Developing better writers takes an early, collaborative effort

George Hynd

Recent newspaper articles have reported that Indiana students who took the Scholastic Aptitude Test, commonly known as the SAT, scored below the national average on the test's new writing section. While this is worrisome and should be a serious concern to every parent, teacher and prospective employer, it also has significant economic implications.

As Bob Kerrey, president of New School University in New York and chair of the National Commission on Writing for America's Families, Schools and Colleges, said, writing serves as a 'marker' of professional work and poor writing skills are a 'gatekeeper' that prevents many from obtaining high-skill, high-wage employment.

Sarah Mahurt

"People unable to express themselves clearly in writing limit their opportunities for professional, salaried employment," he said.

This commission pronounced last year that writing is "the neglected 'R' in school reform," concluding that the ability to communicate in written form is often the determining factor in initial employment decisions and in decisions relative to promotion.

Simply put, the ability to string together words in ways that communicate effectively has serious economic consequences for each person, as well as for society.

Consider what was revealed by a survey of businesses affiliated with the Business Roundtable, an association of chief executive officers of leading U.S. companies:

• Almost two-thirds of those who earn salaries today must communicate through the written medium, which may include reading and/or preparing technical reports, memos, e-mails, etc.

• Nearly 80 percent of companies with the greatest growth potential evaluate writing ability among prospective employees.

• More than 40 percent of companies surveyed require training for employees who must write as part of their job.

• Hourly wage employees are now expected to use e-mail or other forms of written communication as part of their jobs.

The economic implications of ineffective writing provide one important reason for improving writing instruction and achievement in Indiana schools. However, perhaps the most important recommendation to come from this report was that "writing skills cannot be developed quickly or easily, but should be the focus of school and college attention across the curriculum, from kindergarten through college."

In response to this challenge — and using state standards and a more cohesive, developmental approach to writing instruction across the state — preschool teachers can and should help children develop strong oral language skills that will later translate to strong written language. Basic language skills are essential building blocks for elementary teachers as they work to develop children's ability to write coherent, well-organized pieces using standard grammar and conventions of print. With this strong foundation in place, other teachers can work with older, secondary-school students to develop more complex writing and broaden their writing in a variety of applications.

The good news is that efforts are currently under way in this state to address "the neglected 'R' in school reform." Conscientious teachers, as well as professional development projects, such as the various Indiana affiliates of the National Writing Project, All Write! and the Purdue Literacy Network Project, are working to improve writing in Indiana.

Additionally, this summer, Purdue's College of Education and the Corporation for Educational Technology sponsored the Indiana Writing Summit that brought together more than 100 community and political leaders and professionals from the state Department of Education, P-12 schools, and colleges and universities to discuss issues surrounding writing and writing instruction.

This summit and such efforts provide a firm step in the right direction of improving writing achievement in Indiana. And reaching that goal has truly significant personal and economic implications for all Hoosiers.

George W. Hynd is dean of the College of Education at Purdue University, and Sarah Mahurt is an associate professor of literacy and language education at Purdue, associate director of the Purdue Literacy Network Project, director of Literacy Collaborative and the primary Literacy Collaborative trainer.

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