Study Circle for Teaching Writing

The purpose of this study circle is to help participants familiarize themselves with the existing research on the process of writing and to explore the pedagogical implications of this research in their own classrooms. Study circle participants will read two CAELA articles about writing and adult ESOL students. Using the articles as a guide, participants will do the following:

• Reflect on their current use of effective writing activities,
• Identify writing activities implicitly and explicitly stated in the articles,
• Implement at least one new research- or theory-based strategy in their teaching, and
• Reflect on the impact that study circle participation has had on their thinking and practice.

Through a series of reflection and application questions, study circle participants will also discover how use of the Virginia English for Speakers of Other Languages Content Standards, specifically the writing section, can help strengthen classroom writing activities.

Audience: ESOL Teachers of all language levels
Duration: 5 hours divided into 2 sessions of 2.5 hours each