Technology-Based Writing Intervention Package: Supporting Struggling Writers in Essay Writing

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Thursday 5:25 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Innovative Literacy Instruction for Disabled Students (Table 2)

Abstract

Writing is a fundamental skill that is heavily used in school settings and beyond to communicate, collaborate, and express the knowledge across various subject areas. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a technology-based writing intervention package with embedded evidence-based strategies and supports on quantity and quality of essay writing by struggling writers with and without disabilities in the inclusive classrooms. Results revealed that all students improved the quantity and quality of their writing after receiving instruction with the technology intervention. Further, students with disabilities and ELLs used more features of the tool to personalize their learning. The teachers found the tool to be highly useful and believed that it increased students’ motivation to write.

Authors

• Anya S. Evmenova, George Mason University

• Kelley S. Regan, George Mason University

• Jamie Day, University of Missouri