Description of the Intervention

 

      The intervention itself relies on the Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) model

 pioneered by Steve Graham and Karen Harris (1995). For each writing task, students 

engaged in the six stages that are the foundation of SRSD. In Stage One, students build

 background knowledge. In Stage Two, the teacher explicitly instructs students in 

strategies. In Stage Three, the teacher models the strategies for students. In Stage Four, 

students memorize the strategies. During Stage Five, students and teacher work 

collaboratively as students implement the strategies, and in Stage Six students apply the 

strategy independently. It is important here to understand that students, teachers, and 

classes cycle through these stages for each new instructional concept and writing task.

     During Stage One, it is important for the teacher to assess academic and strategic 

knowledge and engages students in learning activities that build background knowledge in

the designated subject. During the initial stage one of this study’s intervention, I assessed

students’ writing skills by asking them to write an essay. Students were given a list of 

prompts such as the following from the College Board (2012) and asked to choose one

 topic about which to write.

P

         Prompt 1           

            Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment 

       below.

       The pressures to conform in a modern, free society are not as drastic as they were in the past, when failure to conform meant imprisonment or worse. Such influences are, however, more dangerous because they are hard to detect. These are the pressures to live like our neighbors, to think like our community, to reshape ourselves in the image of someone else. The appeal of belonging to a group is attractive, but doesn't such conformity destroy our individuality?

       Assignment

            Is it always harmful for an individual to think and live as other people do? Plan and 

      write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position 

      with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

       

       Prompt 2

            Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment 

       below.

      Margaret Mead said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." However, it is hard to believe that just a few people can make a significant difference. Given the many great challenges that the world faces, it seems impossible to change anything for the better unless one can attracta lot of people and spend a lot of money.

        

        Assignment

      Can a small group of concerned individuals have a significant impact on the world? 

Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support 

your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, 

or observations.

       Prompt 3

     Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment 

below.

     We all know idealists—people who have goals that are noble but often impractical. We also know realists—people who limit their goals to achievements that they are likely to accomplish, and who only make plans that are practical and manageable. While it is true that practical people often accomplish their individual goals, humanity as a whole has more to gain from the idealistic dreamers.

      

        Assignment

        Do idealists contribute more to the world than realists do? Plan and write an essay in 

which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning 

and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

 

         Prompt 4

     Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment 

below.

     Experts seem to agree that people benefit from the increased number of choices available to them in modern society. For instance, if consumers can decide from among a hundred breakfast cereals or dozens of types of cell phones, they ought to be able to find the product that is best for them. But with so many choices available, people can never be sure they chose the right thing. They agonize over every choice.

        Assignment

     Do people benefit more from having many choices or few choices? Plan and write an 

essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with 

reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations

(College Board, 2012). 

      During Stage One of the SRSD model, I also assessed metacognitive knowledge with

the Metacognitive Awareness Inventory (Schraw & Dennison, 1994, Appendix D) This 

assessment allowed me to establish a baseline for students as well as to introduce 

foundational concepts to the class. After initial assessments, students began to build their 

background knowledge in the elements of good writing and reading. We did this by 

reading two chapters in their textbook, Getting Started and The Central Idea, discussing

model essays as a whole class, and writing paragraphs that develop central ideas. We also

began freewriting about topics that were later used to develop organized essays. The first 

set of freewriting prompts are listed below.

 

      Freewriting Prompts for Writing Task #1:

 

1. Think of someone special in your life and freewrite about this person. Do not worry about form, grammar, or organization.

2. Freewrite about someone you know who practices a particular virtue, (like Cirilli’s grandfather).

3. Freewrite about an important activity that you know a lot about. Focus your writing on advice you might give a classmate or a friend related to this topic.

4. Freewrite about a personal experience in which your freedom was limited and/or your well being was threatened because of the power someone had over you.

5. Recall a battle with serious illness from which you or someone you know well suffered. What caused it? What were its symptoms? What kind of suffering did it cause? Was the illness ever overcome? How?

     

        During Stage Two of the SRSD model, the teacher explicitly instructs students in the

 strategy they will be using. At this point, it is the teacher’s job is to help students 

understand the strategy as well as to learn how and when to use it. Emphasis is placed

upon the importance of internal dialogue or self-talk and motivation. In this specific 

study, because students are college freshmen and able to delve more deeply into the 

theoretical underpinnings of SRSD, we read an article on metacognition, wrote about past

academic experiences with reading and writing, discussed strategies that good readers 

and writers use, and created individualized strategies lists in our writers’ logs for students

 to monitor during reading and writing. At this point, the first writing task was introduced

 to students along with the 6 + 1 Traits writing rubric and a graphic organizer. We 

discussed the criteria on the rubric, and as we moved into Stage Three of SRSD model,

broke down a model essay into its basic elements and fit them onto a graphic organizer.

     During Stage Three of the SRSD model,  the teacher demonstrates through modeling

the thought processes used by skilled learners, and the steps in the particular strategy. I 

modeled the thought processes involved in planning an essay from one of my freewriting

journal entries and emphasized the recursive nature of the planning process. I also

introduced the mnemonic PLAN (pay attention to the prompt, list main ideas, add 

supporting details, number your ideas) to help students remember the steps of the 

strategy. Although the scope of this study was limited to the prewriting and planning 

process, I also utilized the mnemonic WRITE (work from your plan to develop your thesis 

statement, remember your goals, include transitions, try to use different kinds of 

sentences and exciting words) as students revised their compositions (De La Paz &

 Graham, 2002).

     During Stage Four of the SRSD model, students are asked to memorize the steps and

actions of the strategies they are learning and they become fluent so that they can

eventually be independent in their use of the strategy. In this study, because students were

college age, the memorization process included work in small groups to practice utilizing

the rubric and graphic organizer as well to discuss strategies as they are related to

metacognitive awareness. Students were given prompts listed above and practiced using

the PLAN mnemonic to fill in graphic organizers with their groups.

     Stage Five of the SRSD model supports students in their use of strategies. The teacher

works with students to help scaffold learning. He/she helps students move toward goal

attainment, offers feedback and positive reinforcement, and fades support, as individual

students need for it diminishes and they reach Stage Six of the SRSD model, which is

independent practice (Iris Center, 2012). In this study, students began freewriting and

planning their writing during class. A visual of the PLAN and WRITE mnemonics as well as

the graphic organizer was visible at all times. I circulated and worked with students

individually as they planned and drafted their compositions.

     During Stage Six Students practice the strategies they learned independently. For this

study, students revised their final drafts in class and then finished the revision process on

their own.

     For the second writing task, the six stages of the SRSD model started again as we

moved back to building background knowledge for the writing genre of illustration and

began to work with chapter eight, “Illustration”, in A Reader for College Writers

(Buscemi,2008). Illustration is a genre of writing that relies heavily on description and

supporting details to convey ideas. As we established background knowledge in

illustration, students again engaged in freewriting with the following topics.

 

Freewriting Prompts for Writing Task 2:

 

1. Freewrite about an animal or species of animal you know well. Write what you know about this creature. Think about behavior, lifestyle, or personality. Try to draw some general conclusions about the animal.

2. Freewrite about three laws or rules enforced by the university, community, or state that offend common sense. Discuss how they offend common sense and try to think of ways that these regulations should be changed to meet the needs for which they were intended.

3. Freewrite about rules enforced by the university, community, or state that make               

   sense and that meet the needs for which they were intended. Explain why they  

       should not be changed.

 

     Classroom discussion regarding the elements of illustration as well as model essays

scaffolded student learning. Stage Two of the SRSD model, explicit strategy instruction,

reiterated ideas of metacognition and strategies implemented by expert writers.  At this

point, we also revisited individual students’ strategies lists, added new ideas to these, and

revised the lists based on personal reflection on the recent use of planning and freewriting

strategies. Students reflected in a writer’s log on the success and difficulties of the first

writing task and revised their approach for the second writing task. Stage Three of this

second cycle of Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) comes back to teacher

modeling. At this time, the class read model illustration essays and used the writing rubric

to discuss the quality of the writing as well as the visible elements of good writing. 

Modeling also included another instructor demonstration of the thought processes during 

planning.

     During Stage Four (SRSD model) of our focus on illustration, the memorization phase, 

students used model essays again to work backwards through the author’s process. With 

the PLAN mnemonic and a graphic organizer at hand, they again worked in groups to 

deconstruct essays and then shared their findings with the class.

     During Stage Five of the SRSD model, when the teacher scaffolds students in their 

practice using the strategies, students began planning an essay based on one of their 

illustration freewrites. The writing rubric, PLAN mnemonic and graphic organizers were 

available and visible, and I circulated to assist as needed.

     Again, Stage Six of SRSD included independent practice and students finished revising 

their essays and graphic organizers on their own.

     The third and final instructional unit was based on compare and contrast writing and 

again moved through the six stages of Self-Regulated Strategy Development instruction in 

much the same way as it did for the concept of illustration. The freewriting topics are 

listed below. 

 

Freewriting Prompts for Writing Task #3:

 

1. Freewrite about someone who seems to face all the challenges life has to offer. How does this person react to such challenges. Also write about someone who you might call a “giver-up.”

2. Freewrite about the ways that you are like the people in your family who have come before you? What is similar about your personalities, interests, lifestyles, or your opinions about music, politics, other people, or anything else you can think.

3. Freewrite about a sport, activity, or practice that is pursued by members of your generation, and that you believe to be dangerous. In the same entry, write about ways you would recommend to make it safer. If the sport, activity, or practice cannot be made safer, write about the reasons that could be used to discourage or prevent people from pursuing it.