The National Study of Writing Instruction - University at Albany

Summary of School Visit
(To be completed jointly by each visiting team.)
School:
Visiting team:
Date:
Please answer the following summary questions about your reactions to the
curriculum and instruction across disciplines in the school you have just visited.
Take as much space as you need to respond to each question. Then return your
responses together with the various interview schedules and questionnaires to
your CELA liaison.
1. Please briefly describe the school context: The community it serves, its
special strengths, and any special challenges it faces.
2. To what extent is the teaching of writing, or writing and literacy, a
school-wide concern? Is there any history of special initiatives in writing
within the disciplines or writing across the curriculum?
3. Please describe how the English teachers approach the teaching of
writing. Is there a department wide consensus, or obvious variations from
teacher to teacher?
4. What is the balance between workshop or process approaches and
writing-on-demand?
5. What is the relationship between the program in writing and the
program in literature?
6. Please describe the attitudes and approaches of teachers in other subject
areas toward the teaching of writing. What particular genres or special
purposes for writing were apparent in interviews or observations? Is writing
within the discipline addressed systematically, sporadically, or not at all in
social studies, science, and math?
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