these days, the same “may return to work” excuses adults who need them receive.

Is it any wonder that newspapers are having a difficult time surviving, with the lack of knowledge from reporters? Obviously, this reporter merely was looking for a way to attempt to denigrate education by, horror or horrors, report that schools were not sending a full report to the press (?) the non-existent  statistics on exactly how many students had the flu.

But, this is the way public schools are treated these days. Disrespect based on total ignorance is part of the American culture. Disrespect toward education by pundits who consider themselves experts since “once upon a time” they actually attended school, probably, as Jethro of “The Beverly Hillbillies” so famously bragged, are “sixth grade graj-e-uts.”

Writing Across the Curriculum – Summarizing

By far, the most effective strategies in content areas that facilitate both the understanding of the content and the ability to write are summarizing and note taking. Summarizing is the subject today. Summarizing enables the student process the materials just read, internalizing the material by reformulating it cognitively. It also helps the student recognize the important from the trivial. This not only assists the student in becoming a better writer but in becoming a more efficient reader of content material. Considered a powerful reading and writing skill, I have books from the first half of the twentieth century outlining the process. These are essentially the same as one finds in books today.  Basically, the object is for the student to;

a. get rid of what is not needed or repeated,

b. use general, familiar terminology, and

c. distill the section read into a few sentences that provides the content concisely in the student’s vernacular. 

There are several ways to guide the student through this process. After explaining the process and giving a few examples of the task they were to do (generally on the interactive board), I gave my middle grade students a page of content material and had them read the selection, marking out the non-essential material. Then, again using the interactive board, we argued about the various sentences and decided the essential from the nonessential. Finally, the students (and I) each wrote our own summary, which we shared. (It seems like a no brainer, but a teacher who doesn’t write and share with his or her students when giving writing assignments has no business in the classroom. This modeling is critical. It serves several purposes that I will write about in the future.) As the students became comfortable with the process, we moved to their books. When I taught science or social studies, students were expected to do at least a summary a week. When I taught language arts, summaries were also expected.

Marzano’s A Handbook for Classroom Instruction that Works (I highly recommend this book) gives several methods for helping students write summaries. These are the use of “summary frames,” which consist of general but effective questions that are useful in a generic way for finding the main ideas and pertinent details of narratives, texts, essays, etc. In language arts, I used the “narrative frame” for short stories, which asked questions about the characters, setting, conflict, action, resolution, etc. There are also the topic-restriction-illustration, the definition, the argumentation, problem/solution, and conversation frames. (Graphic organizers always make principals glow, but I have found several of these to be valuable.)

Don’t expect that your students can summarize. Don’t assume that, if your students can’t summarize, there is something wrong with them. Most importantly, don’t ask the students to summarize anything unless you have spent some time teaching this important skill. Summarizing had a .82 effect size, the same as strategy instruction, the two highest effect sizes in a meta-analysis of research into writing instruction in a 2007 study I highlighted in the last blog. Think about that… In, for instance, the science class, using the science text, you can be facilitating their writing in as effective a way as a teacher of writing! In getting the student to analyze the piece you are also teaching the reading skill of discriminating between important an unimportant information. Putting the assigned reading into the student’s own words even works to facilitate his or her vocabulary development. This is “writing across the curriculum” proper!

Writing Across the Curriculum

I read in the local newspaper that the county’s middle school is involved in “writing across the curriculum.” It’s a shame that three days of the first semester that could have been spent in professional development to that end were cut from the schedule, because teaching writing is a skill, as much as any skill, that requires some knowledge of writing. Effective teachers in science, social studies and mathematics have been requiring the students to write. Good math teachers demand reflections on the processes students have used to arrive at the correct answer or at various ways one can arrive at the correct answer. Good science and social studies teachers, likewise, assign projects that require the use of writing.  If  “writing across the curriculum” is to be successfully implemented, it is essential that all teachers are “on the same page,” that they are comfortable with the indicators of what exactly consistutes proficiency in writing, and that they are abreast with the latest research in the field of writing. I will briefly introduce one of the most valuable writing strategies, one that should be expected in science and social studies classes, but which is not as simple for middle grades students to accomplish at a proficient level as it sounds.

One of the most effective teaching strategies, the second most effective strategy, according to Marzano’s meta-analysis of effective teaching strategies (A Handbook for Classroom Instruction that Works, 2001), is the use of summarization and note taking of material read and heard. It, according to a recent meta-analysis of writing instruction, is also the second most effective practice in teaching writing (Graham, Steve; Perin, Dolores. Journal of Educational Psychology. Vol 99(3), Aug 2007, 445-476.) This, however, has to go beyond merely telling a student to summarize what they have read. It also goes beyond having a student read and write. As a general classroom teacher, I found that students had not been taught how to summarize. Furthermore, many students had to be taught an important reading skill they didn’t have. They needed to know what was essential in the reading passage and what was not essential. Many times, as teachers, we assume that what is important to us is what is important to the student. This isn’t correct. In the following week, I will outline some methods I have found effective in teaching summarization skills.

Writing across the curriculum is essential, but it takes a couple of ingredients. Teachers have to “by into” the program. They must feel comfortable in teaching writing in their subject area classrooms. The school also must have a systematic way, a standardized way to assess these writings. Both of these aspects require, for some of the teachers, professional development, not only for the successful implementation, but for the planning. Let’s hope that this part of the equation is not left out. If it is, the schools will “look good on paper,” with this “initiative,” but it won’t matter whatsoever in the final product. It will just be another one of those educational “fads” which, since the SAT demands writing, sets the students up for failure.

The Stealth Plan Against Public Education

1. Since becoming governor, Sonny Perdue, governor of Georgia, has cut $1.6 billion from the education budget.

2.Every year, faced with budget cuts, schools have had to be made exempt from class size maximums called for by law.

3. The state Board of Education this summer authorized local boards of education to re-interpret a “school year.” This allows local school boards to in effect, cut the school year for teachers by up to ten days.

4. Governor Perdue withholds funding for three days of school in each of 182 school districts (see past blogs).

The governor of Georgia has shown that he is trying to destroy public education in Georgia.  More students per class, less pay for students, less funding for educational in general sets up a scenario for failure. But, this has been a plan of some from the Republican Party for years.

Undercutting education with school vouchers to “educational” entities with absolutely no responsibility or accountability to taxpayers’ money has been one of the ways they can give their middle classed constituency another tax write-off. It also sets up the schools for failure, taking money from the public classroom.

Sonny Perdue has led the state to the gates of Hell, educationally. Thankfully, his last term is nearing… He is also a veterinarian… Hope he’s better at that, or we will have many dying pets after his tenure as governor is over! In the meanwhile, we can only hope he will do the least damage possible to education.