Analyzed
Data
Pre and Post Test
At the beginning of our Persuasive writing unit, my students completed a pre-test piece before any instruction had begun. The pre-test allowed me to see where the students were with their persuasive writing skills and later allowed me to compare to the post-test. The students were graded based on a district rubric.
On the rubric there were four sections: ideas, organization, word choice and voice, sentence fluency and conventions. Each of the sections had a possible four points to be awarded. The four points corresponded with the district proficiency scale: 1-beginning, 2-progressing, 3-proficient, 4-advanced. Teachers and administrators would like to see all students score at least proficient in three of the four sections of the rubric as this would score them an overall proficient or advanced. When a student was proficient, it showed that they were completing their work on grade level.
In addition, a paired-samples t-test was conducted to determine the effect of the using student goal setting with males will increase students’ achievement in writing. There was not a significant difference in the scores prior to implementing summarizing strategies (M=9.45, SD=2.02) and after implementing (M=10.45, SD=1.67) the goal setting strategies; t(11)= 1.799, p = 0.0511349. The observed standardized effect size is medium (.54). That indicates that the magnitude of the difference between the average and μ0 is medium. These results suggest that student goal setting with males had a medium effect on students’ achievement in writing. Specifically, the results suggest that the use of goal setting strategies with males increased writing achievement.
On the pre-test, 5 of the 11 boys scored in the beginning or progressing ranges. This data showed there was a significant need to focus on writing. I also had two students score an advanced, which showed they were currently above grade level with those writing skills.
When looking at the pre-test rubric, 36% of the boys scored a proficient or higher in both ideas and organization, while 73% scored a proficient in sentence fluency and conventions. I also had no students score within the advanced (4) category. Seeing the rate of proficiency on the pre-test allowed me to focus in on specific skills and help guide students to goals that fit their individual needs.
Following approximately 8 weeks of instruction, 7 of the 11 boys increased their overall scores on the post-test. Two other boys showed no growth and scored the same on their post-test as they did on their pre-test. No students scored a beginning with their persuasive writing.
When looking at specific categories on the rubric, there was growth within certain categories. In the ideas category, 55% of the boys in my class were proficient or advanced and 91% of boys were proficient in sentence fluency and conventions, an increase of 18%. Overall, 5 boys scored a proficient or advanced on their post-test, which was an increase of 18%.
Two students that benefitted from this study were student A and student E. Both of these students showed growth from the pre-test to the post-test. When student A scored a proficient on the pre-test and struggled in the organization category. After the weeks of instruction, writing conferences, and goal setting, this student scored a proficient or advanced in all of the rubric categories. Overall, student A scored an advanced on the post-test writing piece.
Student E also benefited and showed growth within this study. This student struggled on the pre-test, received two beginnings and two progressing category scores on the rubric for an overall score of beginning. As for the post-test, this student received three progressing and one proficient score, which gave him an overall progressing score.
Writing Goals
Throughout my six-week study, students were asked to set goals from the indicators on the district Persuasive Writing rubric that would be used in this unit. Each of the students met with me at least once per week in a writing conference where the status of the goal was discussed. As a data point, I collected the number of goals each male student achieved during this study. To achieve a goal, both the student and I had to agree his writing showed evidence he was meeting the proficient or advanced indicator on the rubric. After a goal was met, the student would be able to choose a different goal on which to focus. When students moved on from one goal to another, I made sure that previous goals were still a priority so that it was not a one and done strategy. Students needed to be able to show that they were able to continue to show proficiency on their indicated goal.
On average, the 11 male students achieved three goals within the eight-week study, with one student achieving six goals. This result showed that students were, on average, achieving a goal every two weeks. This outcome allowed the student and I to set a goal and then revisit the goal the following week when we met for our next writing conference. Two of the students struggled with the goal reaching process and only achieved one goal within this study. These two students worked hard to achieve their goal but could not consistently show a proficient amount of skill to achieve the goal they set.
Writing Attitude Survey
The attitude survey asked ten questions that the students rated themselves on a scale of 1-5, one indicating they always think a certain way and 5 showing they never think a certain way. The survey included several different types of questions surrounding their attitude about writing and their perceptions of themselves as writers. The survey was taken three times throughout the study.
Doing the survey before, during, and after the study allowed me to see how my teaching and strategies that I implemented were affecting their attitude toward writing. The survey that was taken before and during the study also allowed me to change some of my teaching, check in with specific students, and plan ahead so students felt they were able to succeed within the writing block.
The first survey was given before the pre-test writing piece was written. The analysis of this survey indicated that the male students, on average, sometimes liked to write. It also showed that the students often felt they were good writers. The students also showed that although they sometimes enjoyed writing, they seldom wanted more time to write.
The last survey was given after the post-test writing piece had been written. There were two categories on the survey that showed growth from the pre-test survey. One of the categories being that the students often liked to write in a quiet place compared to the seldom wanting a quiet place to write as indicated on the pre-survey. The other category was that the male students often liked to write stories. During this unit, we were writing persuasive pieces, which this data showed that the students would have liked to be writing more fictional pieces. On the other hand, the students went from often liking to share their writing to seldom liking to share. I was not able to identify the reasoning behind this drop.
Data Triangulation
The data I collected through my research study helped me regulate instruction within the writing block. The data points all added value to each other in my study and allowed for more purposeful and directed instruction throughout the study. The data collected from the pretest triangulated with the writing goals as it gave me and the students an area of the rubric to narrow in on areas of growth. Students were able to use the pretest and other assessments and their rubrics to help select an indicator that would become their goal and focus for a particular writing piece.
A triangulation was also found within the writing goals and attitude surveys. By using the writing goals as a choice, students were able to individualize their opportunities during the writing block. I saw students had more motivation to complete and work toward their goal when they chose their own. Through this, their attitudes toward writing increased. The attitude survey showed that male students often liked to write in school, rather than only sometimes. Their confidence in writing also increased as the attitude survey and my own observations showed that the students were more likely to want to share their writing with their peers.
Between the attitude surveys and the post test, there was another triangulation found. As students became more motivated, their confidence and scores increased on their writing pieces. On the post-test, 45% of my male students scored a proficient or higher compared to the 27% on the pre-test. The attitude survey showed that the students liked writing more and had an increased belief in the importance of being able to write well.
Questions
After completing this study, I had a couple lingering questions. The first questions was, “Were students being truthful on the attitude survey?” As the students took the surveys, I made sure not to linger around their desks or look over their shoulders so they would feel more comfortable being honest. As I analyzed some of the surveys, I noticed that some students circled all 5, which indicated that they never liked anything in writing. I wondered if they didn’t want to be honest on the survey or if that was what they truly felt about writing. If that was them being completely honest, I wondered what I could do to further help them enjoy writing, at least a little bit. I also wondered if students were fully paying attention to the scale of the survey. For example, on the first survey, one of my students needed to re-do it because he was confused about the scale. I, of course, could be more clear when going over the survey and the scale.
My second question was, “What other strategies can I implement to further help my male writers succeed?” As seen in the results of my study, many of my male students showed growth between the pre-test piece and the post-test piece. I still had many of the boys scoring below proficient, even in the post-test. As a reflective educator, I always think about what I can do to help my students succeed. Since some of the strategies that I implemented did not show growth in all of the male students, I wonder if there were better suited strategies for those students or if more time would have been beneficial. I believe if we were able to be in the classroom to finish out this school year, the students who struggled on the post-test and received a score below proficient would have the time and the skills to earn a proficient on one of their writing pieces. Unfortunately, we did not have that time within the classroom left this school year, so my hope is that these students continue using these skills in years to come.