69传媒

Special Report
69传媒 & Literacy

4 Ways 69传媒 and Writing Interlock: What the Research Says

By Stephen Sawchuk 鈥 January 17, 2023 3 min read
v42 19SR 69传媒 Writing 4 Things to Know 1439825899
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In putting together this special report on how writing instruction can and should build on the science of reading, Education Week reporters read through dozens of studies and spoke to leading researchers in the field.

From this reporting, we landed on four main research takeaways, each of which are worth reiterating here and consulting as school districts assess the strength of their own writing programs.

1. 69传媒 and writing are intimately connected.

Research on the connections between the two disciplines began in the early 1980s and has grown more robust with time. Although there are elements specific to each, like handwriting, that need to be practiced on their own, reading and writing instruction appear to be effective when combined.

Among the newest and most important additions are three research syntheses conducted by Steve Graham, a professor at the University of Arizona, and his research partners. One of them examined a second examined the inverse question. Both found significant positive effects for reading and writing.

A third meta-analysis gets one step closer to classroom instruction. Graham and partners examined 47 studies of instructional programs that 鈥攏o program could feature more than 60 percent of one or the other. The results showed generally positive effects on both reading and writing measures.

2. Writing matters even at the earliest grades, when students are learning to read.

Studies show that the carries meaningful signals about their decoding, spelling, and reading comprehension later on.

69传媒 experts say that students should be supported in writing almost as soon as they begin reading, and evidence suggests that both spelling and handwriting are linked to the ability to connect speech to print鈥攁 process known as encoding鈥攁nd to oral language development.

3. Like reading, writing must be taught explicitly.

Writing is a complex task that demands much of students鈥 cognitive resources. Researchers generally agree that writing must be explicitly taught鈥攔ather than left up to students to 鈥渇igure out鈥 the rules on their own. That way, they can spend more time focusing on what they want to say, rather than trying to determine how to say it effectively.

There isn鈥檛 as much research about how precisely to do this. One 2019 review, in fact, found significant overlap among , and concluded that all showed signs of boosting learning. Debates abound about the amount of structure students need and in what sequence, such as whether they need to master before moving onto paragraphs and lengthier texts.

But in general, students should be guided on how to construct sentences and paragraphs, and they should have access to models and exemplars, the research suggests. They also need to understand the iterative nature of writing, including how to draft and revise.

A number of frameworks incorporating various degrees of are available, though most of them have not been studied empirically.

4. Writing can help students learn content鈥攁nd make sense of it.

Much of reading comprehension depends on helping students absorb 鈥渨orld knowledge鈥濃攖hink arts, ancient cultures, literature, and science鈥攕o that they can make sense of increasingly sophisticated texts and ideas as their reading improves. Writing can enhance students鈥 absorption of this background knowledge, and should be emphasized rather than taking a back seat to the more commonly taught exercises, such as stories and personal reflections.

Graham and colleagues conducted looking at this idea of 鈥渨riting to learn鈥 in mathematics, science, and social studies. The studies included a mix of higher-order assignments, like analyses and argumentative writing, and lower-level ones, like summarizing and explaining.

This bibliography is by no means comprehensive, but it includes some of the studies and commentaries that we found most helpful in putting together this special report.

Berninger V. W., Abbott, R. D., Abbott, S. P., Graham S., & Richards T. (2002). Writing and reading: Connections between language by hand and language by eye. Journal of Learning Disabilities. Special Issue: The Language of Written Language, 35(1), 39鈥56
Berninger, Virginia, Robert D. Abbott, Janine Jones, Beverly J. Wolf, Laura Gould, Marci Anderson-Younstrom, Shirley Shimada, Kenn Apel. (2006) 鈥淓arly development of language by hand: composing, reading, listening, and speaking connections; three letter-writing modes; and fast mapping in spelling.鈥 Developmental Neuropsychology, 29(1), pp. 61-92
Cabell, Sonia Q, Laura S. Tortorelli, and Hope K. Gerde (2013). 鈥淗ow Do I Write鈥? Scaffolding Preschoolers鈥 Early Writing Skills.鈥 The 69传媒 Teacher, 66(8), pp. 650-659.
Gerde, H.K., Bingham, G.E. & Wasik, B.A. (2012). 鈥淲riting in Early Childhood Classrooms: Guidance for Best Practices.鈥 Early Childhood Education Journal 40, 351鈥359 (2012)
Gilbert, Jennifer, and Steve Graham. (2010). 鈥淭eaching Writing to Elementary 69传媒 in Grades 4鈥6: A National Survey.鈥 The Elementary School Journal 110(44)
Graham, Steve, et al. (2017). 鈥淓ffectiveness of Literacy Programs Balancing 69传媒 and Writing Instruction: A Meta-Analysis.鈥 69传媒 Research Quarterly, 53(3) pp. 279鈥304
Graham, Steve, and Michael Hebert. (2011). 鈥淲riting to Read: A Meta-Analysis of the Impact of Writing and Writing Instruction on 69传媒.鈥 Harvard Educational Review (2011) 81(4): 710鈥744.
Graham, Steve. (2020). 鈥淭he Sciences of 69传媒 and Writing Must Become More Fully Integrated.鈥 69传媒 Research Quarterly, 55(S1) pp. S35鈥揝44
Graham, Steve, Sharlene A. Kiuhara, and Meade MacKay. (2020).鈥漈he Effects of Writing on Learning in Science, Social Studies, and Mathematics: A Meta-Analysis.鈥 Review of Educational Research April 2020, Vol 90, No. 2, pp. 179鈥226
Shanahan, Timothy. 鈥淗istory of Writing and 69传媒 Connections.鈥 in Shanahan, Timothy. (2016). 鈥淩elationships between reading and writing development.鈥 In C. MacArthur, S. Graham, & J. Fitzgerald (Eds.), Handbook of writing research (2nd ed., pp. 194鈥207). New York, NY: Guilford.
Slavin, Robert, Lake, C., Inns, A., Baye, A., Dachet, D., & Haslam, J. (2019). 鈥淎 quantitative synthesis of research on writing approaches in grades 2 to 12.鈥 London: Education Endowment Foundation.
Troia, Gary. (2014). Evidence-based practices for writing instruction (Document No. IC-5). Retrieved from University of Florida, Collaboration for Effective Educator, Development, Accountability, and Reform Center website:
Troia, Gary, and Steve Graham. (2016).鈥淐ommon Core Writing and Language Standards and Aligned State Assessments: A National Survey of Teacher Beliefs and Attitudes.鈥 69传媒 and Writing 29(9).

A version of this article appeared in the January 25, 2023 edition of Education Week as 4 Key Things to Know About How 69传媒 and Writing Interlock

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