The National Study of Writing Instruction - University at Albany

Instrumentation
Experiences with data gathering during the Year 2 case studies were drawn on to develop a
series of semi-structured protocols for gathering comparable data across diverse sites. Copies
of all instruments are included in Appendix 3.
Interview Schedules
A series of semi-structured interviews were developed to gather comparable data across sites
on a variety of aspects of curriculum, instruction, and the general context for writing and
writing instruction. Following the format used in Year 2, each section of each interview
schedule consisted of a general question to begin the conversation, and a series of more
specific questions that could be used if needed for follow up.
Administrator Interview Schedule. Questions in the administrator interview focused on school
and district perspectives on the importance of writing across academic subjects; initiatives to
support writing instruction; the extent to which writing instruction is seen as important across
subject areas; modifications in scheduling or tracking that might affect writing instruction;
availability and uses of technology; perceptions of student performance; and changes over time
in student writing and writing instruction.
Teacher Interview Schedule. Questions in the teacher interview focused on the teacher’s
perspectives on the importance of writing in their subject; school or department initiatives to
support writing instruction; the types of writing that are important in the subject area; the
amount of writing students do; the teacher’s approaches to writing instruction; the role of
technology; and quality of and response to student work.
Student Interview Schedule. This interview schedule was built around portfolios of work that
were collected from each student throughout the semester. Specific questions focused on selfperceptions
as a writer; the kinds of writing for different classes; the completeness of the
collection of work in each subject; favorite- and least-favorite assignments during the semester;
steps in completing writing assignments for each subject area; preparation for state or national
exams; uses of technology in each subject area; and criteria for “good” writing in each subject
area.
Classroom Observations
Classroom Observation Protocol. This time x activity protocol was designed to be completed in
real time on a laptop computer. At 5 minute intervals, observers recorded a variety of features
of the classroom, including the type of activity (e.g., lecture, class discussion, individual work,
transition); type of written work (copying, notemaking, calculating, short answer, short writing,
paragraph or more); focus of any writing activity (e.g., prewriting, drafting, revising, vocabulary,
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