We sat down with the series creator, Doug Grudzina, and asked him a little bit about the program. Here's what he told us:
1. What is College and Career Readiness:
Writing?
College
and Career Readiness: Writing
is a four-year writing series designed expressly to teach students the types and
purposes of writing described in the Common Core State Standards as essential
for a high school graduate.
Models and scoring guides at each level help students attain
the high quality of writing necessary for their successful entry into college
or a career.
2.
What is “College and Career Readiness”?
“College and Career Readiness” is the phrase adopted by the
Common Core State Standards Initiative to describe the ultimate goal of a
standards-based educational program. In past state and national endeavors, the
standard became an end in itself, and instruction was geared toward helping
students “meet the standard.” The CCSSI, however, recognizes that the objective
is not the standard but a state of readiness.
3.
What types of writing are covered in the series?
Every type and purpose of writing described in the Common
Core State Standards is covered: Narrative/Personal, Informative/Explanatory,
Argumentative/Persuasive. Each assignment is designed to address the specific
descriptors and criteria of each type of writing at every grade level.
Because the standards also describe long-term research
projects as well as short, timed, and impromptu writing opportunities, these
are also included.
4.
Toward what grade levels is this series geared?
The complete series will be geared for grades 9 through 12.
5.
Why did you begin the series in the middle with Grades 10 and 11?
The Common Core State Standards at the 9 – 12 level are
divided into two clusters: 9 – 10 and 11 – 12. We decided to introduce our
series by creating one book for each cluster, hence 10 and 11. When developed,
the Grade 9 book will cover the introductory and “first-step” skills assumed in
the Grade 10 book, and the Grade 12 book will complete what the student has
almost mastered in Grade 11 to make him or her fully college and career ready.
6.
Is this series sequential or recursive?
Like the
standards themselves, the College and
Career Readiness: Writing series is recursive. At each grade level,
students revisit the same types and purposes of writing, but each level requires
(and fosters) more mature thinking and reasoning, increased sophistication, and
greater confidence and competence in every aspect of the thinking and writing
process.
7. Who
should use this series?
Certainly any school that is adapting its curriculum to
address the Common Core State Standards will find this series essential as the
core of its across-the-curriculum writing program. Even private schools and
homeschool organizations that are not directly accountable to the standards
will find that the instruction and assignments in this series will produce college-and-career-ready
students by the end of twelfth grade.
In short, every
student bound for college or a post-school career (and his or her teachers) will
benefit from College and
Career Readiness: Writing.
8.
Is this book intended for use as core curriculum or as a supplemental text?
College and Career Readiness: Writing is intended for use as your core writing program, grades 9
– 12, across several disciplines, especially English language arts and social
studies.
9. Can this
series be used in an interdisciplinary writing program (writing across the
curriculum)?
Absolutely. You will find this series especially useful in
pairing English language arts and social studies reading and writing. Every type
and purpose of writing covered invites topics from multiple disciplines. Many
of the student models illustrate writing in non-ELA settings.
The research section includes two full research projects: an
ELA/literary topic and something from another discipline.
10.
Is this series compatible with the Common Core State Standards?
More than compatible, these books are written with the
standards at the core of the instruction. Each teacher’s guide explicitly lays
out the Common Core State Standard addressed by every part of every assignment. The
language in the scoring rubrics is drawn directly from the standards to
guarantee that everything the student writes — and the rigor with which it is
scored — will foster the student’s meeting or surpassing grade-level and graduation-requirement
standards as they are developed.
11. The
standards are eventually going to be tied to a national assessment network or
system. Will this series help prepare my students for success on these exams?
Absolutely. Several of the mini-lessons in the book address
assessment essays with planning and timing strategies developed from our
experience with SAT, SAT II, ACT, AP, and a number of state writing
assessments.
12. There
is a research component to the Common Core Standards. Is there a research
component to these books?
Yes there is. Each book contains an extensive chapter on the
Research Project, modeling the writing of two
research papers, one on an ELA topic and one on a topic from another
discipline.
The ELA project in every book models MLA-style citation and
documentation. The non-ELA projects model APA and Turabian style.
13. Why isn’t this just another writing
series?
First of all, this
series is truly recursive. At every grade level, in the student models
and in the scoring rubrics, growth is expected. For example, the type of thesis
statement, depth of insight, or sophistication of organizational plan, that are
perfectly acceptable in a ninth-grade essay simply will not receive a passing
score in the eleventh (And this is explicitly explained to the students
throughout the books).
14.
My school’s students are advanced and
brilliant. Must we start with the Grade 9 book in grade 9?
You know your
students. If the instructions and models in the Grade 9 book do not reflect
your students’ ability, by all means move them to a higher level. The series is
truly recursive, so your students will learn and practice every type and
purpose of writing every year. However, the instructions and models are rigorous, as the standards themselves
are rigorous. The Grade 9 book might just be the right level for your students.
15. My school’s students are all working below grade level. Can I reasonably expect them to reach a state of
college and career readiness?
Again, you know
your students, their backgrounds, and their needs. Because the standards are
clustered, and the books themselves are designed with those clusters in mind,
you may find it beneficial to begin with the Grade 9 book and use it for two
years; then transition to the Grade 11 book to use for two years.
All of the
assignments are carefully scaffolded to help you take even a reluctant or
challenged student to a higher level of achievement.
There you have it, straight from the man himself! Look for
College and Career Readiness: Writing at
our website on Thursday, April 4th.
