Writing Across the Board

      One observation that I have made as a parent and as a student teacher is the benefit of a cross-content education. It is common practice in some middle schools to have a team of teachers who work together on a curriculum that allows for the students to approach a theme or subject from numerous academic fields. How could this not be beneficial? When all the educators work together and plan lessons that enrich a student’s knowledge surrounding one subject, the students come away with a depth of knowledge in that particular subject. However, when the shift is made to look specifically at a skill, such as writing, how does the effect change? Should all content teachers be including writing as part of their curriculum? I want to find out more about this approach to building stronger writers.

      When I think of a physical skill, such as dance, I know that proper form and execution is important. Having someone there to guide and direct you is crucial in ensuring that a dancer is keeping proper form. Are students writing in health class, math class and science class? If so, how is the writing presented, instructed and graded? Most importantly, does that matter when it comes to helping students become better writers? These are some of the questions I would like to have answered. I recognize that the more you do something the better you become. As teachers of other content what should be their responsibility when guiding students through a writing assignment?

      Eventually I will be an educator myself and I will have the ability to share my opinion on this subject, as part of a learning community. Where will my opinion come from? I don’t want to share a vague opinion based on what I’ve heard others say. As the English teacher I want to have a strong opinion based on my own experiences. This I-Search Project is a great way to begin forming my opinion and to get some solid knowledge on the subject. When the day comes that my administration calls for cross-content writing, I want to be sure that I am a valuable resource in helping the program run smoothly, no matter what my findings are. If it shows that an ill prepared team can cause harm, I want to help my team prepare and be a resource for them. If it shows that any writing is good writing, I want to be able to encourage whatever they are willing to do.

       I think this research will benefit all of my classmates. Eventually everyone in my class will be a part of a team of educators and will be asked, as ELA teachers, for some assistance or guidance when it comes to written work and assignments. My research will help inform them and hopefully help them find the information they need to help others. If there are resources to help all educators teach writing to their students I want to get access to those resources and be able to share them with all of my colleagues.

       My research will begin at the local high school here in East Providence. I have a contact who teaches Personal Finances class and I would like to get some basic information on his practices, as well as the practices within the school as a whole. From there I will decide whether I want to research further in that school. I would ideally like to do research in a school that does require cross-content writing and one that does not. Comparing test results from standardized tests may prove useful in this situation. When looking into the research already done I have a professor that is knowledgeable on the subject. I plan to go to her and get some recommendations on reading. I want to get some basic information in order to formulate well rounded questions for my subjects.

       When it comes to interviewing teachers I know they can become defensive if they feel like their methods are being analyzed. I worry that I will not get completely accurate answers if the teacher feels that they are not doing what they know to be best. I will have to take that into consideration. One idea I have is to ask for samples of a student’s work in multiple classes so I can get an idea of how the student approaches writing in each class. I hope to get some solid information on best practices when it comes to cross-content writing. This will involve looking at the big picture and comparing many perspectives. I am worried that there will be too many variable, meaning that it may depend on each student’s abilities. At this point in my journey I’m wondering how I can narrow my idea down to something more manageable.