Civically-Engaged Teaching Writing Writing Assessment

For the Sake of Argument: Teaching Evidence-Based Writing

By Linda Friedrich, Rachel Bear, and Tom Fox

Summary:

 The instructional resources contained in this article are designed to develop specific argument skills and include text sets that represent multiple perspectives on a topic. The resources also emphasize iterative reading and writing practices, the recursive development of claims, organizing and structuring writing, and embedding formative assessment opportunities. The formative assessment tools help teachers assess students' written arguments and provide specific feedback.

“To the detriment of education, we live in what author Deborah Tannen calls the ‘argument culture,’ where ‘winning’ is more valued than ‘understanding.’ The NWP’s approach to argument writing starts with having students understand multiple points of view that go beyond pros and cons and are based on multiple pieces of evidence, which ultimately enables students to take responsible civic action.”

Notes:

A product of the National Writing Project’s College, Career, and Community Writers Program (C3WP), which aims to improve students’ ability to write evidence-based arguments. The program consists of professional development, instructional resources, and formative assessment tools. The professional development is provided by local Writing Project sites and focuses on teaching argument writing.

Also Recommended

See all
Content type
The Write Time with Author Ellen Oh and Educator Melissa Thom
By National Writing Project
Ellen Oh is an award-winning author of numerous middle grade and young adult books including The Spirit Hunters series and Prophecy trilogy, and is a founding member of We Need Diverse Books. Melissa Thom is a teacher librarian at Bristow Middle School in Connecticut with 22 years of educational experience and former president of the Connecticut Association of School Librarians.
Read more
Content type
Brian Johnson: Why I Write
Content type
Teach What You Love—Chapter 5 from When Challenge Brings Change: How Teacher Breakthroughs Transform the Classroom
In 2023, the National Writing Project copublished When Challenge Brings Change: How Teacher Breakthroughs Transform the Classroom. In this collection of compelling narratives, high-school and college teachers show us how they have taken on issues such as faculty and student relationships; struggles over personal identity in the classroom; the joys and complexities of working with emergent bilinguals, developing writers, and first-year college students; and the forever question of how to engage students.
Read more