The New Georgia Writing Assessment

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The New Georgia Writing Assessment

• Christie McCarley
• Education Program Specialist
• Middle Grades ELA
• Georgia Department of Education

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Grade 8 Writing Assessment

• The purpose of the writing assessment is to
  improve writing and writing instruction
• Information centered economy
• Increased the need for proficient communication
  skills
• Work place requirements depend more and more on
  strong literacy skills

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Who does this affect?

• Everyone!
• The previous assessment, known as the Middle
  Grades Writing Assessment (MGWA), has been
  changed to align with the ELA Georgia Performance
  Standards.
• Each content area includes a Reading Across the
  Curriculum standard
• This standard requires students to read, relate,
  discuss, and communicate information and ideas

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Literacy Across the CurriculumSREBFive Literacy
Goals

• 1. Read the equivalent of 25 books per year
  across the curriculum.
• 2. Write weekly in all classes.
• 3. Use reading and writing strategies to enhance
  learning in all classes.
• 4. Write research papers in all classes.
• 5. Complete a rigorous language arts curriculum
  taught like college-preparatory/honors English.

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Integration Leads to Internalization
Reading
S6-8 CS10
Read, discuss, relate, recognize text features,
explore, establish context
Unit
S6-8 CS7
Question claims and arguments
S6-8 CS6
Write instructions, understand and describe
differences in writing for science and literary
purposes
Listening, Speaking, and Viewing
Writing
Moving towards peer review in 9-12
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Integration Leads to Internalization
Social Studies Describe, Discuss, Explain, Read
Across the Curriculum
Reading
M6-8 RC1
Read, discuss, relate, recognize text features,
explore, establish context
Unit
M6-8 P3
Communicate, analyze, evaluate, create and use
representations
M6-8 P6
Communicate, analyze, evaluate, create and use
representations
Listening, Speaking, and Viewing
Writing
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Changes A Closer LookTHEN NOW

• Choice Narrative, persuasive, or expository
  writing
• Scoring
• Content
• Organization
• Style
• Sentence Formation
• Usage
• Mechanics

• No choice Either persuasive or expository
• Scoring
• Ideas
• Organization
• Style
• Conventions

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Why not narrative?

• Decision not to test narrative made by a core
  development team of teachers and advisory
  committees
• Narrative assessed at 3rd and 5th grade
• High school and college requirements call more
  for expository/persuasive writing
• Narrative strategies are still encouraged within
  these two genres
• All prompts are structured so that most all
  students have knowledge/experience with the topic
• All prompts go through extensive bias and
  sensitivity review

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Other things to know

• The new Grade 8 Writing Assessment will assess
  expository and persuasive writing as defined by
  the Georgia Performance Standards.
• Testing time will be 100 minutes. No extra time
  allowed except as specified in a students IEP,
  504, or TPP (test participation plan.)
• ELL students will be allowed to use a translation
  dictionary (paper only) if it is specified in the
  students TPP.

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Other things to knowExamples of the following
are currently available on-line

• Sample topics
• Descriptions of what expository and persuasive
  writing are and are not
• Description of the scoring system
• Scoring rubric

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Other things to knowComing July 2006

• Assessment and instructional guide
• Scored anchor papers (for each point in each
  domain)
• Go to the DOE websiteTop right-hand Curriculum
  and Instruction - select Testing. Right-hand
  corner Testing Resources - select Georgia
  Writing Assessment. Right hand corner WA
  Resources. Right-hand corner select More.

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• Want to teach a child to read? Give him a
  pencil.
• Want to teach a child to write? Give him a book.

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Reading and Writing Standards walk hand in
handExpository TextsReading Writing

• Applies knowledge of organizational
  structures/patterns
• Recognizes and traces development of authors
  argument or perspective
• Identifies supporting evidence/details

• Develops a controlling idea or perspective
• Develops with supporting evidence/details
• Creates and organizing structure
• Follows an appropriate organization pattern

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PersuasionReading Writing

• Applies knowledge of organizational
  structures/patterns
• Recognizes and traces development of authors
  argument or perspective
• Identifies supporting evidence

• States a clear position or perspective
• Supports with evidence
• Creates and organizing structure

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In Class Preparation

• Students need to see and analyze models of good
  writing
• Read a piece of writing together. Have them
  underline things they like about the piece,
  things they think are important, things they
  think are necessary, and things that bring up
  questions for them

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In Class Preparation

• Discuss the things that they underline. Note what
  they like. Connect it to a specific writing
  strategy if possible. Then connect to the
  standard.
• Do the same thing for the important/necessary
  information.
• Help them pinpoint the main idea or argument. Get
  them to discuss why they think this is the main
  idea/argument.

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In Class Preparation

• Continue the discussion noting things about the
  development of the main idea/argument through
  supporting details. Again, try to connect to
  specific strategies and the standard.
• Talk about the organization and the conclusion.

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Engage and Inform

• Strategies to engage anecdote, facts,
  statistics, quotes, vivid verbs/word choice,
  mood, tension, real-life connections,
  descriptions, narration
• Strategies to inform facts, statistics, quotes
  (also lend credibility), descriptions,
  explanations
• Expository structures description, explanation,
  compare/contrast, problem/solution

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Practice

• They need the chance to practice these same
  techniques within their own writing.
• Giving students immediate practice and then
  feedback leads them to stronger progress within
  their own writing.
• Remember, they are thinking like writers when
  they read, and writing like readers when they
  write.

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Practice Prompt Expository
Broad topic

• Writing Situation School rules help keep
  students safe and able to concentrate on their
  school work. One rule that affects students is
  the dress code. Your principal is reviewing the
  schools dress code and wants some information
  from the students about their clothing choices.
• Directions for writing Write an essay for your
  principal comparing and contrasting the way you
  dress for school and the way you dress for other
  activities such as playing outside or going
  places with friends. Include specific details so
  that your principal will understand the
  differences in your clothing choices.

Topic narrows Dress code
Specific topic information about student
clothing choices
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Practice Prompt Expository

• Writing Situation School rules help keep
  students safe and able to concentrate on their
  school work. One rule that affects students is
  the dress code. Your principal is reviewing the
  schools dress code and wants some information
  from the students about their clothing choices.
• Directions for writing Write an essay for your
  principal comparing and contrasting the way you
  dress for school and the way you dress for other
  activities such as playing outside or going
  places with friends. Include specific details so
  that your principal will understand the
  differences in your clothing choices.

Specific genre
Specific structure
In school/out of school
Specific writing requirements specific details
about differences in clothes
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Preparation and Planning

• Determine genre specifics
• essay comparison/contrast
• Determine specific topic
• school dress and out of school dress
• Special instructions
• include specific details so principal will
  understand differences in the two clothing
  categories

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Preparation and Planning

• T-Chart
• School Clothes
• (what, when, why)
• Complete a Venn Diagram
• Complete a Web

• Out of School Clothes (what, when, why)

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Practice Strategies

• Problem/solution lead
• The open closet stood before me offering
  too many choices for my sleepy brain. The morning
  was quickly getting away from me, and I had still
  not picked out something to wear. What did my day
  involve? First on my agenda, an important meeting
  with my boss. That would require something smart
  and business like. The rest of the day would be
  my normal routine. After work, I had dinner plans
  with a client. What could I wear that would fit
  each of my days requirements and still be
  comfortable throughout a long day? The clock was
  ticking. Ah-ha! I had it! My new pant suit with
  low-heeled shoes.

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Analysis

• Share the scoring system/rubrics with students.
• Share the anchor papers with students.
• Analyze the papers together
• Have them score the papers (using the state
  scoring system) prior to viewing the actual
  scores.
• Compare and discuss their scoring with the actual
  scoring

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Practice

• Students need to practice the conditions and
  requirements of the writing test.
• Have them score their practice tests using the
  state scoring system
• Have them analyze the strengths and weaknesses of
  their paper through commentary

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Prompts

• Students often have trouble getting started
• They need practice with prompt analysis and
  initial planning
• Be sure they understand the terms persuasive and
  expository
• Students need to be aware of the different
  structures that expository prompts might ask for
  description, explanation, comparison/contrast,
  problem/solution

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Contact Information

• Christie McCarley
• 404-463-0507
• cmccarle_at_doe.k12.ga.us