One Persuasive paragraph and five major essays (Expository, Descriptive, Narrative, Comparison/Contrast, Cause/Effect) are submitted during the semester. Also submitted are appropriate prewriting strategies which include either brainstorming, outlining, clustering or free writing as well as at least one rough draft that is signed-off by a Writing Center tutor. Minor credit points are given for pre-writings.
Three Writer's Toolkit Units (computer software) are also required with each essay. Grammar units usually compliment the essay's standard.
Because English 121 is a writing course, this initial paper was then compared to the Concept paper which the students wrote at the end of the semester. In this way, it was possible to see where and if improvements were made.
The purpose of English 090 is to prepare the student for college-level writing that he/she will encounter not only in English 121, but in other courses as well. Grammar is taught in this course as it relates to writing. By the end of the semester, the student will know how to write effective paragraphs and essays that include a clearly stated topic with logically structured support and a conclusion. He/she will be able to use prewriting strategies to focus, develop and organize his/her writing. The student will be able to evaluate and revise his/her writing for a specific purpose and audience, for clarity, sentence structure, vocabulary, and for errors in grammar and mechanics.
Both sections of ENG 090 are evaluated in the data, as all courses requirements are
identical, but are broken into individual sections: Final Grades:
section 001: A-1; B-1; C-1; D-0; F-3 (W=1)
section 002: A-5; B-4; C-0; D-0; F-0 (W=2)
Class averages: 001-68.2%, 002-88.8%
Two out of seven students in Section 001 failed to attend class shortly before and around Thanksgiving. I did not 'Withdraw' these students based on 'Changes to be made" Spring 2003 Assessment. One of the seven in 001 plagiarized work and was never able to make up the missing point difference. Those students who did not attend pulled down the class average.
This semester I included a calibrated scale in the syllabus to indicate the severity of getting a 'zero' on a paper by not submitting the essay. I also made mandatory 'due' dates with no exception. Those two rather drastic measures seemed to energize both sections of students. It seems as though this level of learner needs strict discipline.
Those students who engaged in the rigors of the course in both 001 and 002 achieved mastery level. Though most of the 090 students are third generation non-readers and have varied grammar skill levels, mastery of this course is possible through attendance and full participation. I make every attempt to individualize weak areas with supplemental instruction, which includes access to myself outside of class hours, peer mentoring, Learning Center tutoring, or Writing Center support.
I am happy with the overall student achievement in both ENG 090 sections and feel as though they have been given useful tools for further writing tasks. I will continue to make attendance and participation mandatory.
The first day, the students were asked to write an essay about a particular topic. They were given no instructions as to form, content, length, etc. This was done to allow me to see what the student's writing was like at the start of the semester.
Because English 121 is a writing course, this initial paper was then compared to the Concept paper which the students wrote at the end of the semester. In this way, it was possible to see where and if improvements were made.
I think that all of the students' writing improved. However, because the students in ENG 121 ITOP classes come into college with deficiencies (e.g. their score on the Accuplacer is slightly below what is required for college writing), I found that they needed a lot of help with the basics of writing including grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, and word usage. I plan to make some changes to include some instruction in these basics next semester.
Also, in looking at the lab component of the class, I don't think it was very effective. The lab assistant read to the students, helped them with papers, and went over research methods. While this was helpful, many of the students indicated on the survey I did that they didn't learn anything in the lab. So the structure of the lab will definitely be changed next semester.
I plan to make several changes to improve the effectiveness of this class. First, I am going to talk more about structure and the process of writing at the beginning of the semester. I want the students to have a clearer understanding of what they need to do when writing a college-level paper.
Also,the lab will be structured totally differently than last semester. I am going to use that time to go over the mechanics of writing, e.g. grammar, sentence structure, word usage, and punctuation. In addition, the lab component will now be included in the grading of the class. Last semester, it wasn't, and I think this caused students to "blow it off" rather than take it seriously.
The lab will be structured so that the assistant goes over different topics each week, and the students will be required to take quizzes over this material. Hopefully this will cause the students to learn more and to become stronger writers.
I will continue to present the writing assignments as I have been by first introducing the type of essay the students will be writing, then looking at readings of this particular essay type, and finally having the students write their own essay. I think that this has worked effectively in the past, so this is one practice I will continue.
The first day of class, the students were asked to write an essay about a particular topic. They were given no instructions as to form, content, length, etc. This was done to allow me to see what the student's writing was like at the start of the semester.
Because English 122 is a writing course, this initial paper was then compared to the Research paper which the students wrote at the end of the semester. In this way, it was possible to see where and if improvements were made.
I think that nearly all of the student's writing improved. They became familiar with how to use outside references in their papers and how to make an effective presentation of the material they gathered. While some struggled with the mechanics of writing (punctuation, grammar, etc.), I think that all improved in these basic areas as well. When they left the class, they had more confidence in their writing ability.
There are a couple things I have thought of to improve the class. First, in order for the student's to learn more about taking a stand on issues of importance, I am going to have them do some debating in class. That will help them learn about the argument/counterargument concept of the papers. Also, I am going to try to do a better presentation of the research paper so that the students understand it more and learn the steps used in writing a research paper. This is the most difficult paper that the students write, and I want to give them more help in this area.
I will basically continue to teach the classes the same way that I have. We will talk about the essay the students are going to write, read some samples of this kind of writing and analyze those essays, and then the students will begin work on their own essay. This has proved to be an effective way for students to learn about the kind of essay they are going to write.
I will also continue with the peer evaluation of the essays as I think it is a good idea for students to see how other students write and also for them to begin to learn how to evaluate others' writing. I will also continue to evaluate the essays and give the students as much helpful feedback as I can.
The data supports the high percentage of students, nearly half, whose Accuplacer scores improved. The 4-question survey allowed me to return to material students were still struggling with and let me know how I had failed to present the material. The literacy autobiography assisted me in knowing my students past school and learning experiences and how to increase their self-confidence and self-esteem. One of my students on the first day of class announced that she was a "slow-learner," this student with support and encouragement earned a solid "A."
With permission from Pat Huhn and Carol Rankin we are changing the REA 060 textbook to give students more practice in basic reading comprehension skills, vocabulary building and critical thinking. I will add a listening and speaking component, to the reading, writing emphasis of the course. I will re-work the critical thinking components and spread them out in sequence throughout the semester. Increase the number of writing assignments.
Literacy autobiography, reading, writing and speaking components, home and community project, oral presentations, and frequent course, instructor and student assessment.
The data supports the high percentage of students, nearly half, whose Accuplacer scores improved. The 4-question survey allowed me to return to material students were still struggling with and let me know how I had failed to present the material. The literacy autobiography assisted me in knowing my students past school and learning experiences and how to increase their self-confidence and self-esteem. Oral presentations showed the successful research skills, critical thinking and course enthusiasm.
With permission from Pat Huhn and Carol Rankin we are changing the REA 060 textbook to give students more practice in basic reading comprehension skills, vocabulary building and critical thinking. I will add a listening component, to the reading, writing, and speaking emphasis of the course. I will re-work the critical thinking components and spread them out in sequence throughout the semester. Increase the number of writing assignments.
Literacy autobiography, reading, writing and speaking components, home and community project, oral presentations, and frequent course, instructor and student assessment.