Writing skills are important for social and civic participation, educational achievement and employment (European Commission, 2012). However, a third to a half of Scottish students did not attain required writing standards at upper elementary and lower high school grades in 2014 (Scottish Government, 2015). Similarly, many students do not obtain the required skills in the USA (Graham et al., 2014). This study aimed to improve the writing skills of mainstream upper elementary and lower high school students. It took place in a largely rural Local Authority in Southern Scotland which was mid-range on measures of deprivation. The literature was reviewed on effective writing interventions for school-aged mainstream students. The interventions with the largest impacts around the target grades were: CIRC (Durukan, 2011); Collaborative Dialogic Learning (Alfassi, 2009); CSRI (Torrance et al., 2007); Jigsaw (Sahin, 2011); individual IT access in lessons (Snyder, 1993); individual IT access at home and school (Lowther et al., 2003); peer assistance with revision (Boscoli et al.,2004); process and product goals (Schunk et al., 1993); SRSD (Brunstein et al., 2011); summarisation (Chang et al., 2002); visualisation/imagery instruction (Jampole et al., 1994). An online survey of teachers’ current practices and beliefs about the teaching of writing was administered. The response rate was 23% (N=345) of the 1490 Local Authority-employed teachers in the region. Notable findings were: the respondents’ most frequently used practice was grammar instruction, an ineffective intervention (Graham et al., 2012; Graham et al., 2007). Many were using some evidence-based practices but not at optimum frequencies, and some were never using some of them. About 40% of respondents felt students had insufficient IT to support their writing and most would use IT more frequently if they had more up-to-date equipment, better internet access and extra training. Under half of elementary and high school respondents with English degrees felt Initial Teacher Education was adequate preparation to teach writing, while only 29% of high school respondents without English degrees felt adequately prepared to teach writing. Most viewed In Service Education more favourably but substantial numbers of respondents still felt inadequately prepared, particularly high school teachers without English degrees. All the high school respondents with English degrees and 91% of elementary respondents felt they were effective teachers of writing, but only 48% of high school respondents without English degrees felt they were effective at teaching writing. An evidence-based intervention was developed, the six-week Write Away programme, which included writing strategy instruction, self-regulation strategies and peer revision. It shared many features with CSRI (Torrance et al., 2007) and SRSD (Harris et al., 2009). Distinctive differences included that it incorporated Boscolo et al.'s (2004) model of peer revision rather than the think alouds used in CSRI, pupils did not create their own self-regulatory statements, pupils did not collaborate during drafting, pupils needed not spend long planning provided they revised their work, the finished essays would be displayed and peer revision continued following the teaching phase. This study was quasi-experimental and used both quantitative and qualitative methods. Participation was offered to large elementary schools which had two P6 (grade 5) pupil-only classes to allow for control and intervention classes. Two schools volunteered. Which pupils were in which condition depended on which teachers delivered the interventions. The control classes in both schools followed an on-going parallel intervention – the Big Writing programme (Wilson, 2012). Both schools were in towns and had similar pupil numbers (Eastfield=390, Westfield =361). The percentage entitled to Free School Meals in P4 to P7 at Eastfield was 11.8%, at Westfield it was 9.9%. The average age of the pupils was 10 years 7 months and numbers of male and female participants were broadly the same. Participation was also offered to all the region’s high schools. Only one responded with the requisite conditions for participation. This school (roll= 544) was in the largest town in the region. The percentage entitled to Free School Meals was 13.8%. The average age of the S2 (grade 8) students was 13 years 6 months and there was a preponderance of female participants. The online survey had shown that intervening with non-English specialists might be beneficial. This was compared with delivery by, or in combination with, English teachers. Social Studies was chosen because of its writing demands. A control and three different intervention conditions were used: English teacher only; Social Studies teacher only; English teacher and Social Studies teacher. Which students were in which condition depended on which teachers delivered the interventions. This was determined by the school, either by self-selection or randomly. Measures at both elementary and high school were the same. Teacher and student questionnaires were administered pre and post-test. Participant students were given written tasks pre and post-test. The length of the written tasks and plans were recorded. The written tasks were assessed by the researcher using a rubric developed by the researcher. There was a post-test focus group of intervention teachers at each level. Implementation fidelity was assessed through teacher logs and lesson observations by the researcher. Descriptive statistics were produced for the pupil/student questionnaires, task and plan word lengths and the written task scores for different elements and overall writing quality. Responses to open questions were categorized into themes and tabulated where possible. The teachers’ responses in the focus groups were collated into themes. Intervention and control writing scores pre and post-test and task and plan word length were analysed using Student’s t-tests. Student questionnaire post-test responses from the different conditions were compared with a theoretical distribution of equal values using the Chi-square test. Effect sizes were calculated for mean pupil/student questionnaire responses, task and plan mean word lengths and written task scores. High school student questionnaire responses at post-test were analysed using the Mann-Whitney test because the students were unlikely to be normally distributed. The Write Away programme led to large positive effect sizes for writing quality at P6 (ES: Eastfield= 2.89, N=25; Westfield = 2.70, N=19) and S2 (ES: Social Studies intervention = 1.37, N= 17; Social Studies and English intervention= 1.20, N=20; English intervention = 0.87, N=21). Effect sizes at P6 were double those of the most successful condition at S2. The Social Studies teacher and elementary intervention teachers felt the intervention improved writing quality and intended to do it again. However, the English specialists did not feel it made an impact and did not like it. The intervention successfully included peer revision of each other’s texts (Boscolo et al., 2004) at both elementary and high school levels in a programme of strategy instruction and self-regulation which resulted in large writing quality improvements. The study showed that high school Non-English specialists could deliver interventions with large effects on writing quality. The Social Studies teacher delivered the intervention with the greatest fidelity, improved writing quality the most and reported an increase in understanding of the subject, especially for more able students. The survey showed a need for In Service and this intervention could be used at upper elementary level and with high school non-English specialists in the appropriate genres. This applies to the UK and USA. Implications for practice, policy and future research are further discussed. This was the first study to investigate writing strategy instruction and self-regulation as part of an evidence-based intervention in Scotland.

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Pre-writing strategies are conscious thoughts, actions, or behaviors used by writers when they plan before writing. Research in second language writing suggests that specific writing strategies related to writing purposes, audience, brainstorming, and organizing ideas are teachable and have a potential to improve the quantity and quality of writing produced by English as second language (ESL) learners. This study investigated the effects of computer-based pre-writing strategy training guided by procedural facilitation (Bereiter & Scardamalia, 1987) on intermediate ESL students' writing strategy use, writing quantity, and writing quality. A sequential mixed methods design was utilized with an initial quasi-experimental phase followed by semi-structured interviews. Forty-one participants from four intact intermediate-writing classes in an intensive English program participated in the quasi-experimental phase of the study. The classes were randomly assigned into two control and two experimental groups. The instructional modules for the control groups included writing instruction related to paragraph writing, essay writing, and opinion essays whereas the training modules for the experimental groups consisted of pre-writing strategies related to writing purposes, audience, and idea generation and organization. In addition, the experimental groups were trained to generate and organize ideas using Inspiration 6, an idea graphic organizer software program. The participants' writing performances and uses of pre-writing strategies prior to and after the training were analyzed. In addition, six semi-structured interviews conducted shortly after the post-test helped to illuminate the quantitative results. Results demonstrate a significant training impact on ESL students' pre-writing strategy use but fail to detect significant effects on the students' writing quantity and writing quality; however, a trend of improvement regarding the writing quality variables was detected among the strategy-trained students. Furthermore, the qualitative analysis revealed some similarities and differences of less experienced and experienced writers' writing processes and strategies. Overall, the findings suggest the complex interplay among the factors influencing student writing development including writing strategy use, writing processes, writing tasks, task conditions, their past writing experience, and their language proficiency.

This thesis focuses on the ways in which theoretical models based in rhetorical studies can be used to enhance both the understanding and the practice of communication. In particular, my project shows that rhetoric and communication theory can provide a foundation for improving communication practice. <p>Every communicative act takes place within a context, as Lloyd F. Bitzer established. This same understanding of the centrality of situation to communicative effectiveness permeates the work of several other theorists whose work is discussed in this thesis, among them Wayne C. Booth, Kenneth Burke, George L. Dillon, Barnett Baskerville, and Donald Schon. <p>Using Bitzers conception of the rhetorical situation as the theoretical focus, two main concerns are addressed in the thesis: the relationship between rhetoric and the practice of technical communication, and the integration of theory and practice as the foundation of rhetorical understanding. The first three chapters present a series of theoretical models, and the practical use of this theory is tested by an exercise in writing a public speaking handbook for engineering undergraduates (presented as Chapter Four of the thesis). The audience for this handbook is specific and the purpose is narrow to give advice on preparing, practising, and presenting design presentations to professors and clients. This experiment is then followed by a reflection on the writing process and some conclusions about the relationship between rhetorical theory and communicative practice.<p> The key result of this research and case study is a deepened understanding of how rhetoric operates or how it should be studied. As a rhetorician, I found it discouraging even at times humiliating to discover how much difficulty I had in adapting my discourse to a specific audience. This research makes clear that an understanding of theory without a solid grounding in practice is insufficient for rhetorical mastery. While my original goal was to demonstrate the usefulness of theory to improving practice, this thesis shows as well the extent to which rhetorical theory also depends on an understanding of the demands and constraints of actual practice.

This thesis focuses on the ways in which theoretical models based in rhetorical studies can be used to enhance both the understanding and the practice of communication. In particular, my project shows that rhetoric and communication theory can provide a foundation for improving communication practice. <p>Every communicative act takes place within a context, as Lloyd F. Bitzer established. This same understanding of the centrality of situation to communicative effectiveness permeates the work of several other theorists whose work is discussed in this thesis, among them Wayne C. Booth, Kenneth Burke, George L. Dillon, Barnett Baskerville, and Donald Schon. <p>Using Bitzers conception of the rhetorical situation as the theoretical focus, two main concerns are addressed in the thesis: the relationship between rhetoric and the practice of technical communication, and the integration of theory and practice as the foundation of rhetorical understanding. The first three chapters present a series of theoretical models, and the practical use of this theory is tested by an exercise in writing a public speaking handbook for engineering undergraduates (presented as Chapter Four of the thesis). The audience for this handbook is specific and the purpose is narrow to give advice on preparing, practising, and presenting design presentations to professors and clients. This experiment is then followed by a reflection on the writing process and some conclusions about the relationship between rhetorical theory and communicative practice.<p> The key result of this research and case study is a deepened understanding of how rhetoric operates or how it should be studied. As a rhetorician, I found it discouraging even at times humiliating to discover how much difficulty I had in adapting my discourse to a specific audience. This research makes clear that an understanding of theory without a solid grounding in practice is insufficient for rhetorical mastery. While my original goal was to demonstrate the usefulness of theory to improving practice, this thesis shows as well the extent to which rhetorical theory also depends on an understanding of the demands and constraints of actual practice.

Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2018-08-15T13:35:24Z No. of bitstreams: 1 andreadematoscardoso.pdf: 4793170 bytes, checksum: 2872ea43ad9382ca4411d4557ab0f167 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2018-08-15T14:17:30Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 andreadematoscardoso.pdf: 4793170 bytes, checksum: 2872ea43ad9382ca4411d4557ab0f167 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-15T14:17:30Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 andreadematoscardoso.pdf: 4793170 bytes, checksum: 2872ea43ad9382ca4411d4557ab0f167 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-04-13 / É comum ouvir hoje, ao se abordarem questões de leitura e produção textual na sala de aula de Ensino Fundamental, que o aluno deve ter contato com um leque variado de textos, para que possa ampliar seus conhecimentos sobre a língua, utilizando-a de forma a atingir os objetivos desejados. Neste sentido, é indispensável que se explorem os mais diversos gêneros textuais, independentemente de que tipologia textual nele predomine. Contudo, pelo menos na minha prática, percebo uma tendência em se privilegiar, sobretudo com o trabalho de escrita, quando focamos texto de opinião, diálogo argumentativo, resenha crítica, dentre outros que têm o tipo textual predominantemente dissertativo-argumentativo. Outro fato que sempre me chamou atenção enquanto professora do Ensino Fundamental II, é que as narrativas que envolvem a perspectiva investigativa, tais como as narrativas policiais, agradam aos alunos bastante. Em geral, eles vivenciam essas narrativas em filmes e, em sua grande maioria, em séries, como Dexter e 24 horas, por exemplo. Nesse sentido, concebemos a seguinte hipótese investigativa: tendo em vista que uma das principais características das narrativas policiais é a sustentação do raciocínio lógico o qual implica, justamente, a ordenação do pensamento sequenciado (em variações conforme o autor), em que sentido um trabalho sistematizado de leitura e escrita dentro desse gênero narrativo implicaria a ampliação de repertório de alunos, ou seja, permitiria a eles se apropriarem de aspectos dessa leitura e, sobretudo, escrita? Partindo da prática de leitura em suspense1, a pesquisa desse projeto centrou-se, principalmente, em tentar conceber uma estratégia de escrita que permitisse não somente aos alunos experimentarem o processo de escrita com menos rejeição (como ocorre comumente) como também, ampliarem seu repertório no que diz respeito ao gênero estudado, sobretudo porque essa a questão do raciocínio lógico perpassa vários outros gêneros textuais. Trabalhamos com uma turma de 9o ano do Ensino Fundamental de uma escola pública no município de Volta Redonda, no Estado do Rio de Janeiro, que permita aos alunos ampliarem seu repertório no que concerne à leitura de narrativa policial. Elegemos como autor literário para a pesquisa a escritora Agatha Christie, particularmente com um conto em que o investigador é o clássico detetive Hercule Poirot. Apoiamo-nos, teoricamente, nas teorias do letramento (SOARES), particularmente do letramento literário (AGUIAR e COSSON), na teoria do efeito estético (ISER), de leitura compartilhada (COLOMER), mediação (PETIT) e nas concepções de narrativas policiais de Todorov. Temos como metodologia a pesquisa-ação, visto não somente o caráter interventivo da pesquisa como também a participação efetiva do professor pesquisador em sala de aula. / It’s ordinary to listen today, when debating issues of reading and text production in the classroom of Elementary School, that student should contact with a wide range of texts, for that you can expand knowledge of the language, using in it in order to achieve the desired goals. In this way, It’s essential that explore the most diverse text genres, regardless of that textual typology it predominates. However, at least in my practice, I see a tendency to favour, especially with the work of writing when we focus opinion text, argumentative dialogue, critical review, among others who have predominantly argumentative text-type. Another fact that always caught my attention, while elementary school teacher, is that the narratives, that involve the investigative perspective, such as the police narratives, like them enough. In general, they experience these narratives in film, and, in your vast majority, in TV series like Dexter and 24 Horas. In this way, we have formulated the following investigative hypothesis: considering that one of the main features of narratives cops is the logical-rational support, which implies the ordering of thought sequenced (in variations as the author), in that way a systematic work of reading and writing in this narrative genre, would change the expansion of repertoire of students, in other words, would allow them to take ownership of aspects of that reading and writing? Starting from the reading practice in suspense1 , the research of this project focused in trying to devise a strategy of writing that allowed not only to students try the writing process with less rejection as also, extend your repertoire with regard to genre studied especially because the point of logical reasoning pervades several other genres. We work with a class of ninth grade of Elementary School of public school in the municipality of Volta Redonda in the state of Rio de Janeiro, that allow students to extend your repertoire with regard to police narrative reading. We elect as literary author for research the writer Agatha Christie, particularly with the tales in which the investigator is the classic detective Hercule Poirot. We support, theoretically, in the theories of Literacy (SOARES), particularly the Literary Literacy (COSSON), in the theory of Aesthetic Effect (ISER), shared reading (COLOMER), mediation (PETIT), and on the conceptions of narratives of Todorov. We have how action research methodology seen not only the character of intervention research as well as the effective participation of the teacher in the classroom.

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No description available.