Education: Teaching Writing in the Schools (Graduate Certificate)
The Program
K-12 educators enrolled in the Teaching of Writing in the Schools graduate certificate program will receive a strong grounding in writing and reflective teaching while developing a framework for teaching literacy and writing across the curriculum. Participants will gain a deeper understanding of literacy learning through a combination of working on their writing, reflecting on their teaching practices, and reading current research in composition, literacy, and writing pedagogy. Following the Boston Writing Project “teachers teaching teachers” model, participants will share successful writing activities and develop and implement curriculum. They will formulate research questions about their teaching practices and document the effects of their instruction by collecting and analyzing student work. Practicing K-12 teachers and administrators who seek to enhance their knowledge, skills, and perspective on the teaching and learning of literacy and writing are invited to apply. Teachers of English, writing, special education and Title 1, ESL, and bilingual teachers who want to incorporate writing into their disciplines will benefit from this certificate program.
Degree Requirements
Students seeking the certificate take a total of 15 credits.
Three core courses (9 credits) are required:
| BWPEDU 501 | (The Teacher as Writer) |
| EDC G 621 | (Teaching Writing in the K-12 Classroom) |
| EDC G 689 | (Teacher Research) |
Students also take 6 elective credits, chosen from among BWPEDU elective courses and approved electives from other graduate programs.
Admission Requirements
Please see the general statement of admission requirements for all graduate studies programs in the “Admissions” section of this publication.
Applicants must have at least a bachelor’s degree. A master’s degree is preferred.
Courses
BWPEDU 501
The Teacher as Writer
The focus of the course is improving writing instruction by having teachers actively involved in all phases of the process: prewriting, drafting, revising, and proofreading. Participants will improve their writing skills and learn effective practices for teaching writing. Through journals and reader response methods, participants will integrate composition theories with classroom applications. In writing response groups, they will give and receive feedback for revision. Responding to the works of professional authors, analyzing educational theories, and reflecting on their own frustrations and accomplishments in writing, teachers will reassess their strategies for teaching writing.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits
BWPEDU 510
Writing in the Content Areas (Middle & High School)
This course is designed to address teachers’ growing need to teach writing in specific disciplines. Participants will examine developmental learning theory connecting writing and learning, improve their own writing skills, and learn effective practices for teaching writing. Through journals, writing prompts, and reader response methods, participants will integrate theories with practice. They will examine assessment and evaluation methods for measuring students’ progress. Applying their knowledge of the Massachusetts Curriculum frameworks, they will work on interdisciplinary teams to design units of study that reflect the needs of their school contexts and state standards.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits
BWPEDU 530
Teaching & Writing Poetry: K-12
This workshop course allows teachers and pre-teachers to expand their knowledge of poetry and its classroom applications. Based on the National Writing Project model of supporting teachers to explore their own writing process and critical responses, the better to teach their own students, it incorporates ongoing writing response groups to explore new themes, forms, strategies, and models. Teachers will consider how critical theories translate into classroom practice and how developmental theory applies to grade-level expectations. We will become familiar with a wide range of multicultural poems and poets for ages K-adult.
3 Lect Hrs, 3 Credits