1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,400 This is the Reading Instruction Show. 2 00:00:02,400 --> 00:00:05,280 I'm your host as always, Dr. Andy Johnson. 3 00:00:05,280 --> 00:00:13,240 The topic of today's podcast is called a sane person's guide for addressing academic 4 00:00:13,240 --> 00:00:16,640 standards for writing. 5 00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:24,600 Now the impact of academic standards on students' ability to actually write is questionable. 6 00:00:24,600 --> 00:00:29,960 Some believe that they impede more than an enhanced effective writing instruction. 7 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:35,560 However, academic standards are part of our current educational life. 8 00:00:35,560 --> 00:00:42,000 Hence this podcast where I will present some ideas for evaluating and assessing academic 9 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:48,680 standards related to writing and pragmatically documenting students mastery of them. 10 00:00:48,680 --> 00:00:52,480 So let's first talk about teaching to an academic standard. 11 00:00:52,480 --> 00:01:00,360 At first we should not allow academic standards to narrowly define our writing curriculum. 12 00:01:00,360 --> 00:01:06,640 Quite frankly many of the academic standards related to writing are silly at best and counterproductive 13 00:01:06,640 --> 00:01:08,600 at worst. 14 00:01:08,600 --> 00:01:14,480 There's a grand bit of mistaking going around that if you create a whole bunch of academic 15 00:01:14,480 --> 00:01:23,360 standards and force teachers to teach them that a whole bunch of learning will take place. 16 00:01:23,360 --> 00:01:30,520 It's somehow assumed that good standards teaching is good teaching. 17 00:01:30,520 --> 00:01:37,720 This of course is a fallacy based not on research but on a whole bunch of I thinkisms. 18 00:01:37,720 --> 00:01:42,040 Here's the simple truth about academic standards. 19 00:01:42,040 --> 00:01:45,320 There's generally too many of them. 20 00:01:45,320 --> 00:01:52,920 A few standards are good but that doesn't mean that a whole bunch of standards are better. 21 00:01:52,920 --> 00:01:57,280 You can't standard your way to good education. 22 00:01:57,280 --> 00:02:02,240 Good education comes from good teachers. 23 00:02:02,240 --> 00:02:07,820 Too many academic standards clutter up the teaching process and disallow good teachers 24 00:02:07,820 --> 00:02:10,560 to be good teachers. 25 00:02:10,560 --> 00:02:15,560 Some teacher then find themselves teaching standards and not students and this is not 26 00:02:15,560 --> 00:02:17,560 good. 27 00:02:17,560 --> 00:02:24,520 Now if you really wanted to improve our educational systems I mean really and ask yourself if 28 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:31,920 that's something you really want to do there would be far fewer academic standards. 29 00:02:31,920 --> 00:02:39,440 As a matter of fact you could improve education significantly by having a single standard 30 00:02:39,440 --> 00:02:43,440 for every school and here is that single standard. 31 00:02:43,440 --> 00:02:52,040 If this one standard was held for every school our education would be better than it is today. 32 00:02:52,040 --> 00:02:54,200 Average superior and here it is. 33 00:02:54,200 --> 00:03:02,720 Every classroom will have a well-paid knowledgeable creative and intelligent teacher who is empowered 34 00:03:02,720 --> 00:03:09,400 to use their knowledge creativity and intelligence to design the kinds of learning experiences 35 00:03:09,400 --> 00:03:14,480 that enable all students to achieve their full potential. 36 00:03:14,480 --> 00:03:15,480 That's it. 37 00:03:15,480 --> 00:03:22,320 Now this would mean of course that our educational systems would stop investing in academic standards 38 00:03:22,320 --> 00:03:28,000 and standardized tests and expensive one size fits all programs. 39 00:03:28,000 --> 00:03:34,560 We would instead invest in good teachers and high quality teacher professional development 40 00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:37,440 but that's not going to happen. 41 00:03:37,440 --> 00:03:44,440 So let's look at how to effectively teach toward an academic standard and we'll start 42 00:03:44,440 --> 00:03:46,400 by defining our terms. 43 00:03:46,400 --> 00:03:52,960 An academic standard defines what you want students to know or be able to do in a general 44 00:03:52,960 --> 00:03:53,960 sense. 45 00:03:53,960 --> 00:04:00,640 Now here's an example of a third grade standard the Minnesota academic standard for writing 46 00:04:00,640 --> 00:04:02,560 here's just one standard. 47 00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:10,680 The standard is students will demonstrate knowledge of oral language, orthography, grammar and 48 00:04:10,680 --> 00:04:15,340 mechanics to express ideas. 49 00:04:15,340 --> 00:04:20,840 Demonstrate knowledge of oral language, orthography, grammar and mechanics to express ideas. 50 00:04:20,840 --> 00:04:23,520 Okay very good nothing wrong with that. 51 00:04:23,520 --> 00:04:29,960 A benchmark in education of the products or performances used to determine if students 52 00:04:29,960 --> 00:04:32,280 have met a standard. 53 00:04:32,280 --> 00:04:37,800 Now benchmarks must be measurable or observable. 54 00:04:37,800 --> 00:04:43,880 This means it could be a student product found in a portfolio or a measure of that product 55 00:04:43,880 --> 00:04:48,200 using a checklist or a rubric. 56 00:04:48,200 --> 00:04:53,640 Benchmarks are used to help you meet the standard and to document that the standard is being 57 00:04:53,640 --> 00:04:54,840 met. 58 00:04:54,840 --> 00:05:00,040 Now for that first standard there are three benchmarks. 59 00:05:00,040 --> 00:05:06,360 One use correct punctuation, spelling, capitalization and grammar authentically in writing. 60 00:05:06,360 --> 00:05:08,560 That's the first one. 61 00:05:08,560 --> 00:05:13,960 Benchmark two, apply spelling patterns and rules to spell multi-syllabic words, high-frequency 62 00:05:13,960 --> 00:05:17,480 words authentically in writing. 63 00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:25,880 And benchmark number three, use nouns, verbs, frequently used adjectives and adverbs, conjunctions, 64 00:05:25,880 --> 00:05:33,120 prepositions and pronouns in simple and compound sentences authentically in writing. 65 00:05:33,120 --> 00:05:36,360 By the way what are the frequently used adjectives and adverbs? 66 00:05:36,360 --> 00:05:38,800 It really doesn't tell us. 67 00:05:38,800 --> 00:05:41,640 So let's do a little bit of unpackorating. 68 00:05:41,640 --> 00:05:48,280 The first step in teaching toward an academic standard is to unpack the standard. 69 00:05:48,280 --> 00:05:55,800 With each standard you must ask what exactly does it mean and what does it ask for? 70 00:05:55,800 --> 00:06:03,920 For example in that standard what does it mean to demonstrate knowledge of oral language, 71 00:06:03,920 --> 00:06:11,840 orthography, grammar and mechanics to express ideas in writing. 72 00:06:11,840 --> 00:06:16,040 Do all these things in order to express ideas in writing? 73 00:06:16,040 --> 00:06:18,880 Well demonstrate knowledge of oral language. 74 00:06:18,880 --> 00:06:21,680 They can speak correctly. 75 00:06:21,680 --> 00:06:26,880 Demonstrate knowledge of orthography, they can spell correctly. 76 00:06:26,880 --> 00:06:32,280 Demonstrate knowledge of grammar, they can use words correctly and construct sentences 77 00:06:32,280 --> 00:06:37,120 that are grammatically correct. 78 00:06:37,120 --> 00:06:43,840 Demonstrate knowledge of mechanics, they can use capitalization and punctuation correctly 79 00:06:43,840 --> 00:06:47,360 and express ideas in writing. 80 00:06:47,360 --> 00:06:52,040 Here they must demonstrate this knowledge of all the above within the context of authentic 81 00:06:52,040 --> 00:06:54,200 writing. 82 00:06:54,200 --> 00:06:56,120 Not on the standardized test. 83 00:06:56,120 --> 00:06:59,640 Authentic writing to express their ideas. 84 00:06:59,640 --> 00:07:03,080 Those are the standard. 85 00:07:03,080 --> 00:07:10,120 The benchmark, the second step in teaching toward an academic standard is to unpack the 86 00:07:10,120 --> 00:07:11,840 benchmarks. 87 00:07:11,840 --> 00:07:20,200 Now keep in mind that learning related to benchmarks does not occur in one or two lessons. 88 00:07:20,200 --> 00:07:27,000 Most often you'll need to teach and reteach and review and reinforce the benchmark skill 89 00:07:27,000 --> 00:07:30,920 over time using many lessons. 90 00:07:30,920 --> 00:07:37,280 When it appears that students have mastered the benchmark then you'll design the product 91 00:07:37,280 --> 00:07:41,840 or performance to demonstrate and document mastery. 92 00:07:41,840 --> 00:07:48,480 So let's unpack just one of the benchmarks to try to get a sense of what it calls for. 93 00:07:48,480 --> 00:07:56,440 The benchmark number one, use correct punctuation, spelling, capitalization and grammar, use 94 00:07:56,440 --> 00:08:00,720 all things authentically in writing. 95 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:07,480 So to unpack this, this means that they can produce a written document that does not have 96 00:08:07,480 --> 00:08:13,680 errors related to punctuation, spelling, capitalization and grammar. 97 00:08:13,680 --> 00:08:18,520 Gives us a sense of what to teach but what it means in other words is you teach students 98 00:08:18,520 --> 00:08:21,720 how to use a spell check and a grammar check. 99 00:08:21,720 --> 00:08:24,480 In the real world that's what you do you see. 100 00:08:24,480 --> 00:08:30,680 We want to make what we do in the classroom reflect reality to the greatest extent possible. 101 00:08:30,680 --> 00:08:33,000 I'm not giving weekly spelling tests. 102 00:08:33,000 --> 00:08:37,760 I send out articles and I have to have the words spelled correctly so I use spell check 103 00:08:37,760 --> 00:08:39,200 and grammar check. 104 00:08:39,200 --> 00:08:42,240 So here's the big unpack. 105 00:08:42,240 --> 00:08:48,200 What that first standard is really calling for is for students to be able to write using 106 00:08:48,200 --> 00:08:55,120 correct spelling, punctuation and grammar in their authentic writing. 107 00:08:55,120 --> 00:09:01,080 This standard provides some ideas for the types of things you might teach but mastering 108 00:09:01,080 --> 00:09:08,040 all the benchmarks does not assume that these sub skills will transfer to real life writing 109 00:09:08,040 --> 00:09:10,320 situations. 110 00:09:10,320 --> 00:09:17,920 And as I said, a spell check and grammar check function addresses much of what's asked for 111 00:09:17,920 --> 00:09:20,760 in this first standard. 112 00:09:20,760 --> 00:09:28,000 However, to be pragmatic and to be sane and to demonstrate and document most benchmark 113 00:09:28,000 --> 00:09:35,960 standards related to writing, you create a very simple checklist. 114 00:09:35,960 --> 00:09:40,920 Students would then submit a sample of the writing and the checklist would have the things 115 00:09:40,920 --> 00:09:45,400 you're looking for, the traits and you'd rate the degree to which each element on that 116 00:09:45,400 --> 00:09:48,120 checklist is present. 117 00:09:48,120 --> 00:09:53,280 The numbers used on this type of rating checklist enable you to quantify students' ability 118 00:09:53,280 --> 00:09:56,080 to meet each standard. 119 00:09:56,080 --> 00:09:59,200 And how wonderful is that? 120 00:09:59,200 --> 00:10:04,560 Checklists could be submitted separately or stapled to the front of a writing sample. 121 00:10:04,560 --> 00:10:09,680 That would demonstrate and document that they met that standard. 122 00:10:09,680 --> 00:10:15,280 Now you could also create a checklist with each of the benchmark skills on it and when 123 00:10:15,280 --> 00:10:20,960 students demonstrate mastery of a benchmark skill in their writing, you check it off with 124 00:10:20,960 --> 00:10:24,800 the date and the title of the paper. 125 00:10:24,800 --> 00:10:32,320 Whenever dealing with standards and benchmarks, the key is to keep it simple, simple, simple. 126 00:10:32,320 --> 00:10:40,200 Now a distinction needs to be made between academic standards and curriculums. 127 00:10:40,200 --> 00:10:47,720 When academic standard defines in a general sense the concepts and skills to be learned. 128 00:10:47,720 --> 00:10:57,000 Academic standards should be used to inform curriculums but they should not be a curriculum. 129 00:10:57,000 --> 00:11:03,680 A curriculum is a systematic plan for instruction designed by teachers within a school district 130 00:11:03,680 --> 00:11:08,400 or at various grade levels for each subject area. 131 00:11:08,400 --> 00:11:15,800 It describes what specific concepts and skills are taught in what general order and in what 132 00:11:15,800 --> 00:11:18,960 context. 133 00:11:18,960 --> 00:11:26,360 Curriculums are usually designed by teachers based on their knowledge of the content, their 134 00:11:26,360 --> 00:11:31,800 knowledge of their students' developmental levels, interests and needs, and their pedagogical 135 00:11:31,800 --> 00:11:33,600 content knowledge. 136 00:11:33,600 --> 00:11:36,200 That's the knowledge of how to teach various subjects. 137 00:11:36,200 --> 00:11:37,480 They use all this. 138 00:11:37,480 --> 00:11:40,720 They're in the best position to design curriculum. 139 00:11:40,720 --> 00:11:46,240 This points to the need for knowledgeable teachers and the importance of continued professional 140 00:11:46,240 --> 00:11:47,920 development. 141 00:11:47,920 --> 00:11:54,240 Now, planning and designing a writing curriculum is beyond the scope of this current podcast. 142 00:11:54,240 --> 00:12:01,560 However, neither standards nor curriculum should be an excuse to teach the skills that 143 00:12:01,560 --> 00:12:09,560 are unnecessary or won't be helpful in moving your students forward as thinkers and writers. 144 00:12:09,560 --> 00:12:16,960 This means we must empower teachers to differentiate between what's required and what's necessary. 145 00:12:16,960 --> 00:12:19,880 So let's look at this difference. 146 00:12:19,880 --> 00:12:25,600 Required means that somebody outside your classroom has mandated that certain skills 147 00:12:25,600 --> 00:12:27,760 be covered. 148 00:12:27,760 --> 00:12:33,280 This person or persons do not know your students, so these required skills should be covered 149 00:12:33,280 --> 00:12:35,960 but not taught. 150 00:12:35,960 --> 00:12:43,000 This means you go over them very briefly, giving them minimal attention, document that 151 00:12:43,000 --> 00:12:47,920 you'd cover them by creating a list of these required skills, put the date when you teach 152 00:12:47,920 --> 00:12:51,840 them and leave a space to describe the context. 153 00:12:51,840 --> 00:12:54,360 That's required. 154 00:12:54,360 --> 00:13:01,360 Now necessary means that you have identified the skills that your students need to become 155 00:13:01,360 --> 00:13:09,520 better writers because you are in the best position to determine which skills these are. 156 00:13:09,520 --> 00:13:11,080 You know your students. 157 00:13:11,080 --> 00:13:17,200 You know what your students need to achieve, to need to achieve their full literacy potential, 158 00:13:17,200 --> 00:13:20,800 not somebody outside your classroom. 159 00:13:20,800 --> 00:13:24,920 Now necessary skills should be taught. 160 00:13:24,920 --> 00:13:27,040 Required skills should be covered. 161 00:13:27,040 --> 00:13:30,180 Necessary skills should be taught. 162 00:13:30,180 --> 00:13:35,480 This means that you use direct and explicit instruction and you spend the amount of time 163 00:13:35,480 --> 00:13:43,080 and attention needed to ensure that your students know and are able to use them. 164 00:13:43,080 --> 00:13:47,400 Then you'd create a second checklist with the necessary skills. 165 00:13:47,400 --> 00:13:53,160 And of course this list would be much shorter than the list of required skills. 166 00:13:53,160 --> 00:13:59,640 Keep track of when each necessary skill is introduced, reviewed and reinforced. 167 00:13:59,640 --> 00:14:06,280 And create a similar checklist for each student as part of their portfolio assessment. 168 00:14:06,280 --> 00:14:14,560 Use this checklist to document when you see mastery of each skill in each student's writing. 169 00:14:14,560 --> 00:14:22,200 Now am I promoting anarchy with my recommendation to give required skills very little attention? 170 00:14:22,200 --> 00:14:27,640 Will there be a sudden implosion of all that is right and good if teachers separate the 171 00:14:27,640 --> 00:14:29,640 necessary from the required? 172 00:14:29,640 --> 00:14:32,280 Well, I hardly think so. 173 00:14:32,280 --> 00:14:37,240 In fact, students might actually become better writers. 174 00:14:37,240 --> 00:14:38,240 Imagine that. 175 00:14:38,240 --> 00:14:40,680 Isn't that the purpose? 176 00:14:40,680 --> 00:14:46,120 The last thing I want to say about academic standards is this. 177 00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:51,280 We are or should be preparing our students to communicate with other human beings in 178 00:14:51,280 --> 00:14:57,640 an increasingly diverse and complex world, communicate in speech and writing. 179 00:14:57,640 --> 00:15:05,400 We are not preparing them to live in the top-down confining world defined by academic standards. 180 00:15:05,400 --> 00:15:10,500 What we teach in our classroom must reflect reality. 181 00:15:10,500 --> 00:15:12,200 This has been the Reading Instruction Show. 182 00:15:12,200 --> 00:15:41,220 I'm your host, Dr. Andy Johnson.