Teacher Evaluation Post-LAL Program Survey 2010 – prepared 1-25-2011

1. Teacher Evaluation Post-LAL Program Survey 2010 – prepared 1-25-2011 Responses are from teachers across all three competition levels; approximately 25% were first time participants in LAL; 75% had participated in LAL in the past. Comparison to last year’s survey: 60% were first-time LAL participants; 40% had participated in LAL in the past. The survey was voluntary, available online at www.lettersaboutliterature.org and dependent on teachers logging onto the site, downloading the document and then returning to us at lal@epix.net. Note that this survey came at the end of the program and thus, the end of the school year and that may account for a lower than hoped-for response.

2. Question 1: Actual Learning. What did your children learn about the reading and writing process and/or literature as a result of participating in LAL? Answer options in grey box below. Sentence structure Vocabulary/word choice Writing for a particular audience Writing for a particular purpose Use of topic sentences and supporting details Paragraphing and organization Use of figurative language Literary elements Other: letter format developing writer’s voice • Results: Across all levels, writing for a particular audience and for a particular purpose were the top two boxes checked: • writing for a particular purpose • (L 1 = 90.6%; L 2 = 92.6%; L 3 = 68.4%) • writing for a particular audience • (L1 = 72%; L 2 = 100%; L 3 = 73.7%) • Additionally, on L 1, more than 50% of respondents identified paragraphing /organization and sentence structure as skills LAL helped them to teach. • Level 2. 59.3% of respondents identified vocabulary/word choice as a skill enhanced by LAL. • Although all language arts skills were checked by respondents, the less valuable skills were figurative language and literary elements.

3. Level 1: • My students strived to find just the right word choices and to bring the insight of the book into their own personal lives. It is a great contest and lets students have an audience for their thoughts outside the constraints of the classroom. I think it makes all students work a little harder as they will be judged by a vaster audience. Teacher Comments Level 3: It was a delight to have them write with a clear audience (the author) in mind and to find ways that, as they read, they connected with the characters, the storyline or the personal conflicts of the protagonists. Finding a connection proved, for some, a struggle. But when they saw how the story in the novel related to their own life story. I would emphasize engagement as the keystone to the contest. My kids got engaged and , as such, saw literature not as some death thing to analyze like a corpse but as a living being related to them. • Level 2: • Our language arts department wanted to devise a way to asses students’ ability to make connections in text. The LAL contest afforded me the opportunity to assess this skill in context. At the same time, students were writing with a purpose. Knowing that the letters may be read by the authors . . . made students eager to participate.

4. Question 2: Behavioral Changes. What behavioral or attitudinal changes did you observe in your students as a result of their participation in LAL? Increased motivation to complete the assignment Increased motivation to succeed in the assignment Increased participation in class discussion relative to the assignment Willingness to express ideas or share experiences with others No change Other: Enhanced interest in reading and writing • Results: • Across all levels, more than half of respondents indicated willingness to express ideas/share experiences as an learning outcome. • (L 1 = 62.5% L 2 = 95.8%; L 3 = 54.5%) • Across all levels, increased motivation to complete the assignment was an observed outcome • (L1 = 60%%; L 2 = 54.2%; L 3 = 49% • No respondents checked “no change,” indicating that all respondents observed behavioral changes as a result of completing LAL activities. • Responses to questions 1 and 2 this year are consistent with responses tallied in last year’s survey. We note no significant change between this year and last year’s survey results.

5. Question 3: Critical Thinking Skills. By participating in LAL, my students acquired and/or applied the following critical thinking skills: Affective Strategies Thinking independently Exploring thoughts underlying feelings and feelings underlying thoughts Developing intellectual courage Developing confidence in reasoning • Results: • The number 1 response across all levels was exploring thoughts underlying feelings and feelings underlying thoughts • (L 1 = 100%; L 2 = 63%; L 68.4%) • Thinking independently was the second highest response across all levels. • It is worth noting that of the four boxes, none were left unchecked. This indicates that some, but not all, respondents perceived developing intellectual courage and developing confidence in reasoning was learning outcomes. • Again, these responses are consistent with last year’s survey results.

6. Question 3: Critical Thinking Skills. By participating in LAL, my students acquired and/or applied the following critical thinking skills: Cognitive Strategies – Macro-Abilities Refining generalizations and avoiding oversimplifications Comparing analogous situations: transferring insights to new contexts Developing one’s perspective: creating or exploring beliefs, arguments or theories Clarifying issues, conclusions or beliefs Clarifying and analyzing the meanings of words or phrases Developing criteria for evaluation: clarifying values and standards Questioning deeply: raising and pursuing root or significant questions Analyzing or evaluation actions or policies Reading critically Reasoning dialogically: comparing perspectives., interpretations or theories Evaluating perspectives, interpretations or theories

7. Question 3: Critical Thinking Skills. By participating in LAL, my students acquired and/or applied the following critical thinking skills (B. Cognitive Strategies-Macros Abilities) Results: Obviously, the number of choices are greater in this question than in others and as was the case last year, response varied according to grade level. The responses below differ from last year’s survey wherein Level 1 teachers indicated “comparing analogous situations: transferring insights to new contexts” as their first choice for a learning outcome.

8. Question 3: Critical Thinking Skills. By participating in LAL, my students acquired and/or applied the following critical thinking skills: C. Cognitive Strategies – Micro-Skills Comparing and contrasting ideals with actual practice Thinking precisely about thinking: using critical vocabulary Noting significant similarities and differences Examining or evaluating assumptions Distinguishing relevant from irrelevant facts Making plausible inferences, predictions, or interpretations Exploring implications and consequences

9. Question 3: Critical Thinking Skills. By participating in LAL, my students acquired and/or applied the following critical thinking skills (C. Cognitive strategies—Micro-Skills) Results: Here again there is a difference in how teachers responded, based gonrade levels. And, the responses are different from last year’s. The top three responses, with percentages, are provided below. How this differs from last year is that distinguish relevant from irrelevant facts was not among the top responses for Level 1 but was the number one outcome for Level 2 respondents. Level 3 respondents emphasized comparing and contrasting skills that weren’t noted last year.

10. Conclusions Teachers across all levels use LAL as a strategy to help them teach writing for a particular audience and purpose as well as to support language arts skills such as paragraphing and the use of topic sentences with supportive details. These writing skills are basic to most elementary, middle, and high school state writing requirements. Teachers across all levels note increased student motivation and participation when completing the LAL assignment. Teachers view LAL as an effective means of teaching a variety of critical thinking skills, in particular exploring thoughts underlying feelings and feelings underlying thoughts; avoiding generalizations, and developing perspectives. Additionally, teachers value LAL as a means for guiding students in how to read critically and distinguish relevant from irrelevant facts.

11. Your contest had clear rules and guidelines and made it one that I wish I had found years ago. –Marion Pontz, PA Teacher Comments Level 3: Each year I wonder whether I can fit LAL into a crowded curriculum. And every year I do fit it in. I finish the semester feeling much more positive about the experience. My students reflect on their lives and return to the idea of reading as a transformative experience. We get so bogged down with literary analysis, genres, and terms that we forget to pay attention to the ways literature can improve our lives. • Level 2: • I offered this contest as an extra assignment for students who were interested . . . I was very pleasantly surprised that some of my more reluctant students chose to enter. Hooray! While some of the entries represent rudimentary writing for seventh graders, my heart couldn’t be happier that some piece of literature inspired these students to write. . . . This contest was a joy to participate in, and I look forward to it becoming a tradition in my classroom.