The National Council of Teachers of English provides a useful four-page précis, An Administrator’s Guide to Writing Instruction, which can be of use not only to English supervisors but teachers and learners as well. The policy brief focuses on three areas of writing management: questions for hiring writing instructors, guide for observation of writing classes, and guidelines for institutional support of writing instruction.
The paper states that key areas for probing prospective writing teachers include knowledge of the writing process, technology, and diverse instructional strategies; and ability to connect reading and writing, instruction and assessment, and writing and learning.
In terms of observing teachers in action, the study asks 18 questions focused on type, frequency, and duration of student writing activities; use of computers for research and writing; display and evaluation of gold standards in writing; and development of learning and communication skills through writing instruction.
As for administering the writing classroom, the report notes that vitals points to consider are class size, technology, writing across the curriculum, effectiveness of evaluation, opportunities for professional development, and diversity of learners.
Books by Philip Vassallo
No comments:
Post a Comment