Content area teachers are now being tasked with incorporating reading and writing instruction, but what works? In this essential book from Routledge and AMLE, author Lori G. Wilfong describes ten best practices for content area literacy and how to implement them in the middle-level classroom. She also points out practices that should be avoided,…

In this article, the authors begin this inquiry by describing their research with a class of middle school writers who played "Quandary," a free online educational game designed to teach argumentation, as part of a unit on writing arguments for environmental action. Regarding the subject area of English language arts (ELA), research has…

The author explores the tension between the social and cognitive definition of "argument" in the Common Core's theoretical rationale and the structural approach to argument reflected in the exemplars of student writing, evaluating the implications of these inconsistencies for the high school English classroom.

The population of emerging bilinguals (EBs) is rapidly growing across the United States leaving many teachers wondering how best to teach these students to read and write effectively in English. Concurrently, and as a result of the Common Core State Standards, elementary school students are required to produce more sophisticated writing than ever…

In this essay, I reflect on over 15 years of experience in the field of special education to explore diverse ways of engaging students in opinion and argument writing. I outline, according to the Common Core standards, the progression of writing in the early years with an emphasis on opinion writing through the later elementary, middle, and high…

A vibrant theory of change capable of fueling critical practice may be an indispensable feature of teaching argument in secondary education. According to the PIE model (Perception, Interpretation, Expression), layers of experience build a cognitive scaffold to support the development of critical skills. In addition, incorporating works of art and…

One World Education (OWEd) is a college-ready writing instruction program with the goal to ultimately have students participate in their own discourse communities. This qualitative analysis of One World Education reports on student and teacher impressions of the program by analyzing the results of surveys, informal interviews, and focus groups the…

Writing to persuade is an important writing purpose that students and learners need to develop and use both in their academic lives and in the workplace. The Common Core State Standards set specific expectations for students' opinion writing starting from Kindergarten. This article explains the use of response to reading as a way to introduce…

The number of English language learners (ELLs) mainstreamed into regular classrooms continues to increase. Curricular writing standards required by the Common Core State Standards require students to write essays analytically in response to text(s). Many English Language Arts (ELA) teachers may worry about effectively delivering essay writing…

Communication has long been emphasized in standards-based instruction (NCTM 1991; 2000), yet little distinction has been made between oral and written forms. Nonetheless, both the mathematics and the English language arts Common Core State Standards (CCSS) documents continue to hint at the importance of writing mathematically (CCSSI 2010). The…

Many students with disabilities have written language production deficits. As a result, these students are failing to meet the demands of government-initiated standards, higher education, and employment. In this review, quantitative experimental intervention studies for improving persuasive, narrative, and expository compositions for adolescents,…

Although the Common Core and C3 Framework highlight literacy and inquiry as central goals for social studies, they do not offer guidelines, assessments, or curriculum resources. This practical guide presents six research-tested historical investigations along with all corresponding teaching materials and tools that have improved the historical…

Writing is an essential skill for participating in modern American society. Although it is crucial to careers and civic engagement, student writing falls far short of national expectations (College Board, 2004; NCES, 2012; Persky, Daane, & Jin, 2003). The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) seek to increase the rigor of writing instruction…

According to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), to be college and career ready students must be able to construct logical arguments using facts and reason. A feminist perspective provides an alternative point of view on the value of argumentation. The purpose of this study was to question the theories that frame the current CCSS 9-12 English…

This study investigated the impact of a self-regulation writing intervention program on the writing self-efficacy and persuasive writing achievement of ninth and tenth grade students. In addition, this study explored whether gender differences in writing may be addressed by the type of writing program that is implemented. Limited empirical studies…