The teaching of writing to English language learners (ells) using multiple intelligences theory and kagan cooperative strategies

Resumen

The present research work consists of two volumes: The first volume has five major sections: 1) Conceptual Framework, 2) Methodological Approach for the Teaching of Writing, 3) Conclusions, 4) Bibliography and 5) Appendixes. The second volume makes up the Writing Lessons Book and WebQuest. VOLUME ONE 1. Conceptual Framework This first theoretical part consists of four different chapters. It offers a review of the main theoretical principles that support our research. Chapter one, Intelligence: Historical Perspectives, basically provides the background that leads us to understand how the history of teaching has been influenced by measurements of intelligence since 1905 with the creation of the first intelligence test by Alfred Binet. Chapter two, Theories of Intelligence and Methodological Implications, discusses how the perception of the nature of intelligence as well as the implicit theories of intelligence play one of the most significant roles in the way teachers educate and students learn. It also focuses on how the application of the theory of Multiple Intelligences, the use of cooperative strategies and the stimulation of higher level thinking - by using Bloom's taxonomy - may improve school achievement. Chapter three, English Language Learners (ELLs) in the United States, deals with the most updated research based strategies that have proven to be successful while teaching ELLs. It also overviews the main type of programs existing in the United States for the education of ELLs. Chapter four, Writing with ELLs, chiefly approaches the study of Personal Narrative, Expository and Persuasive essays from two different points of view, namely the process approach (how students compose their essays) and the product approach (what type of essay the students have created). We discuss the process approach by presenting an array of activities and strategies that can be used to help students move through the five stages of writing: pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing and publishing. During the product approach we focus on describing all the elements that compose the 6+1 Traits of Writing as well as the ISAT rubrics and explain the scoring process. 2. Methodological Approach for the Teaching of Writing The second section entails two main parts: The Methodological Approach Design and its Evaluation. The former builds upon the fundamental theoretical insights gleaned from the conceptual section. We first describe the context in which the study took place. We then move on to explain the general principles that compelled us to the creation of our writing program and provide an explanation of each one of the components of the lessons. In the latter, we present an evaluation of the methodological approach, carrying out a quantitative analysis based on a one-group Pre-Test/Post-Test Design. We then focus on its results, discussion and findings. 3. Conclusions In this final chapter, we recapitulate the most noteworthy conclusions at which our study has allowed us to arrive. We first bring up to foreground the main features achieved in the creation of the writing lesson program and methodological implications. Then, we summarize the findings derived from the evaluation of the methodological approach carried out by the pre/post test analysis. We also enunciate the major pedagogical implications that derive from our study. Finally, we offer the suggestion of potential lines of investigation, which would significantly help to persist illustrating the topic of English writing with ELLs. Bibliography In this section we include, in alphabetical order, the references that we have used for the writing of the present research. Appendixes We also present six appendixes which we incorporate right after our conclusions. They include, to begin with, the letters that the current teachers (of some of the students who participated in this study) have written about the academic and socio-emotional performance of these pupils in the school year 2009-2010 (one year after their participation in the intervention program). The rubrics used to assess students writing performance are presented in Appendixes II (ISAT Rubrics) and III (6 + 1 Traits of Writing Rubrics). The pre-tests and post-test for the narrative, expository and persuasive essay are introduced in Appendix IV. In Appendix V we introduce the Multiple Intelligence Test we used during our setting the stage'. The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) goals for writing, that guided the creation of our language and content objectives, are included in Appendix VI. VOLUME TWO WRITING LESSONS BOOK This separate volume makes up the Writing Lessons Book and WebQuest, a method for teaching English writing to ELLs. This book comprises a total of fifty-seven lessons designed according to the main ideas expounded during our four theoretical chapters. Furthermore, we also include a WebQuest that we created while attending to the increasing interest of students in new technologies. Finally, we present a DVD where we have recorded some of the activities that took place during our writing instruction with the hope they may be of help to future generations of educators. Using Multiple Intelligences Theory and Cooperative Strategies, we have composed a total of fifty-seven lessons where students learn how to write Personal Narrative, Expository and Persuasive essays. We selected these types of writing so to better prepare them for their future performance in the ISAT (Illinois State Assessment Test). We have also designed a Webquest where students learn about the eight parts of speech, considering the incessantly increasing interest of students in new technologies. Furthermore, we have recorded several videos where we show how our students were performing some of the activities that took place during the lessons; which we hope may be of help for future educators.