Writing Across Disciplines

Or perhaps Reading and WritingWould be more appropriateWriting Across Disciplines

Because really, they go hand in hand, dont they?1Disciplinary Literacythe shared way of reading, writing, thinking and reasoning within academic fields

Each discipline has unique way of asking questions and solving problems.

Each discipline has unique expectations for the types of claims that are made and the way those claims are supportedComparing the literacy demands of other disciplines to those of ELA more evident; 2. ELA teachers have a role to play in supporting students literacy development across disciplines; and 3. attention to scientific and historical reading and writing in ELA is demanded by the CCSS, so it behooves ELA teachers to develop a strong understanding of the reading and writing practices of science and history and to draw students attention to the differences and similarities among disciplinary literacy practices as a way of supporting students navigations. These differences play out in the ways that texts are written and in the demands those texts place on the readers. For these reasons we can say that each discipline has its own discourse community, a shared way of using language and constructing knowledge.

Agree/disagree?2Lets take science, for instanceExperimental scientists value observable evidence as the way to produce knowledge. Their primary method of knowing is through experimental inquiryDevelopment of scientific questionsUse of scientific evidenceConnection of explanations to scientific knowledge, and the ability to justify those explanations.Use of precise technical language to most efficiently communicate with one anotherThey continually evaluate the quality so such evidence in their own work and the work of others (Cavagnetto, 2011).3What does this mean for a high school Biology student?Should be able to askorally and in writinga researchable questionReview and synthesize the findings of relevant studies already conducted in relation to that questionForm a hypothesis to test in an investigationKeep appropriate data records and/or take systematic notes on observations of phenomenaInterpret datadraw conclusionsCommunicate claims and conclusions--orally and in writing--again

Scientific method4What about History?Students should be able to . . .Read across multiple texts, not only to gain information about the nature of historical research that has already been conducted about an event or a person, but also to interpret those artifactsthose data and draw conclusions about them.Students reading and writing history need to develop skill in synthesizing the perspectives and voices of many different observers, none of whom they can interview.How to use one set of accounts to corroborate or dispute another set (Wineburg, 1991).In history, experts seek to gain a specialized understanding of the particular circumstances surrounding an event or person that no longer exists. (Monte-Sano, 2010, p. 541). Historians consider authors and their biases, collect information to uncover the context surrounding the creation of the artifact, and compare multiple artifacts to one another in order to corroborate meaning (wineburg, 1991.) History, then is something to be interpreted rather than observed. Historians engage in data analysis and argumentation, but the nature of the data, claims, and evidence are typically different, as are the practices around interacting with, examining and communicating data.5In additionThey need to have regular access to and scaffolding for opportunities to read across texts.

They need to be able to examine accounts with historical empathy (Bain, 2006) putting themselves in the place of the people who produced the account.

They need to be able to produce their own data-based accounts that argue for a particular interpretation.Ask for examples6And ELA?Students . . .Need to learn to make meaning from a range of literary works at both a literal and an inferential levelNeed to analyze the authors crafthow does the author use figurative language? rhythm, or form? How do these choices affect the reader?How do theses choices contribute to the overall meaning of the text?Need to learn to identify themes based on textual evidenceNeed to attend to the word choice used in a particular poem or short storyWait, theres more

7They also need . . .To be able to synthesize pieces of literature of similar time periods, themes, and authorsTo learn the practice and value of close readingTo learn to read critically and communicate their critiques in ways that align with the conventions of the discipline (Lee, 2007).

Which of these would be common across science? History? CTE?8Some scholars hypothesize that disciplinary differences may be contributing to the literacy challenges that adolescents seem to have in secondary school, particularly because attention to these differences is rarely included as a part of pre-service teachers course work in schools of education or content courses they take within their disciplineIsabella12th graderHigh-achievingHard workingIdentifies as LatinaParents are both highly-educated professionals

Take Isabella or Isabellas take onEnglishthis is kind of silly, but I think about it as the invisible ink, because the author is always trying to say something that hes not just blatantly going to write across the page . . .So, Im looking for symbols, themes, mood, what the author is trying to say basically.

11Social StudiesWith those sort of documents, , theyd probably be interested to look at the handwriting and spelling to see what era it comes from and what level of education the person had, and the more educated back then the prettier your handwriting. So, if the handwriting was messy or had a lot of mistakes, they probably werent that educated. You can also just talk about, if its more of a candid letter, or politician to politician trying to cajole one another, you can probably see the effects of whatever is going on in that era on the personal lives of people involved. You could also probably get some societal norms from it , too, from the way its addressed or the syntax theyre using when they address one another, to see what was appropriate at that time.Inference, contextualization, Academic language: societal normsWow, talk about invisible ink!12And what about Science?I guess the difference is that when I tackle that I tackle it with, its still an analytical mindset, but . . . I think its more like trying to relate it to other things that all understand

it would be interesting to talk about the difference between the borosilicate glass and the soda lime glass, like, the difference. It would also be interesting to talk about why borosilicate glass doesnt expand as much, whereas soda lime, what properties its components give it, and why it still expands.For instance: they changed the glass that is used to make Pyrex, and it turned out that it actually made it more difficult to make crack cocaine because the regular glass cups and bowls and stuff that you would buy in Wal-Mart . . . The expansion causes so much stress that they cant handle it, and so now if you want to cook it, you have to steal things from labs. So, thats what I got from that.

13Our students must be able to navigate across literacy contexts and domains

Teach young people how to capitalize on the similarities and navigate across the differences of the many subject areas they traverse in a given school day

Will they be prepared?Will they have the tools?Teachers must have a foundational understanding of the literacy demands present in a range of disciplines. It is not the job of ELA teachers to carry the burden for teaching reading and writing in every subject area of their schools. Rather, it is the job of every teacher to make transparent for students the disciplinary literacy practices of their subject area and to be able to explain to students some of the key differences across the disciplines.15http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jt_2jI010WU&list=EC913348FFD75155C6&feature=player_detailpageWriting Samples and RubricsAppendix CRead Writing SamplesCreate your own rubric using the annotation at the end of each piece of writing.

Each of the samples exhibits at least the level of quality required to meet the Writing standards for that grade.The range of accomplishment within each grade reflects differences in individual development as well as in the conditions under which the student writers were expected to work.