Teaching Students to Write Effectively

Teaching Secondary Students to Write Effectively

This practice guide released by What Works Clearinghouse presents three recommendations for helping students in grades 6 to 12 develop effective writing skills along with the strength of evidence to support the recommendations.

• Explicitly teach appropriate writing strategies using a model-practice-reflect instructional cycle. Strong Evidence
• Integrate writing and reading to emphasize key writing features. Moderate Evidence
• Use assessments of student writing to inform instruction and feedback. Minimal evidence

Each recommendation includes specific actionable guidance for educators on implementing these practices in the classroom. It is geared toward administrators and teachers in all disciplines who want to help improve their students’ writing.