what our students are writing about

What Our Students Are Writing About

Prompts and Assignments

Discussion, Questions, Takeaways

From Text to Talk to Argument

Is It Done Yet? (Revision and

Mechanics)


Plagiarism Case Study

Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention

Motivation and Engagement

Informational?

Spencer

Standards



Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Standards

Spencer (10th grade) Considered one of William Shakespeare’s greatest plays, A Midsummer Night’s Dream reads like a fantastical, imaginative tale: however, its poetic lines contain a message of love, reality, and chance that are not usually present in works of such kind. All characters in the play are playful, careless and thoughtless, and Puck: one of the central characters in the play: is significant to the plot, tone, and meaning of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, thus becoming a representative of the above-mentioned themes. In the last stanza of the play, he shows that he is a catalyst for almost every single one of these themes.


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Stand and Talk:

What was the prompt that Spencer was answering in this assignment?

Stand and Talk:

What prompt would you use instead?


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Question:

Why did Spencer plagiarize?


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

SpencerCase Study: Take It Or Leave It

(The Christine Pelton Leaf Project)

The project: research, writing, presentation

Administration / school board response

Classroom results: 25% plagiarism

Student/parent contract

Long-term consequences


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

SpencerCase Study: Take It Or Leave It


A. Teacher/Administration: Students receive a zero

B. Parents/Students: Students should be given another chance (rewrite)

C. School Board: Students receive a zero, but reduce the value of the assignment


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Plagiarism

Why Plagiarism?

Differentiate between paraphrasing and plagiarism(TEKS 8.23d)


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer


Plagiarism

Why Plagiarism?

Student Choices

Turnitin.com

Failing, rewriting?

Punitive response


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer


Stand and Talk: What’s the Main Reason Your Students

Plagiarize?

A. It’s easy to do / they get lazy

B. They’re confused / it’s a mistake

C. They feel pressure about grades

D. They get behind on deadlines

E. Everyone does it, so they do it too


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer



Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer


40%

24%

34%

1% 1%

My School: Why Students Plagiarize

Ease/Laziness Pressure: deadlinesPressure: grades Confusion: processCulture/everyone does it


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer


Term Paper M

ills

Cutting and Pasti

ng

Peer Copying

Rearranging W

ords

Making U

p Sources

Never Plagiariz

ed

5%

25%

42%

83%

19% 15%

My School: How Students Plagiarize


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Plagiarism

Why Plagiarism?

Student Choices

Pressure: Grades

Ease

Intent

Pressure: Time

Turnitin.com

Failing, rewriting?

Punitive response

Teacher Choices

Assignments

Assumptions

Expectations



Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Plagiarism

Why Plagiarism?

Student Choices

Pressure: Grades

Ease

Intent

Pressure: Time

Turnitin.com

Failing, rewriting?

Punitive response

Teacher Choices

Assignments

Assumptions

Expectations

Pressure: Time

Ease

Intent



Merit and Purpose of Assignment

Failure vs. Zero

Plagiarism Instruction vs. Assumptions


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer



Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Plagiarism

Why Plagiarism?

Student Choices

Pressure: Grades

Ease

Intent

Pressure: Time

Turnitin.com

Failing, rewriting?

Punitive response

Teacher Choices

Assignments

Assumptions

Expectations

Pressure: Time

Ease

Intent

Culture

Systems

Honor Codes

Ethics Gap



Merit and Purpose of Assignment

Failure vs. Zero

Plagiarism Instruction vs. Assumptions


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer


Alignment of Policy: School and Class

Consistency from Classroom to Classroom


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Plagiarism

Why Plagiarism?

Student Choices

Pressure: Grades

Ease

Intent

Pressure: Time

Turnitin.com

Failing, rewriting?

Punitive response

Teacher Choices

Assignments

Assumptions

Expectations

Pressure: Time

Ease

Intent

Culture

Systems

Honor Codes

Ethics Gap



Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer


WHEN

PRIVATE CAMPUSES

WITH HONOR CODE

LARGE PUBLIC

UNIVERSITYWITH

MODIFIED HONOR CODE

CAMPUSES WITH NO HONOR CODE

On tests 23% 33% 45%

On written work 45% 50% 56%

School Culture: Honor Codes


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer


TEACHERS DID NOT DISCUSS PLAGIARISM

TEACHERS DISCUSSED

PLAGIARISM

Grades 3-5(understood) 49% 61%

Grades 6-12(felt it was acceptable)

37% 22%

School Culture: Ethics Gap


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer


School Culture: What’s Going On?

Students who cheat tend to:

Worry about school

Perceive school as focused on grades

Believe they’ll receive rewards for grades

Attribute failure to outside circumstances

Avoid deep-level cognitive strategies in problem solving

Research by Eric M. Anderman


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Plagiarism

Why Plagiarism?

Student Choices

Pressure: Grades

Ease

Intent

Pressure: Time

Turnitin.com

Failing, rewriting?

Punitive response

Teacher Choices

Assignments

Assumptions

Expectations

Pressure: Time

Ease

Intent

Culture

Systems

Honor Codes

Ethics Gap



Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Analyze Literature /

Poetry / Drama (TEKS

8.3-5

Puck:If we shadows have offended, Think but this and all is mended,That you have but slumber'd hereWhile these visions did appear.And this weak and idle theme,No more yielding but a dream,Gentles, do not reprehend:If you pardon, we will mend.And, as I am an honest Puck,If we have unearned luckNow to 'scape the serpent's tongue,We will make amends ere long;Else the Puck a liar call:So, good night unto you all.Give me your hands, if we be friends,And Robin shall restore amends.

(A Midsummer Night’s Dream V.i.)


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

SpencerPuck:If we shadows have offended, Think but this and all is mended,That you have but slumber'd hereWhile these visions did appear.And this weak and idle theme,No more yielding but a dream,Gentles, do not reprehend:If you pardon, we will mend.And, as I am an honest Puck,If we have unearned luckNow to 'scape the serpent's tongue,We will make amends ere long;Else the Puck a liar call:So, good night unto you all.Give me your hands, if we be friends,And Robin shall restore amends.

(A Midsummer Night’s Dream V.i.)



8.3-5


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

SpencerPuck:If we shadows have offended, Think but this and all is mended,That you have but slumber'd hereWhile these visions did appear.And this weak and idle theme,No more yielding but a dream,Gentles, do not reprehend:If you pardon, we will mend.And, as I am an honest Puck,If we have unearned luckNow to 'scape the serpent's tongue,We will make amends ere long;Else the Puck a liar call:So, good night unto you all.Give me your hands, if we be friends,And Robin shall restore amends.

(A Midsummer Night’s Dream V.i.)Analyze

Literature / Poetry /

Drama (TEKS 8.3-5


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer



8.3-5

Stand and Talk:

Come up with one essential / big / thematic question about the play based on words you

identified.


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer



8.3-5

Sample student-generated questions (prompts)

• Does the play suggest it is okay to lie?• Why is it called a “dream?”• Why do both Theseus and Puck use the word “shadow”?• Why are some people “pardoned” in the play?• Why do only Puck and Bottom break the fourth wall?• Is Puck ultimately benevolent or malicious?


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer



8.3-5

From question to prompt

• Create topics• Go back to the text—find examples• Discuss in pairs or groups• Write a thesis• Share and discuss (PINE)• Write an essay


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer



8.3-5

Spencer’s Revision

When Puck asks us to “pardon” him at the end of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, he points out the deep irony of the play: there is no justice in Shakespeare’s comedy, poetic, legal, or otherwise. We have no more power over Puck than the humans have over the fairies, their own fates, or love itself. Shakespeare’s world seems to include justice, but it can be seen that events in MSND are decided by power, not right and wrong.


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer



8.3-5

Students understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about the structure and elements of drama (poetry/fiction) and provide evidence from text to support their understanding.TEKS 8.3-5

Develop a thesis or controlling idea.TEKS 8.14.a

Write responses to literary or expository texts that demonstrate the use of writing skills for a multi-paragraph essay and provide sustained evidence from the text using quotations when appropriate.TEKS 8.17.c

Reading Standards10 Anchor Standards

Writing Standards10 Anchor Standards

Language Standards6 Anchor Standards

(3 Grammar, 3 Vocabulary)

Speaking and Listening Standards6 Anchor Standards

(3 Discussion, 3 Presentation)

“College and Career Ready” Appendix B

Student skills, not teacher pedagogies


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Standards?

The what, not the how

"The students in the public education system will demonstrate exemplary performance in the reading and writing of the English language”


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Table Talk

Name one activity you do in your classes that you know will engage students.

Autonomy Relevance CollaborationActive Learning

Multiple Learning

Methods

Technology Use

Differentiation and

ScaffoldingInquiry FeedbackChallenge

and Success

10 Standards for Motivation and

Engagement


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

What About Informational Reading and Writing?

Comprehension of Informational Text/Expository Text. TEKS 8.10

Writing Expository and Procedural Texts.TEKS 8.17


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Writing Expository

and Procedural

Texts.TEKS 8.17


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Writing Expository

and Procedural

Texts.TEKS 8.17

A report on the four humors

An argument about how MSND should be set

Research about Shakespeare’s original sources for MSND


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

1. Concept Definition

Four Humors History

Description

Influence

Cue Words:

For example…Characteristics

are…

Writing Expository

and Procedural

Texts.TEKS 8.17


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

2. Sequencing

Cue Words:

First…Second…

Then…Next…

Finally…

Writing Expository

and Procedural

Texts.TEKS 8.17

Greek myths

• SourcesComed

y•Models

Innovation


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

3. Comparison

Cue Words:

Different…In contrast…

Alike…Similar to…

On the other hand…

Traditional Set

Non-traditional Set

Writing Expository

and Procedural

Texts.TEKS 8.17


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

4. Cause and Effect

Cue Words:

If…thenWhy…

As a result…Because…

Therefore…

Because Shakespeare

believed in the theory of the four humors…

…his characters behave in

predictable ways

Writing Expository

and Procedural

Texts.TEKS 8.17


Why Plagiarism?

Prompt Attention


Informational?

Spencer

Standards

5. Problem and Solution

Cue Words:

Problem is…Dilemma is…Solved by…

Question is… /Answer is…

Midsummer requires numerous characters to be on

stage without

seeing one another

The set must

provide separate spaces for this to occur

Writing Expository

and Procedural

Texts.TEKS 8.17

List 5-10 things that student writers need from teachers

What Our Students Are Writing About


Discussion, Questions, Takeaways

From Text to Talk to Argument

Is It Done Yet? (Revision and

Mechanics)


Write a 3-5 page formal essay on “Harrison

Bergeron.”

Rethinking Assignments


Bergeron.”

"It took me about ten seconds to find a free essay online, but it wasn't very good. I could

have paid $6.95 for a better one, though--probably worth it."


Make prompts more specific

Make prompts more personal

Use unlikely comparisons



Bergeron.”


Choose three characters from the story "Harrison Bergeron" and find two quotations from each character. Using those six quotations, write an essay in which you

compare the motivations and choices of the three characters.



Choose three characters from the story "Harrison Bergeron" and find two quotations from each character. Using those six quotations, write an essay in which you

compare the motivations and choices of the three characters.


"What a pain, I have to cut and paste those quotations into an essay that I found online on the general topic. This would take me about ten minutes, I guess, and I

might have to pay for the original essay if I wanted it to be any good."


Imagine you could spend one day in the world of “Harrison Bergeron” and talk to the characters in the story. Write a letter to the U.S. Handicapper General describing your experiences and your views on the

society within the story after your visit.



Imagine you could spend one day in the world of “Harrison Bergeron” and talk to the characters in the story. Write a letter to the U.S. Handicapper General describing your experiences and your views on the

society within the story after your visit.


"The personal voice makes this one harder, but not too hard. I could probably do it mainly by changing

pronouns with the find and replace function in Word and with a bit of formatting. Most teachers wouldn't

catch on."


Write an essay comparing “Harrison Bergeron” to the story “The Lottery.”



Write an essay comparing “Harrison Bergeron” to the story “The Lottery.”


"Done. Took me about a minute. Do you want that double-spaced?"


Read the story “Harrison Bergeron”



In groups or as a class, brainstorm topics and connections




Choose an individual topic





Find textual evidence, write a thesis






Share thesis statements and discuss







Draft a first paragraph, outline







Draft a first paragraph, outline

Write an essay

Rethinking Research Assignments

65% of students wrote a research paper for English class

38% of students wrote a research paper for social studies classes

Of English research papers, 67% were on a historical/biographical topic

75% used all internet sources

Rethinking Research AssignmentsParticipant Responses


Are students invested?

Offer choices, make topics relevant



The discipline problem: what should research look like for each discipline?


Connect content to course content and skills




Digital literacy: are students using the internet wisely?



Discuss research strategies




Digital literacy: are students using the internet wisely?

What’s the point of the research paper?



Discuss research strategies

Discuss, specify audience and purpose

what our students are writing about

Documents

prompt attentionmotivation

dplagiarismwhy plagiarism

pelton case

spencer poll title

midsummer nights dream

spencercase study

central characters

abovementioned themes