Simple ways to assess the writing skills of students with learning disabilities

Authenticity in writing is when we ask our students to write in their own voices to audiences outside of the classroom, for a real-world purpose, and on topics of significance. When our students write authentic pieces, they may write for the purposes of informing an audience, persuading readers to agree with their position, debating an issue, or presenting a solution to a problem. Whatever the purpose, authentic writing is in a real world format such as an article, letter, book, interview, or business report. When our students write for real reasons they are empowered, motivated, and inspired to communicate effectively.
To further understand authenticity in writing, it is important to understand what authenticity is not. When we ask our students to assume another’s persona or write from another person’s perspective, while this is still an important learning activity, it is not an authentic task. When writing is decontextualized from real world purposes, when students do not experience choice, and when there is not an audience beyond the classroom, writing becomes a rote exercise versus a meaningful experience that teaches students to value writing. Authenticity connects writers to the outside world, inspires writing for a real audience, and ensures that students’ voices are heard. According to Grant Wiggins, authenticity “stimulates contexts that mirror the workplace and other real-life contexts.” The bottom line is that we need our students to become adults who can write. They need to know how to communicate effectively, ethically, and intelligently. 

Simple ways to assess the writing skills of students with learning disabilities

A teacher's first responsibility is to provide opportunities for writing and encouragement for students who attempt to write. A teacher's second responsibility is to promote students' success in writing. The teacher does this by carefully monitoring students' writing to assess strengths and weaknesses, teaching specific skills and strategies in response to student needs, and giving careful feedback that will reinforce newly learned skills and correct recurring problems. These responsibilities reveal, upon inspection, that assessment is clearly an integral part of good instruction. In their review of the existing research on effective instruction Christenson, Ysseldyke, and Thurlow (1989) found that, in addition to other factors, the following conditions were positively correlated to pupil achievement:

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  The degree to which there is an appropriate instructional match between student characteristics and task characteristics (in other words, teachers must assess the student's prior knowledge and current level of skills in order to match them to a task that is relevant and appropriate to their aptitudes);
  
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  The degree to which the teacher actively monitors students' understanding and progress; and
  
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  The degree to which student performance is evaluated frequently and appropriately (congruent with what is taught).
  

Assessment, therefore, is an essential component of effective instruction. Airasian (1996) identified three types of classroom assessments. The first he called "sizing-up" assessments, usually done during the first week of school to provide the teacher with quick information about the students when beginning their instruction. The second type, instructional assessments, are used for the daily tasks of planning instruction, giving feedback, and monitoring student progress. The third type he referred to as official assessments, which are the periodic formal functions of assessment for grouping, grading, and reporting. In other words, teachers use assessment for identifying strengths and weaknesses, planning instruction to fit diagnosed needs, evaluating instructional activities, giving feedback, monitoring performance, and reporting progress. Simple curriculum-based methods for assessing written expression can meet all these purposes.