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Argumentation, Citation, and Calls to Action: Student Letter Writing Practices at Five Schools

Sat, April 6, 12:20 to 1:50pm, Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel, Floor: Second Floor, Churchill

Abstract

Narrative theory suggests that how people write can reveal an orientation to themselves and the world indicative of both identity and perceptions of power, their own and that of others (Wortham, 2001; Ivanic, 1998). Such opportunities highlight the powerful opportunities of critical, and culturally-grounded literacy practices within classrooms (e.g. Gutierrez, 2008; Moje, 2007; Morrell, 2008). At the same time, especially for youth in school-based writing spaces, specific written forms may be more indicative of practices explicitly taught, in different classrooms than of an individual child’s identity (Hillocks, 1986). That said, even in structured school-based writing spaces, young people make agentic choices, taking up classroom expectations in varied ways, learning from not only their teacher but other students as well to co-construct a civic voice. With this complexity in mind, this study examined student Letters to the Next President from five school sites (n=138). We asked, how did students write digital letters to the next president? Findings focus on student writing practices around argumentation, forms and use of evidence, and the ways that students formulated their calls to action.
Five case study schools were identified based on their locations in states identified as “swing states” in the 2016 presidential election, with student demographics that included predominantly students of color, and from courses that were available to all students (i.e. not AP or Honors). Student grade levels spanned 8th-12th and letter sets included 13-46 letters per school. Letters were coded using both a priori and emergent coding frameworks and interrater reliability was established through multiple phases of coding until consensus was reached across the research team.
Findings showed that while certain patterns existed across the data set when taken as a set, many of these patterns were not consistent at the individual school level. Set-wide, letters included argumentation that appealed to logic more frequently than appeals to ethics or empathy, and the use of citation as a form of evidence was more frequent than the use of unsourced data or personal experience. Students drew on personal experience most frequently when they made appeals to empathy or ethics as compared to appeals to logic. While these findings are in line with CCSS standards that guide school-based writing instruction to forefront argumentation structures that appeal to logic and evidence structures that utilize citation, the trends across the five schools were not necessarily consistent when disaggregating findings by school. For example, at one school, students made arguments that appealed to ethics twice as frequently as to logic or empathy.
This paper contributes to new conceptualizations of youth civic writing practices. Findings are understood in today’s broader political context in which what counts as truth, whose experiences are valid, and who has the power to make change are contentious issues. The range of youth civic voices present in the case study letters reflects the ways that youth are embroiled in these nationwide debates. Youth voices in a digital media civics project were shaped by both widespread national trends and local classroom communities.

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