English Professional Development
12th Grade Expository Reading & Writing Course (ERWC)
Purpose
The 12th Grade Expository Reading and Writing Course (ERWC) was developed with the goal of preparing entering freshmen for college-level English. Once students have been identified in the junior year by the EAP, support must be provided to students to adequately prepare them for the literacy demands of college. For English, the most powerful of these support strategies is the 12th Grade ERWC.
Overview
The CSU Expository Reading and Writing Task Force, comprised of members of the CSU as well as K-12 English faculty and curriculum specialists, has developed a 12th Grade Expository Reading and Writing Course that high schools may pilot and adopt.
The ERWC course includes a series of assignments based primarily on non-fiction texts. The course is designed to prepare students for college level English and it is aligned with the California English-Language Arts Content Standards. The course assignments emphasize the in-depth study of expository, analytical, and argumentative reading and writing. Schools may adopt the course as a senior English course or integrate course modules within existing English courses at the 11th and 12th grades. Teachers attending this workshop will receive:
- Course materials and other professional books
- Lessons for preparing students to meet college-level classes
- Strategies for helping students read and write rhetorically
- An opportunity to calibrate school-level expectations with college-level expectations
CSU campuses and county offices of education across the state are co-sponsoring workshops for teachers who would like to teach the course modules to their students. All interested 11th and 12th grade English teachers are encouraged to participate in this exciting program. AVID teachers are encouraged to participate also. This course not only satisfies the 4th year high school "a-g" English requirement, but also will address critical reading and writing problems identified by the CSU English Placement Test Development Committee.
Great Valley Writing Project
Reading Institute for Academic Preparation (RIAP)
Mission Statement
The Great Valley Writing Project is funded through the California Writing Project, an entity of the California Subject Matter Projects, and the National Writing Project. Our focus is that of improving the teaching of writing through a teachers teaching teachers model. The GVWP offers Invitational Institutes, Open Programs, Professional Development for schools and districts, Inquiry Groups, Guest Author Series, and Young Writers' Programs. The GVWP serves Calaveras, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Tuolumne counties.
Goals
At the center of every program are the goals of the writing project. These goals are to:
- improve the learning and achievement of students by improving the teaching of writing.
- serve teachers, students, schools, and districts through a model of university/school collaboration
- concentrate efforts where literacy is most in jeopardy
- honor the diversity of teachers and students
- emphasize approaches to writing and reading for English language learners
- support teachers as they prepare students to meet state standards
- recognize that teachers are the key to educational reform and that experienced teachers are the best teachers of other teachers
- identify and continually offer a range of teaching and learning strategies so that no child will be excluded.
More Information
See the RIAP flyer (pdf) for Frequently Asked Questions and a sample of an institute schedule. For up to date information you may call the GVWP office at (209) 667-3490 or visit Great Valley Writing Project website.