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Using Technology to Teach the Writing Strand of ELA in the 21st Century
The intention of this website is to provide a Progress Report on 21st century teaching of the ELA Writing strand of the curriculum.
All materials are provided for use in a PD session or as an independent study of the issue.
I believe that 21st century writing has been a positive change because it is more collaborative, interactive, and dynamic.
In the 21st century, everyone is a writer!
The problem is that schools are still playing catch-up.
I hope this report helps teachers of writing to continue to evolve in their 21st century practice.
Why should we change what we're doing?
It could be argued that people are writing more than ever before as Web 2.0 has enabled digitized, expanded, socialized and networked written communication. Being able to communicate clearly in writing continues to be a critical skill. However, the 20th century method of teaching the writing process, in a linear fashion and confined to the use of pencil and paper, is not serving our students well in the 21st century.
This is a common representation of the writing process found in classrooms. It has not changed to better represent the writing process in the 21st century.
Does it look familiar?
Photo credit: Carson Dellarosa Publishing Group
So...what is different?
Today, most written texts are created digitally, with planning, drafting, revising and editing all taking place simultaneously. Publishing could be considered a separate step as there is usually a final read-through, spelling and grammar check and formatting corrections. However, even published pieces are often open to feedback and further revision as knowledge is commonly co-created in the 21st century.
21st century representations might look more like this...
Create Then...Share and Collaborate Co-revise and re-create
Ruth Ayres https://www.choiceliteracy.com/articles-detail-view-print.php?id=1444 Photo Credit: FAR http://www.far-roundtable.org/June2012newsltr Photo Credit: Ruth Ayres
Or this....... http://www.glogster.com/cgreen2133/myglogster Or this........ radar.brookes.ac.uk
Yancy, Writing in the 21st Century
In a report from The NCTE entitled Writing in the 21st Century, Kathleen Yancy states, “…21st century writing marks the beginning of a new era in literacy, a period we might call the Age of Composition, a period where composers become composers not through direct and formal instruction alone (if at all), but rather through what we might call an extracurricular social co-apprenticeship.”
For an excellent and concise overview of the evolution of writing and a call to 21st century practice for teachers, see full National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) report here: http://www.ncte.org/library/NCTEFiles/Press/Yancey_final.pdf
**This is a 9 page PDF document and can be accessed and read online or saved if desired. It will be referred to again in the slideshow on the "Change Over Time" page. Alternatively (and a less desirable option), a paper copy could be provided as a handout.
Yancy, Writing in the 21st Century
"In much of this new composing, we are writing to share, yes; to encourage dialogue, perhaps; but mostly, I think, to participate."