This chapter tells a story of course reform, describing in a fresh and candid way the steps taken toward change and the results achieved. The authors emphasize that instructors need considerable support in order to teach differently, as well as underscore the need to consider scalability of reform even at the pilot stage.

As more states adopt the Common Core State Standards, teachers face new challenges. Teachers must unpack these standards and develop explicit learning targets to make these rigorous standards accessible to their students. This task can be especially challenging for special educators who must balance standards-based education with individualized…

Since the reauthorization of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 2004, standards-based individualized education plans (IEPs) have been an expectation for serving students with disabilities in the K-12 public school setting. Nearly a decade after the mandates calling for standards-based IEPs, special educators still struggle…

Writing needs to be taught, not assigned, but teaching writing well within a 43-minute period is a daunting task. This article describes how three 8th-grade teachers implemented a unit of study approach to teaching memoir writing in their language arts classes. Teacher and student decision making are highlighted in this inquiry process. ["Teaching…

When expectations for scholarly productivity increase at comprehensive universities, faculty writing groups can provide the tools, motivation, and support necessary to achieve both administrative and faculty goals. Narratives from members of a faculty writing group experiencing a shift in institutional expectations for scholarship reveal tangible…

This article describes the Community Grant Writing Project (CGWP), a flexible service-learning framework designed for use in writing-intensive courses. The CGWP incorporates best-practice recommendations from the service-learning literature and addresses recent challenges identified for successful service-learning partnerships. In the CGWP,…

Three "JRME" authors describe the process of publishing their research in "JRME". All 3 authors published parts of their dissertation in "JRME" and are sharing their stories to help (new) researchers in mathematics education better understand the process and to offer (experienced) researchers in mathematics education a tool that can be used to…

This article describes lessons learned about grouping by teachers and teacher educators who worked collaboratively to design and deliver a summer writing institute for a heterogeneous population of students about to begin ninth grade at an urban high school. Institute staff used co-teaching (Cook & Friend, 1995) extensively to provide support for…

How do second-language learners become successful readers and writers? This article examines the importance of social networks to English language learners' reading and writing development. It describes different family, peer, and virtual social networks that ELLs can utilize to engage in online and offline reading and writing (especially related…

As part of its Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) reaffirmation process, Caldwell Community College (CCC) and Technical Institute's (TI) Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), entitled "Enhancing Writing--Write On!" demonstrates the need to improve student writing through multifaceted interventions. The goals of CCC's and TI's…

This article describes how the author, in an effort to build some common language about "good writing" and to teach effective revision strategies, involved her students in an action research project using the Worse/Better Writing Strategy developed by Andrews-Beck. In her dissertation, Andrews-Beck described a worse/better writing strategy that…

Writing as a tool for thinking, learning, and communicating is crucial to academic and career success as well as to active citizenship in a democracy. This annual report of the National Writing Project features teachers of math, chemistry, art, history, and business who develop their students as writers. These educators employ writing to engage…

Writing in its many forms is the signature means of communication in the 21st century. This simple truth heightens the urgency to help all of our nation's students become strong writers and effective communicators. The National Writing Project (NWP) pursues this goal by focusing the knowledge, expertise, and leadership of the nation's educators on…

Describes a research project which studied how spoken and written language interweave and overlap and the teacher's power to promote literacy through talk. Describes the entire process, including the original interest in the subject, the formulation of the research question, the collection of data, and writing and teaching strategies that resulted…

This article describes the steps of moving from state curriculum standards for writing to selecting and teaching a writing strategy to designing curriculum-based assessments in writing. The relationship between assessment and instruction is strengthened as educators monitor student progress in the state curriculum standards, make sound…