SRI International evaluation shows positive and statistically significant effects on student achievement, critical thinking, and evidence-based communication
LOUISVILLE, KY – The National Writing Project (NWP) has released findings from a recent SRI International 1-year random assignment evaluation of its College, Career, and Community Writers Program (C3WP), a program implemented by the Kentucky Writing Project and the Louisville Writing Project site at the University of Louisville, along with teachers in Bardstown Independent, Clay County, Hart County, and Middlesboro Independent school districts.
The Kentucky Writing Project (KWP) and the Louisville Writing Project (LWP) provided professional development and instructional resources to help teachers and students read critically, explore multiple points of view on contemporary topics, identify credible evidence, and take a stand on important issues in their lives and communities. SRI’s study identified strong, positive gains for students at schools who participated in the program.
For today’s young people, learning to write for a variety of purposes is a key component for college, career, and civic life. To support teachers in helping students meet these new writing demands, NWP designed C3WP with teacher-leaders from across the country. The goal was to assure more teachers had the ability to teach college and career-ready writing – with a specific emphasis on writing arguments based on nonfiction texts, an important skill every young adult needs.
Bardstown, Clay, Hart, and Middlesboro, partnering with KWP/LWP, were 4 of 47 rural, high-need districts that were included in the most recent SRI International evaluation. The evaluations were part of a federal Investing in Innovation (i3) scale-up grant to test C3WP in new contexts and is the third evaluation of C3WP in secondary grades, all of which have found positive and statistically significant effects on student achievement.
“Participating in C3WP has positively changed the way I teach, which has a trickle-down effect on my students’ reading and writing capabilities,” said Erin Dennis, NWP site leader from KWP/LWP. “I am thankful for the tools this program has provided me, which makes me increasingly confident in the skills my students will have to engage with society in the future.”
For the study, half of the 47 selected schools were randomly assigned to C3WP training and half received “business-as-usual” training for one year. To measure the impact on students, SRI administered a student writing assessment for all students, which showed that C3WP had a positive and significant impact on all
four attributes of writing measured by the Analytic Writing Continuum for Source-Based Argument Writing (AWC-SBA): content, structure, stance, and convention.
“At a time when young people are constantly exposed to social media and a wide range of media, these findings are significant because they prove C3WP teaches students how to think critically about information they receive and gives them tools to express their own opinions and arguments with evidence and impact,” said Elyse Eidman-Aadahl, NWP Executive Director. “C3WP does more than improve practice in the teaching of writing, it also helps prepare students for a future of civic engagement, teaching them at an early age that their opinions matter.”
Since 2015, three rigorous, independent evaluations of C3WP have spanned 228 diverse schools in 20 states, all of which have pointed to program effectiveness in diverse contexts.
About C3WP:
C3WP is an intensive professional development program that provides teachers with instructional resources and formative assessment tools for the teaching of evidence-based argument writing. C3WP works by integrating curricular resources, formative assessment, professional reading, and professional conversations. Teachers in C3WP typically participate in 45 hours of professional development per year for two years, experiencing instructional materials of the highest quality, learning to analyze student work carefully to determine instructional next steps, and leading their students towards active participation in their communities through argument writing.
About National Writing Project:
NWP has been awarded two C3WP focused U.S. Department of Education Investing in Innovation (i3) validation grants since 2012 with matching funds provided by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Rural School and Community Trust. Through its mission, the National Writing Project (NWP) focuses the knowledge, expertise, and leadership of our nation's educators on sustained efforts to help youth become successful writers and learners. NWP supports a network of local Writing Project sites, located on nearly 170 university and college campuses, to provide high-quality professional development in schools, universities, libraries, museums, and after-school programs. Through its many successful programs and partnerships, the organization reaches 6 million Pre-K through college-age students in over 2,000 school districts annually and preparing 2,500 new teacher-leaders each year. NWP envisions a future where every person is an accomplished writer, engaged learner, and active participant in a digital, interconnected world.
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