Writing Mechanics Programs

Author(s):Jean Schumaker

Publication Info: Edge Enterprises, 2009

Should “basketball team” be capitalized or not? What words should be capitalized in a title? What words should be capitalized in a quotation? Sometimes, questions like these can make one’s head spin! Not to worry! This computerized instructional program simplifies everything into four easy capitalization lessons that students can work through at their own pace. Students learn a simple poem that helps them remember the capitalization rules, and they learn a strategy for each rule. Included on the CD are an instructor’s manual, the instructional program, and all the materials (e.g., pretest, posttest, handouts, worksheets, answer keys) needed for the program that can be printed out, if necessary. Nevertheless, students can print the materials themselves as needed at various points in the program if their computers are connected to a printer.

For the most part, students can work through the program independently since the program provides feedback on student performance during all computerized activities. An instructor is needed to score papers and provide feedback toward the end of each lesson when students must write sentences that demonstrate their use of the capitalization rules. Additionally, the instructor administers quizzes at certain points to check student understanding and provides “pass codes” that allow a student to progress from one part of the program to another once a rule has been mastered by the student. The program has been very successful in teaching students to find capitalization errors in others’ writing and to use capitalization rules well in their own writing. All ages can benefit, starting with fourth graders. With purchase of each CD is a license to download it onto eight computers.

Resources:

• Capitalization Strategy Research (.pdf)

Research Articles:

• Schumaker, J. B., & Walsh, L. (2009). Effects of a hypermedia program on the punctuation and capitalization skills of students with learning disabilities. Phase II Final report for SBIR Grant #5 R44 HD043618-03

The Story Behind the Capitalization Strategies CD Program from the author:
I started developing instructional programs for writing skills in the 1970s when I was a graduate student at the University of Kansas. My graduate program required me to take part in an internship at the probation department of the Douglas County Juvenile Court in Kansas. I was assigned several cases of truant secondary students. In working with these students, I learned that they could not write. They told me that one of the reasons they avoided school was that they were embarrassed because they could not complete the work assigned to them. I also learned that there were no instructional programs available to teach them writing in an intensive way. I embarked on a journey of developing writing programs that continues to this day. Over the years, my colleagues and I have developed and tested programs for teaching students to write sentences, paragraphs, and themes, and to check their work for errors.

Nevertheless, even though these programs are very successful in teaching students the skills targeted for these programs, I realized that students still did not use many of the complex rules associated with the mechanics of writing, and that they were being required to apply those rules on state writing competency exams and college entrance exams. We began to work on the development of programs to teach students sophisticated rules associated with the mechanics of writing such as capitalization use. We also wondered whether we could teach students to apply these rules by teaching them cognitive strategies through the use of a computer program.

Author's Thoughts about Strategic Instruction:
Strategic instruction is one of the few evidence-based instructional methods that have been shown to be effective in producing student improvement in learning and in academic performance. The study conducted on the Capitalization Strategies Program showed that a variety of students, including junior-high and senior-high students, students with disabilities, and students representing a variety of minority populations could learn to apply complex capitalization rules to edit someone else’s written work and within their own writing. Moreover, their performance exceeded the performance of normally achieving peers on capitalization tasks.

Teacher and Student Feedback on the Capitalization Strategies Program:
Teachers and students have been very positive about this program. Teachers report that student not only learn to write by using the program, but that their reading skills improve as well. They report that navigating through the program is very intuitive and that students immediately are able to work through it with a minimum of instruction. Teachers have used the program in a variety of settings including general education English classes, resource rooms, and after-school programs with students as early as the fourth grade.

Author(s): Jean Schumaker, Jan B. Sheldon

Publication Info: Edge Enterprises, 2011

Should I use semicolons in this list, or should I use commas? Do the quotation marks go inside or outside of the comma? Is this a compound adjective that needs a hyphen or not? Is this a singular or plural possessive? The answers to such questions require quite a bit of understanding related to the punctuation rules, which are sometimes complex and confusing. Fortunately, this computerized instructional program boils it all down to some simple rhymed phrases like, “For plural words that end in ‘s’ a lone apostrophe is best.” Indeed, this program simplifies everything into six easy punctuation lessons that students can work through at their own pace. Students learn a poem that helps them remember the punctuation rules, and they learn a strategy for each rule. Included on the CD are an instructor’s manual, the instructional program, and all the materials (e.g., pretest, posttest, handouts, worksheets, answer keys) needed for the program that can be printed out, if necessary. Nevertheless, students can print the materials themselves as needed at various points in the program if their computers are connected to a printer.

For the most part, students can work through the program independently since the program provides feedback on student performance during all computerized activities. An instructor is needed to score papers and provide feedback toward the end of each lesson when students must write sentences that demonstrate their use of the punctuation rules. Additionally, the instructor administers quizzes at certain points to check student understanding and provides “pass codes” that allow a student to progress from one part of the program to another once a rule has been mastered by the student. The program has been very successful in teaching students to find punctuation errors in others’ writing and to use the punctuation rules in their own writing. All ages can benefit, starting with fifth or sixth graders through college. With purchase of each CD is a license to download it onto eight computers.

Resources:

• The Punctuation Strategy Research (pdf)

Research Articles:

• Schumaker, J. B., & Walsh, L. (2009). Effects of a hypermedia program on the punctuation and capitalization skills of students with learning disabilities. Phase II Final report for SBIR Grant #5 R44 HD043618-03.

The Story Behind the Punctuation Strategies Software Program from the author:
I started developing instructional programs for writing skills in the 1970s when I was a graduate student at the University of Kansas. My graduate program required me to take part in an internship at the probation department of the Douglas County Juvenile Court in Kansas. I was assigned several cases of truant secondary students. In working with these students, I learned that they could not write. They told me that one of the reasons they avoided school was that they were embarrassed because they could not complete the work assigned to them. I also learned that there were no instructional programs available to teach them writing in an intensive way. I embarked on a journey of developing writing programs that continues to this day. Over the years, my colleagues and I have developed and tested programs for teaching students to write sentences, paragraphs, and themes, and to check their work for errors.

Nevertheless, even though these programs are very successful in teaching students the skills targeted for these programs, I realized that students still did not use many of the complex rules associated with the mechanics of writing, and that they were being required to apply those rules on state writing competency exams and college entrance exams. We began to work on the development of programs to teach students sophisticated rules associated with the mechanics of writing such as punctuation use. We also wondered whether we could teach students to apply these rules by teaching them cognitive strategies through the use of a computer program.

Author's Thoughts about Strategic Instruction:
Strategic instruction is one of the few instructional methods that have been shown to be effective through empirical research to produce student improvement in learning and in academic performance for at-risk students. The study conducted on the Punctuation Strategies Program showed that a variety of students, including junior-high and senior-high students, students with disabilities, and students representing a variety of minority populations could learn to apply complex comma rules to edit someone else’s written work and within their own writing. Moreover, their performance exceeded the performance of normally achieving peers on punctuation tasks.

Teacher and Student Feedback on the Punctuation Strategies Program:
Teachers and students have been very positive about this program. Teachers report that students not only learn to write by using the program, but that their reading skills improve as well. They report that navigating through the program is very intuitive and that students immediately are able to work through it with a minimum of instruction. Teachers have used the program in a variety of settings including general education English classes, resource rooms, and after-school programs.