Get It in Writing

Well, the results are in for the AW3 final timed-writing test for the students in the class I taught. Five of the twelve received a passing (exit) grade. That is a whooping 42%. That is close to the 50% pass rate that seems to be the best we are able to achieve with AW3 students. We have got to do better than that.

P.S. A sixth student passed the class when a request to review the student's portfolio for an exit was approved. This brought the passing percentage for this class to 50%.

Posted by Ron Corio at 9:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Academic Writing 3 (AW3) is the final writing course in the English Language Program (ELP). Students who pass this course move on to Focused Inquiry (FI), a two-semester writing course for first-year VCU students. FI has replaced English 101, freshman composition. It is the result of an effort to improve the writing of VCU students.

AW3 is the latest iteration of what was previously known as advanced writing in the ELP. This version moved upper level writing classes from seven-week sessions to semester-long, fifteen week, sessions. Also, a grammar component, Grammar Workshop was added so that students enrolled in AW3 also take a companion grammar course.

I have taught AW3 for the last three semesters and the percentage of students who pass the class is at best 50%. This appears to be true for all sections of the class. Something has to be done to improve the writing of students in this class so that more of them pass and move on to FI.

The curriculum ordains the text, Sourcework, an academic writing text that leads students through the steps of writing a guided research paper. It offers four topics for the research papers and provides readings for each. The topics are: heroes, bioethics, nonviolent social change, and globalization. We used nonviolent social change twice and globalization once the three times I have taught the course.

After reviewing the FI curriculum and sample syllabi I plan to make the following changes if I teach this course in the 2009 Fall Semester.

1. Readings. Add a book or books of readings for the topic selected. For example, for heroes we could use From Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar to Churchill and de Gaulle by Paul Johnson. Although I have yet to read this book, the goal is to find readings that are less academic, a characteristic of the Sourcework book, and more accessible to the students.

2. Reading Responses. Students will write reading responses for designated chapters of the book and post them on the Discussion Board in Blackboard.

3. Research Presentations. Students will be assigned a hero to research and make an oral presentation to class.

4. Reading Quizzes. There will be reading quizzes for to test for comprehension of the readings and to motivate students to read and comprehend.

5. Blog. Students will create a blog and be expected to make regular postings.

6. Essays. There will be small essay assignments at the outset and one longer one later. Using smaller and narrative or personal essays at the outset will require students to do more writing and build toward writing a longer essay.

7. Timed-writings. Students will write practice thirty-minute timed-writings regularly and do timed-writing drills designed to give them organizing strategies.

8. Word-count Goals. Students will be expected to meet word-count goals for assignments and overall for the course. The goal is to have students produce larger amounts of writing with the aim of improving fluency.
   

The changes will add more reading that will be used as a basis for writing, more reading responses, reading quizzes, and blog postings. The overall goal is to incorporate more reading into the course and more writing for the purpose of increasing writing fluency. Focus on form, language, grammar, will be the task of the grammar workshop teacher, who will work with the same readings and writings focusing on the language. Thus a two-pronged approach will have the writing teacher focusing on content, organization, and fluency, and the grammar workshop teacher on language, but within the context of the writing that students are doing in the writing class.

Posted by Ron Corio at 10:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

My Aching Back 2009

Sun/Apr 26. One week ago while clipping in to by bike pedals, the left foot slipped, sending my butt crashing against the saddle. The result was a bruised coccyx that makes sitting in a chair or an a bike a tender endeavor. The only bike riding I have done since is to and from school and that with my butt way back on the saddle to position the sensitive spot overhanging from the back. Thus, no Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday rides equals less exercise, less stretching of muscles all of which exacerbates the shortening of muscles as a result of a lot of sitting and sleeping in the fetal position. Yesterday, for the first time in three months I went to the pool at the Y and spent about thirty minutes in the water. Two laps doing the Australian crawl were enough to find out that the leg pain while flutter kicking ruled out that stroke. Using a spaghetti flotation device, I was able to walk/jog in the water without pain. What a good feeling to be able to get some exercise. Meanwhile I am applying heat to the butt to help the healing process.

Sat/Apr 4. Rode 42 miles today and felt good on the bike. Slow (13.7) and average heart rate was 131, ten below average when pushing. Was sore after the ride. Pain has moved to the left side at the hip joint and down the leg.

Fri/Mar 13. Another workout with Andy. I am standing straighter. Hope shines through.

Wed/Mar 11. Andy works on glutes. It is painful.

Tue/Mar 10. More work with Andy. He kneads tight flexors. He shows me an exercise standing sideways against a wall and straightening up. OWWWWWW! It helps.

Thu/Mar 5. Second appointment (30 minutes) with Andy Symula, PT. He worked the pelvis and the flexors and gave me some exercises to do at home. It hurt at times pretty badly. After the hand work I received an ice pack and electric stimulation on the back for ten minutes. I delivered a CD with a copy of the MRI of my spine and the doctor's report. Next appointment Tuesday, March 10. Andy teaches me to do side bends and lying prone on stomach for stretching exercises.

Wed/Mar 4. A 3:30 appointment with Dr. Stephen Long of Commonwealth Pain Specialists for a follow-up to epidural steroid injection. The first of this series was given about three weeks ago, but it did not help any, thus this follow-up. This injection felt different than the first one in that I could feel a jolt go down my let the two times the needle was inserted. Also, went I got up to walk my right leg was numb, the first this has happened in the three epidurals I have had. A third follow-up injection is scheduled for April 6, if needed.

Wed/Mar 4. First visit with Andy Symula, PT, with Advanced Wellness. He took my history and asked questions related to the back problem and my surgery history. He did range of motion and strength assessments. This was an hour-long meeting. I liked how he communicated what he saw and felt and what he would do to help. I felt some hope after this visit. He set up a schedule of three times a week appointments for the next three weeks. Next appointment is 12:00 noon on Thursday, March 05, 2009.

Mon/Feb 9. Was given a epidural steroid injection by Dr. Stephen Long of Commonwealth Pain Specialists.

Fri/Feb 6. Visited Dr. Fiero my primary physician to ask his opinion on getting another steroid injection. He said he would get another cortisone injection if it were him. Reported blood in my stool that appeared to be the result of constipation caused by the medications. He concurred and since the hemmacult exam done in December was negative he did not suggest any further tests. Began three times a day stretching using exercises given by the Tuckahoe PT and some I found on the Internet.

Fri/Jan 30. Visited Dr. Van. X-rays of my back were taken and he looked at them and said the spine did not look bad on the x-rays. Prescribed oral cortisone, muscle relaxers, and Tylenol with codeine. If pain still exists in two weeks he will order another epidural steroid injection.

Thu/Jan 29. In AM while seated n the commode, I bent an turned to the left to wipe myself and e lower back pain spasms hit again. Did not go to school. Could not.

Wed/Jan 28. While seated in a chair in from of a computer monitor I bent down and to the left then stretched and twisted leftward in order to insert a CD in the computer. OUCH! Pain shot through my lower back and fired in spasms. I laid on my back on the floor then go up and managed to get to my two classes that morning.

Posted by Ron Corio at 10:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)