ESL Middle School Assessment

Description and Rationale:

I am envisioning a writing task for my 6th, 7th, and 8th grade ESL students during their 5th
hour English class at MacDonald Middle School in East Lansing, Michigan. The majority
of the class is consistently at WIDA Level 4-Expanding, but they are being pushed
towards Level 5-Bridging. What I will be looking at is students’ correct usage of articles
(a, an, the) in a persuasive writing piece where they will be creating more complex
sentences and include a variety of complex grammatical structures as stated in the WIDA
Level 5-Bridging Performance Definitions. The lesson will be centered on the following
Common Core State Standards:
 CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.2.D - Use precise language and domain-specific
vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic
 CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.C - Use words, phrases, and clauses to create
cohesion and clarify the relationships among claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and
evidence
 CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.D - Establish and maintain a formal style.

My rationale for this assessment comes from class readings as well and conversations
I’ve had with my mentor teacher. In my placement, I have proofread students’ papers
correcting a numerous amount of errors concerning article usage (a, an, the). My mentor
teacher told me this is something they have been working on all year, and something they
will continue to work on constantly during their time in her ESL class. This is something
a lot of ESL students struggle with, but it’s important to notice the usage of their articles
in their writing, because writing should be very formal and contain proper grammar and
article usage. This is a formative assessment measuring students’ linguistic complexity
and their correct article usage while writing an opinion piece. Students have been writing
pieces all year, including persuasive, informative, and narrative. At the middle school
level, an opinion/persuasive writing piece is something that allows students to express
themselves, their background knowledge, and their opinions through their writing. It
allows for planning and structure, including an introduction, claims, evidence, and
conclusions. Students will first write their piece by hand, and then type a final draft on
the computer because incorporating technology is important in preparing them for the
WIDA test.

Here is what I will be looking for. These questions are what I will use to formulate to a
rubric for students to reference while doing this opinion writing task.
 Common Core State Standards ELA
o Is their opinion on the topic clearly stated in the first paragraph?
o Are students using at least 3 pieces of evidence in their writing?
 Is this evidence from a credible source?
o Is there clear organization between claims, reasons and evidence?
o Are students writing using a formal style, with a separate paragraph for
each of the 3 reasons with topic sentences and concluding sentences?
o Is there an introduction and conclusion, reinstating their opinion?
  WIDA Writing Performance Definition – Level 5-Bridging
o Is the student using a variety of complex sentence structures matched to
the purpose of their writing?
o Is there an organized, cohesive, and coherent expression of ideas
characteristic of particular content areas?
o Are students correctly using articles before nouns (a, an, the)?

I want to focus on whether my students can create a variety of sentences, both simple and
complex, while also developing their opinion on a controversial topic. I also want to see
that they are correctly using articles before nouns in their writing, but I don’t want to put
too much pressure on this idea so that it doesn’t distract them from completing the task.
This is simply to assess them on what they know and what they’ve learned regarding
correct article usage. In order to target my students’ ability to do this correctly, I would
indicate that they should use a combination of simple and complex sentences to write
paragraphs with a topic sentence, supporting evidence, and concluding statements. I
could provide them with an example opinion piece that would show them the types of
sentences I was looking for. The topic for the opinion piece will also be provided for
them, which will make it easier to compare students’ writing to one another while I am
grading these.

To accommodate this lesson for my ESL students, I will make sure that the directions
include student-friendly language, avoiding complex vocabulary. There are a few
students who I know might have more trouble understanding the directions than others,
and I could accommodate them by either further explaining the directions verbally or
giving them the instructions in their home language (translanguaging). Students have
been writing pieces all year, and it is important to have a solid foundation in formal
writing before going on to high school (for opinion, narrative, and informative). Some
accommodations that I would make for specific students:
o One student who is new from China is significantly less proficient than the
rest of the class. She is more at a WIDA Level 1-Entering state, using
single words to get her ideas across. She is able to understand, but has
trouble communicating back. I would specifically explain the instructions
to her, and might focus on her writing as a whole instead of looking at her
correct article usage unlike the rest of the class. Having her work on this
with another Chinese student might also work to her benefit, so that they
could translanguage about their ideas.
Directions and Rubric:

Opinion Writing

Opinion writing is where you write your opinion, or how you feel, about a topic and then
give reasons to back-up why you think that way. For this assignment, you are going to
use 3 reasons to back-up your opinion, and find evidence on credible websites (not
Wikipedia) using the computers or iPads to support your 3 reasons.

You will start your paper with an introduction paragraph, telling your audience about the
topic and your opinion. Each reason will have its own paragraph with a topic sentence,
the supporting evidence, and a closing sentence. Also include a conclusion paragraph at
the end, where you will say your opinion again. There should be 5 paragraphs total.

Use the graphic organizer below to brainstorm your ideas. You may brainstorm in your
home-language, but the opinion paper will be in ENGLISH. After you show me your
graphic organizer, a handwritten copy will be turned in first and then a TYPED final
copy.

Click Here for an example of opinion writing to help you get started. Please look at the
rubric below to see what you will be graded on.

Select ONE of the school-related questions below to write you opinion paper on.
o Should students have to wear uniforms in school?
o Should there be less homework?
o How important are standardized tests?