EVALUATION Of GENRE-BASED GRADE 9 NARRATIVE WRITING

William L. Gavigan

A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education

Department of Curiculurn, Teaching and Learning Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the

University of Toronto

(?) Copyright by Wiam L. Gavigan 1999

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EVALUATION OF GENRE-BASED GRADE 9 NARRATIVE W T I N G William Laurence Gavigan, Ed.D., 1999

Department of Curriculum, Teaching and Leaming, Ontario hstitute for Studies in Education for the

University of Toronto

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to develop critena of evaluation for genre-based narrative

writing, for possible inclusion in secondary schooI language and literature programmes. The

genre-based approach is founded on a science pioneered and promoted by M.AK. Halliday

(1985a) and cded Systemic Linguistics. This last describes analyticaiiy how language is

stnictured and employed at the word, phrase, clause and sentence Ievels in order to fulfif its

pnmary purpose of conveying meaning. A genre-based approach to writing differs £iom

traditional approaches in as much as it recognizes that grammar is principaiiy a functional concept

to be used as a means for conveying rrieaning.

This study materialized as much from the felt need to create a reliable and valià assessrnent

scde for this new approach to writing as from the fact that, in rny understanding, genre-based

writing derives logicaliy fiom the traditionai and process approaches underlying the Ontario

Ministry Guidelines (1 977 & 1987) for wntten Enghsh composition and the Ontario Assessrnent

Instrument Poo1 (OAIP, 1990). These latter approaches have been presented in this study both as

a way of highlighting what were seen to be the genre-based principles they implicitly included, and

as a means of showing that no sharp break divides genre-based writing fiom the approaches that

have preceded it in my classroorn practice.

The pioneering work of Diederich et al. (1974) and of Cooper and OdeIi (1977) in creating ways of improving the reliability, and therefore to some degree the validity, of grades

on essays (ibid.) was adopted as a mode1 for the study. A 10-factor assessment scale, based on

the essentials of genre-based narrative writing and modelled after the guidelines of Macken et al.

(1 98%, pp. 84- 1 OO), was developed. The Cooper & Ode11 format was re-arranged to show its

factor-to-factor correspondence with the new assessment scale. One hundred written narrative

teas were assessed through the application of both scales by 7 teachers who were judged to be

conversant with genre-based narrative writing pedagogy, a suitable tirne-lapse being allowed to

intervene between the two assessments so as to rninimize reciprocd innuence of the assessrnent

results on each other. A reliability CO-efficient for the new assessment scale was calculated for all

possible paired combinations (21) of the 7 assessors, by using the Tetrachorics method of

Diederich (1974, pp.32fl) and the Spearman-Brown Prophecy Formula. The mean CO-efficient of

reliability for ail 2 1 pairs was ,846 1, which figure exceeds the measure of reliability of . 80

stipulated by Diedench as adequate for the purpose of assessing school essays.

The validity of the new assessment scde was also a concem of the study. Messick's

(1 988b) definition of validity as "an integrated evaluative judgement of the degree to which

empincal evidence and theoretical rationales support the adequacy and appropnateness of

inferences and actions based on test scores" was used as the guide. This definition, as expounded

in Messick's 4-celied mat* points to the"progressiveU long-term nature of the validation process

that requires varied sources as evidence of support. Hence the process merely begun here could

lead to further research. The empirical evidence supporting the adequacy of the inferences made

about the new writing assessment based on the scores obtained, is an initial pointer to the

probable value of the criteria to teachers in their classroom work of assessment.

(iii)

My sincere thanks go to all the people who have given me their generous direction, advice and encouragement in the process of undergohg and complethg this study. To Professor J i Cummins, Chair of my committee 1 wish to express my special appreciation for his re-assuring words and never faihg support when adverse winds began to blow as they often did. It was Professor Howard Russell who first launched my efforts in the venture and 1 am grateful for his support and guidance. When Dr. AIister Cumming exercised bis master's editùig skills on my various drafts, his pen was as keen as the surgeon's scalpel and my sincere thanks are due to him for his patient insisteme on correctness and accuracy of expression and for his knowledgeable intervention in keeping the study right on target. 1 thank Dr. Rralstrom, Chair of the department, for ailowing me extensions of tirne, Dr. Cameron Walter whose assistance and encouragement were never further than a phone c d away, Valerie in the graduate ofice for her assistance on numerous occasions and Fedora for her help with the typescript. I am deeply grateful also to the grade 9 students who volunteered their essays, to the schools and department heads who s u p e ~ s e d the coilecting and despatching of them to me, and to the seven teachers who volunteered their time so generously to assess them. Finally rny gratitude goes to my brother Pat, to my sister-in-law Maureen, to my nephew Patrick, and to a special fiend Mary who sustained my efforts throughout.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract Acknowledgements Table of contents List of figures Appendices

Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION AND STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Introduction A Miniary policies and witing cumculum goals in Ontario B. The purpose of this study C. The study of genres

1. Reliability 2. Validity

D. My background relative to this study

Statement of the problem A. The Question and anafyticd sub-questions B. Procedures for each sub-question

Chapter 2

BACKGROUND TO THE QUESTION UNDER CONSIDERATION

A. Introduction B. Linguistic description of genre

1 . The function of linguistics anaiysed 2. Functional grammar and genre

C. L e d n g theory Using linguistics in the classroom

D. How bct ional grammar c m be used by teachers 1. Teachers' approaches to writing 2. Register 3. The linguistic system analysed

a. Reference: the system b. Conjunction: the system c. Theme: the system d. Lexical cohesion: the system

iv vii

.*-

vlll

4. Implications for teaching a. Registers in speech and writing b. Teachuig Register in a narrative c. Teachhg Field d. Teaching Tenor (personal) e. Teaching Tenor (fiinctional) E Teaching Mode

5. Summary and conclusions E. Assessment practices

1 . Factors underlying an assessment system 2. Assessment as frequently done in schools 3. New assessment mode1 4. A linguistic approach to assessment

Chapter 3

THEORETICAL FOUNDATION OF WRITING PROGRAMMES IT AND COURSES I HAVE TAUGm

A. Theoretical assumptions underlying Ontario Ministry and TCDSB documents B. My practice in the teaching of writing based on Ontario Muiistry GuideLines 1977 C. My writing programme in detail

1. Objectives 2. Evaluation: marking scheme 3. Volume of assigned work 4. Method of assessment 5. s u m a t y

D. My writing programme as mandated by Ministry Guidelines 1987 1 . Objectives 2. Writing assignments and evaluation 3 . Further evaluation of student h i n g

a. Assessing leaming background b. Ongoing assessment c. Summative tests, examinations and projects d. Reporting results to students

4. Su-

E. Charactenstics of genre-based narrative writing in practice Genre-based writing in the classroom 1. The modelling phase 2. The joint negotiation stage 3. Independent construction of text 4. Grammar 5. Summary and conclusions

Chapt er 4

MY NEW ASSESSMENT CRI'fERLA

1. Introduction: rationale for the new assessment criteria (NAS) 2. The Diederich holistic analytic scde 3. The Diederich scale re-arranged 4. My New Assessrnent Scale: underlying rationale 5. Grade 9 narratives assessed according to rny new s d e

Chapter 5

ANALYSES ANI) RESULTS

A. Testing the reiiability and validity of the proposed assessment results B. Reliability C. Reliability results D. Validity results

1 . Validation of content 2. Criterion validity 3. Constnict validity

E. Summary of the results F. Limitations of the study

Chapter 6

IMPLICATIONS

Bibiiography Appendices

UST OF FIGURES

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 1 O

Figure 11

Figure 12

Figure 1 3

Figure 14

Figure 15

5-factor Diederich scale (1 974)

New assessment scale (NAS)

Traditionai assessment sale (TAS)

The legend of Black Bart: analyacal units

Experientiai meanings: the textual structure analysed

Reference: the textuai structure analysed

Conjunction: the temal structure analysed

Theme: the textual structure analysed

Lexical cohesion: the textual structure analysed

Diedeiich anaiytical scale (Cooper & Odell, 1 977, p.7)

NAS applied to narratives: Ievel 1

NAS applied to narratives: level 3

NAS applied to narratives: level 5

Reliability co-efficients for assessment scores using NAS and TAS

Cornparison of TAS and NAS criteria of assessment

UST OF APPENDICES

Appendix A

Appendix B

Appendix C

Appendix D

Appendix E

Appendix F

Appendix FI

Appendix G

Appendix H

Appendix J

Appendix K

Appendix L

Appendix M

Appendix N

Appendix P

Appendix Q

Appendix R

Appendix S

Chapter One

INTRODUCTION AM) STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Introduction

A. Ministry ~olicies and cumculum ~ o a l s in Ontario

One of the recomrnendations of the Royal Commission on Leamhg in Ontario as reported in

the Toronto Star of January 27, 1995 (p. A 11) is "to administer a grade eleven literacy test that

students would have to pass in order to receive a diplorna." Literacy mua mhkxdy inciude

proficiency in many foms of h t i n g ; yet, Hammond (1987) declares that the teaching of writing

in the English language to students at secondary level is largely confïned to the narrative and

expository modes (p. 167).

The C U ~ C U ~ U ~ Guidelines in English of the Ontario Ministry of Education and Training

state: "Students use [language] to write reports, sumrnaries, outlines, editorials, notes,

cornmentaries, essays and examination answers" (1987, p. 18). The immediate goal is to give to

the teaching of writing a place of prominence in the classroom in keeping with expected student

cornpetence on graduation. The teaching of writing is a major concern in the Ministry language

arts cumculum. The Guidelines remind teachers that "business, industry and the professions will

require that [graduates] be competent in writing reports, letters, rnemoranda, records, and critical

reviews" (p. 18), while post-secondary education institutions will expect a certain competency

fi-om their students in writing "critiques, reports, personal short essays in response to examination

questions, and long essays in support of an argument" (p. 18). Yet it is the experience of this

writer that in Ontario the teaching of h t i n g must be content with minimal class tirne, because

prescribed texts in prose, poetry and drama must also be attended to as [the p a t e r ] part of a

course of studies in English language and literature.

It is unlikely that those not positioned in a bureaucracy requiruig expertise in the reading

and writing of such texts as memos, reports, nirveys, minutes, proposais, will develop a command

of these literary forms, since çuch knowledge "does not corne aaturaliy" or "spontaneously fiom

within" (Kress & Knapp, 1992, p. 4). These forms or genres are socially and culturally

determùied, and students can be made aware of their unique structure, of how they are produced

in response to and emerge fiom specific social situations; but students can also be helped to

develop a certain expertise in producing them. The assessment of writing has also been somewhat

problematic and has been the focus of attention over the last halfcentury, both for researchers

who have sought to develop tools for the reliable and valid assessment of writing, and for teachers

who will employ those tools to score written essays. It is these needs in written literacy pedagogy

in Ontario that have been the prime motivators to me for embarking on this study of genre-based

Wnting .

B. The oumose of this

The study wiil examuie the concept of genre in English writing, and develop a

methodology for assessing student genre-based narrative compositions at grade 9 in the context of

public education in Ontario. The guidelines developed wiIl be available to teachers of writing, and

may serve to enhance both their cornpetence and confidence in this area, as well as offer a basis

for the development of similar guidelines at the senior level of education. In order to approach the

teaching of writing fkom the relatively new standpoint of genre, teachers need information about

what the concept means, how it dif5ers from the growfh and process approaches stiil widely

practised, and directives on how best to teach genres in writing as weU as criteria by which to

assess standards of exceilence in pupil performance.

It has aLready been stated that assessment of WRting has been a cause of concern to

researchers for a number of years -- the fact that two assessors equdy qualified could seldom

assign an identical score to the same essay. A solution was sought in the indirect marking of

written work by assigning ment marks for such factors as grammar and usage. However, the mark

assigned to an essay depended more on the assessor than on the merits of the written text

(Diedench, 1974), a fact which moved Diederich and his coilaborators to embark on a project

"the principal [aim of which was] to suggest ways of improving the reiiability of grades on essays"

( i d . p. 1). Cooper and Odeil (1977) played a prominent part in establishing this new technique

of direct assessment of writùig. The technique is an analytic scale, developed by the process of

factor andysis, from the comrnents made on each of a set of individual essays by a nurnber of

raters (Diederich, 1974). Ln applying the scale, assessors assign a score to identifid traits

according to whether and to what degree they are present in the text. The scores thus generated

"correlate reasonably weU" (Freedman, 1984) with holistic scores, and in cornparison studies

"analytic scores have proven to be the most reliable of aU direct writing assessment procedures"

(Scherer, 1985). This is one reason why the Cooper and Odell analytic scale (1977) which is

based on that of Diedench (1974) has been used as a partial basis for the new assessment criteria

developed in this study.

C. The studv of genres

This study of genres here is characterized as "evaluation research" for the following

reasons: (i) 1t is aimed at creatingkoilecting data that will facilitate the making of a decision

regarding the method of evaiuating writing. It does not entail the formulation of hypotheses to be

accepted or rejected. (ii) It has the iimited purpose of developing valid and reliable assessment

criteria applicable to narrative writing at the grade 9 level. It aspires to create and discover

principles accounting for relations between variables that have a wide application. (iü) It is

designed to show the value of the genre-based assessment of writing, i-e., it is concemed with

"procedures" (Borg & Gall, 1989, p. 748) of evaluation.

The study is aimed at developing and vaiidating a new cumculum product -- an

instrument to assess grade 9 narrative writing -- through experirnental research in this area. The

criteria of assessment have been based on the essential characteristics of genre-based narrative

writing as extrapolated f?om the relevant theoretical literature. These assessment criteria have

forrned the construct (Messick, 1989) of this study, and in their tentative format, have been field-

tested in the Intemediate school setting, and revised so as to eliminate any deficiencies or

incongruences that ernerged. The revised criteria were then used to assess a greater number of

essays retrieved randomly fiom a random sample of schools, and to c a y out further fine tuning in

the interests of clarification and faciiity of use. An effort was made to achieve a reliability factor in

the grading process through their use, of at least -80 in accordance with the directives of

Diedench (1974, p.33), who has corne to accept a reliabiiïty factor of .80 in essay grading as

adequate "for [the making of] practicai decisions in the ordinary course of school work" (ibid., p.

33) . The validity of the construct, assessment schema for genre-based narrative writing, was dso

assessed following the principles elaborated by Messick (1988, 1989% 1989b) and of Cumming &

Berwick (1996); and a discussion and elaboration of reliability and validity now follows.

Reliability "Reliability is an important aspect of validity.. ." (Williamson & Huot, 1993, p. 17).

Reliability in educationai assessment refers to the intemal consistency of a measure, or its stability

over a period of t h e or its ability to yield consistent results even when used by different people in

assessing the same material. Evidence on reliability gives input on the extent to which an

assessment tool WU yield similar results for the same living subjects at different times or under

different conditions. In this present çtudy, reliability refers to the extent to which the new writing

assessment scale wiIi yield similar and consistent results when applied to a set of one hundred

written texts by seven dEerent assessors independently. Unreliability can resuit fiom factors

pertaining to the assessment instrument, or to the administrator, or to the conditions (physical or

psychological) in which a test is ad-stered and taken. It can also result fiorn a lack of expertise

in test-taking on the part of the ones being assessed. Thus, for example, when less than ideal

conditions prevail in the taking of two dflerent forms of the sarne test by the same group of

persons, or in the taking of a test by one person on different occasions, it is highly unlikely that

the subjects will obtain the same score each time the test is taken. The dflerence is due to errors

in measurement, and the p a t e r the difference the lower the reliability of the test or assessment

scores.

The reliability of a particular rneasure is expressed as a reliabiiity CO-efficient. This is

computed by calculating a correlation CO-efficient between two sets of scores that are assigned by

two different people as measures of the same factor. This CO-etticient will V a r y fiom O (a total

lack of reliability) to 1 .O which points to a full or perfect reliability. The reliability of standardized

tests is usually expressed in the official handbook presenting the tests. Different types of tests

have different levels of reliability, e.g., achievement batteries have a reliability of .66 (low) to .98

(high) with a median reliability of -92; scholastic ability tests Vary nom -56 (low) to .97 (high)

with a median reliability of .90 (Borg & Gall, 1989, p. 258). These co-efficients indicate the

extent to which test scores are different because of the e f f i of various sources of error. Error

variance is defined as "the summed eEect of the chance ciifkences between persons that arise

fiom factors associated with a partida. memement" (Borg & Gall, ibid., p.259). Thus the

closer the CO-efficient of reliability is to 1 .O, the more the test or assessment is an acnirate

measure of the real différences between and among human subjects with regard to the façtor(s)

measured by the test, and thus the more the test is fkee of erm due to mor. For a score to be

fully reliable, it would be expected that a number of assessurs would give a test answer the same

score at every reading, and this score would be identical numericdy for each rater. Reliability co-

efficients can also be obtained by calculating a correlation between two sets of scores assigned by

two different assessors through the use of one assessrnent scale. The method is chosen to suit the

purpose a person has in mind. In this shidy reiiability refers to the degree to wbich the use of the

new assessment criteria will yietd sirnilm resuits when applied by a nurnber of teachers working in

similar circumstances to a set of one hundred wrinen texts. Reliability in assessment measures is

important especidy for students at intemediate and secondary lwels, because the written essay

accounts for a substantiai portion of their final yearly mark and therefore in decisions regarding

their promotion to a higher grade. It is more important in decisions about their entry to third level

education because of the multiplicity of teachers who assess their written essays with a view to

m a h g these decisions.

According to Cooper and OdeIl (1977, p. 18), "reliabiiity [of essay grades] can be

improved to an acceptable level when raters nom similar backgrounds are carefully trained."

Odeli himself obtained reliabilities of -80, 1.0 and 1.0 between two assessors who were choosing

the better essay in each of 30 pairs of prdposttest essays, in each of three kinds of writing (ibid.,

p. 19). nius Cooper and Odell declare (ibid.) "When raters are from similar backgrounds.. . trained

in a holistic scoring guide.. .they can achieve nearly pefiect agreement.. .and.. .scoring reliabilities in

the high eighties and low nineties.. . " Follman and Anderson (1 967) therefore attribute

unreliability to heterogeneity in academic and experiential background on the part of assessorq

and they recommend that such assessors should be helped to focus on the value of a certain genre

of writing by becorning acquainted with a "theme evaluation procedure" which they will use in

assessrnent .

Diacdties regarda CO-operation and time are also proposed (Cooper & Ode4 p. 20) as

the "main constraints in achieving reliable scores of writing performance. " To compensate for

these, they recommend two written texts fiom each student, their "best" pieces, done on different

days; the scorers should be carefully trauied for the specific task to be performed, keeping in mind

the conditions under which the writing was done.

In this study an effort was made to compensate for lack of reliability arising fiom rater

circumstances by employing teachers who were considered to be already familiar with genre-

based writuig (teaching and assessing), who were engaged in teaching grade 9 language literacy,

and to each of whom was given "a theme evduation procedure" which was included in the essay

package that was despatched to each. Student writing unreliability was offset to some extent by

requestuig the "best" narrative samples which were written for submission to the Ontario Ministry

Wnting Test, in a controiled environment without time constraints, and were volunteered by the

students themselves whose anonymity was respected. Individual students gave written permission

for the use of their essays, but the permission letters were sent to me separate fiom the essays.

Validity A measure or assessrnent schema is valid to the extent that it does what it is

designed to do. The validation of tests and other assessment measures has been a eequently

debated and revised concept in the field of educational testing over the past thirty years. New

conceptions of vaiidity bave been proposed in more recent years (Cummuig & Berwick, 1996, pp.

5&6), and notions of test validity based on factors other t b psychometric have been suggested

to give greater irnpetus to more acceptable kïnds of educational practices than have resulted fiom

traditional testing. Among those factors which promote more desirable types of student learning

and educational practices are included "consequences on the ways teachers and students lrtilize

their tirne to achieve the goals of education; fairness in assessment; and the quality,

rneaningfulness and cognitive complexity of curriculum content" (ibid., pp. 6&7). Moreover, the

traditional categorization of the types of validity as criterion-, content-, and construct-validity has

been questioned, notably by Messick who asks (1 988, p. 3 5) if "validity is solely good criterion

prediction.. . " or "representative coverage of relevant content" or "trustworthy score

interpretation. " The latter has led the field in questioning the value of traditional single-faceted

approaches to the process of test validation (1989a), and he seeks to examine again the valne and

status of the many definitions of types of vaiidity to be found in psychometric textbooks. With

such prominent psychometricians as Anastasi (1986) and Cronbach (1988) to support him,

Messick demonstrates (t989a) how consmict validity is now widely accepted as "the unitary,

fundamental principle" that subsumes those variant aspects of validation (Cumming & Berwick,

ibid., p. 7).

So well established is this acceptance that Moss (1992) c d s it the current "philosophy of

validity (p. 299); and the S t . r & for educm'ionaI and psychoIogrgrcaZ iesiing now refer to

constmct validity as "the most important consideration in test evaluation", while in addition the

Stmda-rds treat validity as "a unitary concept requiring multiple types of evidence to support

specific inferences made fkom test scores.. ." (Moss, 1992, p. 232). The types of evidence are

mauily two, viz., that "validation is hdamentdy both theory driven and data dnven" (Messick,

1989, p. 6); in other words "validity is an integrated evaluative judgment of the degree to which

empirical evidence and theoretical rationales support the adequacy and appropnateness of inter-

pretations and actions based on test scores or other modes of measurement" (Messick, 1989b,

p.5). In the process of validation, therefore, one can discem Messick's employrnent of two sets of

categones, viz., (1) the justification for testing or for the using of any other mode of assessrnent

which entails the examination of the evidence or scores f b m the testing, and an assessrnent of the

consequences; and (2) the outcome of the testing which entails both the interpretation of the

scores and the use made of this interpretation in practicd decisions. The validity of a constnict is

founded on the evidence and rationales which guarantee that the scores cm be trusted, Le.

constnict validity is the evidentid basis of test interpretation. The evidential basis of test use is

dso constnict validity, but with the added requirement that there must be present "specifk

evidence for the relevance of the scores to the applied purpose and for their utility in the applied

setting" (Messick, 1989b, p. 100). In f o d g the consequential basis of test interpretation one

rnust consider the value implications of score meaning, just as in that of test use one must appraise

the consequences (actual and potential) of the applied testing.

Those two dimensions of validity inquiry are interwoven by Messick to form a 4-celled

matrix, viz., the function or outcome of assessrnent (Le., interpretation and use), and the

justification for testing (i.e.,through appraising the evidence and appraising the consequences). He

points out (1989b, p. 10) that because consmict validity means "the evidence and rationales

supporting the tnistworthiness of score meaning", therefore, "the evidentid basis of test

interpretation is cleariy construct validity" (ibid.). Constmct validity is also founded on evidence

for test use, provided that the general evidence in support of score meaning is strengthened by

specific evidence in support of the relevance of the scores to the purpose to which they are

applied, and of the utility of those scores Ui that applied setting. He also gives an analysis of the

consequential basis for the interpretation of tests and for their use. Messick (1989b, p. 5) indicates

that one question brings into focus the four interrelated aspects of the basic validity issue. He

formulates it as follows: "To what degree - ifat al1 -- on the basis of evidence and rutiondes,

should the test scores [or scores fiom other modes of assessment] be interpreted and zised in the

manner proposed?" (emphasis added). So important is this contribution of Messick to the field of

assessment, that constmct validity is now referred to as "the most important consideration in test

evaluation" (Cumming & Berwick, ibid., p. 8), and validation is considered (following Messick) "a

unitary concept requiring multiple types of evidence to support specific inferences made fiom test

scorest' (ibid., p. 80). However, defining an explkit conceptual framework fiom which to deduce

testable hypotheses and preparing those multiple types of evidence to test the hypotheses, while

doing the same for rival hypotheses, Moss (1992, pp. 233-234) explains, demands the setting up

of an extensive programme of research into constmct validation. The matrix mode1 proposed by

Messick is widely acclaimed as providing a blueprint for such a progmmme.

Messick says that the interrelated facets of vaiidity f o m a "progressive rnatrix" in which

"constmct validity appears in every ce K.. [as]. . .the integrating force that unifies validity issues into

a unitary concept" (ibid.). As a matrk it bas the value of directing one's attention to "distinct

aspects of construct validity "as weli as to the unified mosaic, and it is these aspects that highlight

its progressive nature in view of the different points of focus of each cell. Accordingly, an

important aspect of this validity matrix vis-a-vis this study is the fact that construct validation can

be established on the basis of one or more of the ceils. 1 have chosen to base the validation of my

new cnteria on the first cell (Messick, 1989a), i.e., on the interpretation of the scores obtained,

through the application of the criteria to genre-based narrative texts, as a basis for validity .

The focal construct of this study is an assessment schema for narrative writing. Hence the

essential question to be asked (and answered!) about its construct validity is: Does this specific

assessment schema t d y focus on and assess the essence of genre-based narrative writing? Further

to this, does the schema recognize and have for its foundation the latest research findings

regarding ail essential properties of genre-based narrative writing? Cooper and Odeil (1977, p. xii)

insist that "there is no mechanical or technical solution to the problems posed in evaluating

writing. Since writing is an expressive human activity, we believe the best response to it is a

receptive, sympathetic, human response." And such a response, it is clairned, has been made in

the employrnent of the new cntena of assessment. This assessment scale (cf. chapter 4) has been

derived fkorn the essential characteristics of genre-based written narrative as expounded by

Macken et al. (1989~) and has been used to assess 100 grade 9 narrative texts by 7 teachers with

a working knowledge ofthis kind of writing. Their assessment scores have been recorded and

tabulated, and arguments in support of the validity of the concept have been formulated (chapter

5) through evidence on the interpretation of the scores, which is the first and most basic cell of the

Messick matrix.

"Test validity is often investigated by calculating the correlation between subjects' test

scores and their scores on a cnterion measure" (Borg & Gall, 1989, p. 348), or their scores on a

well-established assessment schema (Messick, 1989a). Such a schema is that of Diederich (1974)

as it has been elaborated by Cooper and OdelI ( 1977) and which has been analysed in chapter 4.

Its origin as explained by its authors has also been discussed, and it has been shown (ibid.)how

there is an item-by-item (criterion-by-criterion) correspondence between its essential factors and

those of the new assessment cnteria developed in this study. Borg and Gall assert (ibid.) that "any

of the two-variable correlational statistics listed in Table 9.3 (ibid., p.347) c m be used to caldate

a validity CO-efficient." Among those listed is Tetrachoric correlation. A validity CO-efficient was

calculated by this means for the scores assigned by the seven teacher assessors to the essays which

they judged as meriting a place in the top 25 through the application of the new cnteria by

correlating those scores with those obtained through the use of the (Cooper and Odell)

established assessment scale. The cdnilation and results are described in chapter 4.

D. Mv backaound relative to the studv

Through my preparatory studies in Ireland, England and Canada, for teaching at ai l grade

levels from kindergarten to grade 13 in the respective countries, 1 have corne to appreciate the

value of ail genres of writhg not only in language arts but also in all language-based subject areas.

Accordingly, the development and enhancement of writing skills have always occupied a

prominent place in my teaching, whether in the form of personal creative narrative, discussion of

topical issues, or cornmentary on or response to prescribed school texts. This special interest in

the promotion of improved writing skills and studentsr achievement of awards of merit in essay

writing cornpetitions locdy and in the U. S., hm enabled me to develop an appreciation of the

standards of excelience prevailing at the various grade levels. I am also farniliar with the Ontario

Assessrnent Instrument Pool (OAIP), and I have used its recommendations in my classes to some

advantage. Besides, the OAIP has deepened my appreciation of the role that wr i tm language

plays in the education of students at ail levels.

In this study, assessment connotes the retrieval of 100 pieces of grade 9 narrative writing

and the assessment of them through the use of both my own newly developed cntena and those

traditiondy employed by teachers. Evaluation is understood as the application of a judgrnent

both to the written essays (in order to assign a score value to them) and to the newly developed

cnteria, so as to assess their value as measures of such quaiities as coherence, cohesion,

originality and use of ideas, and others which characterize good written text. In my teaching

expenence, 1 have learned the value and necessity of assessment in ascertaining the acadernic

capabilities of an individual or group as weli as their talents and needs. Knowing these has always

been for me a basic step in deciding whether my writing programmes' aims and objectives were

appropriate, and in deciding what modifications shouid be made if either individual or class needs

were not being adequately met. Besides, regular assessment enables the teacher to have available,

both to the student and to the parents, up-to-date information on school progress, and this

assessment d l also ensure better leanllng for the student through the changes in the programme

of studies or in the teaching methodology, or in the leaming strategies employed by the student

that it may suggest. When assessment data are thoroughly analysed, a teacher becornes more

acutely aware of the diversity of students' needs; and in the case of genre-based writing, which

aims to give the student "a rigorous explanatior. of how purpose and audience are realized in

[written] language" (Hammond, 1987, p. 164), the teacher can easily diagnose the skilis that may

be lacking, and invent strategies of remediation accordirigly. Besides, having an explicit

knowledge of genres enables teachers to have a much clearer idea of the skills students need to

possess in order to accompiish adequately the tasks they açsign to the students when they ask

them to write.

AU those factors have been prime motivators in my undertaking of this study.

btement of the Problem

A. The question and anaiytical sub-questions

The purpose of this study is to design cnteria of evahation for grade 9 genre-based

narrative writing (GBNW henceforth). In fulfilling this aim, cognizance is being taken of the best

current information available that is descriptive of student writing in generai, and in particular of

student genre-based writing. In order to accomplish this aim in the most usefbl and relevant way

possible, I was concemed to find an adequate answer to the foliowing related questions:

1. What are the dictinctive features of GBNW: what shodd a descriptive analysis include?

2. What assessment guidelines c m be developed so that the real excellence of GBNW is

highlighted?

3. C m these assessment guidelines be shown to yield reliable scores?

4 Cm the assessment scores obtained fiom the application of these cntena be shown to

be a valid indication of the excellence of the writing to which they are applied?

5. What practical implications for the assessment of grade 9 GBNW arise f?om this study?

The fist issue concerns the concept of genre. The term genre is defineci as "any staged,

purposeful, cdtural activity" (Hammond, 1987, p. 165) that has a characteristic schematic,

dynamic, rhetorical structure that can be adapted according to different conditions of use, and is

realized most fiequently (in grade 9 writing) in the narrative and factual modes. It is a fonn of

localized cognition: The first question to be asked therefore is:

1. 1s genre a defensible concept? What is understood by the concept as used in the

area of written co~~l~~lunication?

The second issue concerns the extent to which a methodology of assessment can be

developed which wili evaluate the degree of excellence of genre-based writing in tenns of how

weli the writing sample fblfills the cnteria of &en genres posited by the genre school of

Austrafia and pioneered by such experts in the field as Gunther Kress, Mary Macken, lirn Martin,

Mary Kaiantzis, Bili Cope and Joan Rotheiy. The second question asks, therefore:

2. Can assessrnent guidelines for the degree of excellence of grade 9 genre-based

narrative writing be developed under the following aiteria: ideas expressed,

language usage, organization and analysis of content, aptitude of verbal

expression, personal style and sincerity?

The third issue focuses on an examination of the degree of inter-user reliability that can be

accorded the critena developed. Hence the third question asks:

3. Can the guidelines of sub-question #2 be shown to be reliable, Le. cm yield scores

that can reasonably be shown to be non-idiosyncratic?

The fourth concern centers on the evidential bmis (Messiclg 1989a) for the degree of

validity that can be accorded to the assessment guidelines; to what degree can empirical

evidence be judged to support the adequacy of inferences that will be made on the bais of

the scores obtauied through the application of the new guidelines to narrative writing. The

fourt h question asks:

4. Can these assessment guidelines be shown to be a vaiid constnict nom the basis of

evidence on their interpretation when applied to grade nine narrative writing?

The final issue seeks to focus on and discuss the relevance of the study's findings to

practical concems of teachers of writing. The question to be answered is therefore:

5. What implications can be drawn in the area of the assessment of grade 9 genre-

based narrative writing, relative to this study?

B. Procedures for each sub-question

Sub-question ! 1) 1s genre a defensible concept? What is understood by the term as it is used

in the area of written communication?

I conducted a review of related literaîure on the topic of genres in writing in order to become

better informed about (i), genre as a linguistic concept, (ü) learning theory, (iii) teaching

approaches, and (iv) assessment practices. 1 consulted especidy the foilowing sources:

(a) Relevant publications of the Centre for Studies in Literary Education, Deakin

University, Geelong, =ctoria.

@) Articles contributed to the foUowing journals, especially fkom 1970 to the present:

Research in the teachzng of EngIzsh, EngIish in Australia, Australian review of

applied linguistzcs.English in educntion. Written comrnunicatîon, Academy of management

review. Edzicationnal resemcher. Review of Edtrcatioytc~I resemch, and American psychoIogrgrst-

(c) Relevant written works of the following authors: M.A.K. Halliday, Gunther Kress,

Ruqaiya Hasan, Mary Macken, J.L. Lemke, C. Painter, J.R. Martin, Joan Rothery, Mary

Kalantzis, BU Cope, Frances Christie, Jenaifer Hammond, and Donald Graves.

Sub-auestion 12) C m assessrnent guidelines for the degree of excellence of grade 9 genre-

based writing be developed under the following tities: ideas expressed, language usage,

organization and analysis of content, aptitude of verbal expression, personal style and sincerity?

(a) As the related Literature was being surveyed (in #1), special note was made of the

factors specified by the pioneer "group of language educators in Austrdia who consider

themselves Hallidayans" (Freedrnan, 1993, p. 223), as constitutive of genres in writing. These

factors were already isolated in the writings especially of J.R. Martin, Frances Christie, Jorn

Rothery et al.

(b) I reflected on my own experiences in teaching writing, attempting to determine the

most relevant, feasible applications of genre theory to this aspect of education, and thus to ground

rny assessment criteria in educationai practices (see Chapter 3).

(c) A 5-factor draft set of assessment guidelines was drawn up, based on those

factors, and after pre-testing, replaced by a 10-factor set.

(d) These latter were modelled on the format of the Diederich Anaiytic Scale

formulated and promoted by Cooper & Odeli (1977).

Sub-question (3 1 To what extent can the guidelines of sub-question #2 be shown to be

reliable, i.e., can yield assessrnent scores that can reasonably be shown to be non-idiosyncratic?

Idiosyncratic guidelines are such that are highiy influenced by personai biases in the compiler, i.e.,

in determinhg the criteria of good writing. For criteria to be non-idiosyncratic, they must conform

to objective standards as reflected in writing theory .

(a) The guidelines established under sub-question #2 were pre-tested by two teachers

fkom my school who were also skilied in genre-based writing, each using them to assess a random

sample of 5 grade 9 essays taken from the fifly-plus bundle of essays that remained after the 100

used in this study were picked randornly from the total received. The selection was made by

picking five numbers tiom a box that contained aïi numbers from 1 to 57 corresponding with the

number of essays in the bundle. The five were re-numbered seriaily 1 to 5 and a copy of each, to

which was attached a copy of the 5-factor schema (below), was given to each of the two teachers,

so that they could circle on it (or add, if the mark was an uneven number) the mark awarded for

each factor

Fi-mre 1 High Medium Low

Essay # Structure 10 8 6 4 2 Field 10 8 6 4 2 Tenor 10 8 6 4 2 Mode 10 8 6 4 2 Conjunction 10 8 6 4 2

Total score

These factors were considered to be appropriate because each compared highly according to the

fiterature descriptions, with a factor in the original Diedench (1974) schema, as follows: field

matched with idem, sbucture with orgmzzation, mode with wording, tenor withfiavow, and

cor~zinzction with the compound factor mechmzcs (Diederich, 1974, pp. 55-58).

However, both teachers considered the factors to be lacking in sufficiently narrow focus and

covering too wide a spread of charactenstics, finding it impossible to allot an accurate score for

each. For example, tenor was intended to include the authoritative role of the author, the ability

of the text to invoke pathos in the reader, details of character description, the degree of writer-

reader interaction and the didactic power of the narrative. The 5-factor schema was then

transformed into a 1 0-factor schema, based on the salient characteristics of genre-based writing

but modelled on the IO-factor schema of Cooper and Odell(1977, pp. 21-24).

@) Ten secondary schools fiom the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) were

randomly selected by placing pieces of paper each with a Board school name inscribed, in a box

and after shuffling, having a student pick one piece of paper from the box until ten names were

obtained. Catholic schools only were included because 1 felt that since 1 would probably have

known some of the En&h departments heads 1 would have a good degree of CO-operation nom

them in procuring writing samples. The Principals and relevant department heads of the ten

schools were contacted by letter despatched by courier. An explanation of the study being

undertaken was given, permission for grade 9 participation was sought fiom the principals and CO-

operation fiom the department heads. A copy of a form letter addressed to the students explaining

the study, asking for their participation while guaranteeing anonymity was included in the letter to

the depariment heads. They could make as many copies of the form letter as were needed. I

explained to the department heads that 1 would welcome as many samples of grade 9 narrative as

they could obtaiu voluntarily fiom their students. 1 suggested that ideally the samples should be

the narrative text M e n by the students in their previous Ministry Test of English, since this

would be, in ali probability, each student's best piece. Each text volunteered was to be stored by

the teacher anonymously, and fonvarded to me in a package with all the other texts by the cut-off

date, January 6, 1996. As the packages arrived fiorn the schools they were opened and the essays

placed as received unexamuieci, in a pile in a locked cupboard, the 1s t arrivals being topmost in

the pile. In dl, 157 essays were received. One school refused permission to allow its students to

participate and two others did not reply.

(c) M e r the cut-off date the essays in the pile were numbered serially until#100 was reached

and numbers 1 to 100 were photocopied 7 times (the originals being retained for reference), to be

despatched to the seven volunteer teachers for assessment. This sampling of the essays was

considered to be random since 1 had no control over who volunteered an essay, or over the order

in time or the senal order of the aniving essays. Neither could 1 control the number received, or

the authorship or their standard of excellence.

(d) The 100 photocopied samples were then packaged for despatch to the seven teachers,

each package containing an assessment schema as in Figure 2 below. Each teacher was Uiformed

that the airn of the exercise was ultimately to select the best 25 essays through the application of

the New Assessment Scherna (NAS henceforth). It was suggested that they use a dinerent format

fkom the one here below to chart the marks for each of the factors (a) to (s) for each of the 100

essays. The essay numbers could nin vertically in serial order on the page (as in Appendk A),

while the scores for each factor could be recorded horizontally as they are in the tables of

appendices B, C and D. The letters p, q, r, s, were used to denote the specificdy grammatical

components of the schema.

N e w Assessrnent Schema NAS?

Tenor 1 1): Author's Role The purpose of the narrative is easily disceniible and the author's point of view as participdobserver is supported by effective use of ideas. (10)

Tenor (2): Character description creates true-to-life charaeters, by an author who cornes across as an individuai writing f?om personal conviction. ( 10)

Tenar (3): Inte ersonal meanin3 The principal character's real mind-set is revealed through interaction with others whose qualities also portray them as real.

Field (1 Influence of context; Does the text reveal an organized plan that is matched with the context (of both culture and situation)?

Field (2) Are the essential stages characteristic of narrative present?

Tenor (4) S i d c a n c e of plot; 1s there an irnplicit thrust in the story that impacts on the reader -- an unexpressed agenda that makes one stop and think?

Theme: 1s the use and positionhg of words in sentences skilffilly varied in the conveying of meaning?

Conjunction: Does the essay hang together through the use of appropriate conjunctions used to build logical relationships between clauses?

Transitivity Does the author make use of a wide variety of appropriate verb choices?

(s) Reference: Does the system of reference guard against boredom for the reader and guarantee a text that is cohesive, easy to foiiow fiom the content, punctuation and spelling points of view? (05)

(e) A suggested date for the return of the scored essays was set, viz., Easter 1996. Five

returns were received on time; a sùah came in May whiie the seventh was received towards the

end of May 1996. Five teachers highlighted the best 25 on their r e m sheets and the other two

submitted just the fùil roster of scores.

(f) A week after each package of 100 essays was received £tom the individual markers, it was

returned to each for a second assessment, this t h e by applying a traditionai assessment schema

(TAS henceforth) based on the bi-partite scale of Cooper & Odeil (1 977, pp. 2 1-24), the aim

being to select again the top 25 essays according to their scores. To facilitate the scoring, the

schema was arranged as in Figure 3 according to the elaboration given by the authors (ibid.), and

a copy of the schema accompanied each set of essays (Note that letters p, q, r, s, denote the

specificdy grammatical factors in the schema).

Figure 3 Traditional Assessrnent Schema (TAS)

(a) Ideas; Ideas are used by the author to support points of view fhm the consistent standpoint of participant or observer origindy taken.

( - 1 Style or voice; The author expresses personal convictions,and descnbes what seem to be personal experiences that capture the reader's interest.

(c) Centrai character; The main character's physical and psychological traits project a real person to whom others

c m relate.

Set t in~ or backmound: The setting is a possible place, is well detailed and suited to/congnient with the events.

Seauence of events: The sequential order of the events is clear and typical of a narrative account, and easy to follow.

Theme; The story gives the reader food for thought. There is some purpose/theme holding the parts together.

Wordine: Words, especiaiiy names, are used in a unique and interesting way with varied positioning in sentences.

Se t ax i Intra- and inter-sentence structure lead to easy reading displaying a confident control over wrïtten composition by the author.

Usa= The author correctly employs a standard usage of words, especially of verbs, as one who knows the standards of edited wrïtten Enghsh.

Punctuation & spelling; Correct spehg and punctuation ensure easy reading and comprehension of a cohesively written text.

(g) A table was prepared to display and coliate which essays were numbered among the top

25 as a result of both assessments by the seven assessors (qB,C,D,E,F,G). This is shown as

Appendix A. Another table was prepared to display (for the purpose of cornparison) the mean

scores (M) and the standard deviations fiom the mean (S') assigned in the sarne way to the

criteria of assessment (a,b,c,d,e,f,p,q,r,and s) in the top 25 essays on both TAS and NAS by the 7

assessors.(Appendix B). Appendices C and D display the means and standard deviations of sirnilar

scores for essays in the top 25 on the strength of TAS alone (C) and of NAS alone (D).

(h) A reliability CO-efficient was calculated for the scores obtained on the top 25 through the

use of the new assessment scale (NAS) as foilows: The total number of different paired

combinations of the 7 assessors was calculated through the use of the formula 7C2, i-e., the

nurnber of combinations possible fiom 7 items by taking two at a t he . This amounted to 2 1. The

number of essays judged by each assessor in the pair to be among the top 25 were correlated

using Top Quarter Tetrachorics and the Speannan Brown Formula, and correlation CO-efficients

for the reliability of the essay grades and therefore of the assessment schema were obtained on the

basis of each pair. These are presented on Chapter 4 (p. 208).

(i) When the assessment retums according to the traditional assessment schema (TAS) were

aIi retumed, a correlation CU-efficient for the reliability of the scores was calculated using the

same method as in (h). These are recorded in Chapter 4 dso (p. 208).

Sub-auestion 4 To what extent c m empirical evidence be judged to support the adequacy

of inferences that wili be made on the buis of scores obtained through the application of the new

assessment guidelines (NAS) to narrative writing?

(a) A validity CO-efficient was calculated for the assesment scores obtained through the

application of the NAS to the 100 essays by the seven assessors in the following way: Top

Quarter Tetrachorics and the Speman Brown Prophecy Formula were again employed and a

correlation, in respect of each of the seven assessors, between the results obtained by applying

NAS and those obtained by applying TAS -a well-established assessrnent schema (Borg & Gd,

1989, p. 348), was obtained. The seven validity CO-efficients are recorded and discussed in

Chapter 4 (pp. 209E).

Sub-question 5 What usefùl conclusions, relevant to the assessrnent of grade 9 genre-based

narrative writin& can be drawn nom this study?

Some important implications for the assessment of genre-based narrative writing, and

consequently for the teacher, have &sen fkom this study. These are listed here and are discussed

more fùlly in Chapter 5. They are:

1. The study emphasizes the importance, in the education of students at this level, of

the ability to write normative English.

2. The value of an analytical approach to the teaching of writing skills is also stressed.

3. The study emphasizes the value for students of being familiar with certain factors

that influence the ways in which language is used.

4. A formula for the evaluation of genre-based narrative vmïting has been developed

and made available as a usefûl addition to the teacher's repertoire of assessment

5. Attention has been focused on the creation of a text as the medium through which

meanhg is expressed and conveyed whether in writing or ordy.

6 . Attention was also drawn to the variety of text types or patterns of witten and

spoken language that are created within a particular culture for specific purposes in

one's relationship with others.

7. The need for the teacher to be aware of and to be able to analyse the different situations-in-life that cal1 for specific forms of written response also emerged.

8. The importance of teacher expertise in creating in the classroom environment simulated experiences that caii for written responses in various genres was also noted.

9. It is both usefùl and necessary for teachers to develop a certain proficiency in taiking about language in general and about the characteristics of that of individual genres.

Chapter Two

BACKGROUND TO THE QUESTION UNDER CONSIDERATION

The purpose of this chapter is:

1. To give a linguistic description of genre;

2. To discuss leaming theory;

3. To explain the teaching approaches to genre; and

4. To analyse related assessrnent practices.

A. NIRODUCTION

"Genres work in education is now well estabfished and widely known, weli beyond its

ongins in the Australian context" (Cope & Kalantzis, 1993, p.22). However, in view of the

comparative newness of genres as the focus of literacy education in Ontario and of the fact that

"genre literacy teaching objects equally strongiy to both traditionaikt and progressivist pedagogy"

(Cope & Kdantzis, ibid., p.6), 1 considered it best in this present study to present the description

of genre as a contrast to both traditional and progressive approaches to literacy pedagogy.

The traditional Literacy teaching that prevailed in most classrooms in Enghsh-speaking

countries prior to 1970 based itself on the culture of ancient Greece and Rome. The traditional

grammar that described so well the highly idected and regular languages of those states was at

first thought to provide an equally valid basis for the teaching of modem languages. This belief

was founded on the erroneous understanding that "traditional grammar.. . was based on the idea

that the world can be described in terms of 'facts', rules and regulanties epitomized in tables to

conjugate verbs or decline noms", and that therefore "Ianguage.. . could be rneaningfully . . .

rationaiized into tables arranged across ...[ a] textbook page" (Cope & Kalantzis, ibid., p.3). But

grammar had never been a mere analytical study of language in Greece or Rome; it was "a social

practice integrally related to diaiectic and rhetoric and learnt in apprenticeship to masters of these

arts" (ibid.). It is true that some conservative educators, in keeping with the minds of the ancients,

taught Latin, not for its own sake, but as a channel to inculcate "a certain sort of thinking" (ibid.);

and that in the traditional grammar approach to English, the learning of parts of speech and the

acquiring of standards of correctness were seen as facilitating "respect, discipline and orderV(ibid.)

in the students' behaviour. Yet for others its social fùnction was "to exclude, to mark as wrong,

and even to fail discourses that the school cumculum labelied incorre ct... by the cnteria of self-

appointed 'standard English' of the middle class" (ibid., p. 4).

With the arriva1 of the 1970s, a great number of teachers in England, Canada and Australia

came to reject traditional literacy teaching with its traditional approach to gramrnar. Progressivist

pedagogy, based on Dewey's and Montessori's cnticism of traditional cumculum, which

advocated learner activity, learning by doing, and a bias towards practical activity rather than rote

memonzation of facts, was given centre stage. The change was swift and thorough. Grammar and

other aspects of conventional literacy teaching were replaced by the "process writing" and "whole

language" approach, reminiscent of the way children learn their fkst language. In order to be

effective, learning must be relevant to the student, it was said; process rather than content must

now be emphasized and textbooks must give way to what were regardeci as authentic resources,

Le., materials that were of interest and relevance to the students' persona1 lives. The teaching of

wnting would not focus on achieving the "standard English" of the middle class, but on the

successful expression of the meaning the student wanted to communicate. The students with their

personal motivation were seen to be at the very centre of the leamhg process, while the teacher

became a facilitator rather than the dispenser of ready-made knowledge about language that had

been enshrined in grammar books. The leamhg of facts about language znd the rules for correct

speaking were replaced by a prime emphasis on the choice and use of language that would convey

effectively what the student intended to communicate.

A new development in the pedagogy of language literacy began to emerge in the 1990s.

The Deweyan stipulation that literacy leaming by experience should lead to the students'

acquisition of standard English was now regarded as obsolete, and "the key term in this latest

version of progressivism" was "difference" (ibid., p.5). The idea of a "superior western tradition"

(ibid.) was relinquished, and student "voice" -- the expression of their own interests in their own

discourse, with the teacher acting as facilitator - became the important factor in students'

language leaming .

The genre theorists were prompt to respond, not only by endorsing the criticism of

traditional cumculurn leveiled by the progressivist school, but also by providing a negatively

cntical analysis of both the principles of progressivist pedagogy and its practice, indicating a

number of ways in which it had failed as an effective means of teachùig language titeracy. Chief

arnxïg these were that its emphasis on student-centred learning, student motivation, voice, and

purposeful writing pointed to its exclusive suitability only to rniddle-class students and those from

supportive homes. It failed to motivate the socially deprived and reluctant learner, thus ensuring

the continued presence of "educational inequities" (ibid., p. 6). It reduced the role of the teacher

Eom that of professional leader to that of manager, who was ofien constrained to tum to

disjointed and dated photocopied material in order to give substance to lessons. "Naturai" literacy

led in the longterm to the acquisition of a very narrow range of genres -- mostly narratives and

personalized recounts. Thus genre cntics of traditional literacy teaching and of progressivist

pedagogy gained a great measure of success Ui persuading teachers that neither could compare

with genre literacy as an attractive rnethod of language teaching. Many teachers therefore, began

to espouse genre literacy teaching, but they in tum became the object of severe negative criticisrn

from the traditionalists and the progressivists. The former questioned the c lah of genre theorists

to cater to cultural differences and stressed that education should airn at equitable outcornes for

all. The latter criticized the teachuig of new language facts by the genre school as a return to a

transmission pedagogy. However, a fidl linguistic exposition of the genre approach to literacy and

a discussion of its leamhg theory, teachuig approaches and assessrnent practices will expound its

real contribution to language leaming and show, in addition, that it has strong counter criticisms

to levy against both traditionalist and progressivist pedagogy. To that exposition 1 now tum.

B. LINGUISTIC DESCRIPTION OF GENRE

AU texts whether oral or written are created to communicate a message. Language

therefore, is always used within a certain context; it rnust have a social rneaning and appear as a

coherent text, i.e., as a specific genre which is defined as "the 'why' of the text in its cultural

contexttf (Cope & Kalantzis, 1993, p. 203). "Genre is a term used in literacy pedagogy to connect

the difTerent forms text takes with variations in social purpose. Texts are different because they do

different things ... How a text works is a function of what it is for" (ibid., p.7). Texts are therefore

social processes, and just as social processes Vary in their kind so texts vary accordingly. The

variant types of text used for difFerent social purposes are called genres, and so the use of

different types of genre indicates different social purposes, e-g., discussion, description, narrative,

persuasion. Social structures have a certain stabiiity and hence situations tend to repeat

themselves, and people's goals and intentions in these situations tend to have a certain regularity.

Hence the texts that are produced in these situations also have a certain stability according to the

purposes of their authors. On the other hand, texts Vary according to structure, that is, according

to grammar and discourse organization. The variation is not arbitrary, and genres are not the

unique isolated creation of their authors at the moment they are produced. Rather as conveyors of

meaning, they corne into being within a certain socio-culturd context and they mua have a certain

patterned predictability that accords with a specific culture's patterns of social interaction. In fact

it is knowledge of the genres of a particular culture that ailows individuals to participate

effectively in certain areas of social interaction within that culture.

Beyond this point in the analysis of genre, theorists Vary in their understanding of the

concept. The theory of J.R Martin that language can be analysed and studied at such levels as

grammar, meaningkontent, register, genre and ideology, "has had the broadest educational

uinuence and is most cornmonly associated with genre Literacy pedagogy.. . " (Cope & Kalantzis,

ibid. p. 9). His system of analysis is chosen in this study as the blueprint of genre literacy

pedagogy for that reason, and dso because it was the theory of genre used in the Literacy and

Education Research Network Project conducted in New South Wales in the 1980s, and because it

has greatest idluence on both its critics and supporters (Macken et al.,1989a,b,c,d.). Studies to

examine what were the textual demands of school literacy, in what kinds of texts students were

expected to be competent, and what were the schools'/teachers' criteria for excellence in writing,

provided the genesis of Martin's personal work. Apart fiom narrative -- the focus of this present

study - he found five other key examples of genre in writing in which student competence was

expected: report, explmation, procedure, discussion and recount .

A narrative is a text whose content, though it may be closely based on experience (actual

or vicarious), holds ao claim to being factual. The author's purpose in writing is usually to"arnuse,

entertain and to deal with actual or vicarious experience in ditferent ways.. . marratives] deal with

events that are problematic and.. .lead to a crisis or tumirig point of some kind (Macken et al.,

1989a, p.30). The text is characterized by material (i.e. action) processes, individual rather than

generic participants, past events, non-technical language, and the temporal and causal sequence of

clauses joined by appropriate conjunctions (ibid.,p.30). The reader becomes acquainted with the

characters and the context of the events, through the opening structural component called the

orientation. An evaluation of the context may foUow in which the reader is given a foreshadowing

of the general direction the stoiy is about to take. One or more codicts arise as the story

develops, and these are known as the compkation. An evaluation of the problems that have

arisen for the characters is then made and a resolutzon of them follows. There may then be, bally,

a re-orientation and return to the original situation in He, in what is known as the coda.

1. The fùnction of ling&tics analvsed

It was stated above (p. 29) that genres are social processes and that individuals expressing

ideas are doing so within a marked cultural context and cognizant of the fact that different texts

have different social eEects. Narrative gives the impression fiom its peculiar textual cornponents

that it depends for its origin solely on individual creativity. On the contrary, "narratives are the

products of social experience, and the reader ... is as much a part of the meaning-making process

as the.. .author of the text. [The reader cm even] "read things into it which the author never

intended (Cope & Kalantzis, ibid., p. 1 5). Accordingly, through the use of genres, receptive and

expressive, people gain access to different contexts of social action and interaction, resulting for

them in an uicrease of power and prestige. It is ody when immigrants, for example, have M y

mastered the dialect and customs of a new society that they c m adopt and identfi with its culture

and begin to wield some measure of idluence in their new milieu. It is only a person who had

such a powerful command of English as Shakespeare had who could produce such an impressive

show of eloquence as that contained in the funeral speech of Mark Antony, "If you have tears,

prepare to shed them now.. ." (Julius Caesar, Act 3, Scene 2). This is powerfûl language, and a

linguistic analysis c m lead the reader to an understanding of its power. Linguistics can take many

fonns, for the purposes of language are many and "the kind of linguistics you devise depends on

what you're t-g to do with it" (Halliday, 1964). Hdiday characterizes this approach to

language as "a consumer oriented linguistics" (ibid.).

A "consumer onented" theory of language is best iUustrated by showing what it can

accomplish in a practical instance of communication. Ideas are communicated through the

medium of text -- written or spoken -- and text is always created in a specific context of

situation This latter quaiity of context specscity is aiso referred to as the register of a text, and

this consists of three constitutive and inter-related components: thefield or what the text is about;

the tenor which explains and demonstrates the interpersonal interactions in the text; and the mode

which shows how the text interacts with the environment, i.e., the categoxy of means chosen in

order to comrnunicate effectively -- dialogue, poetry, narrative prose. To show what a

consumer theory of language can do, Macken et d.(1989a, p.8) developed a model to show the

relationships between language and the theory of context. The model consists of three concentric

circles showing "language as text" in the innermost circle, its register of field, tenor and mode

proper to its context of situation represented by the intermediate circle, all contained within the

Iarger context of culture (outermost circle). Stated othenvise, a particular genre created to

comunicate purposively within a specific culture, is actuaiized in a certain register of field, tenor

and mode, and expressed in a particular text. The model places text in the centre and hence within

the context of situation, and both are placed within the context of culture. The model preferred in

this study is that of a compound microscope, consisting of three lenses arrangeci so as to obtain an

ascending order of magnitication and used to obtain a predetermined rnagnification, because this

model is seen to convey more realistically how the type of genre chosen (context of culture) is

reflected in register (context of situation), and how both are reflected in and are influentid in the

choice of language used. It also demonstrates more viMdy how the oral and written texts that are

created in communication influence both contexts (of situation and culture) within which d

speakers and writers Iive and comunicate.

Narrative Just because of a bump

Joey and Cathy were sküng with their parents in the park. No one else was on the snow-covered hi11 even though it was Sunday. They were al1 chilled through their jackets by the winds. Sometimes there were white-outs fiom the blowing piercing blasts.

Cathy shouted above the gusts of wind: "C'me on, let's have another race down the hill! " "O.K. ! 1 ,Z,3 ! " Swish! They were both gone neck and neck d o m the steep dope. They vanished out of sight as a snow squall swallowed them up. "Ohhh!" a few seconds later the parents heard a screarn. They recognized it was Cathy. They dashed d o m . The children were huddled by the fence below. Joey was removing his sister's foot from the ski shoe. "Ohh, it hurts! 1 hit a bump and toppled over!" Her fither exarnined the foot. "1 guess she's fiactured it!" mused Mr. Heron. He couId see it was swoiien.

In a matter of moments all four were in the car hastening to the local Emergency. The paramedics took Cathy in in a wheelchair. Her foot was x-rayed, but the fracture on her heel was so bad that the doctor said she wodd need a cast. "Look! there's the fracture!" said the doctor to Mrs. Heron, pointing to a thin dark line on the x-ray.

The operation took about an hou. Her foot felt like a ton weight now, and it was too sore for walking. The nurses gave her crutches that were jua her size. Now she could wak with these. Typicdy at school on Monday she caught everyone's attention. Karen her best fiend, was the first to write her name on the cast. Then everybody lined up to do the same. Some wrote her "get well" greetings. When her mother saw dl the names she was happy to see that Cathy was so popular. Cathy was tired and she just wanted to rest.

Four weeks passed before the cast was changed. It had become loose and her Dad said the s w e h g mua have gone down. The next cast was not so heavy and she was able to walk without crutches. The new cast soon had more names written on it but Cathy wodd prefer to be able to ski again. But the snow was now gone and she would have to wait until next year.

She often thought of the poor sick people she met in hospital. She was lucky; she did not have to stay. She resolved she would be extra careful on that hi11 in the park next year .

The text "Just because of a bump" is a typical narrative written in the context of Canadian

culture (largest lem). It is divided into sections corresponding with the stages that are typical of

this genre. The orientation situates the readers in a certain context of living. It conducts them into

the situation of the story's personnel by providing information about the characters and the

particular setting in which they interact. CompIication, the next stage, portrays the sociaVcultural

codlicts that have arisen, gives a graphic description of them and how they are Secting the

characters' lives in this context. The resol~dtion renews the readers' awareness that most problems

are resolved, and therefore generates in readers a sense of relief The didactic component consists

in the fact that few problems are unresoIvable if the appropriate strategy is invented and

employed. In the re-orientation or coda the reader (like the characters) is returned to the original

datus quo, and the former routine of life is resumed. Narratives are presented as consisting of

sequential stages mainly because most ofien they give an account of the the temporal order of

events as they happened (or would nomally happen) in the M e situation. The temporal order,

besides, helps readers to keep the whole situation in mind, and more particularly to leam that just

as resolutions to the problems encountered in the story were found so also is this possible in real

me.

Ali texts are created in a social context that is characterized by the creation of other texts

and other social practices. In linguistic terms, this is the context of situation (middle Lens). AU

texts therefore, are innuenced by their context and are related to it in a systematic way. Genre

theorists make this relationship - an essentiai aspect of genre - explicit. Michael Halliday (1985)

developed the t em register to account for the three aspects of register which he called field, tenor

and mode, which are the factors taken together that determine the choices an author makes in

creating a particular genre. The field refers to the activities being descrïbed in the text, and these

are also sequenced and goal directed. In the narrative above, the field consists of the family's

sküng afternoon, Cathy's injury and treatment in hospital and her subsequently being the focus of

attention at school. The tenor portrays typicai f d y relationships: going on a family outing, the

caring attention of parents for their children, and their supportive assurance that crises would be

handled sucessfully. The mode refers first to the role of language in the context of situation. In

the story it has two functions: first, as an accompanirnent to the action, as when Cathy invites

Joey to ski one more tirne downhill, or when the doctor indicates to Mx-. Heron the fiacture on the

X-ray; and second, as constituting the action, as when the author is reconstmcting the sküng

outing and its aftermath. Mode also refers to whether the text is spoken or written, prose or

poetry or dialogue. In this narrative, written narrative is used for the most part, inter-

spersed with short first-person expressions.

The written text (weakest lens) characterized by its peculiar grammatical and word

choices, being a product oftwo contexts, gives us uiformation about both. One cm discem both

the context of situation and that of culture in the story fkom the text. Readers use their

knowledge about register and genre to predict the kind of language they will encounter in a text,

while writers also make predictions about the context nom the language used. It is this matching

between context and text that one uses when leaming to &te. Thus in creating a certain register,

a writer will use (1) experiential meanings, i.e., language which "constnicts the people, places,

things, qualities and actions of the social world and the interrelationships among them"; (2)

interpersonal meanings, i.e., language which "constructs the pattern of dialogue, assessments of

probability and obligation, and attitudes and evduations ofinterlocutors"; (3) textual mea.nhgs,i.e.

"language which constructs relationships between parts of a text and between that text and the

context in which it is situated. " (Cope & Kaiantzis, 1993, p.248E)

The question of how language is structured in order to encapsulate and convey meaning

now arises. Providing an answer to this question is the function of systemic fbnctional linguistics,

and it is to this concept that 1 now turn.

2. Functional errammar and genre

The basic function of ali language is to comrnunicate. Communication is the conveying of

meaning fkorn one person to another. The medium used is text, written rather than spoken in the

context of this study, and text becomes this communicative medium through grammar; in other

words, that which makes a text gel cohesively and coherently to encapsulate meaning is its

gramrnar, and it is by means of grammar that meaning is transposed into text. Systemic Functional

Grammar (SFG henceforth) is a linguistic approach to language that analyses it from a functional

standpoint. Its aim is to show how language operates in order to provide the communicative

needs of people as they interact in real-life situations. It shows how language is structured by its

author in order to convey meaning in a specific context. " . ..Mt is grammar that makes meaning

into textu (Macken, Kalantzis et al., 1989d, p. 20). SFG has as its focus real contexts of use,

among which is text as the unit of meaning, because text is by definmon language that is

purposeful and functional in some context. In order to examine and explain how language

fûnctions, and to e n w e that it is used to its highest potentid, a system of grammar that is itself

hctional in orientation is needed; that is, a system of grarnmar which "explains language as it is

used by people in a variety of . . . written contexts.. ." (Macken et al., ibid.) in order to express

meaning. SFG has al1 the potentiaiities needed to investigate how text makes rneaning.

Using the grammatical approach to writing that is fùnctional does not reject the traditional

need for students to create texts that show their mastery of conventional spelling, punchlation,

consistent verb tense usage and subject-verb agreement. But SFG supersedes andytical and

structural gramrnar, by explainkg how language makes and conveys meaning in the various

contexts in which it is used by people. SFG approaches language as a process and a system.

Within the system, options are chosen and arranged by an author in phrasal, clausal, and sentence

form in order to create meanllig. In the case of verbs, for example, there is a choice in number

between singular and plural, in voice between active and passive, and in tense between past,

present and future. Such are some of the choices available to a writer in respect of each of a

number of clauses that are created to express desired meaning; e.g., the foUowing sentence fiom

the story "Just because of a bump" shows these choices: "Her foot was X-raye&/ but the fracture

on her beel was so bad// that the doctor said// she would need a cast." There are four clauses in

this sentence, each exemplifjmg voice and tense choice combinations in addition to other choices.

The verb tenses in al1 four clauses are past - the tense conventionally used in narrative -- while al1

except the first use the active voice. One can infer that the author either did not consider it

necessary for the purpose of the story to identify who did the X-ray or left it to the general

knowledge of the reader to infer the "acting agent" fiom the context of situation.

The central focus of SFG is, as the title suggests, on the function of every component of

the language, i-e., it aims to show how each word or hguistic unit contributes to the meaning of

the whole. "Each unit of anaiysis - its clauses, phrases, etc. -- is described or construed as an

organic configuration of fhctions; Le., each part is interpreted as hctional with respect to the

whole" (Macken et al., 1989d, p. 2 1). Genre theorists, following Hailiday, idente a number of

systeem, described by organic configurations and conveying intended meaning, fiom which

authors can choose in writing. There is the Trarmiiim>ty system which is the system that constructs

experiential meaning in a clause, Le., it constructs the characters, places, things, qualities and

actions of the social world and the relationships between them. One configuration that describes

the transitivity system in the Enghsh language is the actoflprocess^goaI configuration, which

indicates how each component in a clause contributes to the meaning of the whole. (The caret is

used to indicate the cohesion of the configuration). For example, in the sentence fkom the story

(p. 34 above) "The parents (actor) heard (process) a scream (goal)", "parents" is the actor in

respect ofthe "screarn", and the latter is the goal in respect of the former. Each component has its

proper contribution to make to the total meaning. There is also the Deiwis system or that which is

used to indicate things. It is realized by means of an article at the beginning of a nominal group,

which points forward, backward, within or outside the text; "realized by the, that, this.. .;

sometirnes used to refer to tense in a verbal group.. . (now, then, here, there) and to pointing

pronouns (1, me, you, us) (Cope & Kdantzis, ibid., p. 249).

Another grammatical system is that of Theme. "Therne is the grammatical system that

organizes the clause in such a way that it fits into its environment" (Cope & Kalantzis, ibid., p.

124). In the English language, theme taken mcturally occupies first place in a sentence and is

identified with the subject or eve'ything that precedes it, e.g., in the sentence, "At school on

Monday she caught everyone's attention", the theme is "at school on Monday". The environment

of every clause is the complete text and its "fit" concerns its contribution to the whole. Thus

theme concems how each clause contributes to the production of the stages of which narrative

consists as described above (p. 33). Theme can be of three kinds: topzcal theme focuses attention

on one aspect of what a clause is about, eg., "she" in the sentence "She works hard"; textual

t h e helps to connect with preceding clauses, e.g., "besides" in the clause "Besides, she is

intelligent"; interpersonal theme shows the writer's personal evaluation of the facts, e.g., "for

sure" in the sentence "For sure, she d l pass her exarns" . The pattern of themes found in any text

tends to be systematic and constnicts the "method of development" of the text (Fries, 1983).

Accordingly, an examination of the pattern of themes in a text (in this study, narrative) will reveal

an arrangement of themes that will both reflect and construct the stages of a narrative. In the

orientation of the narrative "Just because of a bump", three of the four themes are topical and two

of these refer to the central character; in the complication, ten are topical, seven of which refer to

Cathy or Joey or both; in the resolution, nine are topical; in the re-orientation there are five, and in

the coda, all four themes refer to Cathy . Thus, rhis narrative text organizes most of its sentence

beginnings in such a way that they construct its stages. In the timing of the treatment of the injury,

marked themes predominate, e.g., "In a matter of moments", "Now", "Then", " When her mother

saw aii the names", and these contribute to the bdding up of the resolution.

Besides sentence themes there are also paragraph themes and these can also be seen as

contnbuting to the narrative stages and to its cohesiveness. Thus Joey and Cathy's sküng trip

leads to their "race down the hiii", Cathy's "toppled over" and injury, followed by their "hastening

to the local emergency" and "operation". "Four weeks passed.. . " during which "she often

thought.. .hospital", with resolve to be extra carefùl when on skiis in the fuhre.

The pattern of themes in the given narrative, therefore, is systematic and helps to put into

effect the stages of development in the story. The theme of the story suggests the sub-themes of

the individual stages, Le., in this case the themes of the individual paragraphs: the setting or

orientation, the complication or problem and its evaluation, the resolution, the re-orientation and

the coda. The paragraph themes suggest those of individual sentences while the paragraph themes

themselves cm be predicted by the textual themes for the complete genre.

Another feature of genre narrative writing is the insertion of "sumrning up" devices which,

at cntical points as the events unfold, provide a resume of what has gone before. These wiU take

the form of a paragraph in longer stories, or just a sentence in the narrative being discussed here,

e.g., "1 guess she's fiactured it" sums up the fist part of the narrative; "...the doctor said she

would need a cast" sumrnarizes the proposed treatment; "Four weeks passed.. xhanged" the

duration of the treatment, and "She resolved. ..next year" the lessons to be learned by both Cathy

and the reader. In addition, these sentences are prospective inasmuch as they give readers a hint as

to what is to corne, thus shunting them mentaiiy into a predictive mode as they read on.

More accomplished h t e r s tend to use what is called "nominalization" when surnming up

and predicting, e.g., the openùig ideas of the aory would be expressed by a more skilled writer as:

"Skiinrr time in the park had corne for the Heron family and a current of expectation med the

house"; or the second paragraph as "Cathy's tantalking 'c'me on' challenged her brother over the

sound of the howling wind." As writersf ideas become more complex with increased expertise in

writing, so aIso does their abiiity and tendency to use norninalization, and this in hini d e s for a

more concise expression of ideas by the writer as well as a clearer understanding of them by the

reader. Thus -dents' ability to read Unplies an ability to understand and use nominalization in

keeping with their educationai progress, this abilay being more necessary as the written word

increases in use. Studems, especidy at higher education levels need to have the ability to

compose concise resumes through the use of what linguists c d "distiUationl' of both oral and

written content. They need to be taught the skiUs necessq for this, skius which are contained in a

knowledge of the "specialired grammar ... that has evolved over hundreds of years" (Cope &

Kalantzis, ibid., p. 13 5). This is a grammar "that organizes text, that çummarizes and abstracts,

then encapsulates 'big' meanings for use elsewhere ... that nominalizes rarnpantly and tums the

universe into a set of related thingsl' (ibid.). Functional Linguistics gives a full exposition of this

grammar of writing and the way it is used. Moreover, since as teachers we believe that we cannot

teach what we do not understand, and understanding makes for more effective teaching, then an

acquired competence in bctional linguistics will provide a powerfbl addition to our strategies for

the teaching and leaniing of language ïteracy.

C. Leamin8 Theory

It has been seen (Cope & Kalantzis, ibid., p. 144) that fùnctional linguistics is an

adaptable flexible resource, focused on meaning rather than on syntax, and oriented to the text

and its purpose rather than to the sentence. A study of how meaning is created through the use of

language is a study of grammar, and hence, if the learning of gramrnar is to be meaningful and

profitable to the students, it must be airned at understanding and andysing how different

arrangements of words in a text make different meanings.

Traditionally, as inherited fiom Greek and Roman classical times, gramma. was aimed at

the analysis of sentences pointing out the essential elemenîs that were necessary to ensure their

basic intemal structure. It was an essential tool for those who were studying Greek and Latin for

the purpose of accessing the knowledge content enshrined in the ancient texts. When applied to

vernacular languages such as English in the written form in which it existed from the Renaisaance

to the 1 WOs, however, the aim was quite dflerent: t o establish "a 'standard' written language

shared across speakers of different 'spoken' dialects" (Cope & Kalantzis, p. 138), and as well, to

train public speakers in how bea to use oral language to achieve their political goals. However,

with the passage of t h e , since traditional grarnmar was no longer studied as an aid to rhetoric

(Christie, 7 98 1, 1 WOa) and had therefore lost its usefiilness, it came to be viewed in a negative

manner and, with the advent of the present century, its study consisted merely of recognizing and

naming parts of speech, parsing words and applying d e s of usage to oral sentences so as to make

them conform to the diaiect of middle-class dwellers in an area adjacent to the city of London,

England. Meanwhile the work of Chomsb in the 20th century attracted some interest in formai

hguistics, a system that examines the relationship between language and the mind; but so also did

the functional linguists, following Halliday, whose concem with practical issues of language made

their work more likely to be used by classroom iiteracy teachers.

Functional linguistics, by relating language to society, concems itself with "understanding

how the ways in which language is used have shaped its structure" (Cope & Kalantzis, p. 143);

and functional grammars, because of their primarily semantic orientation, show how language

makes meaning. Briefly contrasted, the goals and social purposes of the three approaches to

grammar can be stated as foilows: traditional grammar has for its aim to teach chiidren standard

oral and written language according to the mode1 provided by middle-ciass people; forma1

grammar aimed to "discover innate neurological limitations on the f o m of possible grammars"

(Cope & Kalantzis, p. 139), while functiond grammar aimed to show how language is closely

related to its social environment. Halliday (1 979% p. 185) pointed to the uselessness of traditional

grammar, not only as an aid to teaching the more effective use of language, but even as facilitating

an understanding of the very nature of language itself. It is interested only in the sentence, and is

not directed to text or to its cohesiveness or structure, and therefore does not apply itself to what

for fûnctiond linguists is the basic unit of language, viz., the text . It is not surprising then, that a

small core of educators in the 1970s began to find only a minimal degree of relevance between

t his approach to grarnmar and classroom language teaching. C homslq (1 97 1 ) declares (pp .

1 52E) that he is "rather sceptical about the significance, for the teaching of languages, of

. . . insights and understanding [t hat] have been attained in linguistics and psychology " and

furthemore, "that the relevance of psychological theory to acquisition of language is a highly

dubious and questionable matter.. . " (ibid., p. 154). Besides, "the actual use of language obviously

involves a cornplex interplay of many factors of the most disparate sort, of which the grammatical

processes constitute only one" (Allen & Van Buren, 1970, p. 10). His position (as summed up by

Cope & Kalantzis, 1993, p. 143) is that forma1 grammar "has no practical relevance whatsoever to

language teaching [or] leaming in schools" .

Functional grammar is "flexible, based on the notion of 'resource', semantic in focus, and

onented towards the text" (ibid.), in contrast to traditional and forrnal grammar, both of which are

"formal, rigid, based on the notion of d e , syntactic in focus, and oriented towards the sentence"

(Hdiday 1979% p. 186). Since fùnctional iinguistics has meaning as its prhary focus, it must be

cognizant of difrent types of meaning; and each of these can be understood fiom two

viewpoints, viz., that of context and that of language. It is context that determines the register of

a text, which fùnctional linguists analyse into three components: field, referrïng to the social

activity described in a text and to which language can contribute; tenor which consists of the

interpersonal verbal stimuli and responses of the characters; and mode which indicates the

fbnction language W s in the interpersonai communication. Meaning, examined eorn the point of

view of language, systemic linguists hold, can be ideational, interpersonal and textual. Ideational

meaning is concemed with creating a rneaningfùi world by descnbing the activities of people in

terms of how, when, where, why they do what they do. Interpersonal meaning is concerned with

creating a meaningful world in terms of the interactions of people. Texhial meaning concems itseif

with reality, whether actual or symbolic, as forging links between people. When text is described

fiorn the hctional linguistic point of view, there is a correlation between its contextual and

grammatical organization: i. e., field and ideational meaning are strongly associated, as also are

tenor and interpersonal meaning, and mode and textuai meaning. This association implies in

practice that one can predict a text's grammar fiom a knowledge of its context, and information

about its context can be gleaned fiom an examination of its grammar. Because of this association,

systemic functional linguistics can provide a usefùl mode1 of language teaching in the classroom

for teachers who are wefi versed in its andytic details.

. . us in^ linmristtcs in the classroom

Systemic fùnctional grammars are much more complex in nature than traditional grammars

and they include rnany more andytical terms to be memorized. This characteristic may funiish a

strong deterrent to teachers fkom using and teaching the system. However, for those who ernbrace

its method it offers tools to address and understand better the concept of meaning and how its

different kinds corne to be expressed effectively in text.

An anaiysis of ideationai meaning categorizes reality as action, men&zlprocessing, and

being. Thus in the following sentence, "The girls were skating when they heard a crack and the

ice was split in front of them", 'were skating' is reality as action, lieard' is reality as mental

processing, and k a s split' is reality as being. In conveying interpersonal meaning in English,

participants interact by exchanging items, or information or by asking for these. Hence in the

sentence, "Ask him to tell me ifhe can give me the information", 'ask' is a command, 'tell' is a

statement, 'cm give' is a question. With regard to textual meaning the function of grarnmar is to

mange meaning in the sentence or clause so that it is clear and easity accessible to the receiver. In

the English language, the sentence places important information at the extrernities, Le., at the

beginning, where it is known as theme (p. 37E,above) and at the end. Theme represents the point

of departure for the writer; the information towards the end of the sentence is usually new and

indicates a development in the author's thought. In the following sentences, for example, varied

emphases are placed on "mother" and "dessert":

Mother made a delicious dessert. (Mother is stressed as the maker.)

What mother made was a delicious dessert. (Emphasis on mother's cooking)

A deliciars dessen was made by mother. (Stress on "a delicious dessert")

Functional grammar's analysis of the sentence varies according to the Merent kinds of meaning

being emphasized (above). This sentence, "The girls were skating when they heard a crack", taken

ideationally, consists of the following groups of words: a nominal group, a verbal group, and a

temporal clause as follows: The girls were skating when.. .crack

nominal verbal temporal

The sentence can also be analysed for fhction, to show that something was being enacted at a

certain point in tirne: The girls were skating when.. .crack

actor process circumstance: Iocatiodtime

Thus far, the analysis for class and function indicate what the sentence is about. A

fkther aspect of its meaning needs to be discemed, viz., what the sentence is doing, fiom the

interpretation point of view, i.e., is it giving information, or expressing a cornmand, or asking a

question? Functional Luiguistic theorists point to the presence of a subject and £inite[verb] with

the subject preceding the finite verb, and when this arrangement is present, they explain, the

sentence is giving information. They analyse the sentence as follows, using the schema of

MOOD RESIDUE Subject Finite Predicator Adjunct The girls were skating when.. .crack

The sentence can also be analysed in respect of how it gives its information. As is usual in

information-giving sentences, the subject is in the fkst position - the subject is the unmarked

theme (p. 39 above) -- and new information (when ... crack) cornes in the last position. What

comes in a sentence after the theme is known as the rheme. Thus, lingisticdy and fkom its

informational aspect, the sentence can be analysed as follows:

THEME RHEME Given information New information The girls were skating when they.. .crack

Thus fiuictional grammar, by approaching the sentence fkom a multifaceted stance, gives a much

more detailed examination of text than traditional grammar, and explains in much ncher detail

how rneaning is expressed by a text. It points out analytically how every (English) sentencdclause

"is about something, does something and adapts to its environment" (Cope & Kalantzis, ibid., p.

147). Functional gramma. aiso poses a greater challenge to both teacher and learner in the initial

stages of one's encounter with it, but there is a pay-off for those who master it successfully. They

will have acquired the cornpetence both to recognize and to produce language that will express

intended meaning accurately and efficiently

D. How fùnctional grammar can be used by teachers.

The SFG (sytemic functional grammar) approach to language teaching can be styled

interventionist inasmuch as teachers do not wait for a certain degree of student intellectual

development (and hence for a certain projected linguistic aptitude) to occur before presenting a

targeted module of language. Traditionalists tend to view this fiinctional approach as dangerous

and one to be undertaken with great caution; and they prefer the leamhg of set rules in keeping

with the students' intellechial matunty. Genre theorists reply that language is a vehicle designed

and used primarily in order to express and cornrnunicate rneaning, and to do so in a social context;

and so genre teachers tend to give priority to the creation of social structures since these stimulate

and provoke emergent language. These two parameters, viz., that language leaming is a

strucîured process and that the purpose of language is primarily a social one, are regarded by

genre theorists as higbly influentid in the efficient and effective teaching of language literacy.

The written language teacher in the practicd work of the classroom is concemed with

three important parameters: d e m g the texi types or genres to be taught; exercising the art of

timely intervention to ensure that students learn the constitutive stages of each genre; and, again

using an interventionist strategy, teaching the linguistic requirements needed by the students to

produce good quahty genres. L e h g one's first language is, for the child, a social interactive

process in which signincant adults mode1 for and guide the children in constnicting texts; and this

is the pattern that genre theorists recommend for language learning in schools. Accordiiy, the

cumculum design of Martin and Rothery introduces students at the outset to a number of

difTerent types of texts or genres ço as to give them expertise in identifjmg and recognizing the

social purposes, structure and language features of texts. This they call the mudelhg stage of

genres teaching. Ne-, the students work with the teacher in creating the text (in this study, of a

narrative) so that the text is the result of their joint negotiation. The students h d y work

independently and create their own personal text. Only beginners need to work through al1 three

stages, for as the students develop expertise in a certain genre, they will be able to create their

own text independently with minimal assistance fiom the teacher .

In the modehg stage of genre teaching, students must be enabled to see and grasp the

essential nature of the genre in question. They must know and understand the purpose of its

author the essential stages that a particular genre must have, and they must understand how the

grammaticavlinguistic choices made by the author put hislher purpose into eEect. Genre-based

language exemplifies that al1 language occurs in a social context, that it must be stmctured to

achieve its purpose(s) in a particular context, as also to createlportray the social interactive

reiationships characteristic of that context. Thus if an author is subject to certain hguistic usage

Lunitations in writing s narrative, it is the genre by its nature that imposes these restrictions and

not the teacher. The context being central to the genre, it is necessary for the student to

understand this aspect of a given interaction if acceptable writing is to result. Contexts Vary in

b d , but since the function of the narrative is to entertain or amuse, to teach Life skills or supply

some ot her human need, and since narrative cm take the form of adventures, horror stories,

romance, fajr tales, and epics, contexts must not be so far removed &om the realm of the

possible that the reader cannot relate to them. Genre theonsts recornmend the analytical study of a

set of well-written narratives in this modelling stage, so that students may becorne familiar with

their social purposes, their textual structure, their salient Ianguage charactenstics and how the

language used fùnctions to achieve the author's purpose. Students are thus enabled to l e m how

people make language work, Le., to have an appreciation of how each analytical unit --

comprishg words, phrases, clauses -- is an organic configuration of fûnctions, that each

meaningful part has a function with respect to the whole unit.

SFG points to the word as the smdest linguistic unit. "There are in principle two significant ways of labelling a linguistic unit.. .to assign it to a class [and].. .to assign a function to it. Hence ... we can label the constitutents of a grammatical structure (1) by class and (2) by Function" (Halliday, 1950, p. 27). Thus in the unit "poor f a d y " the constituents are labelled according to class as adjective and noun, and according to Ftcnction as Modifier and Head. In Hallidayan practice "function" words have an initial capital.

FUNCTION Modifier Head poor famil y u@ective noun

CLASS

However, class and Function are not always CO-terminal, Le., the anaiysis of a linguistic unit fkom

the class and function stand-point may not always be identical, e-g., in the unit "of this poor happy

family", there are three nominal groups by class, viz., "in this poor happy family", "poor happy

family" and "happy f d y " , whereas by Function there are but two, viz., "in this poor happy

family" and "this poor happy f d y " . Hence the d e : "Function labels irnply minimal bracketing,

class groups maximal bracketing, which States that functional gramrnar recognizes individudy

only those items that exercise a r e c o g d l e function in the structure of a larger unit. Class labels

such as noun, adjective, verb, give a general indication of the grammatical potential of a Linguistic

item, e-g. that a noun can be subject or object or iodîcate possession ; but they do not tell what

role the item is playing in any actual textual structure. A structure is defined as any viable

configuration of fbnctions, e-g., actoPprocessAgoal (p. 37) . Functional labels hdicate the

function of the unit in the whole structure, e.g., in the sentence "Dogs eat meat", both "dogs" and

"meat" belong to the class of noms; whereas analysed functionally, "dogs" is labelled actor and

"meat" is labelled goal

Actur Dogs Noun

FUNCTION Process Goal eat meat Verb Noun CLASS

The purpose of functional labelling is to provide a means of interpreting grammatical structure," in

such a way as to relate any given instance to the system of the language as a whole." (HiiUiday,

1950, p.32). Thus when language is described functiody, dl the various functions that are

included in the grammar are identified as well as ali the different language configurations that

serve to express certain meanings. Hence any word or part of the whole is not Limited to one

fùnction, e-g., in the clause above, "Dogs can be labelled as "actor", but it is also "subject" and a

1. Teachers' mroaches to assessrnent of vvrihp

Teachers, for the most part, largely used their familiarity with how and what students

write at a certain grade level in order to give a reasonably objective response to the students'

efforts. Generally teachers in their intuitive judgments, tended to agree among themselves on the

scores they gave, but they were ofien unable to direct their students' attention to the latter's

precise strengths or weaknesses. S tudents who wrote "good" texts received a vague comment

such as "good ideas" or "good expression", whereas texts considered to lack a required standard

(which was least often de£ined for the student) were branded with "poor" or "few ideas" or "poor

expression". None of these comments indicated to the students the precise nature of the "good" or

"poor" aspects of their writing or on what precisely they should concentrate in order to improve

its standards. Nor were teachers trained to address these aspects of w-riting, for at least und the

1970s, grammar was merely prescriptive, shed at prescribing the usage that was deemed correct

by middle-class English standards. Linguists today however, seek to describe anaiyticdy the

living language system as it is used in communication and to reject the prescnptive approach

inasmuch as it does not account adequately for the structure of Enghsh, nor therefore focus on the

basic unit of the language which for them is not the words, or phrases or sentences in isolation,

but the complete text.

Linguists stress the text as the expression of meaning, adding that chiidren's initial

atternpts at expression evoke fkom adults around them a response to the meaning of the

expression even though the latter may not understand every word or phrase. When linguists

shidied intensely early language development their resdting recommendations to schools focused

on (1) how children learn to communicate their needs to those around by using their own

(invented) language rather than by m a s t e ~ g exact language structures; and (2) how childrens'

language was used to express identity, needs, &es, dislikes, cwiosity and interests. Language was

an instrument by which they controlled the environment, obtaining their needs and getting others

to do things for them. Chifdren leamed the language of the environment by using it fiequently to

t heir own advantage.

Applying this principle to the school environment where children are expected to master

the art of writing, it was seen that their success would depend on the frequency of opportunities

to wrïte that were provided for them, the variety of purposes and audiences for which they would

write and the degree to which they were encouraged to draw on their own personal experiences

as sources of content about which to write. Moreover, studies in the relationship between the

isolated teaching of grammar and of mastery of writing showed negative results (Wardaugh,

1967). Subsequently, the focus of attention switched from correctness of grammar to a concem

for a choice of language suited to the context of situation with the admission that the resulting

different kinds of writing made Werent demands on writers fkom the point of view of language.

The Merentiating factor was known as register, and linguists insisted that teachers must first

understand how the context of situation affects language use, and second, they must be able to

describe different registers, if they are to plan suitable writing settings, point out the peculiar

linquistic features of diEerent genres and invent strategies to help students.

2. Register

Linguists show that contexts of situation and language are not relateci in any haphazard

way; and they point to three identifiable feahres of any situation which will infiuence the tanguage

used or what they refer to as register (cf pp. 35-36 above. Here the concept is discussed in the

context ofclassroom work.) The features are Field, Mode and Tenor. Field can be most ofien

thought of as the social activity written about in the text and is reflected in the choice of lexical

items made (Martin & Rothery, 1981, p. 14). In the "Legend of Black Bart" (p. 58, below), the

field is that of the goldmsh and resulting take-over by an armed hustler. The story features many

action processes and the resulting revenge of the natives. In this case the function of the language

is to reconstruct the experience. In some texts, the language merely accompanies the action but

does not reconsmict it, e-g., exchanges of conversation d u ~ g a med. In a detailed description of

the meal the "coiiocational potential" (as linguists express it) activated by the field, is realized,

identifiying field with topic more closely.

Teachers therefore will ensure that students mite about a series ofevents that are

interrelated, planned and carried out by the characters that have already been introduced in the

orientation. These events must be congruent with the well-defined character qualities known

fiom that introduction, and with the characters' motivations, intentions and problems. Students

must include also a description of the interpersonal meanings of events and a personal

identification of the characters. They will make clear attributions of material and action

processess, and (in more sophicated texts) an attempt to treat the events in a nuanced and

imaginative way. The field, then, consists of a iife situation that is believable and presented in a

way that engages the reader, a situation in which the characters interact and plan in order to face

and overcome the challenges that emerge in the process of daily iiving. It conveys to the reader

an adequate grasp of the whole context of the events and enables one to reconstruct the whole

worId of the narrative.

Mode refers to the linguistic charnel by which interaction takes place (ibid.) and there is

distance of two kinds involved: ks t , when the language is reflective and depends on the extent to

which the textual language is removed fiom the action it describes. In a footbdl match, for

example, the players' utterances are part of the action; a TV commentary is somewhat fùrther

removed, and a written report for the papers next day is still further removed. The second kind of

distance where the language is spontaneous and informal, refers to that between writer and

reader. Distance increases from face to face encounter, through teiephone conversatios through

TV report to written text in which last incident neither author nor reader see or hear each other.

The greater part of children's use oflanguage, even at secondary level of schooling is in face to

face living situations in which the very context provides a backdrop and therefore gives m e r

meaning to the encounter. Ln a wntten account this backdrop needs to be created and recorded in

words, and hence children need to be taught to be cognizant of this need and given the skills to

supply it. They will be taught, that is, how to create a text that is context independent through the

use of such devices as embedding (relative clauses, e.g., The old woman, who was quite alert,

turned around) and &~ostuszs ( e g , He asked ifhe where on the right road). conjzmclions

(temporal like, if. when and logical Iike, md: so ,) and such czrcumstantialphrases as, "one

night.. ." , "after a tirne.. ." to indicate the sequentid order of happenings. Students will leam how

to create an appropriate distance between the writer and the audience and ailow the reader to

obtain an adequate insight into interpersonal meanings through the use of anifudinal epi~hets

(handsome, wise, pretty), mentalprocess clauses (he was overawed by her beauty, impressed by

his astuteness), and dialogue (see below under Sarnple Narratives, for examples, in stories C, B

and 4 on pp. 192 -199).

The third feature of Register is tenor. "Tenor refers to distance (social as opposed to

physical) between the speaker or writer and addressee" (ibid., p. 14). Tenor has two aspects:

personai and functional. Personal tenor can be seen as fluctuahg on a spectrum between the two

extrernities of power (comoting ciifference of social status and ant agonism) and solidriiy

(which implies similarity and cooperative bonding). Persona1 tenor refers to how characters in a

text relate to one another in the roles they exercise, e.g., teacher-student , father-child, doctor-

patient (ibid., p. 14). The characters assume speech and writing roles through the very language

they use, e.g., the person in a teaching role will at fist initiate a lesson encounter by stimulathg

the students' interests, hparting new knowledge and questioning to test the extent of their

understanding, while the student takes a subordinate role. The student may then take the initiative

by asking questions or expressing a personal understanding of a related concept not treated

explicitly by the teacher, in which case, the teacher assumes the subordinate role. Functional

tenor refers to the author's purpose in creating the text. This tenor of a text is conveyed through

textual dialogue, intercharacter cooperation and antagonism, and mutual attitudes as displayed in

attributions made by the characters.

3. The linmistic system analysed

The purpose of language is to communicate meaning. Linguists point out that in English

meaning is conveyed through the use of the different systems that comprise the grammar of the

language. They cdl this approach to language a fhctionai one. A system consists of a number of

choices that may be employed in conveying meaning. In andysing the text, three language

components are distinguished, as already discussed (p. 44): the inleipersonal which refers to the

different writing roles adopted by the author and have been discussed above under personal tenor

as to how they affect the language choices that must be made in accordance with the portrayal of

a particular role; the i dea tod , through which authors express meanings about both purely

mental and extemal environmental experiences in keeping with the register componentfield of the

genre in question; the textual, by which the means used to produce a piece of language that is a

unified whole 60m the viewpoint of meaningy in other words a text, are provided. The language

choices made are innuenced by the situational feature mode.

A system, in keeping with its definition as a number of choices made to convey meaning,

ïndicates the precise choice of paradigrns suited to convey a particular meaning at a given place in

a clause. Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG) analyses language hto a number of systerns each

having its peculiar contribution to make to the meaning of the whole (cf p. 3 W.). The

Transitivity System is made up of "Actor AProcess"Goal", where """ indicates "leading to", e-g.,

"...ail four * made A the crossing.. . ." . Each of the three sections contributes to the construction

of the meaning of the cornplete clause. One can interpret " aii four" as actor in reference to "the

crossing" , and "the crossing" as the goal with respect to "al1 four". "Made" is the process

reported in the clause. The clause itselfis a compact unit of language that reports an action, a

state or an event, and describes how participants are associated with these in specific settings.

The clause -- a constituent unit of the Iarger meaning unit, text - is a language unit made up of a

process and the participants and circumstances associated with it. SFG refers to actions, States

and events as processes and they are generally expressed by verbs, e.g., "made". Participants or

actors are expressed by nouns or noun-like structures called nominalizations, eg., "family",

"travelling back and forth" . Circumstances are expressed by nom-like or adverbial famis, e.g.,

"for a number of years", "together".

m e fim.iiy/were/poor/and so/ for a number of y e d a l i four/made/the crossmg/togeîher. Trad. Gram. adj. noun verb adj. çonj. prep. noun adj. noun verb art noun adv. SFG participant bemg process circllIllSfatlce participant process circrrmstance

Thus the words (called parts of speech in traditional grammar) can also be descnbed in

tems of the basic clause units or meaning, Le., in ternis of processes (e-g, what action, event or

state is being reporteddescribed? What are the circumstances? Who are the participants?) or in

tems of relationships among the circumstances and the participants in the text. These

relationships are concemed with "doing" (the processes are classed as maferial and behavimmzr),

with "rneaning" (the processess are cded mental and verbal), and with "relating" (the processes

are classed as reIationaZ).

At this point, it is opportune to discuss in greater detail (folIowing Martin & Rothery,

1 %O), the following linguistic aspects of narrative: eqverÎentia2 meanings, reference system, the

conjuncion system, the thematic system, and the system of lexical cohesion. The narrative text

"The legend of Black Bart", which follows, will then be analysed according to each system to

indicate the degree to which each is realized in the text. nie text is Number 39 in the sample set

of 100 essays used in this study, but the number has no significance. The text was used for

analysis, merely because of its brevity and because it seemed at a glance to include the essentiai

stages of narrative. It was seen in the sarne glance as not being a mode1 essay (although long after

the analyses were completed, 1 noted that the text had been assessed as being among the top 25

through the application of the Traditionai Assessrnent Scale alone, by at least one of the seven

assessors)

Fiaire 4 The Leeend of BIack Bart (text and unit numbers)

(1) The year was 1800 and (2) The cowboys and Indians were fighting and (3) This took place in The wesTem days.

(4) Gold mining was The Big Thing (5) cowfoik were finding gold and (6) setting up homes. (7) There was a smali Town in The ouToack of Texas (8) That was doing very good (9) They hit millions in gold (10) They were swimming in money.

(1 1) The problem sTarTed when (12) The mosT Terrible gunsmen you ever seen came inTo Town. (13) He had a blacK Horse, Two Hip guns and a Rifle. (14) He sTopped in Town and (1 5) wenT To The bar, (16) everybody was T e d e d of him. (1 7) He said (1 8) tIis name was BIacK BarT and (19) he was going To TaKe over The Town and all The gold Too. (20) The people ran and (2 1) goT The sheriff, (22) and The sherifFwalKed inTo The bar and (23) said To BlacK BarT (24) Ride OUT of Town or (25) he will puT you behind bars. (26) B d puiled his gun OUT and (27) shoT The sheriffdead. (28) The people said (29) you can have anyniing (30) you wanT. (3 1) BarT TooK The sheriffs house and al l his belongings. (32) He aiso made everybody (33) mine for hirn and if(34) They disobeyed (35) he would shooT Them. (36) WhaT BarT didnT Know (37) was (38) There was a young man in Town (39) who was Fed up wiTh BarT and (40) had a plan (41) To geT rid of him. (42) He gaThered ail The Townsrnen TogeTher and (43) made The plan.

(44) The nexT day when The men wenT To worK for BarT (45) The men said To BarT (46) To go inside and (47) iooK aT dl The gold (48) They found and (49) he didnT suspec'ï a Thing. The n ighT before (50) The men seT up dynamiTe (5 1) To blasT him OUT.

(52) He wenT in all The way To The bacK of The mine and (53) The men ran OUT and (54) Triggered The Dynamite Booom (55) The mine collapsed and (56) crushed BarT. (57) AU The people cheered and (58) everyThing wenT bacK To normal and (59) That is where (60) The BlacK BarT Legend came eom. (61) And ThaT is The TruTh.

m r e 5 Analysis of the Story: The Legend of Black Bart: Experiential Meanings

Staaes Orientation: The story is set in the distant past. The author describes the life and activities of this small mining town.

Complication: A wicked enemy &d and took contml of the town by force.

Partici~ant mie - Process T v ~ e 1 . The year(camer) was (relation al] 2. The cowboys & were fighting (material)

lndians (actor) 3. This (actor) took place (material) 4. Gold mining (carrier) was (relational) 5. Cowfolk (ador) were finding (material) 6. sethg up (matecial) 7.srnall town (carrier) was (relational) 8. That (actor) was doing (material) 9. They (actor) hit (materid) 1 0. They (actor) were swimming (mat.) 1 1 .The problern(act0r) started (materid) 1 2.The. ..saw (actor, quaMy) came (material) 13.He (actor) had (materid) 14.He (actor) stop ped (material) 15. went (material) 1 6. Everybody (canier) was (relational)

Ci~umstantial rote 1 8ûû (attri bute)

in the western days (time) the big thing (attribute) gold (goal) homes (goal) in the outback.. .Texas (place) vew good (qudi?r) millions ...g old (goal, manner) in money (manner, quality)

into t o m (place) a black ... rifle (goal) in town (spatial, place) to ... bar (place) terrified ... him (atm'bute)

Resolution: BaR was led into a trap and killed

Coda: The people are happy. Life returns to normal

17.He (actor) 18.His name (canier) 19.He (actor) 2O.The people (ador) 21. 22. the sheriff (actor) 23. 24. 25. He (actor) 26. Bart (actor) 27. 28.The people (adoi 29.You (carrier) 30.You (carrier) 3 1 .Bart (actor) 32.He (actor) 33. 34.They (actor) 35. He (actor) 36. Bart (actor) 37. 38.There 39.Who (actor) 40. 41. 42. He (actor) 43. 44. The...when (time) 45. The men (actor) 46. 47. 48. They (actor) 49. He (adorhgent) 50.The ... before(time) 51. 52.He (agent) 53. The men (agent) 54. 55. the mine (agent) 56. 57.all ...p eople(ador) 58. Everytfiing (actor) 59. That (carrier) 6O.The ... legend (carrier) 61. That (carrier)

said (material) was (relational) was.. m e r (material) ran (materiai) got (material) wal ked (material) said (verbai) ride (material) will put (material) pulled out(material) shot (matenal) said (verbal) can have (material) want (mental) too k (material) made (matenal) mine (material) disobey ed (mental) would shoot (materid) didn't know (mental) was (relational) was (relationai) was (relational) had (mat./ment.) t o get (materiai) gathered (matenal) made (mathent-) went (mate rial) said (verbal) to go (material) Ioo k at (material) found (material) did ... susped(menta1) set up (material) to blact (material) went (mat.) in (direct.) ran (mat.) out (direct.) tnggered (material) collapsed [matenal) cmshed (material) cheered (mat.krbal) went (mate rial) is (relational) came (material) is (relationai)

Black Bart (atûibute) the t o m ...g old (goal)

the shertff (goal) into ... bar (place) to ... Bart (recipient) out.. .town (space, direction) you (goai) behind ban (place) itis gun (goal) the sheriff (god) dead (cond.)

the ... belongings (goal) everyone (goal) for him (recipient)

a young ... t o m (existent) fed ... Bart (quality) a plan (goal) rid of him (goal) all...together (goal/rnanner) a plan (goal) to.. .Bart (goal) to Bart (addressee) inside (place) ail ...g old (goal)

a thing (goal) dynamite (goal) him (goal) out (direction) al1 ... mine (degreehpace)

the dynamite (goal)

Bart (goal)

back ... normal (attribute) d e r e (spatial) from (spatial) the truth (attribute)

is of the story Functional analys : Expenential meanin~s.

The story text was analysed (as above) into Participant-process-circumstantid role units.

In narratives, actions events and the people involved in these comprise the main portion of the

59

text, and hence materiai processes predominate - forty-su out of the total of sixty in this story.

There are also mental, verbal and relationai processes. By taking into account the diEerent

participant roles associated with each process, one can see how the author involves his characters

in a variety of grammatical roles to create a variety of relationships in the story.

In the orientafion, the reader is familiarized with the setting through the "Cowboys and

Indians" in the grammatical role of actor in the materialprocess of "were fighting" . The time

fiame is indicated by the &r (the year) and the amioute (1800) together with the temporal

unit "in the western days", the explmation of which the author passes over, on the presumption

that its implication is known to the reader. The narrator does not take part in the events for

obvious reasons. The focus of attention narrows to the cam'er "gold mining", giving it the

amibute "the big thkg", and one of the actors (the cowfolk) through the material processes

(were hding) and (were setting up) were reaching the goal of becoming rich and settled in

homes. The readerfs attention is drawn to the specific focus and locale of the action through the

carrier (small town) and the place (in the outback of Texas) in addition to the 3 actor-maferia2

process units (8,9, & 1 O).

The complication, the amival of an armed b d y , is initiated by means of 1 1 further actor-

materzalprocess units ( 1 1 to 22) with a c&r-relatio~zai unit to describe the reaction of the

townsfoik to Black Bart. The sheri£Ps challenge is issued through a verbal and rnaterialprocess

(units 23 & 24), and Black Bart's reply by the use of 3 actor-material process units (25, 26, 27).

The take-over of control by Black Bart is suitably expressed by actor-~a~eriaiprocess units (29

to 35).

One aclor-rnental process unit, three relàfzunal unit s and six material processes introduce

the reader to the solution (36 to 43, 50, & 5 1) - the action to be taken to nd the town of the

tyrant. Units 4449 and 52-55 (9 actor-material processes and 1 acior-verbal and 1 octor-

mentalprocess) relate the carrying into effect of the plan: BIack Bart's greed for gold is used to

lure him into a fatal trap and he is Wed. Finaily, the author using 3 actor-materialprocess units

(56,57, & 59) and two actor-rehiionaZprocess units tells of the effect of the plan on the local

community -- its retum to normal.

A Linguistic aadysis of this kind brings to iight the prevalence and suitability of the use of

certain kinds of processes in the writing of different genres. This story, although classilied as a

legend, of necessity reflects the experience of the author, at least as found in his reading and TV

viewing. It is a narrative of vicarious experience, which in the case of Elementary and

Intermediate panel authors, is characterized by the predominance of matenal-process types,

though other process types do occur. Awareness of this can alert teachers to the need to show

their students how the use of first and second person dialogue and reported speech (relational

processes) as weU as expression of their intentions by the characters (mental processes) can be

used in order to enrich and viv* their written texts.

a. Reference: The Svstem

The linguistic system called reference is that by means of which the reader is able to

recognize whether or when a character is new in the text or has been introduced earlier.

Reference can be generic, as when a class of entities is in question, e.g., "Gun siingers were rnany

in the west", or specific e.g., "This gun slinger had two hip guns and a rifle'. Specific reference,

when it is the first reference to an entity or character in the text, is known as presenring reference.

From the Legend of Black Bart the reference to "a smalI town" (unit 7) is presentîng as the fit

mention. Thereafter it (as the community liWig there) is referred to as "they" (units 9, 10). This

is presumzng reference since the reader is expected to know the identity of "they". Reference cm

also take the comparative or superlative fonn, e.g., "the most fearftrl gunman you ever saw.. . . "

Town & inhabitants

1. 2.Indians/cowboys 3. 4. 5 . Cowfolk 6. 7.small town 8.that 9. they 1 O. they I I .

Reference: The Textural Structure analvsed

Activity Black Bart The Sheriff

ai i the gold

most fearfùl gunman 12.into t o m 13. - [tkat]

he 14. hé 1s 1 6. evetybody

@el him

17 1 I

18 his h? name 19 t o m hk

i

!

Biack Bart

25 1 l Ypu

26 Bart 27 :; the people

f

the sherE the iheriff

i 1

1

! he j

1 0

the SherZF

38 a young man 39 who 40 41

44 the men 45 the men

47 48 they

50 the men 5 1 52 53 the men 54 55 56

mine

him 1

I the sheritrslhis

57 al1 the people 58 59 60

One of the necessary features of a text is its semantic unity and this unity is achieved

through the h e s of reference used by the author. As the plot of the narrative unfolds, the main

characters at least continue to appear and reference is the system by which the reader is enabled to

idente them. In the story "The legend of Black Bart" there are 5 reference sequences, viz,

cowboys, small town (which redy means its inhabitants - the cowboys), Black Bart, the sheriff,

the young man. Since the town and its inhabitants mean the cowboys, the reference chah can be

reduced to 4, viz., the town and its inhabitants, the main activity, Black Bart and the SheriE

Young people's stories often introduce characters independently and later in the aory refer to

them interchangeably as if in their minds as authors those that first appeared as two characters are

really only one; in the example above, "the town" and its inhabitants, the cowboys, refer to the

same entity. This identity wodd emerge much more cleady in oral conversation, where the

identity of things and people need not be known explicitly because it can be understood from the

context.The study oc and specifïc attention given to reference as a hguistic fàctor in text helps to

focus on the demands written text, as opposed to oral, make on the student author. Whereas in

oral language the things and persons spoken about are usudy present or at least are known to the

listener and any confusions quickiy clarifed, in written language it is not necessarily so; hence the

written text must iden* them explicitly, and -dents must be taught to create a text that is ail

inclusive and leaves only minimal room for questioning on the part of the intended reader. Some

students at the intemediate level aiso need this training because, as can be seen fiom the story

"The Legend ofBlack Bart", not ail wili be able to empioy the system of reference s W y

enough to write a narrative text that is acceptable at this level. Reference is made to "the western

days" as an era that was characterized by symptoms of cowboy-hdian dissention, but as there is

no explanation given by the author, the reader rnust presume this dissention. Sidariy it must be

presumed that the cowfok (unit 5) are to be identsed with "they" (unit 9) and with the

inhabitants of the "smali town in the outback of Texas" (unit 7).

b. Coniunction: The Svstem

Another linguistic system used in the creation of text is conjunctiun. Conjunction is a

textual property and it is concemed with setting up a relationship between and among clauses in

eEecting the logical sytem of ideas in the text, in ternis of consequence, tirne, cornparison. The

words used are called conjunctions. Some the-related wnjunctions are such words as then,

when, while, before, during, after, and are commonly used in narrative, e.g., "the problem started

when the most fearful gunsman -2. "When" indicates simultaneous temporal relationship. In "the

next day when the men went to work for Bart the men said. .." the conjunction "when" indicates

successive temporal relationship. Sorne consequential conjunctions include, "if", "because", "so

that". Conjunctions used in cornparison-contrasts are "iikewise", "similarly", "accordingly",

"moreover". Conjunctions indicate relationships which c m be implicit or explicif, between

clauses, but they do not bring them into effect. In *dents' writing there tend to be more implicit

relationships, and these can be indicated by the mere juxtapositioning of clauses. The text "gold

rnining was the big thing cowfok were findhg gold" is an example of a simultanous temporal

relationship as also is "They hit miliions in gold They were nvimming in money".

Coniunction: The Textual Sncture AnaivA

Ln order to analyse and demonstrate the conjuncîion systern in the story "The Legend of

Black Bart", the text has been divided into clauses that have or (if the text were written in full)

codd have a conjunction between them to show their relationship. These clauses are made to

incorporate relative dauses and nominalized clauses and are not dealt with as separate units.

The analysis is as foliows:

Eiplare 7 Coniunction: The texhial stn icture analysed

Interngl External Clauses

l\ explicit 1 The year was 1800

", and

2" 2 The cowboys and Indians were fighting. and

3' explicit 3 This took place in the western days

4\. 4 Goldmining was the big thing so: implicit

5 4 5. Cowfoik were finding gold and: explicit

6' 6. [were] setting up homes

7&8 K

7&8 niere was a smail town.. xery good. because:impl.

9< 9 They hit millions in gold so: implicit

1 O/ 10 They were swimmüig in money

1 11. when: explicit

, 4 2 1 TypicaIIy. - implicit

23 Not surp smgly- implicit

\14 . -. juid:explicit

15' straightaw/-- irnplicit

1 C 6 [ b e c a u s e c

17&18 1 7 d : e x p l i c i t

-'. and: explicit 19xy

b r e f o r el : i q i . 20' 1. , , a n d : explicit

2L and: emlicit

11 The problem started

12 The rnost fearfd.. h t o town

13 He had a black horse. ..and a rifie

14 He stopped in t o m

15 He went to the bar.

1 6 Everybody.. . t e d e d of him

17& 18 He said his name was Black Bart

19 he was going to ... the town

19a d the gold too

20 The people ran

2 1 [theylgot the sheriff I

2 1

22 The sheriffwaiked into the bar and:explicit

23' /'

23 said to Black Bart

\ [now] :implicit

2 w \or:aqlicit

2K [îmrned. ] : impl.

26( \

27(and:explicit

P o ] :implieit 2 -30

[?$us] : impiicit 3 1/

\and: explicit 3 16,

a1so:explicit 32q33

ànd:explicit 3 y'

\. rf explicit 3 4"

h'8wever:implicit 3 6-39

agd: explicit 4064 41

\ so : implicit 42/ '. and:explicit 43:

àccording1y:impl. 4446

&ci: explicit 47&8

&d: explicit

hou] ride out of t o m

he wili put.. .bars

Bart pulied.. .gun

shot the sheriff dead

28-30 The people said:"You. ..want"

3 1 Bart took. ,.house

3 1b a l i his belongings

32&3 3 He made.. .for him

35 he would shoot them

34 they disobeyed

36-39 what Bart . . . fed up with Bart

40&41 had to get rid of hirn

42 He gathered.. .together

43 made the plan

44-46 The next day ... to go inside

47&48 look at di.. .found

49' '. 49 H e didn 't... a thing a1though:impl.

50&& 50&5 1 The night before ... to blast him out

He went in.. .back of the mine

the men ran out

triggered the dynamite

55-, 55 the mine collapsed and:explicit

56' 56 crushed Bart \en: implicit

57' 57 AU the people cheered h: eqlicit 5%' 58 everything ... normal

dd:explicit 5 9 " \

59 that is where and: explicit

60' 60 the Iegend came fiom \ and: explicit

61,' 61 that is the truth

With two exceptions, the conjunctions in this story are extemai. The greater number are explicit - 26 out of 45 - a feature that is characteristic of students' stories that are judged to be infenor or less effective. There is no conjunctive connection between clauses 3 & 4, and 6 and 7 in the orientation, nor between the orientation and the complication (clauses l O & l 1). It will be noticed that most of the conjunctions are temporal in meanhg and this also is a common feature of young people's writing because they tend to think in temporal patterns when recounting their own experiences.

c. heme: The Systern

The foregoing linguistic analysis of the various constituent aspects of a h e u text lads

logically to a similar examination of the grammatical sentence. This exatniflation follows. There

are a number of configurations that contribute to the forming of a sentence/clause in Englisb,

some necessary and some optional, and the? respective constituents may have a number of

fùnctions within these codigurations. According to traditional grammatical analysis each clause

in English must have a subject. In the clause, "Dogs eat meat fiom a dish" the subjea is "dogs".

Similady, the subject in each of the following can be easily discemed as the doer of the action:

"Birds sing songs ." "Boys play games" . However, other interpretations of what constitutes the

subject are also given: e.g., (2) what the message of the clause is concemed about: "M

p e s e fly at high altitudes" or (3) that of which something is predicated, e-g., "The cardinal is a

colourful bird". Besides, in clause (2) "Canada geese" can also be regarded as the doer of the

action, and in ali three clauses the subject can be regarded as that of which something is

predicated. It can not be said however that in ail three clauses taken individuaily, the subject fits

all three definitions. Not so, the clause "the policeman offered the bfind man some help". Here

the "policeman" is the doer of the action, the concem of the message and the one of whom

something is predicated. The meanhg of the clause can also be expressed as: "Some help the

blind man was oEered by the policeman", but in this alternative verbal mangement it is no longer

possible to idente the subject in the traditional way because the Merent fùnctions that constitute

the traditional idea of subject have been divided out among different elements of the clause. The

actor or doer of the action is the policeman, but the message is centered on "some help" and the

tmth of the message is guaranteed by "the blind man". In the second h . of the 19th century,

grammarians began to regard the above three abjects as of different kinds and they labeled them

thepsychoIogicaZ subjeci (that which is the concem of the message or what was prominent in the

speaker's mind): the grammaticull subject (that of which something is predicated) from the

grammatical relationship in number and person that existed between subject and verb; and the

logicaZ subject (the doer of the action). Therefore, in the sentence "Some help the blind man was

offered by the policemant' , the psychological subject is "some help"; the grammatical subject is

"the b h d man" , the one of whom the statement is predicated; the logical subject, the doer of the

action, is "the policeman".

Halliday (1985) points out in the case of "ideaiized clause pattern, like 'John runs' or 'the

boy threw the baIl', we can operate with the label subject as ifit referred to a single

undserentiated concept" (ibid., p. 34), because the three fùnctions of subject above, all coincide

in "John" and "boy". But in living language it is not possible to base an anaiysis on the

expectation that al1 three concepts are just different aspects of the same notion. Hence he assigns

three separate and Werent labels to the three notions of the subject as follows:

Psychological subject = Theme = that which is the concem of the message Grammatical subject = Subject = that of which something is predicated Logical subject = Actor = the doer of the action

Hence the following analysis: 1 2 3 4

Some help the b h d man was offered by the policeman ïheme Subject Acfor

In the clause "The policeman offered the blind man some help" ail 3 roles of theme, subject, and

actor are combined in one element "The policeman". In the clause "Some help the blind man was

offered by the policeman" all3 are separated as shown above; and this latter is not the ody

variation. Other variations of the clause are also possible , e-g., (1) The blind man was offered

some help by the policeman ( arrangement 2,3,1,4 above); (2) Some help the policemanoffered

the blind man (arrangement 1,4,3,2 above), and (3) By the policeman the b h d man was offered

some help (arrangement 4,2,3,l above).

These cm be mapped as follows:

(1) The b h d man was offered some help by the policeman.

Theme/Subjct Acfor

(2) Some help

Theme

the policeman

Subject/Actor

offered the b h d man.

was offered some help (3) By the policeman the blind man

Theme/Acfor Subjeci

In many English clauses only one element can have aU three fimctions and hence no variation is

possible, e.g., "John came home". The question can be asked: What is the significance or need of

these three functional concepts? The answer is that "each corresponds to a different mode of

meaning in the clause" (Halliday, 1985. p. 36). The clause can be seen "as a message", "as an

exchange" and "as a representation (of a process)" (ibid.). n i e neme is a function in the "clause

as a message". The subject is a funciion in the "clause as an exchange". The acior is a fùnction in

the "clause as a representation (of a process)". The clause "as a message" can be analyzed for its

structure. This structure is called thematic. Difrent languages have their own peculiar methods

of making a clause a communicative event or that which gives a message. To give an item the

status of theme in an English sentence, it must be placed first. It marks the point of depatture of

the message. The remainder of the message is cded the Rheme. Hence structuraily, a clause as

message, consists of theme and rheme. Theme, defined functionally, is "one element in a

particular structural configuration which taken as a whole, organizes the clause as a message"

(ibid., p. 39). Theme is the starting point of the message and hence the meaning of a clause is

determined by what is chosen as theme (cf pp. 39,40 & 46 above).

In an English sentence the element typically chosen as theme depends on the mood. The

mood of an independent clause in English is either îiIdicative or imperotne (ibid.,~. 44).

Indicative clauses are declarative (Children play garnes) or interrogative (Do children play

games?). Interrogative clauses are either polar @esho type) or content interrogative ("wh-"

type). In a declarative clause typically. the subject is also the theme, i.e., John goes to school.

This mapping of theme ont0 subject is known as the unmarked theme. When a theme is

somethulg other than the subject it is a marked theme. Adverbs (e.g., quickly, tomorrow, loudly)

are cornmon examples of marked theme. The theme in interrogative clauses nom their very

nature is "what L want to know" . In a yesfno question, the theme (i.e.," what 1 want to know") is

to be found in the part of the sentence that expresses the polarity, viz., the h i t e verb, e.g., "Cm

birds fly?" is interpreted as "1 want to lmow whether or not birds can fly". In a "wh-" question,

the part of the sentence that functions as theme is the part that requests the information as beiug

sought, Le., the "wh-" element. Hence "wh-" is placed k t . The theme of a question is 1 want to

be told some information or a factud "yes" or "no". Expressing this request entails the use of a

linguistic element that indicates the kind of answer required and putting it at the beginning of the

clause. Again fiom the very nature of the imperative clause, its theme is "1 want you to do

something"(e.g., You go home) or "1 want us both to do something" (e-g., Let's have a drink!).

In imperative clauses where "do" is used for emphasis (e.g., "Do corne to the party" or "Do not

argue with me" ) the theme is "do" (positive) and "don't" (negative). In imperative clauses where

"you" is ornitted (e.g., "Keep quiet!"), there is no theme: "Keep quiet" is the Rheme.

The thematic structure of a clause is that which gives the clause its character as a message.

Thematic stnicture consists of theme and rheme. The theme is the element that serves as a point

of departure of the message. The remainder of the message, i-e., the part in which the theme is

developed, is caiied the Rheme. The theme is recognized by its being placed first in the clause;

hence the writer must place whatever is chosen as theme in the beginning of the clause. The

theme is the prominent part of the themdrherne structure of the clause.

Theme is a texhial feature that deals with the placement of rneaaings according to an order

of priority in the building up of a text. In English narrative where the text is a reconstruction of

experience, actual or Mcarbus, clauses usuaily begin with a textual theme which relates the clause

to what has already being described. Such textuai theme is said to be unmarked. Grammaticaliy,

the English clause foilows the pattern "subject-verb-object" providing a theme which is fia and

therefore unmarked. Ifcircurnstantial adjmcts (temporal, local, or of marner) occw first, they

form a marked theme e.g., Tomorrow. I plan to go fishing. "Tomorrow" is a cûcumstantial

adjunct of time and f o m a marked theme. Theme can aiso be ivteipersorzul as for example,

when the &ter expresses a personal amtude to what he is saying; e-g., As far as 1 can see, there

is no danger ahead. Thirdly, there is topical theme in which is realized that aspect of the text

which is the point of departue of the message. A clause embodying ail three themes is the

following : " Neverthless, (unmarked textual theme), in my opinion (marked interpersonal theme),

the young man (marked topical theme) cared more for his people than for Black Bart. "

SFG approaches language fiom the point of view of the meaning an author wishes to formulate,

express and commuicate to others. It is the desired meaning that shapes the text chosen e.g., the

following sentence @ased on one found in "The Legend of Black Bart"): "Moreover, the shenff

generously gave Black Bart a choice" . Using the categories theme, subject, actor, goal and

process, the sentence c m be analysed as follows:

(1) Moreover the sheriff generously gave Black Bart a choice

S ubj ect/Acior interpersonal process goal meme

Tefia l Togical

lf the author wished to stress BIack Bart he would have written:

(2) Moreover, in my opinion, Black Bart was given a choice by the sherïE subject

in which Black Bart is both topical theme and subject.

To stress the concept of choice the sentence would appear as:

(3) A choice, moreover, in my opinion the sheriff gave Black Bart. Togical Tex+a[ Interpersonal subj ect process

i%ème

The author could also have stressed the sheriff:

(4) By the sheriff, moreover, in my opinion, Black Bart was given a choice. Actor Toeical Texhial Interpzrsoal Subject process

i%me

Teachers, using the traditional approach to narrative writing, have often made the

recommendation to their students that they should Vary their sentence beginnings in order to avoid

monotony and create texts that are readable and entertaining. However, if the students' attention

were drawn to the gradua1 unfolding of the story and the weaving of the text as a whole,

preoccupation with meaning would ensure a pleasantly readable text. They should be encouraged

to make fiequent use of the passive voice as in examples (2) and (4) above, since use of the

passive voice ensures a change of Theme.

Fiaire 8 Theme: The texnial structure analysed

UNIT

1. The year.. .1800 2. The cowboys.. . fighting

THEME Topicai Textual

Year cowboys & Indians

Interpersonal

This.. .western days Gold mining.. .thing Cowfolk.. . homes There was.. .good They hit . . .gdd They.. .money The problem.. .to t o m He. ..rifle He ... bar Everybody.. .of him He said.. .Black Bart He.. .aU the gold too The people ran.. . sherZF The sheriff.. .bar Bart pulled.. .dead The people.. . want Bart took.. .belongings He also made ...him He would shoot them What Bart ùidn't know What Bart.. .was There was.. .of him He gathered.. .plan The next day.. .found He didn't.. .thing The night before.. . blast him out He went.. .mine The men.. .dynamite The mine.. . crushed Bart All the people.. .cheered Everything . . .normal That is.. .fiorn That is the truth

This &Idminhg Cowfolk There a s m d tom n e y They problem He He Everybody He He The people The sher3F Bart The people Bart He He What Wt., .know There He The next day He The night before He The men The mine people Everything That That

In the theme structure anaiysis, two kinds of clause are not treated as separate units and

are therefore included under the greater texhial unit to which they belong. These are adverbial

clauses such as, "if they disobeyed", "when the most fearful gunsman.. .came into town"; and

clauses inporatactlic structures invololving ellipsis of their subject, such as, "The people ran and

[they] got the sheriff. In the narrative, it is the principai participants that occupy the thematic

75

positions in the text. Among them are the cowboys, Indians, inhabitants of the Texan t o m Black

Bart, the sheriff, the avenger. Other themes relate to points of time mentioned: the year, the next

day, the night before; This (referring to the fighting between cowboys and Indians), and the

problem which forxned the compZzcation of the story. In this way it is verified that the theme, as

the point of departure of the English clause reflects the diswurse patterns that shape the structure

of paragraphs, and therefore of an essay text as a whole.

d. kertical Cohesion: The -stem

This system is closely connected, as to its fùnction, with that of reference, inasmuch as it

contnbutes to the development of a text by comecting lexical elements that are Ïnvolved in

expressing the topic of the written text. There are ciiffirent khds of lexkal relations. A clms

incZusion lexical relation expresses a class and at least some members that belong to it, e.g.,

Crows are birds, as are also sparrows and robins. Apart-whole lexical relation expresses the

relationship of a whole to its parts, e-g., Wigs, windows, and doors are parts of an airplane.

There is also synonymy e.g., The child made the sand-castle so that people stopped to stare at

the monster; and mionymy e.g. Many wild animais are h a d e s s but the adder is deadlv .

Collocation, another kind of lexical cohesion refers to the Wrely occurrence of two of more

concepts sirnultaneously in a text e.g. broke out and bumed down the whole house. The

ambulance arrived five minutes &er the =id- happened. "Fire" and "bumed down" are said to

be collocations as also are "ambufance" and "accident"

exical cohesion: analysis of the aory

The Legend of Black Bart is a narrative, set in 1860 during a goldnish in an isolated t o m

in Mexico, where cowboys and Indians had been vieing for supremacy, and where the cowboys

eventuaily gained control, found much gold, built themselves homes and became nch. In al1

probability, some Indians joined them. A buiIy gunman arrived one &y, U e d the sheriffand took

over everything. Howwer, a young man stirred up a conspiracy a g a . hlln and had him kîiled by

luring him into the mine to see "his" gold and blowing up the mine whÎle he was inside.

Subsequently, peace returned to the t o m .

M Lexical cohesion : The texhial structure anal-

I 1800 2 Natives fighting

I 1

3 western days 4 ' gold mining 5 Cowfok finAg gold 6 setdng up homes 7 / s d t o m 8 t

! do& good

9 I hit w o n s 10 i swimming..money 1 1 j 12 ' into t o m 1

16 everybody &aid 17 18

20 people ran 21 got the s h e d 22 6

23 1 24 1 25 l

26 27 r

28 peodle said 29 ;

I armedhtopped 1 1

went to bar I

HefBtack Bart incl. 1 take over

I

shemf l

sheflride out you/~art 1

1 shot dead

30 31 32 33 Everybody 34 thei disobeyed

37 l6 '"'T ;

38 y o w man 39 fed up 40 had a plan 41 to &t rid of him 42 He gathered the men 43 ma$e the plan 44 the men 45 the men 46 i ' inside the mine 47 ' i see ail the gold 48 they found 49 50 the men set.. .dynamite 5 1 o. .blast...out 52

G d....back..mine

53 The,men ran triggered.. boom 54

I 55 coliapsed 56 1 crushed 57 people cheered

C 5 8 everything went back to norrnd 59 60

YOU

BP she housd He i

aII beldngings hiin

! 1

he would shoot

next day Bart B+

I

1 l I

! i HA diddt suspect

night before : I

~e went in

Five lines of cohesion can be discemed in the story, 4 major and 1 minor h e . They are:

(1) The inhabitants of the town, including the young avenger (2) their mùillig occupation (3)

the gunrnan (4) the tirne (5) the sheriff. AU of these coiiaborate in creating, each in its own

way, the topic or field of the narrative. The thread which nuis from beginning to end creating the

setting, and is really the c a m on which the narrative is depicted, is that of the inhabitants of the

out back Texan town who, through hard work and some luck (the second thread) became nch and

built the town. The third thread of events told how their prosperity became known to an m e d

bully who rode into their town one day and took command, compelling the inhabitants to work

for him, killing their sheriff and taking over their gold. An intelligent and brave young man among

them was appalled at this, and with the aid of the men of the town he successfblly devised and

carried out an assassination plan (the fourth thread of events). Life retumed to normal. The

remainuig two iines of events are the date of these events and particulars of the sheriff of the

town.

Many of the types of cohesion descnbed above under "The System" are also to be found

in the text of the story. There is colZuca~io~zaI cohesion (finding gold and setting up homes), clas

zn~Izi~zon (Black Bart was arrned, stopped in the town and went to the bar), rmfonymy (smd

town becoming prosperous), repetition (di the way, to the back of the mine). There are also inter-

thread cohesions, e-g., If they (townspeople) disobeyed, he (Bart) would shoot.

4. Irn~lications for teaching

It was ahned in the foregoing linguistic analysis of the story "The Legend of Black Bart",

to illustrate how a student at grade 9 level used the resources of the English language to create

the text genre known as narrative. The analysis also isolated a number of characteristic features or

systems of this type of wtiting, viz., experiential meanings, reference, conjunction, theme, lexical

cohesion, and schematic structure, bringing to light besides, some of the author's strengths and

weaknesses in this particular text. An important aspect of this analysis from the point of view of

the classroom teacher is its focus on the text as a whole, and its concern to show that it is

-dents1 hancihg of the linguistic systerns in Enghsh, and not merely correctness of sentence

formation, that yield a "good" text in any genre of writing. Thus it is most important for the

teacher to understand student language development and proficiency in terms of mastering the

requirernents of texts written in different registers rather than in terms of grammatically correct

sentences.

a. Re&ers in s~eech and writing

Stiidents leam very early in their lives to use language that is appropriate to a spe&c

situation, that life situations M e r and that therefore, registers differ accordingly. They learn to

obtain their needs and so to control their environment through what they Say. They learn that

rneanings are expressed and purposes achieved through the texts (at first spoken and later written)

appropnate to specific contexts of field, tenor and mode (Halliday, 1978, p. 64). As children grow

and develop and as their experiences become more varied so also does their cornmand of

language. Leaming by doing things with their parents with commentating on their actions gives

way as they enter adolescense to reporting to parents (and teachers) on what they have already

done or experienced. They discuss school activities with their parents and siblings, and these

discussions include mental process meanings about likes and dislikes. Questions and comments

f?om the parents give the reports the nature of an interaction, a dialogue rather than a monologue,

the text being developed as a result of interactivity and bilateral language input.

Children leam language by using it. However, very few students are able to l e m different

registers by osmosis, i.e. without formal instruction on the part of the teacher. If they are to

achieve some expertise with registers, -dents must be taught systemically, i. e., account must be

taken of the intended message students wish to convey as weU as the type of text chosen to

achieve this, and an appropriate register taught. It is true that there are registers that are comrnon

to both speech and wrïting; e.g., narratives of personal experience, and these are equally

acceptable in the sarne register for oral and written presentation. However, in creating the written

text, specific peculiarities must be taken into account. These are the situational features that affect

language use. First, the text is the independent creation of the student and not the product of a

joint interaction as in a dialogue setting. The student must create the text alone, and in doing so,

must anticipate the questions a fiiture reader may raise by way ofresponse to the completed text,

and address those as fùlly as possible. The personal tenor as the relationalship between the

student and the reader (in the first place, the reader) wiU also be different since it is no longer a

fiiendly rapport with f d y members but a formal encounter with the teacher. One advantage of

being able to use a register that is equally suitable to oral and written text is that preparation can

be made in the classroom for essays narrating pupils' expenence. The teacher cm assist in

recaliing details of the targeted events, and cm create a language scaffold, thus enabling the

students to re-live their expenences and write more freely.

The analyses of the narrative text 'The Legend of Black Bart", presented above (D.3, pp.

57-79, of this chapter) are not intended as prescnbing an exclusive method that must be followed

by teachers if they are to teach successfully the art of effective wrïting. Rather they are intended

to help teachers (and students) to become amuied to the extent to which oral and written texts

both dfler and are sirnilar. Teacher-directed literature on the teaching of writing has always

stressed the necessity for teachers to know their students' needs in language development, and

through an understanding of the concept of register and the features in written texts that are

register related or problematic which an analysis iike the foregoing can isolate, teachers can help

their students to become proficient writers in a number of genres. It is especidy important for

teachers to work into their classroom writing programme the specific writing purposes that c d

for the genres to be taught. When writing lessons are carefully planned with regard to the purpose

for writing, the field, the tenor (personal and funetional) and the mode, students will Ieam the art

of wnting weii.

b. Teaching reeister in a narrative (like irlte Lepend qf BIuck Bart)

The Legend of Black Bart is a narrative based on vicarious experience. From the earliest

years children become familiar, through listening to stories of this kind that are read to them, with

the structure and purpose of this genre. Nevertheless, creating and writing a narrative of this kind

presents a greater challenge. This challenge cm be met initidy through imitation of and support

from adults. lust as very young children leam to compile (theû own version of) a story that has

been read to them, so aiso intermediate level students can mode1 their own (vicarious experience)

narratives on stones presented orally as models by the teacher. Such models c m be presented by

feilow pupils in diadic and smaii group settings, and news stories based on the models can be

created and written by each student in the group. It will be best to use the same mode1 story for

aU groups fia. There wili follow f i e r the reading, an analysis directed by teacher-questions such

as the foilowing: How is the story built up? (structure) Can you identi& its component parts?

C m you identify all the characters clearly as the author refers to them? Does the author use the

character names right through or does he make use of references such as "he", "she", "itf' (for

animals or things)? Cm you clearly envisage the setting fiom the writer's first section? What

further details (if any) did we learn as the story developed? What problem confkonted the main

character? Explain that situation in your own words. In the case of "The legend of Black Bart",

what problem arose? Who solved it? How? C m you think of any other ways that might have been

used? Descnbe one. Talk about the ending of the story -- any ideas about how to create a

betterhore interesfuig/more entertainkg ending? Regarding the processes, does the writar

describe actions, thoughts, feelings, impressions of the characters?

Questions such as these direct the students' attention to how the linguistic structures used

to create meanings, to how weii they do it, to how they could be irnproved and to what linguisitc

devices they themselves can use in writing their own effective stories. The children's own stories

can then be analysed in a similar way with a view to pointing out their strengths and discovering

ways of elirninating their defects and weaknesses. A similar approach can be used by the teacher

in assessing and rernediating students' oral language. In order to teach the pupils to choose the

best linguistic structures to convey their intended meaning in the most effective way it wiil be

necessary to direct their attention to dl the components of register, i.e., field or the content of

wrïting; personal tenor or the audience to whom the content of the text is directed; functional

tenor or the purpose the author sets out to achieve; and mode or the means by which the message

is communicated.

c. Teachingield Topics for writing

Duruig the course of a day in the classroom, much material is encountered and processed

that can provide subject matter for students to write about. AU subject areas can be tapped into

and the reading matenal and discussions about it, as well as associated pictures, films and slides

used in those subject areas. Al1 can be regarded as a hitful source of suitable topics for their

writings. The students will also want to write about their family and social life and the varied

experiences they have in their extra-school tirne. Yet in spite of the variety of topics chosen, the

teachefs directives will be relevant to each student since, initially at leasî, all wiu be writing in the

same genre.

When the content of the story is decided on, a M e r focus of attention must be placed on

the shaping of the te*. In narrative there WU be an introduction or Orientation, a Complication

and a Resolution. In focusing on thefield, the teacher will discuss with the students on a whole-

class basis the problems, conflicts, diiemmas (humans in codic t with other people, with the

environment or the intemal contlict within a person) that could arise in the events chosen for

narration. A variety of settings wili be suggested by the students and a variety of solutions to the

problems created. The discussion wiU best be conducted in a way that students maintain

ownership of the ideas put forward and in this way so enjoy the act of writing that they go on to

experiment with novel forms of structure. When they have had some practice with this genre a

teacher may wish to encourage smaller groups of four or five to work on a group basis on various

aspects of a topic. The whole plot would be discussed by the group iïrst, and then by mutual

agreement the different structural parts of the story (orientation, complication etc.) assigned to

individuals in the group, each being contnbuted as a chapter to the whole story rather than as an

independent essay. BegiMing and end points would be established for each chapter and final

editorial adjuments made as seen necessary, so that chapters flowed easiIy, one into the next.

The finished product could be published within the school and perhaps entered in the various

competitions for schools sponsored during the year by interested agencies.

d. Teaching temr erson on al): the intended audience

The reader(s) for whom we write affect significantly the quality of what we &te just as

(in some cultures, at least) a young person addressing an authority figure (teacher, politician,

employer, cleric) will do so in a text (oral or written) that daers significantly in tenor £îom the

text of a sùnilar message addressed to a parent, a sibling or a close Wend. We address different

audiences differently, and because we write to/for a specinc audience, we need to have decided on

that audience before we &te. The typical audience for school-based writing is the teacher, and

since every message deserves (at least in courtesy) a response fiom the addressee, the personal

response fkom the teacher, by way of positive written comments or oral discussion, is an

important factor in the students' efforts to write well. This response wiU have more positive

influence the more it accentuates the strengths and makes suggestions on how to irnprove.

Students' texts can also be addressed to fellow students and a response fiom them

encouraged. It sometimes happens that a comment or suggestion fiom a friend is more meaningfid

than a sunilar comment fiorn a teacher and is also more acceptable. Extra-class audiences c m be

invited through the availability Ui the school Library of students' (best) pieces bound in booklet

form. Such audiences would include parents, Board personnel, and other visitors to the school;

and it must be added that any effort expended to procure the response of an audience (whether

the intended or other audience) should be regarded as a good investment shce such feed-back can

be a sigruficant help to the student. Accordingly it is important that teachers train their students in

the art of writing for a variety of audiences.

Teaching temr (functional): The author's ose in writinq

Functional tenor can be contrasted with personal tenor as internal with extemal. The

author's personal reason for writing may Vary fiom the desire to share a problem to the urge to

pubiicize a significant discovery in the process of research or practical experimentation, but within

that spectrum it will always be for some personal s e l f - m e n t . Accordingly, it can be said that

narrative stories are written for ourselves primarily, in order to recreate and explore experiences

we've had; but it must also be admitted that we write to entertain others and even to teach them

how to cope with personal dficulties that &se in the course ofdaily living. Thus the question of

audience presents itselfagain, and the aspects of the narrative that make it attractive to the reader.

Such aspects must of necessity include the expenences, interests, challenges, successes and

fdures, &es and dislikes that characterize the iife of the author. Classroom pre-writing

discussions must debate what makes stones appealing in order to aiert the students to such factors

as the ones just listed, but it is to be expected that they will be able to add other concepts to that

List fiom their own expenence of what makes stories captivating for them: cornpetition, triurnph,

the defeat of evil, the doing of daring things successfùlly, the taking of nsks, and many more.

f. Teaching mode: The chosen medium of communication

The very nature of writing entails that the writer has no immediate contact with the

intended audience. Furthexmore, in many instances, an audience may be making its first ever

encounter with the events about which the author is writing, events which may themselves have

long since unfolded and may thus be distant fiom the writer besides. The monologic nature of the

writing event (in contrast to the oral) and the distancing of the authors fiom both intended

audience and events, pose a particular challenge to their linguistic expertise in creating their texts.

Yet, the identity of the personnel and the places referred to in the stories must be vividly described

if the readers are to relate to them. Expert writers will seek to evoke pathos in their readers but in

order to do so they m u t recreate experiences through the use of materiai, mental, verbal

processes that convey experiential meanings. In the case of face to face oral narration of personal

experiences, descriptions of settings and characters can be supplied and clarified in reponse to a

iistener's questions; but in written narrative such details cannot be presumed to be known to the

reader and must be uicluded in the text.

One of the difnculties that çtudents at intermediate level stU experience is that of creating

a narrative that can sustain the interest of the reader. They do not as yet have that insight into the

intricacies of human relations nor the competent linguistic ability to re-create them which

captivates the reader. A helpful ploy in such a situation has been to share the writing of longer

narratives with other students. Thus as was indicated earlier, writing longer stories is best done

on a group basis, where the beginnings and ends of t he various sections or chapters are mutually

agreed upon and individu& take responsibility for the writing of each section.

5. S u m m and conclusion

By taking the above systernatic approach to the teaching of writing, teachers can also take

a systematic approach to the planning of their writing courses for their students. Keeping in mind

that different situations c d forth dif5erent genres, teachers can plan to create situations relevant

to the particular genre they are teaching and they can dso use these situations to remediate or

give practice to their students in certain linguistic features of a text that need attention. Besides, it

will be possible also, through this systematic approach, to evaluate students' progress in writing,

to discern their strengths and weaknesses and to apply strategies to facilitate their improvement in

the art of narrative writing.

The linguistic approach to language development has been criticized by traditionalists as

having a tendency to be technical and mechanical, and inimical to that creative development which

leads to expertise in writing. It has been argued here that a systematic approach need noi be a

mechanical one. The systematic approach described here sees text as a means of conveying

meaning in a specialized setting that c d s for a congruent genre of text. It sees whatever text is

chosen as having a peculiar purposeful structure or shape and it sees the text as making use of

certain appropriate linguistic expressions that are regarded as best suited to express the meaning

intended by the author. The text, far f?om being pre-determined or fossiIized, iç the result of the

creative genius of the author. Furthemore, as many distinct texts as there are authors in a group

that has undergone the same preparation can be created to convey a certain meaning in a certain

setting .

Development in the science of writing is an ongohg t h i . and just as one generation

cannot be said to be better or worse than any other, only difTerent with respect to a certain human

characteristic, so neither cm one generation of wrïters be considered inferior to or better than any

other. They are just different, as is to be expected nom the varied resourcefulness of human

beings. That resourcefulness continues to provide a focus for research, and in the area of written

language developrnent the method of andysis presented so far in this chapter mua provide an

efficient tool to be employed in that research.

There follow from the above, some specinc implications for the classroom teacher. The

genre approach to writing indicates that each genre has its peculiar characteristics which are

unique and which set it apart fiom other genres. Within each genre type there are sub-categories

which are mutuaily exclusive. Narrative genre, for example, comprises narrative, news story,

exemplum, anecdote and recount, each with its typical stages of development. School written

composition syllabuses must therefore develop a more elaborate curriculum in which different

genres are described in detail and are clearly disthguished one nom another. Copious practice

must also be given to students in preparing and writing different genres and this must be done

fiom the t h e of their first attempts at narrative stow writing. Expenence bas shown that this

aspect ofthe teaching of writing has been largely overlooked in the past, and students even

entering secondary education have h i e appreciation of the difference between, for example,

narrative and news story; and in many cases are not aware that such narratives exist because in

their previous years of education their total writing assignments consisted of "writing stories",

with their teachers' primary stress on legible writing, correct grammar and standard spelling. For

the students who have been given genre training and have acquired some skill in writing, the

secondary teacher needs to diagnose in what genres each has any expertise, for experience has

shown that white their skills are in keeping with their stage ofeducation in some genres, e-g.,

personal narrative, they have no facility in others, e.g., news stories or recounts.

Another facet of genres writing which makes special demands on the teacher is the need

for students to have a clear understanding not only of what they are writing about, but also of

why they are writing, as well as of their audience, and the mode of expression they will use in

order to convey their message. Students must be helped by the teacher to appreciate fuHy the

context of situation, because genre writing prescnbes that for the author it is the context that

determines the text, just as for the reader it is the text that de temes the context. In the

cIassroom setting most contexts are contrived, and hence the teacher must have the expertise to

supply for the students in a realistic way al1 the ingredients that are integral to the context which

c d s for the genre in question, so that they may have the full contextual support that they need in

order to write it weU. Simply assigning the writing of a story about a school trip, even while

reviewing for the students the highiights and excitements expenenced, will usually get poor

results. B will be necessary for the teacher to lead the students to decide (1) for whom they are

writing (2) the particular focus of the trip (3) why they are writing (not just because they have to

do the assignment) and (4) the kind of text they will use, whether straight narrative, description,

dialogue, or a mixture of all three. Helping students by giving them this full contextual support,

will be especially necessary when a new genre is being undertaken.

To ensure teacher expertise the programme of training teachers in the teaching of English

must be relevant and efficient. A programme of training that is heavily weighted on the historical

development of English literature from Old through Middle to Modem English is hardly adequate,

since Little attention is paid to language. On the understanding that language is a semiotic system

that makes and conveys meanings, and that register is intimately bound up with it fiom context to

context, teachers' training must equip them with a clear understanding of words and word patterns

and of discourse patterns as well as of register. Teachers must be made language experts with an

ability to talk about students' language, so that they can explain to their students not only why

their wnting is "good" or 'hot so good", but also in what ways, and so that they have the means

to explain to their students in concrete terms the procedures they must follow ifthey are to

remedy deficiencies and advance to a new level of exceilence. They must be convinced,

moreoever, that excellence does not consist in the rnere absence of grammatical or syntactical

errors; that it refers to the quality of the text which has been created in congruence with a specsc

context of situation in order to convey an intended meanhg to a pre-deterrnined audience.

Since teaching-leaniing is a reciprocal interactive process, students also will need to have

the ability to talk about language in the interests of achieving the excellence spoken of above. At

grade nine level they will be expected to have a good mastery of narrative writing, and hence

suffcient familiarity with linguistic terminology to enable them to cornprehend the teachers'

critical comments about their writing and to respond to them with questions or suggestions in the

interest of further improvement. While prior discussion of the structural parts and general outiine

ofa namative will go a long way towards ensuring that the student product is acceptable from the

point of view of conjunction, reference, lexical cohesion and structure, an exact understanding of

these terms will ensure more f i t fb l discussion and faster progress in the art of writing. It is the

context of situation that c a s forth the genre; and students in recogniring the reciprocal

relationship between context and genre will have taken a substantial step forward in their

understanding and writing expertise.

Nor should it be objected that the methodology of analyzing the grammar, text discourse

structure, conjunction, cohesion, and how these vary in accordance with the text's register, have a

necessarily negative influence on students' creative genius by h i n d e ~ g the free expression of theû

own personai ideas or feelings. Quite the contrary in fact happens, for it is through language that

shidents express intended meaning; and since the genre approach is aimed at increasing their

linguistic expertise it gives them a more efficient tool to express their ideas, thus enhancing their

creative genius. On the other hand, the systematic knowledge of grarnmar alone wiU not produce

good wrîters. The focus of grammar is the sentence, as has already been pointed out. It has also

been emphasized that rneaning is conveyed through the creation of texts, and these demand a

knowledge of discourse and register.

In this section of the chapter a systemic linguistic analysis of the discourse structure of a

grade nine narrative text has been presented with the inclusion of a literary criticism. It has been

shown that written language is a resource upon which writers draw in order to create the texts

they use to express their intended meanings. The analysis was also aimed at showng that genre is

a reality , and that narrative genre (like other genres) regulates the choice of meanings in such a

way that the patterns of discourse proper to a certain register are ewured. Teachers of writing

must appreciate the importance of language and genre if they are to teach w r i ~ g successfidly. An

appreciation of text demands a knowledge of the system fkom which it is created, and the ability

to judge the quaiity of texts entails a knowledge of the kind of language that is appropnate to a

given context. Teachers (and students too) need a substantial knowledge about language in order

to appreciate these ideas.

E. Assessment practices

Macken and Slade (cited in Cope & K a l d s , 1993, p. 203) propose that assessment is

becorning an integral part of teachlng itself. "[Assessment] is not simply a question that cornes at

the tail end of our educational discussions. .. " but "in some very important ways, the issue of

testing is driving current educational discussions." This tendency is in itself neither good nor bad

for education. However, in the hands of traditionalists it could mean "a revival of antiquated

tests" (ibid. ); whereas handled by linguists it would point to a need for the acquisition by teachers

of an "assessment metalanguage that is linguistically principled and rigorous.. .one that involves

explicit criteria for evaluating language performance" (ibid.).

It is not difticult to infer eom the calis to teachers in England, U.S., and Australia to

"move back to basics", that a deep dissatisfaction with progressive education prevails in those

countries. This approach to education, it is claimed, "has fded its 'consumers', especially those

disadvantaged by reason of ethniciîy, language, class or gender" (ibid., p. 204). This

dissatisfaction is reflected in the recent national reports about education in England and Australia.

[n England, for example, Kingman (1988) focused on the need for students to rnaster the art of

speaking, writing, listening and reading by acguiring "an explint knowledge ofthe structwe of the

English language" (p. 3). P.J. Black (1987) in his report on "Assessrnent and testing", pointed to

the need for the systematic assessment of students aged five to eleven through the use of

"attainment targets". This same need has been expressed in Australia, not only by educators but

also by "ordinary members of the community" who "are increasing pressures on schools and

education systems to produce indicators of students' performance.. . " (Cope & Kalantzis, 1993, p.

204). Current school-based cumculum guidelines fail to provide explicit assessment procedures

that would be accurate in t e m of state-appointed standards, and which could indicate clearly

comparative student levels of achievement f?om classroom to classroom. In New South Wales, a

govenunent sponsored test of basic skills was imposed in 1989. However, because the tests were

mostly "multiple choice", even in aspects of literacy the students "produced very little language",

the tests' "conception of language was very narrow.. . [and the results gave] only a narrow

indication of what the leamer cm or c a ~ o t do" (ibid., p. 205).

In this section I point to a primary need for teachers to acquire a metalanguage of

assessment which is based on linguistic pruiciples, but which is also at the same time sympathetic

to variations that periain to individuals and contexts of leaming. I also highlight the fact that

education becomes a truly numiring process (which the very name irnplies) the more it facilitates

the building up of skius and meanuigs on the part of the students in each subject they study ,

rather than accumulation of factual knowledge however beneficial such accumulation may seem to

either teacher or student. A valid assessment programme shodd therefore focus on these skills

and meanings, while at the same t h e it is integrated with the objectives and goals of the

respective subject areas.

1. Factors underlvine an assessment ?stem

In order to ensure an effective programme of learning in any subject ara, assessment of

progress wdl be necessary. This assessment must not be arbitrary or merely sporadic but must be

systernatic and based on a number of critena which pertain to any valid assessment system and

against which other systems c m be evaluated. Macken & Slade (cited in Cope & Kaiantzis, p.

206) propose the following 4 cnteria. The assessment programme should be: (1) hguistically

principled; (2) explicit; (3) criterion referenced; (4) of such a kind as to provide a rational basis

for diagnostic, formative and summative assessment.

(1) Assessment needs to be informed by and flow from linguistic pnnciples. Linguistic

principles applied to teaching enabie the teacher to explain and point out how listening, speaking,

reading and writing differ, and what sub-skills are employed in acquiring and mastering them.

Acquiring the ability to express one's ideas orally is largely a subconscious process; not so the art

of writing, and teachers need to have the competence in the form of a metalanguage so as to be

able not ody to understand but also to foster and assess their students' competence in spoken and

written language. This metalanguage would also equip teachers to analyse, focus on and teach the

"communicative requirements" (Macken & Slade, ibid.) of students in achieving competence in

writing in the different disciplines.

(2) Explicitness about language on the part of the teacher means an exposition of the

skills to be acquired by students in order to complete a specific learning task; but in addition it

entails the equipping of students wiio have had dserent starhg points, especidy in schooling

and literacy, to enable them to have access to a common understanding of the task in hands. It

also means enabhg students to become more skilled in accessing and processing information and

in the use of relevant technological tools like the library microfiche, the cornputer and the intemet.

A valid assessrnent programme, therefore, will need to be directed towards these specifics and

particularïties, giving credit for achievement at both the level of specinc tasks in certain subject

areas and at the more generai level of a student's curriculum.

(3) An assessment model will be ail the more valid, the more closely it dehes success in

tems of the satisfylng of specific criteria in different assessment tasks, and in addition, the more it

is integrated into teachers' planned courses of study. These criteria must be clearly related to the

learning goals as detailed in individual syllabuses, since a valid assessment must focus on the

intended outcomes of any course of -dies. Idedy, the assessrnent mode1 wilf enable the teacher

to track the records of each student's approximation to those goals as well as the quality of

individuals' achievement according as progress is made in teaching successive course units.

(4) In the interests of progress in leanllng, an assessrnent model will airn to diagnose

students' needs, d l make proposais as to what skiils need to be mastered and how, as weU as

suggest a time fiame for remediation. Besides, it wil1 provide an accumulatrive record of students'

progress so that at any tirne in the course of students' education there are records of individuals'

progress to date, and an indication of what steps remah to be taken in order to complete a course

or unit of work. In the area of written language particularly, the more closely teachers in

preparing their curicda and in working through them have espoused realistic and appropriate

goals for their students, and the more informed they are on students' starting points and progress

in terms of their achievements, the more reliable should the bais be which they have laid for

students' success.

2. sessrnent as frequentlv done in schools

Assessrnent is the process of rating the degree of excelience of something measured in

accordance with the nature of the excellence that is proper to the class to which the thing belongs.

In school tasks too, if assessrnent is to have meaning, it must judge the excellence of the tasks in

question, in accordance with the cnteria of excelience proper to the tasks. Traditiondy, the

scoring of written assignments was nom-referenced, i.e., students' assignments were assessed

relative to each other, rather than in relation to certain independent criteria, and as a result the

students oflen had no real understanding of why their work mented a certain mark or how they

might improve the work in subsequent attempts. Moreover, the reliability of such rnarking is low.

The characteristic of reliability refers to the extent to which a test can yield approximately similar

results as often as it taken by the sarne human subject and under the same conditions, irrespective

of who adrninisters or scores it. But if a rate of excellence is given merely on the basis of the

assessor's intuition without any reference to any explicit objective cnteria of excellence, students

will be the victims of such procedure because such a system does not indicate clearly to thern

either the essence of the tasks assigned to them or how they can improve their mark in future

attempts. Nor do students' external public examinations do them any better seMce since these are

based on a product-orientated cumculum, and they serve ody to categorize students in terms of

success-failure and give no indication of career suitability or of how they might make progress in

leaniing.

There came a reaction to the traditional approach to assessment in education in the 1960s

and 1970s that materialized in progressivist education , and this new approach claimed to

"pnoritize the notion of relevance to students' interests and needs" (Macken & Slade, ibid., p.

208). In the area of language use in the classroom, teachers began to focus on the task of

identifjing and improving the skills and processes their students employed in the expressive and

receptive forrns of language. Such concepts as capacity to reason, ability to solve problems and

facility for critical thuiking, came to be regarded as necessary for success both in school and in the

larger community. However, useful as these skilis are in enabhg students to develop a

questioning mind-set towards their environment and in making independent decisions for acting,

the fact that they are developed and fostered outside the context of a traditional cumculum makes

assessrnent of them very difEcult. Moreover, there seems to be the suggestion in this approach of

a dualism between language skius and information, and that of the two concepts, skills are the

more important because when skills are developed knowledge can be acquired. Christie (1986)

has shown that it is a misconception in our current educational psychology to hold that language

does not influence thought or content, and that it is only a fiarnework for expressing ideas which

have an independent existence apart from language. Linguistic theorists point out that language is

one phenornenon, and that it has two aspects: process or language SUS and product or

knowledge. Leaming content means leaming language just as acquiring skills also does. If skills

and content continue to be regarded as being independent of knowledge, an assessor cannot judge

the ability of students, for example, to draw logicd conclusions nom empirical or mathematical

facts, or the ability to extract the main thought fkom a literary text independentiy of the way these

processes are enshrined in the pattern of language (mathematical or literary) that are proper to

these aspects of learning.

Since, therefore, "both traditional and progressivist approaches to assessment sever the

links between processes of learning and the discourses which give these processes meaning"

(Macken & Slade, 1993, p. 2 10) thus making an efficient model of assessment impossible, a new

model of assessment is needed. The new model must incorporate explicit objective criteria against

which students' language performance can be assessed and evaluated. The inclusion of explicit and

objective criteria presupposes a model of language which is not only characterized by the presence

of both process and content, but also recognizes the reciprocal effect which conte- and text have

on each other. The new mode1 must also be one which is concerned to satise the language needs

of each school subject area. In order to provide a legitimate and valid system of testing in

language for schools, whether it be irnplemented as a means of setting benchmarks and checking

progress or as a fist step in upgrading standards, the greatest likelihood of success will corne

from a programme that tends to be broadly based rather than confked to one subject area.

3. What mode1 of langage is envisaeed for the new assessrnent approach?,

Linguistics, being "the fomal and scientSc study of language" (Macken & Slade, 1993, p.

210), provides for teachers as language educators a full compendium of howledge from which to

draw in discussing written language with their students. Teachers' instruction will be directed for

the most part to language as it varies in use with regard to dialect and register, an approach which

wïlI necessarily include a grammatical expose of how words, phrases and clauses are the building

blocks of texts both oral and written, and of how al1 texts are designed to encapsulate and convey

meaning. This systemic fimctional approach to language teaching does not confhe itself to the

traditional and formai notions of correct spehg, punctuation and paragraphing (which do MiïI

an important role in the creation and presentation of a text). It directs its attention rather to

factors below the surface features of a text, factors that enable writers to structure their texts in

such a way as to create and convey rneanings that are consonant with the writer's purpose and

with the contea. "What systemic fùnctional linguistics offers educators is a systematic way of

relating matters of purpose and audience to language itself" (Macken & Slade, ibid., p.211). In the

linguistic (i-e., genres) approach to the creation of a text, the author's purpose and the context

w i t h which the text is created &El a formative role. A genre approach to the assessrnent of

texts will stipuiate that texts be evaluated against a background of purpose and context.

Context, as already explained, refers to both culture and situation (the aspects of field,

tenor and mode) of a tea . The purpose of a text as intended by its author is the principal

determinant of genre. "Genre is the 'why' of a textU(Macken & Slade, 1993, p. 212). The purposes

for which texts are created are lirnited in number, and hence their genres also are limited, and it is

necessary for the rnembers of a culture to learn its genre structures if they are to be able to give

and receive in the area of verbal communication. Likewise for success in school, students need to

become conversant with the genres relevant to their formal education, especially as to theu

extemal structure and language. The structures of genres ciiffer from one another, and students

need to be so farniliar with them that they c m recognize dflerent genres in wrinen texts, and

choose and create genres suitable to the messages they wish to comrnunicate to others. Genres

have standard structural components and these occur in a set order in a text. Linguists use certain

coded signs to indicate the relationship of one component to another. The caret sign (A) indicates

that in a text the component to the lefi of it precedes that to the right. Chah brackets ( ) are a sign

that the content included by them is recursive, while round brackets ( ) are used to contain what is

regarded as optional. Stages are characterized in terms of their practical contribution to the text,

e.g. the "coda" in a narrative is used to round off a story bringing it to the stage at which Me

r e m s to normal.

Three other factors pertaining to context have a determining effect on the meanings of a

tea. They are field, tenor and mode, already discussed (pp. 35E, 52ff & 83E), and they

constitute what linguists c d the register of a text. Together and individudy they have a bearing

on the approach to assessment proposed by linguists. Field connotes the social activity being

recounted in a text, i.e. what is going on; and because of the v a s variance in human activity, texts

have a wide variance in respect of field. Tenor refers to the types of interpersonal relationships

prevaiiing between and among the participants in a text and is indicated by dialogue

(argumentation, discussion, planning) as weii as by what people do with and to each other. Tenor

also refers to the attitudelreaction ofa reader to a text. Mode is the "how" of a text. Written texts

must include ail details of context that are relevant to the recounted events, and students must be

taught to write context-independent texts . They must be enabled to anticipate their prospective

readers' needs and questions concerning the milieu suggested in the text.

In summary, the above mentioned four characteristics of genre, field, tenor and mode

being the dimensions that constitute a text, and by which the text can be understood, must be

prime objects of evaluation in an assessment of text. Genre indicates the purpose of a text, and

register by refemng to the dimensions of field (what is happening), tenor (the tone of the

interrelationships) and mode (the "how" of a text), aims to situate the text into the semiotic milieu

in which the events occurred. Details of an assessment of written text based on linguistic

principles, now follow.

4. A lingistic ~ p r o a c h to assessrnent

Assessrnent of pupils' work is an integral part of succeçsfid teaching and should therefore

be built into the curriculum at every level and in every stage of development of each subject area,

so that it becomes reasonably clear to participating students how well they have understood and

derived benefit from a course of studies at any time; and to the teacher whether further teaching is

necessq or whether a new section of the course may be embarked upon. In the area of narrative

writing, for an assessment instrument to be considered useful it should provide the following items

of information:

(1) an outline of the cnteria to be used in assessing the written texts (2) the ranking of students' texts relative to the schooVBoard n o m

for that grade in terms of a raw score. (3) an identificaton of the specifïc weaknesses discovered in the text

as well as the strengths. (4) a detailed description of strategies to be employed in eliminating

the weaknesses and building the strengths.

Such an instrument, founded on linguistic principles, will focus on the above descnbed

qualities of writing, viz., genre, field, tenor and mode as they apply to narrative writing. In

addition, account will be taken of the pnor teaching students have had in this area of writing.

Ideaiiy, the students wiil have learned the generic structure of narrative and its social fûnction of

entertainhg or teaching life skiiis. They will be acquainted with how the author of narrative

creates a red or possible world in which the main character especially is confbnted by a problem

which must be overcome. They will have leanied to create the story-line or sequence of events

taking the reader fkom stage to stage. They wiil have learned to describe how the characters

interacted, and they will have described these characters through what they did and said, so that

the reader can more easily empathize with the gradudy unfolding action of the story. The

students wiu have been trahed in the employment of experiential meanings, in the effective use of

reference and conjunction, lexical cohesion and theme (as described above in section C of this

chapter). They will have had practice in the use of all those tools, fist in creating individual parts

of a narrative like the orientation or the resolution, or a typical dialogue involving the characters.

Later they will have had the opportunity to participate in the creation of a cornplete narrative as

members of a small group, and finally as independent individuals.

Each pupii's text wili then be assessed according to the purpose the author had in rnind.

Theorists caü this purpose the telos (a Greek word which means 'final end' or 'purpose'), and the

text will be evaluated according to whether and to what extent the author is guided by the

presence of a clearly conceived purpose in writing. Well planned and written narratives capture

the reader's interest early on as the events descnbed move kom the opening setting (orientation)

through the problem conf?onting the principal character (complication), into the resolution of the

problem, ending with a return to the original state of happiness of the characters. In such

narratives, the reader detects early on a sense of direction in the events, (for instance, that the

villagers will eventually challenge Black Bart, p. S9E, above) that the action is Ieading to a focal

point (the plot to destroy hùn), which when reached by the reader makes sense of all that went

before. This is the "telos" or "end" and is usually realized in the resolution to the complication that

confionted the characters.

In evaluating a narrative from the point of view of tenor, the examiner will look for

character descriptions that are consonant with the characters' assigned roles. The &ter wilI not

seek to express persona1 feelings or attitudes, but wiU concentrate on a full portrayal of the

created characters by quoting or reporthg their oral interaction, reveahg their plans through the

use of mental processes ("want", "didn't know"), material processes ("was going to take over",

"puiied out", "shot"), and by building up in the reader some sense of the characters' intentions and

motives for acting through the use of descriptive epithets ("a temble feafil gunman", "he had

. . .two hip guns"). An examiner wili expect a certain spark of sophistication in the better narratives

at the grade nine level. In the complication-evaluation stage, the use of irnagery may be found as a

rneans of portraying the importance of the events for the characters; also exclamatives and quick

exchanges of dialogue as well as rhetorical questions to build up an atmosphere of suspense.

Field refers to the "what" of the narrative -- what is happening, to whom and how often,

as well as sutficient details of t h e and place to enable the reader to take part in the events at least

as an observer. In "The legend of Black Bart" the year is 1800 A.D., the common interest is gold

mining, nomadic cowfok are able to settle in homes built fkom their new-found "millions in gold",

and the scene of the action is "a small town in the outback of Texas". In such an action-packed

story, the examiner finds many material processes, e.g., "were fighting", "were finding gold",

"were setting up homes", "pulled out his gun", "shot the shefidead". Writers of more

sophisticated narratives begin to use more evocative expletives in description, e-g., in descnbing

the setting an assessor might expect to h d instead of "were fighti~g'~, "were constantly at each

other's throats" or "never ceased to squabbie among themselves". Their "pulled out his gun and

shot the sherfldead" might read "flashed his deadly six-shooter and laid the sherB out cold". It is

also important for the reader that the author create a clear scenario by giving as many of the

relevant details of the physical environment as are found suitable and appropnate. Metaphorical

expressions are effective for this: " they were swimming in gold", "the parents were crazy about

skating "; also prepositional phrases, "through the blinding snow ", "into the foggy darkness ", and

adverbials "scarcely ", "immediately ", " physically " .

Narratives presented in the written mode must succeed in creating a text that portrays the

context in al1 necessary detail, since the author will not usually be at hand to answer a reader's

quenes. The text must be context-independent. Important features of such a text wili be sentence

length and suitable punctuation both of which will lead to pleasing readability. Cohesion wiU be

ensured through the combination of clauses by means of the best use of conjunctions (while, but,

since, although), embedding of subordinate clauses, and through the explicit use of reference.

The functional mode1 of language assessment envisioned here is proposed as one that wilI

offer greater dividends to both teachers and students in their partnered efforts towards the

creation of better narrative writers. Such assessment seeks to diagnose students' areas of

wealcness in their written texts, and offers strategies to be employed in remediating them. It

approaches writing on the basis of a wider s p e c t m than the mere demands of language such as

spelling and sentence formation, and takes account of the writerts purpose, the context and the

notion of register. It looks on the educator's role as that of a coach who having first familiarized

students with the qualities of good writing through the study of good samples, suggests and

prescnbes strategies for overcoming the difkulties students encounter in attempting to reach their

goal. The prime strength of this approach is that both student and teacher work in partnership

towards a goal, the details of which are known to both.

Applying the mode1 to the narrative "The legend of Black Bart", it must be said that while

it shows that while the author understands and has used the linguistic structure of narrative to

good effect, the absence of coloUfflllIy appropriate language to make the actions and characters

corne alive, as weU as the lack of evaluative comments, results in a text that does not really

engage the reader to any signincant degree. Within those limits, the writer has succeeded in

creaîing a good orientationAcomplication~esolution sequence. The reader understands how the

cowboys and Indians have their battles and how their new-found wealth enables them to settle

down and work together in building their own permanent homes and future. A problem is

introduced -- an unwanted bully arrives on the scene and temfies them into handing over their

gold to him, killing the sheriff meanwhile. A plan to do away with him is created and camied out,

everything retums to normal, and they then (it can only be presumed) live happily ever after. On a

3-point scale of "Good -- satisfactory -- hadequate" the narrative ranks at "satisfactory",

according to the guidelines of assessment set by Macken et al. (1 98%, pp. 82- 100)

The tenor of the text leaves much to be desired. There is no attempt to convey the

characteristics of the outback town beyond the fm that they were greedy for gold -- there are

very few mental processes, no questions or comrnents, no exclamatives of any kind - nor those of

Black Bart except that he was a cruel bully. He does not Say anything to express his intentions,

issue orders, or warn the people especially the sheriff. We are not told how long he held the

people to ransome, how he controlled them or how he spent his time. We have little

understanding of how the people re-acted to him on a day-to-day bais other than their saying

"You can have anything you want!" Did they agree on this mass surrender at a secret meeting, or

did their individual surrenders just happen simultaneously?

As cowboys they must have had some sharp-shooters in their midst and yet we are not

told of any attempt on his Me apart eoom the explosion in the mine. A valuable opportunity to

build suspense was lost in comection with the dynamite plot. An atmosphere of increasing tension

could have been created as the men grew more angry fiom day to day as slaves of the buily and

were ready with everything in place to get rid of h . whenever they could lure hm into the mine.

The description of his eventual visit also f d s flat. The account is bland with minimal reference to

the interpersonal lives of the characters and there is little effort to engage the reader.

In assessing the field of the text, one must agree that the writer has succeeded in creating a

real situation-in-He where the inhabitants of an outback Texan village and the immigrant Black

Bart act on the environment and re-act to and act on each other. The reporting of the action

sequence in the narrative is credible; it is also coherent and hence, following the events of the

story makes Little demand on the attention of the average reader. However, a vaiuable opportunity

to engage the reader through detailed description of the physical features of the area -- nvers,

mountains, roads, flora and fauna, clirnate and weather -- as weil as transportation and pecuiiar

customs, was missed.

Coming to the mode of the text, it soon becomes obvious to the assessor that there are

senous weaknesses. The penmanship is legible but lacks the polish and style typicai of a grade

nine student. The capitals T and K used throughout to initiate sentences and words as well as

within both can be nauseating to the reader initidy. Spelling is problematic. Sentences are

juxtaposed without a mark of pwictuation or conjunction, e g , "Gold mining was the big thing

cowfolk were h d i n g gold.. . " Sometimes these sentences become "run-on" and are not

thematically related, e.g., "The year was 1800 and the cowboys and Indians were fighting". The

author has reasonable command of reported speech though there is one instance of a mixture of

direct and reported speech: "The sheriffran ... and said to Black Bart Ride out of town or & d l

put y~rr behind bars." The transition f?om one structural element to the next is mostly quite

abrupt. Why the squabbles of cowboys and Indians suddenly become a quest for gold is not

explained, nor is the shentPs challenge nor Black Bart's response to it. The language is bland, the

word "said" being used as a synonym for "announced" (17), "commanded" (23), "agreedlmade a

pact" (28), "invited" (45). The author has used metaphor and hyperbole to good effect but only

sparingly, e.g. "They were swimming in money." He has also used embedded clauses, e-g. "What

Black Bart didn't know was [that] there was a young man who was fed up with Bart.. . "; ". . .the

men said to Bart to go inside.. ." There is also an attempt to Vary the theme of individual sentences

and the predominating theme of each paragraph indicates the progression e o m orientation

(people, gold-mining, t o m ) to complication (gunman, he, the people, the sheriff, Bart, He) to

evaluation and solution (young man, he, the next day, that night, the men, the mine) to the coda

(the people, everything). The author of "The legend of Black Bart" wiil need to concentrate on a

number of areas of weakness in order to increase his efficiency as a writer of narrative. The use

of standard speUing and lettering coupied with the employment of suitable punctuation marks in

addition to the use of appropriate conjunctions wiiI result in a text that is more pleasing to read

and a sequence of events that are easier to foliow. By developing the habit of reading weli-

written nanatives and by noting the content and textual elements of these that he enjoys he

should, through repeated editings of his written text be able to compose narratives that truly

engage the reader. Characteristics of good narrative that should corne to his notice d l be:

description of the setting in which characteristics related to the action are highlighted; creation of

characters through dialogue and attribution whose qualities are appropriate to the plot and

conducive towards engaging interaction and heightened suspense; and an effective reference

system that avoids boring repetition on the one hand and ambiguity on the other. In order to

include and develop evaluafve meanings, the author should plan weil the characters' motives for

acting and their responses (oral and matenal) to situations. A prime concern for him in al his

narratives should be to plan in detail beforehand the type of world/setting he wants to create and

poxtray, and to consult closely with the tacher as the text unfolds so as to ve* that it conveys

faithfully the ideas he intends to cornrnunicate. FUiaUy, he must give detailed thought to the

audience for whom he writes each text and to the effect he desires to have on the reader.

In summary, then, 1 have presented in this section a plan of assessrnent recomrnended by

linguistic experts -- a plan which is based on the nature of genre writing and which is applicable in

prïnciple not only to narrative but also to report and news story as weil as to the different kinds of

exposition. Here it has been applied to narrative. In its most sirnplified form the plan judges the

presence of four essential characteristics of genre writuig in the text being assessed. It asks if the

text portrays a clear sense of purpose on the part of the author -- to entertain, to reflect on

experience thus teaching Me skius, or sixnply to amuse. It seeks to know ifthe text is structurally

organized according to the stages characteristic of the genre in question. It seeks to assess the

extent to which the author has focused on and realistically portrays the needs, intentions and

emotional responses of the characters to persons and situations they encounter. It examines the

author's use of luiguistic devices in doing this: verbal processes (mental and material), direct and

indirect speech, metaphor and imagery, emphasis and repetition.

In the field area of register, assessment looks for the portrayai of a really possible world

through the appropriate sequencing of events. It looks for the presence of unique, individualized

characters whose activities and the circurnstances in which they occur are clearly described

through the use of carefùlly made word choices, particularly mental and material processes. The

past tense will be used consistently in narrative, and in addition, the author will be expected to

extend and elaborate on information through the use of well-selected and enhancing vocabulary.

The text of well-written narratives is also characterized by an elaborate systern of reference and

cohesion, and the fiequent use of ellipsis that makes for pleasant reading and easy following of the

sequence of events.

A bird's eye view of the schema for assessment based on linguistic principles could be

charted in the foilowing questions:

Regarding genre: Does the text reveal an easily recognizable sense of purpose and an appropnate pattern of stages?

Regarding tenor: Does the author maintain a consistent position as observer or participant, exploring a wide range of interpersonal relationships through the use of grammatical resources?

Regarding field: Does the author use the ideational resources of the grammar to create a real and possible world?

Regarding mode: Does the author use the textuai resources of the grammar to create a text that is cohesive and appropnate to intended purpose?

The mode1 of assessment presented here shodd prove to be an effective aid to teachers

not only in assessing their students' written texts but also in planning their writing assignrnents for

the school year. Acquaintance with the systern equips teachers with the necessary expertise to

direct their students' witing particularly regarding appropnate linguistic choices for the

expression of their ideas. Teachers are enabled to express in f o d tenns the ciifference in quality

between text and text, providing for both themselves and their students a language with which to

discuss the quality of their writing and to suggea strategies for improvement . The genre-based

approach to written language provides a medium of communication for use Ïn the classroom that

is intelligible to both students and teachers. Teachers can employ it to explain to their students in

clear detail the nature of particular assignments and the parameters by which they wiIl be assessed;

and it can be profitably employed by both to examine and l e m fiom texts presented in the course

of classroom work. "A iinguistically inf'ormed approach to Literacy assessrnent offers teachers and

students a metalanguage (a linguistic technology) for entering into productive dialogue with one

another and for reflectîng on the communicative requirements of vvritten tasks" (Macken & Slade,

1993, p. 230).

C hapter Three

THEORETICAL FOWNDATION OF WRlTING PROGWWMES IN ONTARIO AND

COURSES 1 HAVE TAUGHT

This chapter lays down a theoreticai and practical basis for an original set of critetia for

the assessment of genre-based writing at the grade 9 level aiming:

(1) to draw out and explicitate the theoretical assumptions regarding the teaching of writing that are embedded in relevant Ontario Ministry and Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) documents, and to assess the extent to which notions of genre are incorporated in t hem;

(2) to describe my former personai approach to the teaching of writing in grade 9, in accordance with the noms of the Ontario Minise &idelines for Eliglsh, 1977 & 1978. Itztemediare cmd Senior, md Ontario Assessrnent Instrument Pool (OAiP).

(3) to descnbe the teaching of writing as portrayed in the relevant literature f?om the genres point of view and as 1 have persondy implemented the rnethod in grade 9 during the previous two years of my teaching career at secondary level.

The purpose of these systematic analyses of my teaching as guided by Ontario Ministry

guidelines in the teaching of English and genre theory, therefore, is firstly, to demonstrate the

educational relevance of genre theory, and secondiy, to ground my new assessment criteria in

practicai educationai experience.

"A genre approach to literacy teaching involves being explicit about the way language

works to make meaning" (Cope & Kalantzis, 1993, p. 1). The teacher as the expert on both the

fùnction and its corresponding systemic structure leads the students in a joint enterprise to express

their intended messages. In this approach, a prime focus will be on the writers' intended

meanings, on the appropriate stnicture needed to encapsulate and convey these, as weii as on the

relevant steps through which student-apprentices need to work in order to master the art of

genre-based writing. Standard spelling and subject-verb agreement are also important, but genre

Literacy teaching entails a great deal more -- indeed, a radically new approach in contrast to the

haditonal and the progressive paradigrns. It has for its rationale a new understanding of the

nature of language, as has been discussed above (chapter 2).

According to genre theorists, language, fiom its nature as a medium to convey and receive

meaning, has both a social purpose and an appropriate internai structure to achieve that purpose.

DBerent social pwposes demand dinerent forms of text, i.e., texts differ because they are

cornposed to accomplish Werent things. Hence in literacy teaching educators need to be

concemed about the "shape" of a text as it is used so that it achieves the purpose for which its

author has created it: e.g., students often talk about money, and among themselves they discuss

their hours at work, their manager, what their part-time job entails, and other things; and their

code of communication is usudy fùii of colloquialisms. However, ifthey happen to engage

themselves in an effort to persuade the manager that they deserve more tirne-off, or a higher

wage, they wili use a dinerent code, one that is as deferential and persuasive as they cm rnake it.

Thus different social purposes entail different text structures, Le., different genres.

Genres, both social and written, are social entities that are related to instances of

interpersonal interaction within difYerent cultures; and just as interactions are patterned so also are

genres. People are exposed to these oral genres as members of their culture, and so they can learn

them in their social interaction with others; but in the case of written genres, a more forma1

approach is needed in the teaching and leaming of genres, in order to impress explicitly on

students the decisive role of purpose and audience in writing. However, none of the Ministry

documents to be referred to in this chapter, nor the manuals for teachers listed in Circular 14

(Enghsh, 1987, pp. 45-48) contain a "rigorous expianation of how purpose and audience are

realized in language" ( H m o n d , 1987, p. 164); and it is in this last respect precisely, that a

genre-based approach to writing differs &om the approach recommended in the Ministry

Guidelines for the teaching of English in Ontario.

A. Theoretical assumptions underlyïne Ontario Mini- and TCDSB Documents

These assumptions pertain to the area of English writing at the grade 9 level as described

in recent Ministq and TCDSB documents on outcomes-based education under the title of 23e

Common Cimicz~Iurnrn 1 shall make reference to three Ministry documents: Tramitzon Yeurs

1992, me Common Curriculum: Policies and Ozttcornes 1995; The Cornmon C ~ ~ r ~ i m l u m :

Provincial Star?&&: h g u u g e Grades 1-9 .

The Ontario Ministry mandated (Policies and Oz~tcornes, 1995, p. 3 ) that Transition

Years, Grades 7, 8 and 9, 1992 is to be used in deveioping and implementing school programmes

and activities. The TCDSB had already responded to the draft copy ( B e Trm~siitron Years:

Gride tu Dzsmssior~ and Re~ponse, henceforth TY) in 1 99 1, under the titIe Re3pome to

Tramiirion Years May 31. 1991 (henceforth RTY). My commentary on and discussion of its

theoretical assumptions regarding the teaching of writing is offered in light of the TCDSB's

response. These assumptions, 1 will indicate, are of a generai nature, applying to transition

programmes globally, and only implicitly referring to English. TY directed that programmes of

Ieaming should be more solidly based on the reality of change, on fluctuation in the rate of

intellectud development a d achievement in the students' Iives at this time, and that they should

keep in mind the challenges they must face. The TCDSB endorses this conceni, makes mention

of the challenge of developing spiritually (by acquiring a set of values in keeping with the

Catholic Religion) that pupils face, and adds the recommendation that educators be given

assistance in developing and delivering cunicula which wiii meet -dents1 needs. However,

neither RTY nor TY makes mention of the need to teach students how purpose and audience are

realized in language.

This same intention to cater for aii students' needs is f'undamental to the genre-based

approach to writing. Fran Christie points out (1989, p. 3) that "major changes in the various

forms of language, wrïtten ones in particular," have been brought about by contemporary

"govemment, law courts,. . .trade union activity, the various communication media" and therefore

"abilities to write and to read are critical Estudents are to complete their secondary education

successfully and go on to participate fblly in the wider world ..."

The TCDSB dso endorses TYs intent to base its expected leaniing outcomes on the

needs of the adolescent leamer in the context of family, cornmunity, leisure and work, and on

research in the leamuig process; but it places special focus on five explicit aspects of student

development (p. 5) and points to the interrelatedness of these with implications for successful

outcomes. Successful miting abilities, it might be noted, will also be necessary to operate

successfully in the world, to bring about desired social changes or to challenge and debate

important social issues. Relevant articles recently printed in the Toronto Srm are titled "Property

taxes: Deal in jeopardy" (July 22, 1998), "Loonie makes paupers of Canadians on holiday" (July

22, 1 W8), " Judge d e s against school funding biil" (July 23, 1998); and in the Globe md M d

"Dollar drops below 67 cents", and "Charges may be laid in Au India bombing" (July 23, 1998).

A core curriculum, that is, one that is deemed essential for ali students in Ontario, is to be

developed, and the TCDSB adds these considerations: that religious education be included in the

core, that skiUs and competencies take precedence over content in a relevant curriculum that

reinforces Canadian identity and is delivered by teachers whose competence is guaranteed by the

provision of adequate opporîunîty for professional development. An essential facet of this core

curriculum, though not made explicit, is the skiIl of writing: for as long as they are enrolled in

school, students' progress is constantly rnonitored and evaluated through their competence in

writing - notes, sumaries, essays, projects, stories; and "various branches of industry and

commerce also require writing abilities in many ways. " (Christie, op. cit . p. 5)

The TCDSB makes specific rewmmendations regarding the description and delivery of

the essential knowledge, values and skills of a core curriculum in light of such concerns arnong

educators as overcrowding of the cumculum, fragmentation of knowledge, an acadernic bias in

programme and method, and an overemphasis on mastery of content (RTY, p. 13). It

recommends a two-phase core curriculum: an integrated core to include thematic units such as

religion, English, mathematics.. ., in which teachers wouid address essential competencies such as

"language, numeracy and thuiking skills" through broad integrated units; and a subject-specinc

core to introduce students to a variety of disciplines Like theatre arts, music, and drama, so as to

prepare them to make informed career choices and decisions in their specialization years. Mention

of genre-based written language is conspicuously absent. Cumculum policy and support

documents, reflecting an integrated approach across the curriculum and outlining skills and

competencies, should be developed centrally at provincial level by teachers chosen from across

the province, and this would aiso guarantee uniformit- in evaluation and assessrnent (RTY, p. 9).

Genre-based writing also stresses the centrality of teacher involvement in programming, for it is

the teacher who directs and monitors the practicai art which writing is. As Christie points out: "In

learning to write, we learn to produce dBerent text types or genres.. . Such genres are created by

making choices in Ianguage.. . A good educational programme.. . is one that kt recognizes the

choices students need to leam to make in order to create difFerent genres, and secondly seeks to

introduce these to students" (Christie, op. cit., p. 5).

RTY also supports Ministry policy on assessment, evaluation and reporting of student

achievement results in grade 9. Consistency across the province in this area enables teachers to

give appropriate placement to students who transfer fiom other schools, and it also helps the

students in their choosing of programmes for their specialïzation years. Such assessment should

apply to progress, interests and strengths; will be unbiased and culturally and Linguisticaliy

sensitive; and apply al1 appropriate methods of assessrnent Using language is seen by the genre-

based theorists as an act of "making meaning" which results in the creation of a text or coherent

unit of meaning. This text will be of a certain genre, depending on its meaning, purpose and

audience; and by its nature it is a product of the culture to which its author belongs. Indeed,

l e h g the genres of one's culture is part of leaming to become a successfùl participant in that

culture (Christie, ibid., p. IO), and would ensure more completeness in student education.

Assessrnent of teas must therefore be culture sensitive. The TCDSB's RTY however, stresses in

addition, the need for a formative rather than a summative bias in evaluation, and the conpence

of assessment criteria and techniques with individual student goals.

TY (p. 30) supports the intention of the Ministry to develop benchmarks for ali sîudent

assessment.These would provide, among other things, "reference points for reporting to students,

parents, educators and other stakeholders. " Benchmarks are defined (TY p. 30) as statements of

criticai leaming outcornes that students are expected to demonstrate by a certain point in t he ,

such as the end of a particular grade or penod of years. RTY supports the concept of

benchmarks as being "important, positive and overdue" (p. 3 l), yet adds the foiiowing

qualifications:

1. Benchmarks must be more clearly defined, and their relationship with expected skills and cornpetencies, programme selection, exceptional students, and evaluation, must be clarified;

2. Benchmarks must be stated positively and admit of fiexibility, be f?ee of aU negative bis , d o w for multi-modd testing, and be built into course content f i e r the manner of the OAIP;

3. Benchmarks should pertain to all aspects and subject areas of the cumculum, i.e., to knowledge, skills and activities pertaining to al1 subject areas.

In al1 these added qualifications offered by the TCDSB, one can see a keen awareness of

the richness and diversity of the human person and of the need to be sensitive to it in assessing

human achievement. Such sensitivity is aiso one of the qualities of the genre-based approach to

wrïting, for it recognizes the multiplicity of contexts in which one may be called upon to compose

a text to convey meaning, and the many cultures where the sarne meaning will require Werent

texts. This sensitivity should also recognize and respect dEerent contexts in the carrying out of

assessment.

The Ontario Ministry's ProMncial Standmds: h p g e 1995 Grades 1-9, clairns to

reflect "the best practices that emerged from an investigation of language programmes and

standards.. . in documents fiom.. . other countries such as Australia" where Hammond (1987) attests

that a genre based approach to the teaching of writing pioneered "the development of an explicit

understanding of the role of language in the educational context and a linguistic description of the

major genres that children are expected to l e m as they learn to write" (ibid.). Making the role of

language explicit is what differentiates the genre-based approach f?om other models of writing

such as the "growth" and "process" approaches. Language is used to convey meaning. By

acknowledging that the acquiring and use of language is a holistic process that occurs in

purposeful and meaninal contexts, the provincial document shows its agreement with the

fùnctionai model of language which relates actual language to the context in which it is used

(whether context of culture or of situation), and aitributes a fiuictional role also to grammar,

inasmuch as the genre-based approach says that language is orgaaized the way it is because of the

meanings it conveys.

The document's p ~ c i p l e of language leamhg (p.6), that the six language functions are

interco~ected and mutually influentid in the matter of development, points to the holistic quality

of the genre-based approach. This approach is based on a hctional model of language, and

hence the Ministry's second principle refers to the optimal circumstances for developing Linguistic

cornpetence as those in which students "have oppominities to use language to comrnunicate for

real purposes and in red situations, both in the.. . classroom and in the community." (ibid., p.6).

Genre theonsts stress the ancillary nature of grammar with respect to meaning, and pride

themselves on providing a linguistic explanation of how purpose and audience characterize

language. One cm see this reflected in the third principle of the Muùstryk mandated approach,

viz. extensive language practice takes precedence of place over grammx study, which it

nevertheless characterizes as a convention of language, and the study of which is to be gradudy

increased. The genre-based approach stresses very strongly the close relationship between the

context in which language is generated and the achial language used, while the Ministry reminds

us that since language, culture and identity are closely linked, recognition of diverse student racial,

cultural and linguistic backgrounds helps students "develop a positive sense of self and motivates

them to learn" (ibid.).

One cm also see features of the genre-based approach to writing in the Ministry's

recommended methods of outcomes assessment. In the case of a specific genre, e-g., narrative,

the written text is analysed for thematic structure, transitivity, reference, conjunction and theme.

To the extent and degree of excelience to which these parameters are present in a written

narrative, the Wtiting can be assessed as having a certain degree of excellence; and what is more

important, the student understands the rationale for that grading. Outcornes-based assessment is

also muiti-faceted, taking into consideration as it does, students' ability not only to l e m but also

to apply their leamhg in a profitable way, both ioside the classroom and in a larger context.

Besides, the Ministry document differentiates language outcomes and standards under

"Form/Purpose", "Process" and "Features of TextKonventions". Expertise in any one of these

categones alone cannot guarantee competence or effectiveness in, for example, writing, yet each

taken separately can indicate a discrete aspect of a student's growth in competence, and can assist

the teacher in focusing attention on necessary knowledge and skills that are as yet outstanding in

student performance.

There are thus, in the outcornes-based approach of the Ministry (and of the TCDSB to

the extent that it supports Ministry policy) traces of certain characteristics of genre-based writing,

as for example, its analysis-of-skills approach to cornpetencies and the relationship of language to

culture; but the Muiistry documents f d short of showing explicitly the importance of the role of

language in ail education, and of providing a linguistic andysis of the principal writing genres

students must master, i.e., how language, taken syntactically and grammatically, is dserentiated

according to the author's purpose, meaning and intended audience.

In the absence of such directives in methodology, teachers, who must provide a

programme for their classes, must often devise to the best of their ability a survival kit (in rnany

cases, one based on how they perfected their own writing skills) to help their students become

proficieut writers, wMe at the same t h e sat iswg the recommendations of former Muùstry

documents. It is as such a survival kit - which though, as experience has taught, may not be the

universally curent practice in Ontario, yet incorporates the best of what is practised in light of

the Ministry directives - that the writing course I shall now describe came to be developed and

imp lement ed.

ractice in the teaching of witten narrative based on Mïnistrv Guidelines

I am aware, through taikhg informaily with teachers in this province, that a number of

approaches to the teaching of writing prevail in Ontario, approaches based on Ministry

Guidelines issued in 1977, 1987, and those issued for the transition years, d of which 1 have

successively implemented. In this section, as 1 attempt to descnbe my own programme in the

teaching of written language to all-male classes in an all-male school, 1 s h d do so fiom an

evaluative standpoint and having regard to the extent to which it has satisfied the requirements of

the Ministry and also of the extent to which it has equipped students with the cornpetence to

express themselves in writing bcth in achieving the objectives of the cumculum subsequent to

grade 9 and in being able to cope with the writing demands made on thern in the world outside the

school. This course in writing was kst designed in accordance with the directives of the Muiiçtiy

Guidelines (MG henceforth) in Engiish at the Intermediate Level 1977. It has always been my

conviction as a teacher of English language literacy that intelligent beings speak and d t e in order

to convey messages to other such beings and that the code used must be understood by both @ver

and receiver. Moreover, the code varies according to the encoded message, i-e., the message and

the structure of the language used to convey it are related. This fact points to the importance for

leamers of language (oral or written) of a clear concept of the desired message to be conveyed

and the possession ofthe linguistic ability to convey it. This conviction has always informed my

Imguage programmes and has motivated my search for the ideal approach to the teaching of

writing which would give priority of place to the connection between an author's writing and its

purpose and audience, even though in my reading of Circuiar 14 and the Ministry documents

mentioned in this chapter I do not find this approach. My course in English wrïting was created at

least in the interests of efficiency and purposefblness; but its primary raison d'etre must be

understood as a fiamework within which the students would be motivated to &te regularly and

with enjoyment and purpose on topics which interested them, and that they could consolidate

skills already acquired in addition to developing those of more advanced writuig, in keeping with

the students' ages and ability. It was not at any rime evaluated fomally, either by the Department

Head or by Ministry inspectors. It has been accepted by the former, albeit tacitly, inasmuch as no

objections have been raised against either its content or its methodology; and students who have

been enrolled in it and graduated successfully fkom grade 9 have been thought @y their teachers)

to be well equipped to cope with the demands of grade 10 writing.

It had been found usefid to use some of the learning opporiunities in the partial

achievement of the three goals set out for Intermediate level (MG, 1977, pp. 12& 13). These were

(1) use writing skills commensurate with physical, intellectual and emotional maturity; (2)

recognize and appreciate dserent models of writing; (3) recognize and appreciate the function

of review, revision and assessrnent in the process of improving wrïtten work.

The writing opportwiities provided for the students tended to focus on increased accuracy

in the surface structure of written English, competence in the conventions of standard English, use

of figurative language and neat legible handwriting. Also stressed were the value of personal ideas

and expenences, and the importance of expressing them in paragraphs and essays that were

wherently and cohesively composed. Student input in evaluation was invited and promoted. The

value of self- and peer-editing was always stressed as a means of increasing competence in

achieving the voice, syntactic structure and writing style appropriate for a particuiar purpose.

The variety of assignments given was wide; and an attempt was made to keep in rnind the

audience to which the writing was addressed in individuai cases, as weU as the requirements of

standard English usage. Students were encouraged to re-work their cornpositions in order to

present only the best they could do. They were reminded that even professional writers need to

edit and adjust and re-arrange their matend . Groupwork was encouraged. Only final drafts

were enshrined in the school booktet for marking. The students were aiiowed to pick their own

topics at fira if the assigned one did not appeal to their tastes, and even when stories in specific

genres were assigned, -- myths, legends, fables, mystery stories -- there was d l ample scope for

creativity and originality.

"Composing involves e x p l o ~ g and mulling over a subject; planning the particular piece

...g etting started; making discovenes about feelings, values or ideas, even while in the process of

writing a draft; making continuous decisions about diction, syntax and rhetonc in relation to the

intended meaning and to the meaning taking shape ... conternpfating the ha l piece and perhaps,

finally, revising" (Cooper & Odell, 1977, p.fi). In keeping wîth the observations of Cooper &

Odell, it was felt that an appreciable amount of personal leaniing and growth in self-confidence

had been gained by the students through writing. Neverthetess, while admitting the positive

aspects of the programme, and its (limited) success, at least in so fàr as the students were

prepared for writing at the grade 10 level, it was also accepted fiom 1991 oqthat the programme

could be admirably enhanced by being updated in accordance with the parameters of OAIP (1990)

An outline of the earlier programme with its rationale, objectives, types of assignments,

teaching methodogy and evaluation procedures tiow follows. Then there will foilow a similar

outline taking cognU:ance of all facets of OAP (English) with a commentary on their usefulness.

Certain discrepancies will also be discussed and fucus placed on proposed improvements that

were later implemented, in order to show how a more explicit emphasis on the role of audience

and of the author's purpose in language can result in higher quality writing h m the students.

C. My writing prQgm.mrne in detail

1. Objectives

"English is above dl a personal discipline, concemed with personal behaviours and

personal choices and tastes.. .The productive skills, speaking and writing, have both personal and

social functions, but they also Unprove through constant persona1 efforts. Fundamentally, English

teaching is not only dispensing lmowledge or dernonstrating techniques, though these have a part

to play, it is devising and shaping situations that will induce growth. And it is not only growth in

skills that we must nounsh, but also growth in sensitivity, in awareness of the nature, feeling and

purposes of oneself and others ...." (MG, 1977,p. 20)

The driving force behind this programme, therefore, has certainly been the acquisition of

the skills of good writing by the students, in this d-male school, as well as the motivation to

facilitate growth in self-awareness, self-knowledge, and knowledge of people in the immediate as

well in the wider social milieu. Hence at the conclusion of the programme it was projected that

the students would be able to do the following things:

(1) mite in legible handwriting a paragraph in the narrative, descriptive and expository modes.

(2 ) understand and display the skills of writing in a cohesive and coherent paragraph, i.e. the use of a topic sentence, a statement of one's thesis and the use of relevant details in support, wMe maintahg a constant point of view.

(3) plan with a s m d group the first draft of a paragraph or essay, write an essay fkom their personal point of view, edit their own and others' written work,and refine their writing through the production of successive drafts, keeping in mind readability, relevance of content, and syntactical and grammaticai correctness.

(4) summarize a writer's argument in proving a certain thesis, writing a criticism of how well the author presented his argument, and compiling the student's own persona1 argument for or against.

(5) write character profiles of personnel fiom the literature studied in class.

The following categories of written assignments in English discourse were chosen as

vehicles for the attainment of the above objectives, each category having several assignments.

Prose Fiction P a r ~ a p h s : Narrative: - "The School Aiarm sounded: - Personal choice - "The Collision on my Street"

Descriptive: - "When Mom is angry" - Personal choice - "How I scored the winning goal:

Expository: - "1 was late for school" - "Why 1 Iike Fnday" - Personal choice

2 Myths

2 Fables 2 Legends 2 Mystery stories 2 Short stones

Reporting Written ~ w h s t . ~ answer content-, inference-,practical application questions arising fkom

C haracter Profiles in essay format arising f?om

The Novel The Shakespearian Play Poems Greek Mythology

The Novel The Shakespearian Play Five £iom each

Cineralizing: and Theorizing

Appreciation of An essay written about the Literary P0-Y value of each poem studied, h m the

viewpoints of title and aim of poet, tirne of writing, circumstances surroundhg the actual writing, Ianguage of the poem, Literary devices, how well the poet achieved onginal objectives in writing.

Book Reports (2) An independent study project. Students write a five page report on a novel which they have read, under the sub-titles listed in the format in Appendix E.

2. Evaluation: Marking Scheme

An effort was made to ensure reliability in mârking, and in the suitability of the assignments, by

providing for a number of assignments in each category of wrîting. It was calculated that in this

way students were provided with adequate opportunity to demonstrate what they redy could do.

The written pieces were finally evaluated by the teacher. with student input as fiequently as was

conveniently possible. It would have been possible tu have had teacher input also on some

occasions, but this was (erroneously) not seen to be necessary.

(a) P ~ ~ ~ ~ h s & Essa3

Each essay and paragraph quaiified for a total of 10 possible marks or les, accordhg to

how well it exemplified the following characteristics, with two marks per characteristic. The

defects of this and of later systems are now realized since it was really based on a dichotomous

scale and could not address, as adequately as was desired, the question of variation in student

ability .

The characteristics were:

The writing reflects directly the writer's own experience or in the case of fiction, describes a possible event . The reader cm engage in its content, wants to read to the end and feels a strong desire to respond. The essay has shape and purpose. A specific issue is treated coherently fiom the beginning, through a climactic point and has an expressed or implicit resolution. The essay has informative and realistic detd which is expressed by the use of rich appropriate language. The writer has sufEicient cornrnand of sentence formation, spelling, punctuation and capitalization so as to cater to the reader's understanding and enjoyment of the written project .

C haracter ProfiIa Each essay quaMed for an award of 20 marks in accordance with how well it fined the following descriptions: The character traits are valid as refiected in the novel or play. Supportive evidence nom the written work is offered for each. The profile shows that the writer has corne to a reai understanding of the characters and their respective roles in the play or novel. The essay inforrns the reader through the use of appropnate register. The writhg is grammatically and syntactically appropriate.

The student's response to the poem in question qualified for an award of a total of 25 marks in so far as it merited the following descriptions.

(1) The student has a valid understanding of the poem.

(2 ) The essay addresses the poetfs airn in writing and shows the student's understanding of the reflection in the poem of contemporary personal happenings, trends and tendencies in the poet's He.

(3) The essay inchdes suitable and supportive quotations fkom the poem. (4) The essay shows an understanding of the physicai form of the poem, its genre, language

and rhyming scheme. ( 5 ) The essay exhibits an appropriate mastery of the mechanics of good writing in respect of

legibility, standard spelling, grammatical correctness, and variance in sentence form.

(d) Book Re~orts

A mark of 20 was awarded [3,2, 5 , 5 , 5 according to the five directives on the explanatory sheet in Appendix (E)] in accordance with how well each point was addressed. This was done for each of the two book reports.

(e) Answers to Report Questions on Set Reading

A total mark of 10 was possible for each assignment according to the following two-point scheme.

(1) The paragraph addressed the question accurately and showed a good understanding of the relevant part of the plot, appending quotations or descnbing anecdotes in support of the points made.

(2) The paragraph used appropriat e English prose, grammar, spelling, punctuation and legible writing, and showed care and diligence on the part of the student.

- 3 . Volume of Work

It was projected that students should write an average of two paragraphs per day (Le.

approximately one page, or five per week) specined as follows: Two questions on the

Novel/Play/Short stories/Mythology were assigned three tirnes per week, with an additionai two-

page essay. Twenty minutes of every class-period (75 minutes) were devoted to writing dunng

which any of the writing assignments couid be worked on.

4. Method of assessrnent

While making every effort to take cognizance ofevery aspect of each piece of writhg, it

was found that the comment of Cooper and Odell(1977, op. cit., p.xii) is a good expression, of

the philosophy that was being followed by me even though unwihgly: "...there is no mechanical

or technical solution to the problems posed in evaluating writing. Since writing is an expressive

human activity, we believe the best response to it is a receptive, sympathetic human response.. ."

( 1) Assi-ed Questions

These questions based on the novel, play, short stories or mythology, were assigned to be

completed for Monday, Wednesday and Fnday of each week, and pertained to the relevant part

of the text being stiidied. They demanded a knowledge of content and offered an oppominity to

students to display their understanding of the interpersonal relationships portrayed, in addition to

relating the problerns/conflicts to their own Me situations. Sample questions were the following:

(1.) Explain the contract entered into by Shylock and Antonio in the play The

Merchant of Velizce

(2) Describe the circumstances in the novel Cue for Treason, under which Peter lost

the manuscript of Shakespeare's new play Henrv V.

The questions were discussed on a teacher-whole-class basis on the day they were

assigned and some time was allotted towards their completion both on that and on the following

day, when an opportunity was given to the students who so desired, to plan their answers jointly.

On the day the assignment was due, personal answers were proffered by the students orally in

class, aspects of answers, personal opinions aired in class being appended to their work by the

students who had not included these in their write-up. Annotations were also placed on the chaik

board. The assignments were submitted to the teacher and a mark out of 10 was assigned

according to the scheme described above (p. l27e), and entered on each assignment. The -dents

were aware from day to day of how well they were progressing, as much fiom their numerical

mark as by cornparison with their coileagues' ideas offered in the smatl-group or in the whole-

class conte-.

(2) Weekiv Essay

The first essay assignment given was really for pre-test purposes to ascertain the standard

of writing of the class. A paragraph was assigned, a personal story based on an

important/criticaYexcitUIg/timely happening in their lives. This was not composed on a co-

operative basis, and was assessed in accordance with the schema (page 126a) the weaknesses of

which are now realized. The parameters were known to the students as they wrote. They were

submitted for teacher marking. Annotations were made to focus on areas of strength and

weakness according to the marking scheme. On the return of the assignments a general

discussion was held about the skills attained and those to be gauied by the students. Marks were

assigned but were not entered in the teacher's mark book. During subsequent classes an

opportunity was given to discuss on a personal bais problems that stiU needed to be examined.

M e r the writing of three further paragraphs (two cirafts of each) in each of the three modes (p.

125) essays were undertaken. In the case of each essay, the topic was first discussed in class on a

s d - g r o u p and whole-class basis, and one week was aiiowed for the completion of the fûst

draft. On the day it was due, the students edited one another's work, making suggestions

regarding irnprovements in the five areas (p. 126a). The edited versions were submitted for

teacher editing, and that draft was returned as soon as possible (usually the following day) with

suggestions for improvement. No mark was assigned until the t k a l ciraft (second or third) was

completed. The final mark out of 10 was estimated according to the previously described schema,

each student beuig aware of the rationale.

It must be undersîood that aIl marks were negotiable; and whenever a student codd give a

plausible reason why a mark should be augmented, his request (this being an ail-male class) was

honoured as a recognition of the cogent argument he presented and even sornetimes as a reward

such obvious concern. It should be noted also that ail first and second dr&s were consemed --

the second dr&s enshrined in the staple-bound booklet, and the first drafts inserted each beside

its relative first drafl. This arrangement was found to work better than the enveloped folder

recomrnended by the Ministry Guidelines (1987, p. 19), since written pieces tended to "disappear"

nom the latter to the loss of the student. The booklet was retained safely in the classroom, and

retumed at the end of each semester to those wishing to keep their handiwork on me.

(3) Çharacter profiles. poetry and book reports

These assignments were treated as independent study projects and were assigned a total of

20 marks, suice each entailed a greater than usud amount of planning and writing. Each was

assessed by the teacher only, with annotations and suggestions for ùnprovement. The writing

time of each class penod was considered as available to the students to work on these, either

individudy or in group collaboration, and to consult with the teacher and seek direction on points

of difficulty in content and synt actic composition.

(4) Final Assessment: Wrîting as an integral part of l a n w arts,

The end of tenn written examination was so designed as to enable the students to show

what they really could do. Since the course was not usuaily offered by another teacher

concurrently, the levels of achievernent consistentiy reached by students in previous sessions of

the course were taken as a measure of reliability.

Since students were led to understand "that reading, writing, listening, speaking.. ..are not

[merely] subjects in the c ~ c u l u r n , but processes that they use in combination to explore and to

extend their abilities to think, to l e m and to communicate, " (MG, p. 23) they began to

appreciate that it is the skills and expertise they acquired in canying out these processes that

determined their success, not only in ail other school subjects, but also for the most part in the

world of work as weli. Hence it is reasonable that the Ministry Guildelines should recommend an

equal divide of marks as between the four categones entailed in process and product (ïbid., p. 12).

Writing as process and product was allotted 40% - 60%.

In this course both were allotted 50% for the fkst haif of the semester and 40% in the final

half; the reason being that it was department policy to carry fonvard 20% of the midterm final

assessrnent mark to make up 20% of the final (Report Card) mark. Both the term and rnidtenn

writing process marks were calculated by taking the average of the marks for the total number of

short asssignments (minus 3 assignments) as a factor of 25% (midterm) and of 20% (final). Thus a

student's mark might be as follows:

Midterm Possible Actual

Essay s 25' 20 Short asgmts. 25 18

Exam 50 40 Total 1 O0 78

Final Possible Actual

20 18 20 17

Midterrn 20 16 (15.6) 40 32 1 O0 83

5 . Surnmary

A description of the writing component of my grade 9 Language Arts programme has

been given. It has been prefaced by the rationale, denved fiom the Ministry Guidelines of 1977,

which underlies its content; and includes a list of objectives, the types and number of assignments

intended as rneans for attauiing them, teacher-evaluation strategies, and how marks were

assigned. It has been admitted that in light of on-going research in the area of student writing and

especidy in the area of evaluation as a positively motivating factor in the education process,

certain defects are in evidence in the programme, notably the training of the students in the

acquisition and use of purposeful language, and these wiU become clearer as a revised programme

now to be outlined, unfolds.

D. My writing: oro amrne as mandated bv Ministry Guidelines 1987

In planning, discussing and directing a programme in English Language Arts it is aiways

understood that reading, writing, listening, speaking, viewing and dramatizing are processes that

students use to enhance their abilities to think, to learn and to communicate (ibid., p. 23). These

processes are integrated therefore; but nonetheless, it is possible and even necessary to plan an

individual part of the curriculum to cater for each one. It is possible too, and necessary, so to

direct the work of the students that each facet of the curriculum includes one or more of the

others. Writing features prominently in the English curriculum, because students who read wiil

want to share their written reactions with other students and then write additional notes. Writing

pertains to the gathering of ideas, to s u m m ~ g , to assessing and to criticking. It seems

reasonable to conclude therefore, that it is the importance of writing that motivated the &ters of

the Ministry Guidelines 0987) to mandate that " in at least four of the five compulsory credits in

English language, approxhately one-third of classroom time must be devoted to writing" (ibid.,

p. 9), and that Mithg whether individual or on a group basis, should receive an approximate

50% of the total marks at the Intermediate Level. Moreover, this mandate of the Ministry was

seen as a recognition of the prime importance of purpose in writing, but only as an implicit

invitation io teachers to highlight this characteristic in their classroom work with students.

The following, then, are some of the objectives that must be taken as standard ideal

inclusions in the Grade 9 Language Arts Writing programme. It will be noticed that substantially

they are identical with those listed above (p. 124), but with a change of focus. The Ministry

Guideiines of 1977 focus on skills whereas in 1987 the emphasis was on overd character

enhancement.

(1) The students will grow in a sense of self-worth and in the s u s of good writing through the expression of personai ideas in paragraphs and essays Wfitten in the descriptive, narrative and expositov modes.

(2) The student wili continue to develop a mastery of precise and logical written expression so as to be able to process and communicate information.

(3) The students wiU develop in thought, imagination, and in appreciation of values through such fiequent written personal responses to literature as joumals, poetry and narrative essays.

(4) The students wilI leam the art of "reasoned thinking that is central to the academic enterprise", so as to be able to formulate and substantiate in concise and accurate language a persond thesis or point of view.

(5) The students will study the character traits of personages f?om their prescribed titerature, so as to isolate models of behaviour to be both imitated and avoided.

. . 2. Wntinq-ents and evaluation The course was so planned that the student had the opportwiity to mite the same variety

- 233

of assignments as were listed above (pp. L24E). Their fkst attempt was a paragraph written in

the narrative mode about an important happening in their lives. This was a personal effort, done

without group or teacher assistance as a test measure of their writing ability. It was assessed by

the teacher according to the scde in AppendUt F. Scores were calculated and tabulated.

Discussion of strengths and weakness ensued and the skills of good paragraph writing were

taught. The students worked in groups on the preparation of paragraphs to be -en so as to

ensure the implementation of the skills, and the writing of individuai paragraphs continued during

the k s t couple of weeks of the semester. Then came a further test assignment which was also

assessed. Further teaching and practice followed as was seen necessary, before the beginning of

essay writing.

Reporting, generaiking and theorking assignments aiso continued to be given and

assessed according to the parameters iisted above (pp. 128E), but with each parameter measured

on a 5-point scale according to the maximum mark allowed for each. In the preparatory stage of

each assigrment, when the students planned their answers on a group basis and had access to

teacher input, they gained new insights uito the teas being studied, they generated new ideas fkom

their pooled contributions, and they began to see more clearly that language has purpose and

power. They also improved in their comrnand of the surface features of written language and

learned to focus on the essentials of a question as well as become more concise in the ansvers

they formulated . The assignments continued to be exarnined on a whole-class basis as this

ensured miitfûl inter-group coo perative leaming .

The group approach to essay writing with mutual student editing also continued. Writing

a "good" essay, it was felt, was not a linear process, or a one-shot deal. It was recursive, calling

on the exercise of a number of skills that pertain to creativity, memory, sequencing, cohesioq

perception, as well as good penmanship, spelling and punctuation. Richness of ideas cornes fiom

pooling of resources through collaborative brainstorming. Ideas are often best recorded by a

group workùig together, with one individual acting as scribe. Remanging too, and editing so as

to improve and polish surface features, was another necessary step on the way to the finished

product. Then came the first fùU dr& 6rom each individual; and mutual editing. This process of

student editing continued, since it was here that students learned fiom one another in the use of

written language both the need to refine and cl* expressions, and how easily one errs in

spehg, grammar and punctuation. In this way they learned to work diligently on their own first

drafts so as to submit for marking as perfect a product as possible. Teacher-marking of second

drafts according to Appendu F followed. Experience had shown that for the grade 9 students the

writing of a second drafl indicated the maximum effort which each was prepared to make in order

to refi~e any one assignment. However, contrary to former practice, students were aliowed --

even encouraged -- to rework into a third or further &a, a topic in which they had a high degree

of interest or had researched more fully.

The Ministry Guidelines (ibid., p. 18) recommended the sharing by students of their written

work with wider audiences, through the medium of bulletin boards, literary magazines, school

newspapers, oral reading and drarnatization. Udortunately, while this seemed a good way to

motivate students to write, some students found it impossible to weather the stom of notoriety

that could envelope them should their essay be given public display.

Regarding the recommended writing folder, it was felt that the stapled booklet system had

been satisfactory, since though it did not include such components of process as "scraps of notes

and jottings" (ibid., p. 19), it did include ail successive dr&s as witness to the work undertaken;

and it certainfy did send home the message that "effective h t h g takes time". Students could see

their gradua1 improvement fiom week to week; and they had always been free to rework a former

essay or paragraph so as to compose a better piece of writing.

3. Further evaluation of student writing

It was understood that in Light of ongoing research in wnting, there were rnany and varied

kinds of evaluation procedures available to the teacher to put evaluation into eRect, that had not

been used in this program. These it was felt, were proposed in the best interest of the students,

allowing for more reliable measurement of their progress, and an opportunity to perfect their skiils

and remediate their deficits, in addition to letting them share in their own assessrnent. Frequent

personal conferences with their teacher would occasion an updating of their objectives where

necessary, and provide for a more thorough partnership with their parents in the education

process through detailed reports.

OAIP (1 990) recommended a four-stage assessrnent for each constitutive factor of the

cumculum. "The instruments, strategies, and procedures in the pool are solidly based on a firm

understanding of what BASIC means and on a vision of what BASIC programmes can and should

be. The t em BASIC can be used not only as a description of a particular level but also as an

acronym for . . . . . "Bringing Assessrnent Strategies into the Curriculum. " (OAIP Handbook, 1990,

p.3). Redefining the word in this way provided an interesting base on which to design an effective

programme in writing for grade 9. Yet it std lacked an explicit statement of the importance of

purpose and context in writing, and the need aiso to take cognizance of these when assessing

Wnting .

(a) Assessine Leamino Backmound

This is the fkst of the "stages". In assessing the leaming background of the student the

way is opened for more real communication between the teacher and the student. Teachers can

validly "rnake very few assumptions about students" (ibid., p. 1 5); and h w i n g something about

"backgrounds, interests, hobbies, drearns, strengths and ambitions" (ibid.) as well as the students'

reasons for choosing the school and a particular course of studies, would enable teachers to

decide on where to place partidar emphases in their teaching. Adaptations might be needed - in all probability would be needed -- since successive groups even at the sarne academic level

seldom show a close match. Teaching style might need to change corn a group-consultative

format with one class to a teacher-centred delivery with another. Expectations might have to be

raised/lowered, and new content sections added.

The value of assessrnent intruments depends to a great extent on the self-knowledge of the

student, the diligence exercised in completing them and on the honesty of the student which wiil

corne fiom the non-threatening nature of the enterprise. Managed appropriately by the teacher,

these (see Ap pendix G) would iïkely reveal something of the student's background in writing .

Writing rnay be listed as a strength or an accomplishment; it may be used as an escape Uito fantasy

or as a hobby; it rnay be referred to as one of the most painfùl aspects of courses. Knowing the

student's experience with writing would help the teacher to caim fears, develop positive attitudes

and build on strengths so as to enable the sîudent to (continue to) enjoy the experience of writing.

Comrnentary

The OAlP Handbook (p. 16) does advise the teacher: "The most important instruments

for assessing leaming background are your own eyes and ears. Use every opportunity to watch

and listen to your students. They wiU reveal to you much of what you need to know." Yet in

listing "four types of instruments to help assess the leamhg background of your students" there is

the danger that the over-conscientious teacher might feel obligated to use all four, without real

need. To the less scrupulous there seems to be a great ded of overlap in the areas "covered" by

the interview questions, the self-assessrnent uistniments, the self-assessment targets and the

teacher questions. Besides, the kùid of information expected to be gleaned through these

channels was often found to be more valid and reliable when obtained ùicidentally during the

course of day-to-day teaching. Many students did have realistic targets, and had no hesitation in

sharing them even oraily in a public forum. Others whose targets were less reaiistic also wanted

to share. But within the constraints of time so acutely and so ofien felt at the secondary school

level, the system recommended in this section by OAIJ? was seen to be overiy elaborate as an

assessment of mere learning background.

(b) Ongoing Assessrnent

The ongoing assessment of students "by o b s e ~ n g them in a variety of activities and

situations" (ibid., p. 20) is necessary for the development of a holistic picture of the student as a

learner . The particular activities that corne to mind include the ethical one of work and study

habits as weil as the students' work (keeping in mind the parameters of Appendix G). Such

assessrnent focuses particularly on student successes, enables their self-esteem to grow through

the accumulation of merit points and provides a strong motivation to them to reach to greater

heights. Through incidental discussions of their self-assessrnent targets (Appendix H), poor

attitudes that lead to ineffective work and study habits and evenhial failure cm be rectified, and

students suddenly begin to achieve, through a new sense of their power and command over their

own destiny. Such ongoing vigilance has become a necessary ingredient in the multi-faceted work

of the classroom teacher because of the many factors - family, social, economic pressures- that

impinge on the students and fnistrate their efforts towards success.

Of all the evaluation interventions in students' lives, ongoing assessment is one of the most

important because, ideally, its intention is vigilance and remediation and numire rather than

condemation to fadure. It is pastoral and caring in orientation -even messianic - and seeks to

offer the hand of fiiendship and support to the weary traveller who may be ready to quit. In the

area of writing, the teacher does not quench the smouldering taper but overlooks (for a t h e ) the

speiiing and grammatical aberrations in order to comphent students on the sincenty with which

they write. The attractive penmanship of another is praised. A third might be unable to h d the

right phrase to express an idea, so the teacher helps out. The teacher in conference works

through a piece of writing being produced by a student in a certain genre. It is his piece de

reszstence, and the teacher assists with the honing and refuiing. A student derives a strong sense

of self-worth too from the cornmendatory remarks of the teacher as the writing booklet is

reviewed. The fo!lowing items were also important factors in ongoing assessment of writing:

- variety in writing topics, and brainstorming sessions as well as group work in preparing first drafls

- whole class discussion, and teaching to common weaknessess, as well as concerted effort to reach cornmon targets

- encouragement directed to writers of exemplary pieces to read/display theû compositions publicly (within the class).

. . (c) Summative tests. examinations and prqiects

Summative evaluation, looked on positively, provides yet another opportunity for

students to demonstrate the skills of syithesizing, demonstrating and applying what they have

learned. "The most important purpose of summative evaluation is to determine to what extent

students have internalized their leaniing, and to what extent they are able to reflect on and

demonstrate that leaming." (ibid., p. 26). Memorkation is a ski11 that should be developed, and

exercised in the examination situation. Besides, a standard expectation in language arts at the

secondary level is that students become f d a r with the written works (poetic and prose) of the

masters of the English language, shce these works enshrine not only the finest exarnples of the art

of expression, but aiso the writers' experiential wisdom and their philosophical insights into the

workings, thoughts and cares of mankind through the ages. Such jewels of linguistic composition

and philosophical wisdom should be part of the repertoire of any student of English, fiom which

to e ~ c h their personai writing.

The çummative assessment of writing in my course then, was an opportunity for the

student to use mernorable iines and short passages gleaned fkom the language arts course.

Normal examinations were conducted under constraints of tune and place. Hence my personal

preference for a "test" of process creative d n g took the form of an essay of three to four

pages, in which the student could display any or all of the skills (surface and deep structure)

learned/perfected during the course. A couple of weeks were ailowed for the completion of the

task, and as many drafts as the student had time/wished to &te, were encouraged. Students

might work as groups on this, but each had to present a personally written script.

Independent study projects were also included under the umbrella of summative evaluation

(cf. pp. l30E and Appendices J L K). These took various forms, and were completed on an

individual, parbiership or group basis. Tests of the type suggested (Appendix I) could be taken

under time and place constrahts.

Commentq

The Ministry Guidelines for English (1987) mandate that "in evaluating students' progress

and achievement in English or language arts, teachers should use many of the following

techniques: checklists, conferences teacher observations, questionnaires, interviews.. . writing

foiders.. ." (p. 1 1). It adds that evaluation should include assessrnent of the learning processes as

well as of the outcomes and products. Moreover, "such evaluation must take into consideration a

student's stage of development, [and] the quality of the outcomes themselves." It was because

process as well as product was seen as a value that the scheme of evaluation recommended in

OAlP (Handbook p. 28) as a reporting format to parents was seen to be attractive. Interactive

learning pertains to writing as weil as to speaking and listening; and when coupled with work and

study habits and independent leaming, 50% of student on-line task pwsuit time was accounted

for.

There are dso other benefits to be denved from this reporting profile. "Fust, the students

and their parents see that the English mark was determined through a combination of ongoing

assessrnent and sumrnative evaluation. Secondly, they have a clear pichire of the student's

progress and achievement in the four areas of the English cumculum as represented by the four

quadrants on the reporthg profile. Thirdly, there is room for anecdotal comments. This

information provides a healthy foundation on which to base recommendations for the studentts

friture" (ibid.,p.28). Appendix L provides a sample of the report format given to parents. Being

diagrammatical, it was seen to present little difficulty in interpretation to non-English speabg

parents. Besides, comments were also provided by both tacher and student. The opporninity to

contribute to the report gave the student a sense of ownership in the process and resulted in the

boy's being less unwilling to share it with the parents, whose input was most usefùi both as a

commendation of strengths and a support ùi the fùture remediation of weaknesses.

(d) Reporthg Results ta Students

Human beings, because they act (idedy) in a rational manner, work to achieve certain

ends in a coascious manner. Even if the end is the avoidance of pain or the gaining of sensual

pleasure characteristic of irrational Me, the desire of the reward is a powerful motivator. The

more clearly the reward is envisaged, and the more it is valued, the more intense d l be the effort

expended to attain it. Philosophically taken, the reward of education is a liveiihood gained

through suitable employment. The school graduation diploma is for many the first step in the

procuring of a job; but many students understand the attainment of credits as their prirnary aim at

school. Their numerical mark, whether as an indicator of continuous or of definitive achievement,

wiU be an indication of how likely they are to q w for a credit, and of their percentile rating on

the class scale. Students who are at least moderately serious about their work will often ask:

"How am 1 doing Miss/Sir.?" Even though they may have calculated their scores to date, it is

important for them to know that their calculation is authentic. Hence there was a consciousness

on my part of the need to comrnunicate to students a number of factors about evaluation as they

are included in appendix K:

(1) the proportion of marks allotted to different portions of the course;

(2) the value of each written assignrnent in the overaü course rating; (3) the value of individual parts of an assignment in relationship to the whole; (4) the interpretation of interim/fmal marks as an indication of whether the student was

showing overd progress or regress.

Parents, more especially, must be kept infonned about this process. Not only have they a

vested interest fiom the very nature of things, they can also become powerful ailies of the teacher

in the successfid education of the student. What is initiated in the context of the school can be

pursued in the home, as the school can also build on the strengths required and developed in the

home. When school and home are partners in education snidents are the beneficiaries, and the

fact that they cannot (successfÙUy) play any evasive games, wiil b ~ g a favourable payoff to them

in the end. Marks for progress lose some of their meaningfulness ifnot reported to parents. On

the other hand, they become most effective when they, as indicators of progress, become the

theme of a constructive conference between the teacher, student and parents.

4. Surnmary

This section has been devoted to a description of my personal writing programme for

grade 9, based on the Muiistry Guidelines of 1987, and taking into account also the directives of

OAIP 1990. The Ministry has been cognizant of the place of prime importance which evaluation

must play in any school program. Evaluation is necessary as a prelude to a course of study so that

students' strengths and weaknessess may be ascertained and guideluies for objectives and a valid

starting point for learning obtained. Evaluation is continuous, ideally, to ensure that objectives

are being addressed and achieved. It is cumulative and retroactive to make for consolidation of,

and an appropriate opportunity for students to demonstrate the progess made; and its results

must be cornmunicated to students and parents (with explanations) so that learning may both

continue and be seen to do so. Evaluation of the course as a whole in respect of its every aspect

is also necessary. Of the objectives it is valid to ask: Are they appropriate and conducive in the

ongoing education/formation of the student? Of the content: 1s it suited to the attainment of the

objectives? Of the methodology: Does it make optimal use of content and t h e in helping the

student succeed? Of the evaluation methods and procedures themselves: Do they validly test and

aclcnowledge the factors that really indicate the progress made by the students?

Thus far, 1 have given a . accoud of my writing program at grade 9 level prior to 199 1 in

accordance with the principles of the Ministry Guidelines of 1 977 & 1987, and 1 have indicated

some modifications made in teaching and methods of evaluation since the implementation of the

OAIP. Now, 1 wish to tum to a description of a genre-based writing program which, influenced

by the evaluation recommendations of OAIP, I had been implementing over the last four years of

my teaching career.

Whatever methodology is chosen, 1 do believe that courses in writing will be deemed to be

successful to the extent that the following parameters (Diederich, 1974, pp. 85E) have been

taken senously by the students. Becorning a good writer entails hard work, a sense of

dissatisfaction with one's evexy effort, and a sense of why good writing is so highly rated. Good

writing is the genuine and sincere expression of one's honest attitudes and feelings. A piece of

composition should be complete, with an obvious plan, sufficiently short so as to attract the

reader's attention, with a title suited to the theme and characterized by clarity of laquage. It

should have an inviting beginning and a surnrnative end, with each paragraph moving smoothly

into the next. The standard mles of grammar, syntax and spelling should be honoured, and non-

standard forms should be used only in quotations. "Students should realize that, in one important

sense, style is not the natural and inevitable expression of a personality in writing, but the gradua1

discovery and adoption of successful ways of achieving certain purposes in writing. It becomes

habitua1 and recognizable ody to the extent that the writer's purposes are fairly constant, and he

keeps using and developing the same means of achieving them" (ibid., p. 96). Students should

therefore "ch* their pwposes in writing and set about discoverhg successfûi ways of achieving

t hem. " (ibid.)

E. Characteristics of genre-based d m in practice

I wish to indicate at the outset that the most important contribution of the genre-based

approach to writing is its explicitation of the role oflanguage in society and in one of societfs

most important facets, viz. education, and its analytical description of the more important genres

students shodd master as they perfect their writing skills. I also wish to emphasize that this

analytical approach stresses the role of different syntactical forrns of language, i.e. makes the role

of language explicit in conveying meaning, and that it is this particular stress which differentiates

the genre-based approach h m the gruwfh and process writing models, which had unwittingly

underscored my former writing programmes, despite my intentions to the contrary, until 1

discovered the genres approach to language literacy.

The use of language to convey meanuig also stresses the interrelatedness of the meaning

conveyed to the context in which it is generated. Context refers to that of culture and situation,

and so, to be involved in writing nom the perspective of genre is to be conscious of the fact that

language is essentially a social phenornenon. Teachers and students are engaged in an activity that

is completely social in nature. The diverse written forms that are produced - the words and

phrases chosen, the kinds of sentences and larger texts - can be explained only as products of the

social contexts fiom which specific kinds of writing usually onginate. A letter from an irate writer

to the editor, for example, (The Sz~ndzy Star, Jdy 26, 1998, p. F2) arguing that "Teachers'

pensions aren't as 'full' as you might thinkW has a difFerent style Eom that of the editorial (p. F2) in

which the editor reasons that "Propping up the dollar poses senous risks" by presenting the pros

and cons of moving the three main pawns in the financial game, viz., export more of our products,

buy less goods from trading partners or borrow what we cannot pay for. Wnting, like speaking, is

a social activity, and its real worth cm be seen only in relation to social factors, such as the age

and gender of the writer, intended audience, economic stattis of both writer and audience, and

geographic location. The language used is shaped by those factors inasmuch as they govern both

what is written and how it is written.

Al1 language use, in both spoken and written modes, is context dependent; and so al1

human language is produced as socialiy meaningful coherent text, Le., as a particular genre

(Macken & Rothery, 1991). Social structures have a relative stability and social situations tend to

recur; accordingiy, people in these situations tend to have regular goals in mind, and the texts --

spoken or written -- that emerge from them, tend to have a somewhat stable predictable pattern.

Moreover, individuals' cornpetence in the use of genres that are congruent with certain social

situations, confers a degree of power on them, and this power (dong with the consciousness of

it) is important to the students, because it is to be expected that they are seeking to gain

autonomy while yet in the process of coming to maturity during their school years.

Since language is interwoven with the mesh of the social events which occasion it , the

forms of the language will Vary nom one social situation to another (cf Sun- Star, p. 146

above). The grammatical texture of the text will Vary: the kinds of words used -- simple concrete

nous or compound abstract ones, the types of clauses - simple or compound, and the general

complexity of the text. In genre-based characterizations of text, the term regisfer (as already

discussed) is used to refer to these variations in language use.

The proponents of genre-based writing stress the need for a basic understanding of

Engfish grammar and a command of a muiunal set of technical terms related to language on the

part of teachers and students, if any masure of success is to be had in mastering this approach to

the production of purposefùl and audience-specific writing. The directive function of purpose and

audience were certainly not lacking in traditional writing (cf James Bntton, 1972); but our

teaching has been for the most part devoid of "a ngorous Iinguistic explmation of how purpose

and audience are realized in writing (Harnrnond 1987). In addition to this more explicit

expianation of the role oflanguage in conveying rneaning in alI facets of education, the genres

proponents have provided an analytical description of the major genres that students are expected

to master in writing. The work on genre-types is still on-going and progressing, but two types,

the story or narrative genre and the factual have been analysed into many sub-types (Macken et

al., 1989c), so that at least with regard to these two types, teachers cm take a more

knowledgeable approach to the teaching of writing, and develop and conduct more effective

writing programmes.

It is to such a writing programme in grade 9 that 1 now turn. In doing so, 1 intend to

highlight particularly how the tacher needs to be intensely involved in a coaching role at every

step of the students' progress, as is mandated by genre theorists' direction that genre-based wiiting

is a specialty that is best leamed under the direction of one who is already sMed in the art. I

intend also to stress the unique function of gramrnar in the formulation and conveying of rneaning,

that specific grammatical forms are chosen precisely because they express best a specific meaning

in a specific context, and not because of the desire to conform to accepted standards of a

particular writing code. I rely on the teaching of genres methodology as elaborated in the relevant

titerature and as I have been interpreting it in my own classroom practice, as I also draw on details

of my own former practice to indicate the salient comparative and contrasting features of the

growth and process models of written language literacy. My discussion will be confined to

narrative genres solely, since experience has shown that, though a number of writing genres may

have been attempted in elementary school , and continue as an integral part of the grade 9

language and literacy course,the demands of aspects of this latter (grade 9) course other than

writing necessitate that no other genre can be taught and practised adequately.

Genre-based writing in the classroom

The teachingAearning mode1 of genre-based writing (narrative and factuai) is presented as

a 3 -phase cycle in which rnodeihg of text ( 1 ) in context by the teacher leads on to the jozfit

negotiatzon (2) between teacher and students and arnong students themselves of a new (target)

text; and this in turn leads to an i~zdependenl creutzo~~constnrctzoiz (3) of the text by individual

students.The schematic outlines of narrative and factual genres have contrasting physical

structures, and hence, for illustrative purposes, an example of both genres is read to the students

at the outset -- hopefùily, a good sample fiom a previous year's class - and its component parts

analysed. It is indicated, furthemore, that within each genre there are diierent sub-types, each

with its characteristic structure: e g , in the factual category one can have a report, an explanaiion,

a procedure, an exposition, a discussion; while among story genres are Listed recounts,

exemplums, anecdotes, narrations, spoofs, news tories (Macken et al., 1 989b & 1989~).

At this point, the choice of story genre is made in the launching of the grade 9 writing

programme. A lesson period is devoted to a detailed explanation of the methodology to be

followed in the creation and writing of each story. There will be the m o d e h g stage in which we

examine the stories that have been written by others; the joint negotiation stage in which we work

as a class on the factual content and the linguistic composition of the story; and the independent

creation stage in which each student will write a story based on what has been negotiated in class.

Though the three phases are taken separately for the sake of clarity of explanation, in the account

that follows, in practice overlapping occurs, especidy as students develop their expertise in a

certain genre.

1. The modellina phase

In phase one, the modekg phase, there is a discussion of setting or context during which

students begin to appreciate the fiequency of happerings and events (in their own [ives and in

their Unmediate environment) that give bases for stones: events in their homes (winning a prize in

the lottery, the birih of a baby, Mom gets a new job, A near tragedy on the highway); events in

Ontario (the new goverment, the weather, the Molson Indy); world events (the Nagano Wmter

olympics, the Chinese take-over of Hong Kong, the peace accord in Northem Ireland). Stones are

read fiom newspaper clippings and reference made to the class textbook of short aories. One

recolmt, one narrative. and one rzavs story are analysed to show the contrasting characteristic

components of each, and some of the linguistic features of each one are pointed out. AU describe

events: recounts portray little interpersonal significance, narratives include complications/crises in

the plot, and news stones stress personal interest and news-worthiness, crises ifany, and

background events related by reliable sources. The simi1a.r and dissimilar features are then

charted. Here it is pointed out that one senes of events can be developed into aay one of the

three story types, and written examples are presented to the students. They are asked to read and

compare/contrast them with the aid of directive questions Erom the teacher. In a subsequent class

period the ciifferences and similarities are discussed and a e s t attempt is made to create a news

story or narrative f?om the events of a recount. By this time the *dents are beginning to see how

the same events can be told with different purposes or audiences in mind and that the language

used strongly contributes to the dflerences.

By way of contrast, a traditional approach also attempts initiaily to rnake students aware

of varied purposes in writing, but they are expected to Iearn the skilis implicitly rather than

through explicit teacher analysis of the methodology. Using Langzmge S M s (1966), for example,

having îisted some of the uses of language as "to inform, to amuse, to convince or warn.." (p. l),

gives examples of these from established wrïters, and then açks students (p. 2) to pick fiorn a lia,

a topic sentence, decide on a purpose for writing, and write a composition, supplying a title that

wili not only suggest the main idea, but also arouse the reader's interest. The £km chapter (of the

same textbook) sumarizes the purpose of language as "to commuicate &om one person, group,

c i v k t i o n or age to another", and ïndicates that communication is effective to the extent that the

writer chooses appropriate words to describe, explain, argue, narrate. But detailed analysis of

how the kinds of words chosen accomplish the author's intended purpose is lacking, and such

analysis is necessary at least for beginners in learning the art of writing.

i%e Cornrnon CimimIztrm, on the other hand, does give evidence of expecting students at

different levels to be familiar with such genre notions as using a specific written fom to achieve a

particular purpose. Expressing this in greater detaii, it lists among expected outcomes the ability

of the students to adapt the style, voice and sentence structure of their writing to suit purpose and

audience. It lists among the expected individual outcomes at various levels of writng the students'

ability (1) to use a wide range of narrative forms - legends, myths, plays, poetry (ibid., p. 13), and

(2) to select an appropriate form "to comrey and explain ideas clearly and logically." In the area

of the process of writing it WU be expected that the students will be able "to use the stages of the

writing process to produce writing of high quality" drawing on other relevant resources "to

enhance their writing in keeping with its purpose and audience" (ibid. ,p. 2 1 ). The students will be

expected also to be able to use appropriate language structures to achieve their purpose, and this

will include spelling and a knowledge of other writing conventions. However, none of the

Ministry documents already referred to in this section, nor the manuals for teachers listed in

Circular 14 (English, 1987, pp. 45-48) contain a "ngorous luiguistic expianation of haw purpose

and audience are realized in language" (Hammond 1987 p. 164: emphasis added); and it is in this

laa respect precisely, that a genre-based approach to writing m e r s from the approach

traditiondy mandated by Muiistry Guidelines in Ontario.

In the genre-based approach to writing, probe questions help students to focus on the

chosen sequence of events, on how events focus on persona1 problems and their resolution

(narrative), how the highlights are found in the opening sentences (news story), or how personal

feelings are not evaluated (recount). The students' attention is next brought to focus on the story

endings. They are helped to see how the recount hishes with the last event in the seties, the

narrative resolves the earlier "crises" and reorients the reader to initial events, wiùle the news

story concludes with a relevant comment from one of the sources of information quoted in the

story. The students' own attempts at writing a recount, a narrative or news story are examined (by

peers and teacher) for the presence of those characteristic features; and f?om this stage on in the

English course, a focal aspect of the study of ali stories is to categorize them generically and to

note how the linguistic features of each are used.

When the students begin to achieve a substantial degree of verbal fluency in their wriùng,

and can write one-page essays in recount, news story md narrative genres, a more detaiied

analysis of the story genres is undertaken. Nmat ive , being in traditional wrïting the most

common and most f d a r story type, is undertaken first. Narrative can also have the further

value of teaching the students how people overcome and solve difnculties in their personal lives.

For the more competent students, this analysis will already have begun on an informai basis during

the teacher-pupil conferences about their Witten pieces. Narrative, it is explained, has essentially

three stages: the orientation in which the tmîter creates the s e t h g where the reader becomes

familiar with the tirne and place of the events as weii as with the characters who feature in the

story; the complication which is reaily the stage of the emergence of a problem faced by one of

the characters, and this may lead to fùrther problems and even a crisis for the characters; the

resoltrtion, in which the problems are resolved and there is a possible re-orientation to the happy

state that prevailed before the crisis arose. Stones fiom the students' reader are examined and

analysed, and topics for writing based on the sequence of events encountered there are suggested

to the class.

The more competent writers who have aiready developed a m e r understandhg of "story

grammar" and a greater facility with vvrîting a story will compose more sophisticated narratives.

They will have been able to include all or at least some of the following characteristics in their

stories: a more detailed orientation, a second complication arising from the first thus creabng

greater suspense, a tentative solution and an evaiuation of same, a temporary resolution followed

by a M e r complication, then a dennitive solution and a reorientation to the former aate of

equilibriurn of all in the plot. Their compositions tend to be more coherent from begùining to end,

with details of characters and seîting that rnake their stories more true to He. These competent

writers may also want to attempt other types of narrative, such as fantasy stories, science fiction,

adventure, mystery, romance, horror; and these are rewarded as bonus projects.

The news sfory is then studied in the same analyticai way, with the various stages being

dehed. This genre is used extensively in the media, and is intended to inform us in a sensational

and attractive way about events that characterize modem-day living. The students are led to see

how the news story opens with a bnef presentation of the most important or unusual happenings

in an event, i. e. the most captivating or newsworthy items. This is because space (in the print- and

audiovisual-media) is in short supply, and a reader's attention must be captured by the

presentation of important facts at the opening of the presentation. The writer will akeady have

decided on the most attractive point of view from which to wrïte up the story, and this wiîl be

evident in the opening as it will also be in the title chosen. Lf the story contains problematic events

(something which is highly likely) no resolution will be offered beyond the reporting of one

already reached by the participants; but one may be irnplied in the comments quoted fiom

significant sources or witnesses. In the body of the story, the writer sketches in the background

events, thus giving readers a Mer understanding of them and an answer to their " who?" " what?"

"when?" "where?" "why?" questions.

At th& stage, paper-clipped stones are again taken to ciass and anaiysed by the students

fiom the view-point of newsworthy events (opening), background happenings, and sources

quoted. Students are then helped to write a previously composed narrative as a news story,

adding in the appropriate creative details proper to that genre, which need not necessarily be

factually true (since they are not jounialists or reporters), but which must have the appearance of

truth and of havhg originated fiom reliable sources.

2. The joint negotiation stage

Now that students have explored and analysed some model story texts and have attempted

to write their own, differentiating between narratives, news stories and recounts, they are ready

for more directive input from the teacher in preparing the raw material used as a basis. Here the

teacher acts as facilitator, leading the students into an understanding of the phases of the genre

under construction, hearing their answers to directive questions, and scaf5olding their suggestions

so as to build up a text jointly, thus helping them achieve greater expertise both in the particular

genre and in writing skills in general.

It is usually found that students at grade 9 level have some familiarity with narrative story

writing. However, with few exceptions, their products are merely skeletal and show Little

expertise in creating the setting, introducing complications, creating suspense or offering a

plausible resolution to crises. Hence, much scafEolding rnust be done on the story-line by the

teacher, variations to the plot, characters, setting and resolution will be suggested; and it has been

found most productive, for the tint attempts, to plan and wrïte a common story on a whole-class

basis. Sometimes an enthusiastic group who are seen to have surpassed the general cornpetence

of the class may wish to construct their own details, and this is welcomed. The completion of the

fist draft is foilowed by a readinghevising of the scripts. Directive questions fiom the teacher are

brought to bear on factors such as the adequacy, congruence and coherence of detail in the

orÏentation to enable the reader to appreciate the se thg M y ; on the surprise and precise nature

of the problems arising, why the characters find them problematic, and the creation of suspense;

and on the plausibility of the resolution offered.

Further narratives are now prepared, based on newspaper reports or on stories the

students themselves have read or heard recounted; and smalier group-work is encouraged. A

chart Listing the components (Appendk M) is often found to be helpfûl to students to keep them

rerninded of story components. Stress is now also laid on greater polish in writing by the creation

of settings that are more imaginative and detailed, making the characters more tifelike by means

of vivid description and dialogue, compounding the complication and making the resolution more

true to Me. The teacher's directive questions in conferencing may include (typically) some or all

of the following: Have you fXy detailed the time and place? Do we know the characters well

enough to appreciate all the details of the rest of the story? Are the characters' actions true to Me?

Can we improve the secondMird stage of the narrative? Do you think the ending is as good as it

could be? Perhaps another complication earlier in the story would make the resolution more

rneifningfd? Peer editing and revising are coupled with teacher conferencing at this stage so as

to achieve the best possible final draft.

The joint construction of the rzws stmy is now undertaken, if it can be properly handled

within the tirne available on the classroom calendar. This can be based on one of the previously

written narratives, or on a story fiom the newspapers, and preferably on a sequence of events that

is already well known. Using such a sequence, i.e., keeping theBeid constant (a term which may

need explanation), has the further advantage of enabiing the students to plan their news story by

contrasting its fomat with their previously &en narratives, thus helping them to focus on the

essentid clifferences and similarïties of narrative and news story. The story may dso be based on

a recent school event and prepared for the next issue of the school newspaper.

It has been found profitable to Lin the components on a handout (Appendix N) for the

students so that they can use the annotated sheet to fili in details of headline or title, authors,

events (newsworthy), events (background), and sources (of information). Again, under either

directive questions or scafToiding from the teacher, the details are filled in. The headline or title

must be attention-getting, must focus on a critical aspect of the story, and must be short enough

to fit in the space provided while encapsulating the high points of the story. The summary of

newsworthy events must answer to who-, what-, when-, where-, why- questions, and be

tantalizing enough to persuade the reader to read on. The background events must help the

reader to understand what led up to and followed on nom the central event of the story - the

answers to the how- and why-questions. The sources wiil provide details of who gave

information about the central event and what was said, with a comment about why their

statements are important. Weil-known or iduential figures (the police chief, the premier, the

director of education, teachers, youth workers.. .) can be quoted to give greater significance to the

story.

As in the case of narrative writing, it has been found best to work on a whole-class basis

for the first story. This ensures that there wili be more effective direction fi-om the teacher and

better peer cooperation, so that (almost) every çtudent succeeds in producing an acceptable essay.

Again, the more accomplished writers will have zdded in their own extra details in the different

component parts of the story, and they will also have helped their less proficient peers with their

work. Second or third drafts are advised subsequent to editing, and final copies are produced (for

in-class publishing).

As time pemiits, fiirther news stories, planned on a small-group basis, are prepared,

written, edited and revised under the direction of the teacher. ScaEolding will have to continue,

at least for some students, and it often happens that the more able students are competent enough

to provide this for their less competent peers, even while complethg their own compositions. Of

great importance is the choice of a suitable title -- one that is attractive and suggestive of the main

story line. Important too are the setting or orientation in the narrative and the complication or

crisis that is introduced as well as the revising and editing of the text to ensure that cohesion and

coherence prevail, so that the whole scenario envisioned by the writer is clearly and thoroughly

conveyed to the reader. For the better students, this will be a hme to experiment with ways of

heightening suspense in the narrative, to use dialogue and rhetoricd questions to develop the

personalities of the characters, and enriched vocabulary appropriate to the field of the narrative.

It wilI also be a time to irnprove the quality of their written language, for example, by introducing

CO-ordinate and sub-ordinate clauses, by using more concise and apt description, and by accurate

punctuation that makes for improved readability and more easily accessible meaning.

3. Inde~endent construction of text

Now that all aspects of some story genres in general have been modeiled by the teacher,

and the news story and narrative have been studied and written by groups and individuals, most

pupils wiil be both ready and able (always presuming the availability of direction Grom the

teacher) to launch into the independent writing of a story (narrative or news story). They are not

yet, however, accomplished writers and hence the teacher's role as consultant to thern continues

to be very important in overseeing that the wrïting process results in its best produa for them

through conferencing and the wrïting of whatever number of successive cirafis is necessary (within

the lirnits of thne and student resilience) to achieve a "perfect" essay. When students corne to

master the basic art of narrative and news story, Le., can implement the stages of both genres with

ease in completing an essay, they may be directed according to their abiiity into modifying the

components and stages, and into using more sophisticated text.

In their independent attempts, students will need help in deciding which kind of story to

embark on as their first; and the decision will depend on their already acquired skills, their needs

and the topic chosen. The teacher may decide that one group should write a narrative because

they need more practice in this genre, or contrariwise, have accompiished advanced skills in this

genre; that another group should take on a news story because their topic and material are

suitable. To help them to plan their several essays, the schemata of appendices M & N will be

useful. Writing the ikst dr& cornes after the students have decided on the type of story and

completed the appropriate schema (mentioned above). The chief concem here wili be to "flesh

out" the skeletal schema with ody rnoderate concem for syntactical and grammatical perfection.

A review of the first dr& then follows, duruig which attention is paid to the correction of spelling

errors, changing of phrases or words for the sake of greater effect, and ensuring that the

components of the attempted genre are properly in place. Student and peer conferencing now

follows in which the students share their compositions with other students, so that each essay can

be reviewed by someone other than its author, according to the directive questions of appendix P

("O" is omitted in the series of appendices because of the difEculty of confusing it with the figure

'lo'' .>

An effort has always been made to scrutinize the essays at this stage - usudy outside of

class t h e . In this way the teacher can become (more) farniliar with each student's progress in

writing, discover and address common problematic areas as well as areas of strength, and set up

working partnerships among students that will be conducive to general progress in the art of

writing. Individual and specific needs of students will also corne to Light, and time will be set aside

to help thern. Stones are finaüy edited by their authors and aitered in accordance with directives

fiom peers and the teacher. At this stage it is possible for the teacher to assess how weii each

student has mastered the genre model in question and how eficiently each can apply that model to

one's own and others' writing. Stones c m now be subrnitted for publishing andor display on the

classroom bulletin board.

Some of the more accomplished writers wiU be ready and able to undertake stories of a

more sophisticated nature at this point. They will focus on the components of the narrative, for

example: on the language used to create the setting, on character descriptions and the

contribution of their interpersonal dialogue to character development, and on how to increase

suspense. They will discuss and incorporate in their narratives new ways of expressing the

complication and resohtion, or build new narratives after the mode1 of other stories found in their

reader or in the news media. The possibilities for creatMty at this stage are many, but they d l

usually have to be lirnited in accordance with time constraints, demands fiorn other areas ofthe

Engiish course, and the ability and motivation of the students.

4- (Jrammar

The unique value of genre-based writing lies in its grammaticavlinguistic approach. High

in its priorities are its preoccupation with the isolation and iinguistic description of the significant

genres in which students are expected to acquire and develop expertise as they learn the writing

craft, and its pointing out of the cultural dimensions of language as well as its role in the wider

educational context. The theoretical basis of this approach is the systernic functional model of

language pioneered by Michael Halliday, which "focuses on the relationship between written texts

and the contexts in which written texts are produced" (Hammond, 1987, p. 1 ). Linguists explain a

child's learning to write as beginning with the words and structure the child uses to convey

meaning. Words are combined to make texts (a number of cohesively joined sentences); and texts

belong to a certain register or expression of meaning proper to a certain culture. Many are the

meanings that can be expressed, hence, many are the genres that can be created. Teachers in the

traditional approach to writing implicitly expect that the students will learn these genres through

mere practice. ". . .these expectancies are [merely] latent, realized in evaluation, but not in the

t eaching practice it self " (Martin & Rothery, 198 1, p. 5 ) .

Genre-based writing is founded on a functional model of language, and this model

analyses and describes the relationship between an actual sample of language and the complete

context within which it originates. Genre-based writing claims as a basic thesis that grammar is

functional, i.e., the reason language has the organization that characterizes it in any specific

context is in order that it may convey an intended meankg. Halliday (1985, p. xiii) explains that

grammar is functional in three ways: viz., in its interpretation

(i) of texts: because "language has evolved to satisfy human needs, and the way it is

organized is fùnctional with respect to these needs";

(2) of the system: because the "fundamental components of meaning in language are

fùnctional components" ;

(3) "of the elements of linguistic structures, because each element in a language is

explained by reference to its function in the total linguistic system. "

In Hallidayan hguistics, the term "grammaru takes on a Werent connotation fiom that of

its traditional use, and is preferred to the term "syntax". Language, understood as functionai, has

dennitive stages in the process of the encoding of meaning, fiom the conception of that meaning

to its expression. These stages are, semantics, grammar and phonology. Thus gramrnar must

consist of syntaq vocabulary and morphology as necessary components of the fùnctional

progression fiorn the conception of meaning to its expression, a term which (according to

Halliday) is more properly cailed lexico-grammar, but is rendered "grammar" for convenience of

use. Halliday prefers the term "grammar" for another reason also. Syntax connotes the idea of

language as primarily a system of forms to which meanings are secondarily attached. But the

functional grammatical approach of Halliday prefers to view language "as a systern of meanings"

which are realized through different foms. Forms become, then, means (to the expression of

meaning) rather than an end in themselves. The term grarnmar conveys the primacy of meaning;

syntax tends to highlight the forms in which meaning is expresseci.

In genre-based writing, therefore, grammar as used by Halliday, is a fundamental

component of meaning, and a mastery of the skills of WTiting in the various genres entails a

masteiy of grammar. Thus, in the construction of the news story and the narrative, students'

attention is drawn to the need to use certain grammatical forms in order to ensure the presence of

the several components of the genre being written, and thus to achieve a certain standard of

excellence in the writing of that genre. The narrative, as has aiready been noted, consists of the

orientation, e vaIuation, complicalion(s), resolution, and re-orzentaf ion. The orientation will

create the sethg and atmosphere of the action of the story, with details of time and place and

character names. In the appended story (Appendix Q), this is an atmosphere of threat and fear

and suspense, (Look out! He's coming this way! The approaching behemoth.. . The grade 9

trip.. .The new type of super-potent product.. .). Narratives also convey a sense of the distinction

between the reader's life-setting and that of the story. This is done usually by the use of the past

tense: ("It our grade 9 trip.. . They showed us.. . " i.e. it did not happen "now" but "then".)

The evaluation also features the past tense, (It was our grade 9 trip.. .) and a hint that things would

not go according to plan (... how it ali started. It was supposed to be ...) Such details also help

readers to find their way in this new world that is being created, so there need to be ways -

irnplicit or explicit -- of locating themselves in time and place. In this story, explicit expressions

are: "to Redpath sugar", "...grade 9 trip..." different types of sugar including 2C6, 2H12,206.

Implicit were the indications of time that corne through the sequencing of events: " Something . . .

wrong.. . because suddenly.. . As the . . .worker went to investigate.. . " There is no difficulty in

orientating oneself locally. The complications start mystenously but simply, and then are

compounded: (cf. the use of past tense, exclamation marks, short sentences to create a sense of

urgency, and io locate the events in quick succession in tirne; also rhetoncal questions.) In the

resolution, there is the use of action processes (So 1 ran.. . As 1 kept running.. .) A re-evaiuation of

the solution occurs: (The rhetorical question: How could I keep ruMing...?) A second solution is

decided upon -- action process again (1 decided to make a stand.. . As 1 turned around.. . grabbed

hand). Another complication arises ( M e help from the victi m...). A surprise new solution is

created (tear melts the sugar.. .) and suggests a more effective solution (sprinklers!). Urgency is

conveyed by the comrnand "Tum on the sprinklers!" Further complication arises: (short sentences

are used to show the urgency of the threat to his classrnates' Lives. The sprinklers are non-

fùnctional). The h a 1 resolution cornes with the welding torch which ignites the papers, and the

smoke activates the sprinklers. There is hally, a re-orientation, expressed in the use of relationai

and mental processes: (The victims started to re-appear.. .the monster had not digested its prey.

The president.. .a bag of money. " I promise never to eat sugar again. Well.. .maybe! ").

Grammar is also an essential factor in enabling the narrative writer to create stories that

reflect the real social relationships one finds in the world. Such social relationships prevail (in the

context of the story) between the d t e r and the audience, and among the characters portrayed

in the story. The writer-audience relationship is established (i) by the very format of the genre:

"1 remember.. . " or, as in other stories "once upon a time.. . " (ii) by the use of the past tense: the

school trip is "past", it is not happening now. (iii) by the use of language to sequence events: "1

remembered how it all started.. .field trip.. . Sornething.. .gone wrong.. . worker devoured by

sugar.. .sugar started to move in Our direction.. . (iv) by the predictability of certain word

combinations which allow the &ter to draw on certain stereotypes (of words and of certain

combinations of words): " . ..the approaching behemoth came closer and closer.. . Something must

have gone wrong because.. .As 1 kept ninning.. . As the monster howled with pain.. . "

The inter-relationship between the characters is established by what was actually said:

"Quickly, tum on the sprinklers! There isn't much time.. Just do it! Turn on the damn

sprinklers!" The world of social relations is portrayed in words which indicate or explain those

relations, e-g., an order is given by one who has power (of whatever kind) over the one(s) being

commanded.

The importance of fùnctiooal grarnmar as being integral to the make-up of the news story

genre is also stressed, and how it works is explained, as the genre is taught to and practised by the

students. The news story (as already seen) is a text about factual happenings compiled to keep

readers informed (with as much detail as can be fitted into the space available) of the events of

the day that (in the light of pubiic opinion or the ideology of the newspaper as can be seen from a

contrast of the Toronto Sun and the Toronto Star) are judged by the editing board (of the

newspaper) to be newsworthy. Newspaper editors need to make their news Stones as readable as

possible so that their paper can attract a maximum readership. More readers resuit in wider sales,

and more money also fiom those who use the paper to advertize. Thus news stories wiU ensure,

under the influence of the pen of the editor, that daiiy events are porîrayed in as sensational a light

as possible. Their schematic structure is specially designed to accompiish this, but their linguistic

"bricks and mortar" are supplied by grarnrnar.

Thus the title, the first to capture attention, is in short telegraphic format and gives a

summary of the story. Examples fiom the Saturdq Shr (July 25, 1998, Section A) were:

"Plunging dollar: Just how low can we go?", "Two shot dead in gunfight at U.S. Capitol", "Surfer

stumbles on credit card cache". Material and/or action processes have their effect on the

recounting of the story: "Some economists s h . when asked for their reaction to a 'hvo

loonies for a greenback' scenario.. . " " Jamaica has ~poin ted a 13-year-old whiz kid as a

govenunent adviser to help bureaucrats keep up with the latest in computer technology." Action

processes to convey projection are also used: "A $65 million bridge is to be built beside the 70-

year-old Peace Bridge.. . "; "They will conduct the consultation with the public.. .to determine the

extent of the issue [of the squeegie kids]." Verbal processes conveying projection are: "He (Police

Chief David Boothby) v o w ~ that ifany wrongdoing is uncovered, those involved will face

punishment.. . " : "He Says he knows it's the next crisis.. . that will capture the headlines.. . " Similar

processes corne fiom signincaot sources: "There's simply too much left to do", Boothby;

"Maybe God felt our village had committed many sins and wanted to punish us" & Olderick

Sule (New Guinea disaster). There is also a focus on circumstantial meanings: (1) relahg to tirne,

e-g., "So fa ...", "Since Sundav ..." (2) relating to place, e-g., "...in the bush -2, "Down thc

road.. . " Often in news stories, dramatic use is made of participant structure, especially as Theme

in the sentence, e.g., The first lkht aircrafl ... ~ v e d 18 hours after the rnonster wave"; "Hilda

Dakawe, 9, just pulIed her &nout canoe ashore.. ." Ail of the above references show the integral

relationship of fiuictional grammatical structure to the process of conveying meaning.

In this section, I have delineated the characteristics of a genre-based approach to the

teaching of writing at the grade 9 (transition years) level. Because of constraints of tirne during

the course of the school year, as indicated earlier, and the resulting constraints on the writing

cumculum, I have confined my discussion to the teaching of story genres only. 1 have also

Limited my discussion to just two types of story genre, viz. the narrative and the news sfory, since

they exempw adequately the principles of aü story genre teaching. Recounis were also

mentioned, by way of contrast with narratives and news stories, as an area of involvement in

writing for the more capable students. Other types of news story are the foliowing and these also

present both e n t e r t h e n t and challenge for the more enterprising writers in grade 9: exemplums,

which deal with incidents which are unusual and are more meaningful in the context of certain

cultures; anecdotes, wwhich teil of unexpected and extraordinary happenings and are more

properly heard as oral accounts; spoofs, which are patterned on news stories but tend to poke

fun at red events; myths, which presume to account for the origin of certain natural phenornena,

uçually in an entertaining and humorous way; moral tales, wwhich are narratives that support the

prevaience of a certain moral code of action that is preferred in a certain cultural milieu.

5. Summarv and conclusions

In this section, I have presented the characteristics of a genre-based approach to the

teaching and Ieaming of writing in light of my former practice as directed by documentation from

the Ontario Ministry of Education and the Toronto Catholic District School Board. 1 have also

given an account of rny personal interpretation of those directives, cornparhg and contrasting it

where possible with recomrnended genre-based practice. 1 have pointed to the intense

iiivolvement of the teacher in a coaching or scaffolding role at every stage of the process of genre-

based teaching of miting, as contrasting with the teacher's non-directive role in the more

traditional approaches. I have indicated that genre-based philosophy understands the art of

wiiting as a welldefined specialty to be properly learned only under the cornpetent direction of

one who is (idedy) already skilled in that art -- an art which is unique in pointing to Ianguage as

essentially a conveyor of meaning, and to grammar (the study of the formation and

interrelationship of texts) as having the sarne meaning-related function. Traditionai teaching of

writing (whether understood as "process" or "growth") dso recognizes the centrality of meaning

to language, but it prefers to d o w students to discover the properties of language unaided and

implicitly, thus running the greater nsk of their failing to master the art of written communication

proper to their culture.

It is to the formulation of reliable cnteria of assessrnent o f grade 9 students' acquisition of

the art of genre-based writing that I now wish to tum.

Chapter Four

MY ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

This chapter presents my cnteria for the assessment of genre-based narrative wrïting.

These criteria have been derived nom the Diederich Holistic Analytical Scale (Diedench, 1974)

and are closely dependent on the unique characteristics of narrative text written fiom the genre

point of view, as detailed in Macken et al. (1989~). The genesis of the Diederich scale is described

and a re-arrangement of its constituent factors presented as a bais for and a verification of my

cnteria. This chapter therefore contains the following sections:

( 1 ) Introduction

(2) A description of the Diedench Holistic Analytic Scde

(3) A re-arrangement of its constituent factors both as a basis for the new genre-based

critena of assessment and as a verifkation of them. The new arrangement I c d the

Traditional Assessment Scale (TAS)

(4) A description in s u m m q form of the salient components of genre-based narrative

writing, of which it is considered account should be taken in the assessment process and

on which the New Analytic Assessment Scale (NAS) is based.

(5) A tabulated presentation and explmation of levels 1,3, and 5 of the five levels of

excellence expected in grade 9 genre-based narrative h i n g according to NAS.

(6) Sample narratives assessed as at levels 1,3, and 5 respectively (1 being the lowest

grade) , through the application of NAS, accompanied by an analytical rationale for the

grading based on Macken et al. (1989c, pp. 84-95 incl.)

A. Introduction: rationale for NAS

The prime focus of this shidy fkom the outset has been to design for teachers' use a set of

reliable and valid cntena according to which genre-based narrative d i n g at grade 9 level could

be assessed. It was considered that such a project successfully accomplished would provide a

much needed service, since "In devising ways to measure students' growth in writing, we

continually smggle with two problems: making judgments that are reliable, that we can

reasonably assume are not idiosyncratic; and making judgments that are valid, that provide

significant information about the writing we are dealing with" (Cooper & Odell, 1977, p.2).

Besides, although Macken and Slade (cited in Cope & Kalantzis, 1993, p.214E) claim to "show

how teachers, faced with the challenge of ranking and grading written texts", and of indicating

their strengths and weaknesses as well as strategies for improving them, "could assess students'

writing in a linguistically principled way", there is not as yet available a system of guidelines

approved by the Ministry of Education in Ontario for the assessrnent of genre-based narrative

writing.

1 decided to design cntena in accordance with the p ~ c i p l e s of holistic evaluation rather

than of Eequency counts of word and sentence characteristics for a number of reasons:

(1) ". . .there is no mechanical or technical solution to the problems posed in evaluating

wrïting. Since writing is an expressive human activity, we believe the best response to it is a

receptive, sympathetic human response" (Cooper & Odell, 1977). Such a response is to be found

in holistic evaluation, though not exclusively so.

(2) Holistic evduation aims to assign an evaluative score to &en texts according to a

pre-determined scale, as to whether and to what degree they display certain features that are

essential to the particular genre of the individual texts. Genre-based writing is characterized by

such clearly dehed features as have already been discussed above (Chapter 2).

(3) Holistic scoring is done quickly according to the assessor's first impression, without

the makhg of corrections or revisions. This was an important factor in obtauiing the benevolent

CO-operation of genre-conversant volunteers to assess the randomly procured one hundred

samples of grade 9 narrative writing needed in the carrying out of this study.

(4) " . . . holistic evaluation of writing rernains the most valid and direct means of rank-

ordering students by writing abdity" (Cooper & Odell, 1977, p.3). Moreover, these authors claim

that scores obtained in this way, with no more than two rninutes being spent on individual texts,

could achieve a "scoring reliability as high as -90 for individual markers" in the rank ordering of

essays.

(5) "A piece of writing communicates a whole message with a particular tone to a known

audience" (ibid. ) to achieve a dennite purpose, and hence a personal response to the text

approximates more closely to the essentiais of that communication than fiequency counts of

verbal or sentence characteristics.

B. The Diedench hoIistic analvtic scale

A holistic evaluation is carried out through the use of "any procedure which stops short of

enumerating linguistic, rhetorical or uiformational features of a piece of writing" (ibid., p.4). It is

the concept of enumerating that makes a procedure non-holistic. A process of evaluation may stiil

be holistic even if it entails the isolation of a nurnber of distinct features and the independent

scoring of each, provided that no counting of occurrences of the feature in the text is demanded.

The list of features acts as a general guide to the assessor in coming to form a judgment on the

quality of the text (ibid.).

Of the various holistic assessment devices described by Cooper & Odell (ibid., pp. 4- l4),

the Analytic Scale was found to be most suitabie to the achievement of the objectives of this

study. In an analytic scaie an identification and listing of the discnminating features of a text that

has been written in a previously determined genre, is made. Each feature is described in suficient

detail beforehand, for an assessor to be able to recognize it and to d e t e d e if it is present in a

m e n text; and a varied numerical score fiom a pre-determined scale is given according as the

feature is accorded high, medium, or low rating in the assessed text. A typical analytical scale is

one developed by Diedench (1974, p.54) for the assessment of written text in the traditional way;

and this scale is chosen as a blueprint in this study because, emphasizing the guidance of certain

features in a text as it does, it enables the reader to form a holistic judgment of the excellence of

the text. "An individual trait scoring guideluie is sometimes used in holistic scoring procedures"

(Huot, 1990, p.238). The reader identifies these qualities and assigns a score in accordance with

whether and to what degree they are present. Diederich's original scaie allows for individual

assessment of these qualities and a Werential scale of marks prevds according to the degree of

importance o f the qualities. "Many analytic scales have been developed since the early 1970s"

(Huot, ibid.), but "analytic procedures [ d l ] remain much the same" (ibid.). Moreover, "in

cornparison studies, analytic scaies have proven to be the most reliable of ail direct writing

assessrnent procedures" (Scherer, 1985), a fact which is deemed to be of great importance to this

present study. Jones (1978), in a study involving the assessing of one essay by 52 teachers of

grade 10 who recorded 860 comments on the essay, reported that ail the comments couid be

classifïed under the categones formulated by Diederich et al. (1961). His conclusion was that the

compendium of 5 categories descnbe accurately and comprehensively teachers' responses to

writing. As shalI be shown below, the scaie cm also be adapted for the purpose of establishg

critena of assessrnent of genre-based narrative texts.

The scale was originaliy developed fiom an d y s i s of how both academics and non-

academics rated the wnting of coilege fieshmen, and it is given below (cf Cooper & Odeil, 1977,

P-7).

Low Middle

General merit

Ideas

Organization

Wording

Flavour

Mechanics

Usage

Punctuation

S p elling

Handwriting

Diedench recounts (1974, p. 5ff ) how, contrary to the usual practice of bringing all

writing assessors together for a day-long training session, cornpnsing discussion of grading

standards and rating of sample papers until an accurate degree of consensus was reached, he

aimed "to find out what qualities in student writing, inteiligent educated people notice and

emphasize when they are fiee to grade as they iike." 53 judges were chosen to assign a mark of

between 1 and 9 to each of 300 papers, with the directives that they must assign at les t 12 essays

to each of the grades 1 to 9, and that they were to append brief comments to anything they Iiked

or disliked. Of the 60 originally chosen, 3 sets of ten were college English teachers, social science

teachers and natural science teachers, respectively, and 3 M e r sets were wxiterdeditors, lawyers

and business executives. They were instnicted to spend no more than two minutes on each essay.

The variance of the results was very hi& with 101 essays receivuig every grade fiom 1 to 9, but

by means of a process of factor analysis Diederich was able to isolate groups of readers who

agreed among themselves and disagreed with others as to what constituted good writing. Five

distinct groups emerged, Le., each group was judging the essays on a different basis fiom the

other four. There was moderate agreement within each group, but a substantial degree of

disagreement with each of the other four.

The factors which united the groups from the larges to the smallest group with the

number in each group appended, were as follows: Ideas (16); sentence structure, punctuation and

spelling (1 3); organization and analysis (9); wording and phrasing (9); and style, individuality,

originality, interest and sincerity (7). In the largest group the judges rated highiy the richness of

the expressed ideas, their soundness, clarity, development as well as their relevance to the topic

and to the author's purpose. Diederich comments (ibid.,p.7) that "we must accept it as a fact that

a high proportion of intelligent, educated adults do pay attention to the quality, development,

support and relevance of the ideas expressed in students' compositions, and weight them heady

in their judgement of the general merit of these papers." Diederich dso comments that group 4, in

which there was no occupational bias, valued highly the aspects of wording and phrasing from the

pupils' choice and arrangement of words as well as their deletion of unnecessary words, which the

judges interpreted as indicating the students' possession of a "large, mature vocabulary." Group 5,

the smallest nurnerically, emphasized the personal qualities revealed by writing, which they called

"styie" . The fourth group also referred to style; hence Diederich narned the focus of group 5 as

"flaveur" since "style" for them indicated the "revelation of a personality in writing as shown by

. . . "forceful", "vigorous", "outspoken", while style for group 4 referred to the "use of language"

(ibid.,p.8).

Another comment from Diederich notes that "it was interesting and illuminating that we

found.. .ody five distinct schools of thought among the.. .readersu (ibid., p. 9), and while he does

admit to other possible interpretations of the 5 factors, the number of assessment stand-points is

indisputable as also are the labels chosen to characterize the dinerences among the respective

emphases. He also makes reference to a similar study carried out by the Italian psychologist,

Remondino, on texts written in Itaiian by 1 1-year-olds. Diederich claims (ibid.) that the factors

emerging fiom that study "could readily be translated into the labels we chose.. ." There was the

additional factor called "graphies" which Diederich styled as "handwnting, neatness" and

appended to his original 5 as seen above (p. 172).

Diederich ne* wished to offer to those teachers who were aiming to improve the

consistency of their marking of written texts, some assistance as to how to develop some

guidelines in individual schools. He procured from ail grade 9-10 students fiom 12 school

districts in New York state, one test paper per month on a prescribed topic written in tripkate.

Two copies were retuned to other teachers to mark (i.e., no essay was returned to its school of

origin) according to the rating matrix above (p. 1 72). A copy of the matrix was appended to each

essay, and the readers indicated their individuai evaluations by circling one score opposite each

characteristic on the matrix. A double value was assigned to each grade of the features "ideas"

and "organization" because greatest emphasis was placed on these features in the teaching of

Wnting in the schools that first used the scale (ibid.). For the same reason a simila. approach to

grading was deemed suitable for grading the sample texts used in this study, the differential value

scheme corresponding with the degree of emphasis usually placed by teachers of writing on the

several constitutive factors of narrative writing.

The ten characteristics of my New Assessrnent Scale (NAS) represent substantially the

original five factors that emerged fiom Diederich's factor analysis, with the addition of

Remondino's "handwriting". Interestingiy, "usage, punctuation and spelling" were considered as

one factor in the analysis, and yet Diederich, without explmation, gives them each a separate

rating in his matrix, so that together the original factor has a tripie value as compared to

"wordingl' and "flaveur". A similar practice was adopted in this study aiso of assigning a double

value to factors of writing to which teachers attach special importance. Thus in the Traditionai

Assessrnent Scale (TAS) a score of 10 was aven to Ideas, StyIehoice, Central character, Setting,

Sequence of events and Theme (Figure 3, p. 23), and in the New Assessrnent Scale (NAS) to

Author's role, Character description, Interpersonal meaning, Context, Stages and Plot (Figure 2,

p. 21).

The column totals in the Diedench schema are 10,20, 30,40, 50, which represent the

respective totals of five pupils al1 of whose possible scores were awarded in one column only of

the five. These scores indicate the normal spread to be found in any essay collection, though the

number of essays with any one score varies £tom category to category. The usual divisions in any

one collection of essays in North America of marks fiom O to 50 are the fouowing: 5% (at O - 10

& 41 - 50), 20% (at 11 - 20 & 3 1 - 4O), and 50% (at 21 - 30) (Diederich, ibid., p.25). However,

in terrns of standard deviations, Diederich points out that in those divisions, teachers parents and

students ail found the scoring system, which entailed decimals, unintelligible, and "a Nuisance".

He therefore decided to c d rhe nid-points of the 5 intervals 10,20,30,40, 50 (ibid. pp.27-28).

This meant that the following score ranges corresponded with the usual letter grades: A45-59;

B = 3 5 - 44; C = 25 - 34; D = 1 5 - 24; and E = 1 - 14. Categories A and E are extended in order

to cater for the "3 students in 1000" (ibid., p.27) whose scores will be 3 standard deviations above

or below the rnean.

The standard deviation is "an average of the distances (deviations) of ail scores or ratings

from the mean, but a special kind of average" (ibid., p.26). If it were the usual average, the mean

of the scores 5,9, 12, 14, would be 1 0 and the respective distances fiom the mean would be 5, 1,

2 and 4; and the average of those distinces would be 5+1+2+4 divided by 4, which is 12 divided

by 4, which is 3. This is the average deviation. The standard deviation which gives greater

recognition to scores that are farther fiom the mean is computed by adding the squared distances,

(i.e., 25 + 1 + 4 + 16 = 46) and dividing that figure by 4 (the number of distances), which is 46

divided by 4 Le., 1 1.5, the average squared distance from the mean, and calculating the squxe root

of 1 1.5 which is 3 -3 9. The standard deviation of scores 5, 9, 12, and 2 4 f?om the mean of 10 is

3.39. Thus ifgrade C = 10, then B = 13.39, and D = 6.61; A = 16.78 and E = 3.22. Scoresof less

than 3 -22 and greater than 16.78 wiil represent only, -3% i.e., 3 in every 1,000. Thus in the above

scores, 5=E , 9=D, 1 2 = C and M = B .

Having descnbed Diederich's (1 974) 5-factor analy sis schema of writing assessment, its

origin and verscation, as well as the meaning of the individual factors and how they are truiy

represented in the 8-factor schema (p. 172, above) developed by Cooper & Odeii (1977) fiom

them, 1 shall now describe how I chose and verified my aiteria for the assessment of genre-based

narrative writing. Then 1 shail discuss how closely they correspond with Diedench's scherna.

C The Diederich/Cooper & Ode11 scale re-man&.

I shall first re-organize the Cooper & Odell essay-marking scale (COS, henceforth) in

accordance with current research findings (Huot, 1990, and others) on the importance of certain

characteristics of narrative writing. 1 refer to this re-organized schema as rny Traditional

Assessment Scale (TAS), noting in addition that the correspondence between both TAS and COS

and my New Assessment Scale (NAS) is not merely substantial, with individual factors in one

covering more than one factor in the others as 1 shall illustrate, but also displays a factor-to-factor

correlation. The writing characteristics for assessment in TAS as also in COS are: Ideas,

Style/voice, central character, Setting or background, Sequence of events, Theme, Wording,

Syntax, Usage, and Punctuation and spehg. The first six factors are assigned a total of 10 marks

each because they generaily form the main focus of attention in the teaching of writing in the

classroom. The latter 4 are assigned 5 marks each because being concemed with the more

mechanical and therefore less important aspects of writing, less attention and t h e is devoted to

them in practice.

(a) Tdeas Under this title note is taken in assessment of the author's purpose in writing, and

the ideas used to support and argue points of view with consistency and to the reader's

satisfaction. Britton, Martin and Rosen (1 966, p.3) stress the importance of the writer's

"purposes". Also important is the use of ideas by the writer to maintain a consistent role either as

parîicipant or observer throughout. This characteristic is to be found also in NAS and is known

as "Author's role".

@)*le or voice The author poses as an individual with an autonomous and personal view-

point to communicate. The focus of attention here is on that quality of writing which allows

writers to "put [their] individuality on paper" (Britton et al., ibid., p.3), i-e., "aiiowing for the

subjective aspects of writïng, those which demand interaction, through the medium of the writing,

between writer and reader" (ibid.) a qudïty which Atwell(l987, p. 204) c d s "narrative voice" .

Related to this factor is Tenor 2 in NAS.

(c) Central character Descriptive traits (physical, psychological and cultural) rnake all the

characters seem "real", as under the title "Tenor 3" in NAS. This quality arises f?om the writers'

sincerity, fiom t heir ability to "figure out what makes a main c haracter a main character.. . [and to]

take us inside the character's heart and mind.. ." (Atwell, 1987, p.204). AUowing students to

choose their own writing topics ensures that they wiu invest much energy in this and other aspects

of writing (Atweli, ibid, p. 10).

(d) Setting; or backmound The setting in which the action takes place is so described that to

the reader it is a "possible" piace and one that is congruent with the events. NAS calls this factor

by the title "Field 1 ".

(e) Seauence of events The order of the events of the narrative is clearly depicted by the

author. NAS also stresses an order of events but one that is essentiai to narrative genre, refemng

to the parts of the story which are essential to its completeness as the "stages" of the narrative.

( f ) Theme This factor refers to the personal significance of the narrative events for the reader.

In the traditional scaie (TAS) it is the evidence that the writer portrays some purpose behind the

subject matter and events , that which gives point to the narrative and holds it together. Theme is

"what the author [is] showing about life and living, through the story" (Ahveii, 1987, p. 277). It is

the ideas behind the ideas and events of a story, that which people who read stories "must stop

and think about" (ibid., p. 243). NAS expresses this characteristic as "sigdicance of plot", which

refers to the author's implicit t h s t that airns to make the reader stop and t h . .

(pl Wording Words can be used in a unique and imaginative way, but more basicaüy they are

employed in a way which confoms to a generally accepted norm, in v h e of which they fom

phrases and clauses as the building blocks of a text through which ideas are expressed and

cornmunicated in an intelligible and cogent fashion. The corresponding factor in NAS is "theme"

which refers specifically to word usage according to the positioning of words (and therefore of

ideas) in a sentence or clause. The flrst position in a sentence is known as the thematic position.

(q) Syntax This factor refers to the expertise of writers in their exercise of sentence control,

i. e., in their handling of such factors as the length, structure and cohesiveness of sentences that

ensures smooth and easy reading. This factor corresponds with "conjunction" in NAS and makes

reference also to the building of each paragraph in a text to convey one central idea. It makes

reference in addition to the physical shape of the text on a page, each paragraph being indicated

by an initial indentation in the text.

(r) Us= Usage refers to the standard use of words which one encounters in edited written

English, as opposed to the "unique" use discussed under "Wordingl' above. Competent usage cm

distinguish between, for example, "situ and "setMas also between "lie" and "lay", the former of

each pair of words being intransitive. In NAS, usage focuses more exclusively on "verbs" and is

known as "transitivity", covering the use of a number of what are cded "processes" in English.

Usage also includes sentence structure, a facet of written text to which Atwell(1987, pp. 147 &

259) attached so much importance that she fiequently devoted mini impromptu lessons to

teaching it.

(s) Punctuation & spellin~ Diederich (1 974, p. 58) assipps an individuai mark to each of these

two factors in keeping with the tendency on the part of teachers in the Fast to çcrutinize them very

closely. However, he recomrnends greater leniency in their regard by assessors, especially when

texts are written under tirne constraints. AtweU stresses the importance of spelling by observing

(ibid., p. 148) that ". . .misspelIings seem to throw readers off more than any other error. "

However, she tries aiways to create the impression that there are other aspects of writing that are

more important than spelling, the most important being that the students "discover what they

passionately desire to say" (ibid.), and proceed to Say it. NAS refers to this quality, which ensures

text readability and cohesion as well as facility in following the texhial content sequence on the

part of the reader, as "reference".

Now that 1 have explained the basic blueprint for the several constituents of narrative

writing to be assessed by applying the traditional mode of assessment and the assigning of a

dserential scoring system to them in accordance with the emphasis traditionally placed by

teachers on them in their teaching of writing, indicating at the same time how each constituent is

recognized in my new assessment sa le (cf p. 20), 1 wiU show how this scale (ibid.) is based on

the unique characteristics of genre-based narrative writing.

D. Mv new assessrnent sca1e:underlyin~ rationale

The story genre includes a number of types. Stories are evidenced in every culture, and

their purpose is to instmct, to entertain and to reflect on the meanhg of certain personal

expenences as well as explain important happenings in people's lives. Through the medium of

stones, people are enabled to share the meaning ofwhat is going on in their lives and to solve

problems in a way that is intelligible to others within their culture. Narratives are composed

according to a pre-deterrnined pattern of stages (Chapter 2, section B); however, the sequence of

the recounted events will Vary with the intention(s) of the stoq-telier. It is intention also that

determines the type or genre of story -- narrative, recount, news story, etc.-- and learning to

master these types is an important aspect of trying to understand and take part in the social

process of Me.

A linguistic approach to writing, which genre is, sees language as a purposefbl activity

aimed at conveying meankg. It sees the text as the basic unit of conveyance. Traditionally, Le.,

up to about twenty years ago (Martin Br Rothery, 1981), Iinguists had focused on such units of

meaning as phonemes and sentences; but since the 1970s their insistence is that people speak and

Mite, not so much in sentences and phrases, as in texts A text is defmed as a basic unit of

meaning, and is therefore "a sequence of sentences that hang together cohesively" (ibid. p. 2).

Thus a first factor to be assessed in genre-based narrative writing is its quality as a text -- a

written composition which, produced in a certain cultural setting, conveys a message which is

directed to a particular audience. Narrative can also be delivered ordy, but oral narrative is not

considered in this study. The reader looks for the integral presence of the component parts of

narrative, which are (muiimally, as previously indicated in chapter 2, section B) the orientation,

followed by a complication and a subsequent resolution (Macken et ai., 1989~). It is through the

integiîy of this schematic structure, Le., the efficient kctioning of these parts in the whole, that

a text can achieve its goal in a particular culture. The examiner asks: Are the events sequenced

logicdy in a true-to-life way? Does the rneaning d o l d in a believable way? Does the writer

succeed in constructing a context-independent (Le. believable) world, or are there a number of

gaps and unanswered questions about the identity of characters, why they act as they do or Say

what they say? Are their solutions to crises plausible and believable? Are readers left with a sense

of having enjoyed the story and have they leamed fiom the problem-solving strategies used by the

participants, how to cope successfbily with possible needs in their own Lives? (Macken & Slade,

cited in Cope & Kalantzis, 1993). The reader will also be on the aiert for planned departures from

the stereotypical format -- orientation - complication - resolution - coda. The more skiUed writers

leam, through the agency of sequential revisions and dr&s of their texts, to portray their settings

in very vivid terms, and their characters as tnily Me-like by the use of appropriate linguistic

devices (described below). These writers will succeed in creating sequentially, a number of

complications with (at first) unsuccessfid resolutions, and revision of strategy leading to a ha1

resolution and a state of equilibriurn for d. They wiIi include humour and sarcasm, and create a

narrative that is full of suspense and surprise. The reader or assessor wiII look for the inclusion of

aU these factors on the part of the writer, and others besides that are integral to genre mastery and

are presurned to be present in good quality text.

What are these other factors? A linguistic assessment of writing dso examines how

closely the text relates to and derives fiom the linguistic system and the social contexi within

which it was produced, i.e., it examines the words and structures which are the "nuts and bolts" of

the texts. The words and their structural arrangements by the writer to convey meaning create

what is called, in linguistic tems, the regisrer of the text (see above, chapter 2, section B). To

speak of the register of the text is to have in muid three specific factors, viz. thefield, the mode

and the personal andfunciional tenor (ibid. chapter 2)

'Field refers to the social activity in which language plays a part." (Martin & Rothery

198 1, p. 14). It consists of a life situation that is believable and presented in a provocative and

captivating way, in which characters interact and plan in order to face and overcome the

challenges that emerge in the process of daily living. It conveys to the reader an adequate grasp of

the whole context of the events and enables one to reconstruct the possible world of the narrative,

through the linguistic use of matenal and mental processes, and (in more sophisticated texts) the

description of people and events in a nuanced and imaginative way.

"Mode refers to the channel or medium through which interaction takes place" (Martin &

Rothery, ibid.). The medium involves two kinds of distance: that between what is said and the

object being descnbed, Le., between the writer and the field, and that between the speaker and

one being addresseci, i.e., between &ter and reader. In the former, language is reflective and

formal; in the latter it is spontaneous and informal. Regarding mode, the reader wiIi look to see

how well the writer has created a text that is context-independent, has made use of such devices

as embedding (relative clauses e.g. The old wornan, who was quite alefl, tumed around) and

hypostasis (e.g. He asked if he were on the right road~~co~>jmctzoits (temporal like if. when, and

logicd like md . SQ) and such czrcumstuntiaIphrases as "One night.. . ", "Mer a tirne.. . . . " to

indicate the sequential order of happenings (see section E, Sample Nmatives. for examples, in

stories 1, 3, and 5).

"Tenor refers to distance (social as opposed to physical) between the speaker or writer

and addressee." (ibid., p. 14) It is the interpersonal dimension of register. This distance can be

seen as on a spectnim, fiuctuating between the two extremes ofpower (connoting dserence of

social status and antagonism) and solidanty (which implies sunilarity and cooperative

bonding),and is discemible fiom the author's detailed and discriminaîing details of characters, and

fiom mentalprocess phrases and clauses that reveal why certain characters chose to pursue

certain courses of action.

In the creation of the narrative genre, grammar understood as syntax, vocabulary and

morphology (Halliday, 198 5a), is operative essentially in the orientation of the reader to, and

distinctness fiom the created world of the narrative, and in the reader's self-positioning in the and

in geographical space, Le., the context of situation. Use of the simple past tense facilitates this

distinction, and use of such temporal words/phrases/clauses as "Then", "some years ago", "when

he heard this.. " (cf Story A, below). Spatial distinction is also achieved by words/phrases/clauses

which descnbe situation Ui space, such as "There", "in the.. .province of Ontario.. . "(ibid.). Thus

the action of the narrative is specified as "then" and not "now", as "there" and not "here".

Readers will also look for signposts that will guide them as they traverse the world of the

narrative. These signposts will indicate the tirne of the action, either explicitly as e.g. "One day.. .",

"two years later.." or implicitly as in such texts as, "...the young rookie signed up (at the

beginning of the season) for a tearn in the MTHL." (Story A, below) . There will also be

indicators to position the reader in a particular local space. These will also be explicit, e.g. "in his

father's sawrnill.. . ", and implicit, e.g. "he would see her (at home) after work.. ". Besides

observing "space" and "time" signposts, assessors wili look for prominent or key persons, places

and objects in the world of the narrative. Thus "one of the best on the team" singles out the

specific group who are the top players and points to one of them in particular. Well-planned

narrative Stones introduce the reader to significant characters, places and things in the

Orientation, e.g. " Some years ago.. . . . province of Ontario.. . . . . a young man.. . . father.. . . .a sawmill. "

This is known as presenting reference. Later in the story, these cm be pointed to specifically , as

for example, "& decided.. . " referrhg to Daryl, "h.. . had taken a fancy to him.. " refening to

Amanda and Daryl respectively. This technique is known aspresirni~~g reference. Another set of

signposts is intended for the reader as a means of indicating and differentiating between the reai

and the unred. The unreal take the form ofpromises which rnay not be fulfilled, cluims that are

not verified or actualized, and statements that are not supported by objective evidence. The unreal

point out to the reader also what is hypothetical, e.g. "...if vou cm man= to hire a boat. 11 11 9 " -

wondering if this were the end of him.. . " (Story B, below) . The imagined, the future and the

unreal are also hdicated by sentences/clauses that project verbal processes, as for example, "He

would i v e him his business.. . "

Grarnmar is operative also in the context of culture relative to narrative genre. The writer

of narrative aims to create a world which has plausible similarities with the reader's own world.

Othenvise, the reader cannot learn fiom the problem-solving strategies portrayed, or even h d his

way through the range of d e n events recounted. To achieve this aim, the writer uses, principally,

a varied selection of clauses, which include different kinds ofprocesses. These will include

physzcal action processes, as e.g., "he was workine in his father's sawmill.. . "; mental actiorz

processes, as e.g., "he was more determined than ever ..."; and verbal action processes, as e.g.,

" K e e ~ it upl his mother would say." Readers will also meet processes of existential action

predicated of characters, e.g., " he was too shv to ask her out.. ." There will also be embedded

clauses, and these will be found rnostly in the orientation, as for example, "whose father.. .owned

a sawmill", and in the evaluation " . . the girl whom he love&. ."

A final aspect of the narrative story in which grammar plays a fornative role is its social

dimension. Being aories about the existing world, narratives must reflect social interaction as it

happens in the red world. They allow for two types (principally) of such interaction: that

between the writer and the audience, and that betweedamong the personnel depicted in the story.

Writer-audience interaction is set up by (i) the specific structure ofthe narrative, introduced by

such phrases as , "Once upon a time...", "When people had less money .... ", which creates in the

reader the expectation that a story is about to unfold. (ü) the prolonged use of the past tense

which tells the reader that the action is not in the present. (iii) the sequential order of clauses

that tells of unfolding events, and by the use of specific phrases to bring about this unfolding, e.g.

"Long ago.. . ", "Twenty years later.. . ". (iv) the way in which certain words and ideas in the

narrative evoke readers' narrative stereotype, e.g. "Before the dawn of civilization.. . inhabited this

planet.. . " For the grammatical portrayal of inter-character social relations, readers mua

remember the specific nature of the narrative genre, that it is a re-creation and re-presentation of

the social milieu. For this reason, readers must often infer relationships between characters frorn

verbal processes (what they say) and fiom action processes (what they are portrayed as doing)

and not necessarily look for explicit descriptions of such relationships.

In summary, then, assessment of genre-based narrative writing must take cognizance of the following parameters of assessment:

(a) the material inclusion of the proper structural components of the genre, since it is through the integrity of this schernatic structure that the text essentidy achieves its goal in a part icular culture;

@) the register of the text, Le., the text seen tiom the point of view of field, mode and tenor;

(c) grammar, and its fùnction in orienting readers in space and t h e to the narrative events, in signposting them through the (created) world of the narrative, and in helping them

iden@ with the culture and the social nature of the believable world created by the w-riter. Cognizance has been taken of all these factors in the creation of the New Assessrnent

Scale already presented (pp. 21 & 22, above). When grade 9 genre-based narrative texts are assessed by applying this scale in

accordance with the mode1 given by Macken et al. (1989c, pp. 84 - 100) the following

descriptions (Figures 1 1, 12 and 13, below) will typicaily characterize essays judged to be at

levels 1 (inadequate), 2 (satisfactory), and 3 (highly competent) respectively, with levels 2 and 4

(which are not described) as borderiines. It should be noted that the convention of using the

l e t t e ~ g p,q,r,s to indicate the grammatical component of the scales is intended to distinguish it

fiom the other (content) components. The descriptions which follow are formulated as "expected

outcornes" rather than as objectives reached, in consonance with the current policy of the Ontario

Ministry of Education and Training on assessment.

Fieure 1 1 ade 9 narrative: LeveI 1

@ Tenor 1 : author's role - produces narrative about merely personal experiences that is disjointed - little evidence of author's purpose or choice of audience - no invoIvement with the issues

(b) Tenor 2: character dacription - difticult to assess the author's character because of failure to pose as a person with an explicit and definite viewpoint

- very few descriptive epithets or mental process clauses to help readers understand the behaviour of the characters in the narrative

- little effort to individualize the characters

(c) Tenor 3: interpersonal rneaniog - little evidence of author's individuafity in the text and hence little opportunity for reader- author interaction through the text

- very little involvement of the characters in common interests or cooperative participation in solving problems

- no evidence of fiction between the characters

(d) Field 1 ; influence of conte* - little or no description of setting in terms of time and place of the action of the story - little opportunity for readers to position themselves relative to the events of the story - impossible to assess the effect of the environment on the characters' actions - limited spectrurn of circumstantial rneanings

(e) Field 2: inteaity of narrative st- - impossible or very difiicult to i d e n e the usual narrative stages:orientationAcomplication /\resolution

- one or more stages may be missng - only persona1 experiences recounted, and only in a Limited way

(0 Tenor 4: personal simïficance of the events for the reader - Little or no cornrnentary by the author on the actions of the characters or the events of the story

- no evidence of their meaning for the author - no effort to relate the events to the life of the reader or to seek to encourage the reader's hvolvement in them

(p) Therne: meaning conveyed by word positions - no variation in therne - narnes of participant characters invariably occupy theme positions

(q) Çoqiunction: is essav cohesive grammaticallv? - simple sentences predominate - conjunctions used are merely additive - sentences ofien leR unfinished - btand use of words in reporting and description - spelling errors and inaccurate punctuation fiequent ly occur

(r) Transitivity : verb choices - material processes predorninate - relational processes are fiequent - existentid processes are few - mental and verbal processes are absent - use only of indicative mood

(s) Reference: use of pronouns and adverbs to refer to revious antecedant~ - monotonous use of nouns - reference to characters is ambiguous at ben - reference is faulty and misleading at worst

Fi -gu r e 12: Grade nine narrative: Level3

(a) Tenor 1 : author's role - evidence of acceptable narrative d t i n g - author directs content to a specific audience by adapting content, style and specific

structure - writer is involved with the issues through exploration of personal expenences

(b) Tenor 2: character description - writer's character is more discernible f?om expression of personal viewpoints - main character(s) more clearly individualized and tend to be portrayed as the dominant ones

- author succeeds in individualiting some of the characters - use of some descriptive epithets and mental processes explaining characters' behaviour - lesser characters remain in the background

(c) Tenor 3 : interpersonai meaninq - reader response elicited - inter-character interaction shown through clearly marked dialogue - beginnings of involvement of characters in cornmon interests and in problem-solving, resulting in the expression of interpersonal meanings

- fiiendships and enrnities arnong the charactws begin to be in evidence - human needs and motives highlighted

(d) Field 1 : influence of context - action and events of the narrative situated in time and place - Use of textual indicators such as, "in the palace", "over there" - reader enabled to take a personal position relative to the events of the narrative - circumstantial meanings clearly and unambiguously created to fill out context - reader enabled to recognize a personal world as represented in the nanative

(e) Field 2: inteerity of narrative st- - activity sequences correct for narrative but packaged in an amateur way - use of material and verbal processes; sometimes existentid processes also - activity sequences real and relevant to a possible world - appropriate use of past tense

(f) Tenor 4: personal si-mficance of events for reader - writer comments on events and actions of characters - tendency of author to sequence events according to their significance for the individual characters

- use of atcitudinal comments by characters and by author in relation to characters - author tends to involve the reader through such strategies as the creation of suspense and rhetorîcal questions

- . @) Theme: meaning conveyed by word posrtions

- writer tends to vary the theme between participants and events - this varied use of thematic position in sentences and clauses creates a less monotonous and more readable te-

- use of temporal phrases such as "long ago.. . " "after the birth of.. " as therne

unction: is essav cohesive marnmaticallv? - use of compound sentences increases - some use of cornplex sentences - embedded clauses - evidence of initial expertise in apt use of expressions - beginning use of CO-ordinate conjunctions: and, but, so. - limited use of temporal and causal conjunctions - beginning use of metaphor and simile - kwer spelling and punctuation inaccuracies

(r) Transitivitv: verb choices - continued use of material and relational processes - existentid processes in evidence: "There is.. . ", "There was.. . " - beginning of verbal processes: "she aanounced that.. . ", " he asked if.. . " - indicative mood used throughout, aiso active voice

(s) Reference: use of pronouns and adverbs to refer to previous antecedants - individualized characters created and tracked throughout the narrative through the use of an accurate reference system

- monotony in narration and description avoided

Fiaxe 13 : aade 9 narrative : levei 5 (a) Tenor 1 : author's role

- author has produced a text that is fluent, cohesive and coherent - content has been adapted to entertainhidom a target audience - actual and vicarious experience explored and exploiteci in an informative and entertaining

WaY - author's role as narrator or participant is maintained consistently throughout

(b) Tenor 2: character description - all characters now individualized - superb use of descriptive epithets - well marked dialogue reveals the mindset, personal outlook, attitudes and intentions of characters as weU as their motives and needs relative to the story plot

- imagery and figurative language are used profusely

(c) Tenor 3: interpersonal meaning - writer succeeds in eliciting an enthusiastic reader response through sustained characterization

- consistent character sketches built up throughout, through the use of interpersonal meanings and figurative language

- hurnan motives and needs now emerge as the foundation for character interaction and the sustained response of the reader

- dialogue, questions, rhetorical questions eequently employed

(d) Field 1 : influence of context - implications of actions and inter-character relationships in real life situations evoke reader responses

- circumstautial nuances of meaning often explored to develop the context more M y - correct use of past tense throughout - events weil integrated and their meaning fUy exploited in real-life portrayal of experiences so that readers appreciate their personal sigdïcance

(e) Field 2: integritv of narrative st- - narrative stages are all in place and activity sequences that are relevant to a possible world are expertly exploited to achieve the narrative purpose(s)

- complications self-repeat and resolutiom are offered until success is achieved - personal comrnentary on the sigdicance of events is often given, resulting in evocation of reader response

(0 -4cance of events for reader - author succeeds in presenting a set of stable characters through their dialogue and interaction

- author presents a series of events arranged in tems of their meaning for the individual - reader response is evoked by means of the realistic scenarios that are created - reader responds to the instructive, entertaking, educational or surprise purpose(s) of the author * .

(p) Theme: meaning conv d bv word positions - author displays expertise in presenting a varied and interesthg use of clausal fkst (thematic) positions

- unique mastery of apt vocabulary and expression - full command of speiling and punctuation - a pleasingly readable text results - thematic temporal phrases are fiequent: "Once upon a tirne. .." " Some time after.. . "

(q) Conjunction: is essay cohesive pammatically? - use of full range of cohesive devices - logical connections expressed through use of noms: e.g., John and Tom trained.. . "; verbs: e-g., They tried and scored in every game. conjunctions: e.g. CO-ordinate: James & Anne loved their children

sub-ordinate: She said & she would come on t h e - clauses combined paratacticdy e-g., He saw Amanda was flattered. .. - clauses combined hypotacticaily e.g., He h e w that they liked him

: verb choices - accomplished use of ftll range of verbal processes: mental, relational, material, existential, verbal

- author shows expertise in use of active and passive voice - apt use of verb moods: indicative and imperative

(s) Reference : use of pronouns and adverbs to refer to previous antecedants - author displays control of a wide range of conjunctive references to participants and events, e.g. pronouns (personal, relative, demonstrative); nouns in apposition, e.g. J o k the timid W.. .

- individual characters presented and tracked consistently ail through the text

E. ade 9 narrativesgaded according to mv new critena

There follow t h e written grade 9 narrative texts assessed as e x e m p w g levels 1, 3, and

5, through the application of the guidelines for assessment of narrative texts designed by Macken

et al. ( 1989~~ pp. 82 - 100). Subsequent to each story, there is an appended analysis showing in

linguistic terms the merits of the text according to the sanie (Macken et al.) parameters of

assessment of genre-based witing, and in addition, a su- statement of the reasons for the

degree of excellence attributed to the text in question.

Campkation: temporal sequence of events

Interpersonal meanings iimited m m g e

Participants not indivi-ed

The Ouest for an Heir Once uuon a time,therc lived a wise fmer and his wXe who were

old and wodd die soon. Th- were trying to h d somme wbo wodd understand their way of life to continue the ninning of the fiam. One ninht . after they hsd drawn the curtahs, ?bey were having their supper. Two people came. The fmcr and his wife asked them. The man was verv dd and so was his wife, That evening motha couple came. The f m e r and his wife asked them to stay and nm the fram. They said "Sure". On the third day the two couples were out in the fields l o o b g around They hnd a fïght about who would take over. The iÏrst couple wcre stronger thao the second and they draa~ed tbern to a cattie shed out in the momtains and 40cktd them in there. The coupie went to tbe fann house and said the other couple agreed to let them have the fami. But the - f m e r wanted to be sure and he asked to see the second conple.Thc first coupie Iooked n m u s d e n they told him where the othcr couple ~ c r e . The fanner went back ta his house. He looked at the couple. "You

lied to me. Where are the other people." Clauses integrated After a time, the tint husband said, "WC locked them in the cattle shed in the into sentence mountains. We wanted your f-" The b e r sent his workers to txing m

the couple, and they took them ta& to the f a His wife gave thcm a big meal and asked them to nin the f m . The old fannu helped hum and they iived happily ever &a.

Exphnation of madine based on Macken et ai. (1 989c.pp. 84-1 00)

The above Text C is assessed as level 1. When examined bguistically it has the foilowing positive characteristics: all the necessary components of narrative writing are in place and it has a successfùl temporal sequence e.g. Once upon a tirne... One night. ..

The foliowing negative attributions c m be made of the text: it is not believable; the development is not logical; there are a number of un- answered questions, e.g. Why does the f m e r ask two diierent couples to run their farm? Why do they ask anyone? Why do they appoint complete strangers, and this, while they themselves are alive?

The development is an unsatisfactory sequence of unexplained happenings.

BdaZmx Regarding field, the following positive qualities cm be noted:

there are a number of activity sequences in which two couples compete to inherit a farm, e.g. old couple try to h d successors, two couples arrive, etc. the events are also sequenced in tirne.

However , negative attributions are the following : the h t e r does not indicate the significance of the sequenced activities; the processes are material without any atternpt at imaginative portrayai; there are gaps in circumstantial meanings, e.g. "The farmer and his d e asked them" What was asked? "The man was very giad.. . " About what? "The couple went to the f m house" W c h couple? More information is needed in the orientation and complication to answer when and where events occu~ed, and so as to understand the sequence of the events. The vocabulary is veq general and bland and lacks originality

Regarding Tenor, the following negative characteristics are noted: The writer has not tried to build up the reader's sense of the sigdicance of the events for the characters; There are ambiguities in the text: " . .they dragged them.. ." Who dragged whom? Little information about the characters' qualities iç learned nom the dialogue; Character description is overgeneralized: ". .the couple were old.. " No descriptive epithets are given to inaividualize the characters; There are no comment adjuncts to make the story cohesive; There are no mentalprocess clauses to satisQ the reader's curiosity as to why the characters acted as they did.

Regarding wrïtten Mode, the following positive characteristics can be attributed: The text is context independent. It includes the foilowing linguistic devices: embeïlding "..a wise f m e r . .. .who was old.. "; hpotmis: "The farmer. ..asked them to stay and run the fm"; use of temporal and logicaI conjunctions: "and.. . . so.. .and so.. "; use of circumsfa~~tiaIphrases to sequence events: "One night . . . . . d e r a the . . .on the third day.. ."

Sumrnarv of Assessment o f Text C This narrative is in the lowest writing achiwement category. The events are successfully

sequenced and the past tense is successfklly and appropriately used. However, zrtterpersonal memzngs need to be built in and intensified through the use of aftrftrtudzinal epithets ("the old couple Jiked the man), menrdprocess clauses (the two couples, who had pown greedy and jealous of each o h , were out on the farm.. . .), and inaividuaZized ûYaIogue (" WeIcome" *d the old wife. "Do corne in and eat with us." "Thank vou". replied the visdors. "We came a long way $0 see F u r f m . ") The events need more acute explicitation by appenduig circumstantial description to each, and the characters need to be referred to specificdy. Otherwise it is impossible for the reader to envisage the context of the happenings cleariy or to reconstnict the writer's world.

Text B Onentalion

Material processes used evocatively

Hypotactic integration of ci.ases within a sentence by using conjunctions

Nostdma In 1895 there lived a rich merchant m Quebec. He was now oId and g&g forgetful. He had waited all his circumstantid m&gs life to see i r c h d the land of his parents; so he asked his clearly portrayed only son, Patrick, to sail to I r e h d and take him back a bottle of water fÏom St. Paûicks wen. He would give him his business ifhe retumed safely with the water. Paüïck immediately _anreed

Patrick forthwith booked hiç week-long ûip on the Briftania and set sd on the 6rst of J a n w , 1896. After a rough crossing he reached Co& in mid Febnrary. He \vas so excited that he hunied off the boat with his smd travel bag and bounded down the road He intmo~ated everyme he met about St Patrick's well. "You di have to û-avel two hundred miles to Donegalw, one man told him. He hitched a ride and the truck-driver took him up north to a lake. "Out îhere on that island youll h d it, if you cm manage to hite a boat." said the ~ ~ - d n v e r , and &ove off in a hmy. Paîrick sat down to tbhk He remembered his sandwiches started to eat ravenously, gazing out over the water in ammement He felt a nudge at his right elbw. He Iooked around, and îhere \vas a little old man sittnlg besi& h. "Tm hungry and cold" he said Paûick gave hmi a sandwich h m his bag. "Thanks, young man. Now what can 1 do for you? "1 must get across to the isiand" "Sce that wood? Behind that iives the mm tvho Dialogue unprojected \vill ferry you across. Good luck!" and he vanished! "Weil, ïve seen a feprecliaun" thought Patrick "Maybe h in iuck"

The man took hnn across. He fomd the well but it was hzen over. He began to hammer impatiently - on the ice to break it, as hc dicl, a man's voice thundered g& fiom behind him, "What are you doing? This is a holy

hterpersoMlcircUIllSbIltiai meanings

place!" Patrick pivoted around, and tremblinq saw a man in Word choices that are uniform The man pabbed hmi by the neck and locked mutely ctiscnminaîing him in a room. He spent hours m ihe darlaiess, wmdering ifthis were the end of hh, and he feil asleep. When he woke up, the man brought him some dry cnists of bread and cold black tea After a week of this, the door d e d open one night and a handsome vounq man stepped in and lit up the room "Corne with me" he whisnered gently in a pieaçant but fïrrn lnterpersonal meanings voice. They both siipped out into the mou&&& and came using attitudbi epithets to the weII. The ice had gone! "Fil1 your bottle right up." Patrick gladly fIIIed it and the young man took him aaoss ihe M e . They both took a irain to Cork, and sis he got on the boat the pung man vanished "1 guess, leprechams corne in dl shapes and sizes!" he mused to himseK

Patrick's Wer was overjoyed to get the water. "A M e toste of Ireland!" he mumbled as he took his first sip. He dm& a few chups every day, and lived for twenty years more.

Ex~lanation of e-radine lbased on Macken et al.. 1989~. pp. 84- 100)

This narrative is seen as having a far greater ability to entertain than narrative C. In writing the narrative, the writer sets d o m and delineates the situation and needs of the characters in the orientation. A tme-to-life environment for the portrayal of what is reaily mystery is created: the hero leaves home on a mission, encounters obstacles to its fultillment, is helped by mysterious person(s), and returns home to live happily ever d e r . The writer creates the standard structure - orientation, evaluation, complication, resolution -- to produce a good story. However, in the resolution, the hero himseif does nothing reaily to solve his dilemma, and the youth cornes magicaily on the scene.

Regarding Tenor: The foilowing positive characteristics of the writing have been noted:

- The characters are more successfblly individuaiized; - Dialogue is clearly attributed - Interpersonal meanings give the reader a greater appreciation of the meanings of the events for the characters, e.g. attiit~diizal epzthets: nch, forgetful, rough

adverbzals: immediately, in a hurry, ravenously, impatiently circ~irnstantia2 epilhets: in amazement, gently .

The foilowing negative characteristic has also been noted: - Dialogue is sometimes not well discriminated f?om the main text, e-g., in dialogue with the little

old man: "O thank you, young man. I haven't eaten for two days" whispered the old man; and another projection like, 'Wow it's my turn to help, so what I can 1 do for you?" he added.

Regarding Field: The following positive characteristics must be amibuted to the writing :

- In typical narrative fashion, there is a senes of activities.

- The activity sequences are purposefùl and relevant. - The vocabulary is suited to the field of somewhat daring adventure. - The activity sequences are more clearly specified than in story C above. - There is a more strongly evocative use of processes to help the reader reconstruct the plot, e-g.,

materialprocesses: humied off, bounded, interrogated, pivoted. - The circumstantiai roles of perso~e l are well defmed, for the most part, especiaüy the father,

the son, the truckdriver, the warden on the island.

Negatively, it is to be noted that the rescue of Patrick is not motivated in narrative genre sense, but it is, nevertheless, a relevant action in the story. In addition, the "young man" who effected the rescue is not well defined.

Regarding the Mode of presentation, a number of positive attributions cm be made:

- Clausal integration is quite skillfully done: e.g. hypotmis "He had wanted ............ parentdso .... . . . . .Ireland/and take. . . . . . . . . . . weil.

- The d e r has the abiiity to handle complex clauses in the text: "He remembered his . . . . . . . .and started to eat ravenously, while gazing.. . . . .in arnazement"

- Conjunctions (temporal: fier, while; logical: so, but;) are appropriately used to give cohesion and comection to the text.

- The characters are weil tracked, sornething which also contributes to the cohesiveness of the t ext .

S u m w of assessrnent of Text B

While this text has many of the characteristics of good narrative mystery-like stories, the resolution needs to be embellished with more credible details to enable it to quai@ as a more satisfjing solution to the earlier complication. The hero needs to be portrayed as taking a more pro-active role in this. Perhaps a more surprise-like tum of events could be worked into the re- orientation, even though the writer does try to depart nom the h e d happily ever afrr stereotypical ending. More clearly projected dialogue would make the story more readable.

Thus far it has been seen that the essence of narrative genre-based writing is the creation by the writer of a possible event consisting of a series of scenarios, in which the principal character or hero is depicted as attempting to overcome genuine challenges through interacting verbally and in other appropnate ways with the people and things encountered. It has been seen that certain structurai components are integrai to this genre, and certain aspects of register and grammar CO-operate to effect the writer's purpose. It was seen also that, whereas in story B above, many of the decisive critena were present to good effect, earning for it a rating of "3" in the overali spectrum of 1 - 5, story C lacked or did not exploit adequately these criteria, and so was accorded a rating of " 1 " on the spectnim.

Texi A

Orientation

Evaiuation

participant inaividualized

Evocative use of processes

Some years ago, m the beautifid iake-fïüed province of Ontario, there lived a young man named Daryl whose father, a small businessman, owned a sawmiU He had comptetcd school and was tvorhg in his father's d, but he was not very happy. AU his fiends had more mmey thm he. and had cars to go out wiîh their girl- &ends, but he was alone. Moreover, he was mady m love with an attractive el who lived next door, b u t h was too shy to ask her out. His father. when he heard Clauses inteptaxi this from his son said "The only way vou'ii 1t.m her into sentences heart is to becorne a famous hockey-piayer - she wmts - hypotactidy to many a hockey sîar."

One &y, while thinhg over the matter, his Mental processes love for Amandaarew so stronq that he decided he interpersonal meanings. wodd get back on hk skates and work on his hockey. Mer mmy maths of hockey and working out whiie still in his fatheis s a d . the young rookie signed up for a team in the MTHL. His parents encouragecl hirm they knew his talents tvere in his feet and han& rather than in his h d Keeping in shape was tough work and though he was one of the best on the team, they lost m the quarta-finals and bis name never hit the hedhes. He saw Amanda at the game, and was flattered to thlnk the girl he loved was watching k The eager lova was encourageci by the thought that she had taken a fancy to him. Next day. he heard her tell ber Eend how weii "Dqi" playd From then on he was more determineci than ever to make the N'HL and nin her har t completely.

Season rtfter season he worked on his skilis. "Keep it up. Daryl" his mother wodd say. "Rome wm't built in a ciay!" Two y e m later, nt the age of eighteenhe was &&ed for the Maple Leafs fami team. On October 1. his nineteenth -&y, he made his debut with the Leafs. They were playing against the Los AngeIes Kings, and he tvas playhg on Gretzshy. He had plrmned out with one of his fiends. Mike, in the Leafs' offense, hotv he tvould check the "great one". "ïii check him at the boards, Mike. and you slip in and take that puck. O.K?" But the "grcat one" was too tàst for them and three rimes he scored The coach smitched Mike and Daryl. Gretzsky got possession and wtis on a power pIay down the ice. Mike checked him hard and the puck t w t to D q L A wnçt h o t sent it builetmq into the net. A thunderous roar burst from the crowd, and the hero codd see Amanda tavinsr her m s ~ i t h deiight. The puck slid into action again. Gretsky was right on the spot, but Mike fded hixn again. and as quick as lightening snatched the uuck and flashed it to DaryL Another goal, and another explosion of applause fiom the crowd foiiowed The Leafs went on to wjn. 54. and DaryI and Mike were MW's for that night. But the best was yet to corne. Aman& was wYting at the dressing-room door when they came off the ice. "Way to go, DayI! she burst out. "?nanEis" was ali he wuld manage to say m reply. He knew now that Altitudiml epithets Amanda Iiked him, even thou& at that moment he smelled of sweat and body odour. Aii next day he thounht about her

as he tded away in his fatheis hop, and ht &ded he wodd calI to see her d e r work. He di& they went out t e gether for the fkt tirne. The d e f i of the L A Kings had been a d o d e victory for him. "Look &er thaî girl now," said bis mother that night, "and she'ii take care of you" "Yeah, thank p u Momn said Dm1 "You know best!"

Explmation of qradingfMacken et al., 198%. DD. 84- 100)

The author of "A Prize worth winning" has utilized and developed successfully d the relevant stages of narrative genre. In the orientation, the writer hcludes an evaluation of the main character's problem: "He was alone. He was madly in love.. .but too shy.. . " The vniter specifïes the needs and motives of individual characters, by using interpretative comments e.g. "He was not happy.. . he was alone.. . he was too shy.. . he decided to get back on his skates." The proposed resolution is to become a good hockey-player - not necessarily NHL standard - but he achieves the latter status nevertheless, thus finding a resolutionpar excellence. The writer has also included some humour by way of elaboration of the genre -- "...bis talents ... in his hands and feet rather than in his head" and his consciousness of smeiling of sweat in the Company of Amanda.

Regarding the Tenor, therefore, the following positive comments may be made:

- The dialogue is well fiamed, it is differentiated f?om the recounting of the event sequence, and attitudinally, it is precisely marked.

- Interpersonal meanings are reflected in the hero's strategy planning7 e.g., mental process clauses Iike, "His father said.. . ", ". . .his love.. .grew.. . ", ". . .he decided.. . ", ". . .he signed up.. ."

- The events of the story are s i w c a n t for the reader because they are portrayed as needs, motives, decisions of the characters.

- The author helps the reader to construct the setting by using such descriptive epithets as, "a smail businessrnan", "an attractive girl", "too shy", "tough work", "too fast".

One negative comment might be made: the story could have been embellished by a more frequent Incidence of dialogue, e.g. between Daryl and his father, especidy about his problem; between Daryl and his hockey coach, and his teammates especially Mike; between Daryl and his mother; and especially between Daryl and Amanda.

With regard to thefield of the narrative, a number of positive comments must be made.

- The activity sequences are explored and used to show the significance of the story's events for the protagonist, Daryl: Daryl's "problem"; his father's proposed solution; Daryl's decision to try to accomplish the soiution; his failure at first, his second try which is successful; he wins a double reward.

- Participants are inaividualized: Daryl is young and highly motivated to achieve success - but he needs direction; his father gives advice; his mother provides encouragement; Mike, his niend supports him in his goal; Arnanda accepts his invitation to go out together.

- Material and mental processes are used effectively: "the puck slid into action"; "Mike snatched the puck"; "while ~ h i n k i n ~ over the matter".

- Circumstantial meanings are evoked throughout in a vivid way: he was $00 shv, keeping in shape was m, a thunderous roar, he smelled of sweat.

No significant negative attributions need to be made.

In the area of written Mode, the folIowing compliments must be paid:

The writer gives evidence of having the resources and of the ability to use them weU, to create an intelligible background for the events of the story. The author creates an excellent context-independent text through the use of (i) hypotaxis, ". ..whose father, g smaü businessmm,. ..", "His father, when he hûard this fiom his son, ..." (ü) both direct and indirect speech well integrated into the text - "The ody way you'll win

her heart ...", "Keep it up!", "Way to go, Daryl!" (iii) clauses that project ideas, ". . .while he was thinking over the matter.. . ", " . . . though ,k, was one of the best on the team . . . " (iv) a wide range of reference ties to enhance the cohesiveness of the text, as follows:

A young man named Daryl

the young rookie

the eager lover

the hero

For all the above reasons, this text, story A, is in the highest range of achievement for

narrative writing.

Summ;uv

In describing the characteristic components of genre-based narrative writing at the grade

9 level, and in drawing up - in outcornes-based format -- an analysis and description of the

quaiity of writing expected at five levels of excellence, while dernonstrating levels 1,3, and 5 in

actual texts, it was hoped to provide concise vniting assessrnent directives for the busy classroom

teacher, directives that are simple to understand and easy to apply. Teachers and others who are

interested in the practical application of these directives on assessrnent of genre-based narrative

writing are now referred to Appendix R for a convenient summary , with special ernphasis on the

parameters of excellence peculiar to genre-based writing that distinguish it from the ~ o w f h and

process approaches, and on which a teacherhssessor should focus when estimating the ments of a

t ext .

Chapter Five

ANALYSES AND RESULTS

A. Testine the reiiabilitv and validity of the proposed assessrnent criteria

An effort has been made thus far to delineate a rational basis for the concept genre-based

r~awative writi~g, thus showing it to be a really practical approach on a par in importance with,

though superseding in some ways, the more traditional grawth and process writing models. Chief

among these ways is the prominence given to the role of grammar - that words are chosen,

phrases are fomulated, verbal order within sentences is arranged, place of prominence is assigned

to ideas, in order to ensure the conveying of rneaning on the part of the author rather than the

using of a verbal code that conforms to a certain generally acceptable nom of written expression.

Gramrnar, understood in this sense consists (according to genres theory) of syntax, vocabulary

and rnorphology or word forms, precisely because these components are seen to be necessary as

a writer progresses fiom the conception of an idea to its expression. Syntax , the purposeful

network of words chosen to enshrine a certain meaning, is only one component in grammar and is

traditionally understood as a system of verbal foms to which meaning is only secondariiy

attached. The genres school, on the contrary, understand the language which consititutes a text to

be primarily a system of rneanings which are realized through the forms chosen. The forms, for

this school, are but a means to convey meaning and are not an end in themselves.

A decription of my personal progression in the teaching of writing fiom the model

recommended in the Ministry Guidelines (1977 and 1987) through the OAIP to a genres model

was outlined in order to show not only that the genres approach, as presented in genre theory, is

educationdy relevant and feasible but also that it can be seen as emmting logically fiom the

older approaches, and that my new criteria are grounded in practical educational experience.

Furthemore, classroom practice in the process of acquVing expertise in the narrative genres was

described in some detail in order to present it as a more effective way to acquire proficiency in the

written word. This was done by pointing to the importance of language in society, by stresshg the

primary fùnction of language as a vehicle to create and convey meaning (hence the many

syntactical forms), and by pointing to the tendency of the method to rnake explicit these foms and

to teach them explicitly as the very means one must use to formulate and convey meaaing. It was

also stressed that language is primarily a social entity, that it emanates fiom social events and is

intricately enrneshed with them and that therefore language genres are at least as variant as the

situational events that generate them.

Using this genre-based approach in facilitating the acquisition of proficient written

language skills is therefore seen to be important. But as evaluation is a necessary component of

effective teacting and an integral factor in the creation of any new product, the generation of

assessment criteria was also seen to be a valuable undertaking. The new criteria were drawn up as

discussed above (Chapter 4) and pre-tested. Taking as a mode1 the parameters of Diederich

(1974, p. 54), a simple 5-factor schema of assessment based on the salient features of genre-

based narrative w r i ~ g was created. The features are Structure, Register consisting of field , tenor

and mode, and finally, Conjunction. Conjunction, though more properly subsumed under the

aspect of mode was proposed as a separate factor because it was considered to be such an

important uniting constitutive of a narrative that it ought to be given a place of primary

importance by the assessor. These 5 factors were deemed ideai because:

(1) they accounted for the principal and distinguishing features of genre-based narrative;

(2) they aEorded an easily applicable scheme in assessing miting; (3) they were seen not to be very Werent from the schema consisting of ideas,

organization, choice of vocabulary, flavour and grammar/spelling as traditionally used . The factor "Ideas" was seen to match with Field, Organization with Structure, Wording which included usage, punctuation, spelling and writing with Mode, and Flavour with Tenor. (cf Diederich, 1974, p. 54 ff).

(4) teachers who had more written work to assess than they could easily cope with during the course of the school year would not easily take on the assessment of a 100 essays ifthe marking schema were unfamiliar or overcomplicated.

However, the pre-test pointed to these 5 factors as individually l a c b g in focus, each

attempting to cover too wide a spectrum of genre charactenstics, e.g., tenor expected the assessor

to judge the authoritative role of the writer, the abiiity of the text to invoke pathos in the reader,

the detail of character description and the degree of writer-character interaction and the didactic

power of the story. Such a broad spectnim of vmiting qualities subsumed under a single title

would make it most H c u l t to assign a tmly representatLe portion of the score to each qudity,

and therefore reduce the reliability of the assessment scale. Hence the original 5-factor scale was

revised in favour of a 10-point schema that was seen to account more effectively for and assess

narrative genre under all its aspects, as these have been detailed in Chapter 2 of this study. As

analysed above (chapter 4, section 3) and applied to narrative essays at levels 1,3, and 5 on a 5-

Ievel scale of assessment, they are surnmarized as follows:

a. Tenor (1) Does the author assume an authoritative role?

b. Tenor (2) Does the author establish in the reader either a sense of distance ffom or of fraternity with the characters through character portrayal?

c. Tenor (3) Does the author's character descriptions include well-marked dialogue and indicate interpersonai under standing?

d. Field (1) 1s the reader enabled to understand the story setting through the author's description of the characters' behaviour and interaction. and a recording of his

personal reaction to those descriptions?

e. Field (2) Does the author provide an account of a series of eventshppenings that comprise the standard cornponents of narrative, namely, orientation, complication, evaluation, resolution, and coda?

f Tenor (4) Does the author describe the story events with a bias towards the needs and motives of the characters, which results in their being of personal significance to the reader?

The grammatical component of the story was assessed as follows:

p. Theme: Are words given variant positions in sentences according to the importance given by the author to the ideas they portray?

q. Conjunction: Does the narrative convey a m e s s of rneaning knit together as a cohesive whole, and is the text pleasingly readable through the creation of logical relationships among clauses, sentences and paragraphs?

r. Transitivity: Are the transactions in the text reported in a Mvid manner through the choice of suitable verbs with their mood and voice, in such fashion that the recounted events and interactions are true to Me?

S. Reference: Does the author's use of reference @oth general and specific) create an unintempted thought-pattern in a text that is cohesive, enabling the reader to follow easily the sequence of events?

A numerical value was then assigned to each factor in this schema modelled on Diederich

(1974), since it was found that these factors corresponded individually with those in his marking

schema (ibid. pp. 53Q which latter were based on his "factor-analysis ofjudgements of writing

ability," made by teachers (ibid., pp. 5 - 10). It was decided (again following Diederich, p.54) to

assign a marking spectmm of 2 tolO for the catagoneç subsumed under tenor and field as it was

understood that teachers and students in keeping with general practice (in spite of possible

contrary intentions) lay greater stress on factors other than grammar in teaching or creating

composition.(appendix S). Values of 1 to 5 were assigned to the subcategories of Mode for the

same reason. A copy of this schema was given to each of the volunteer assessors to accompany

the randody selected 100 sarnples of narrative writing. A brief explanation of the categories in

writing was appended (appendk R) and an agreement made on an expected date of retum of the

tabulated resuIts. It was lefk to each teacher to decide on a format for the tabuiation of the results

and all chose a scheme identical with or very like to that used in Appendix A.

The assessors would later apply a traditional and well-proven schema to the same set of

100 essays. The schema chosen was that of Diedench as elaborated by Cooper and Odeii (1977

pp 2 1-24). A description of how the andytical factors of this method compare favourably item by

item with those of the tentative cntena developed in this study is given in chapter 4, section 3.

B. Reliability

The reliability of test or memement results in education is always a basic concern. Errors

in measurement mean a certain degree of unreliabilty in the results. This reliability can result fiom

defects not only in the knowledge of the human subject being tested and the subject's state of

physical and psychological equilibrium at the time of testing, but also in the expertise of the

administrator of the test, the ability of the assessorhterpreter of the results, in the instrument of

measurement itselfand in the general contexhial conditions in which the test is being

administered. Furthemore, some of these sources of error that impinge on the attainment of a

true score are interactive, and they compound the probability of distorted results. Lack of

expertise on the part of the administrator can lead to the creation of less than ideal test-taking

conditions for the subject, and this in tum can engender a sense of frustration and even of

helplessness and failure that results in a lack of motivation to do well.

The principal reliability concern of this study is the reliability of the instrument of

assessment. An effort was made to ensure the maximum possible reduction of interference with

the seif-composure of the human subjects through the mode of selection decided on in procuring

sarnples ofwnting. Each sample was wrïtten in a non-threatening environment, viz., the former

(1993 - 1995) Ministry Test of English Writing. Typically, the test was spread over a three-week

period, allowance was made for teacher- and peer-input, and repeated drafts were perrnitted. One

of the essays submitted for assessment was the student's best-piece personal choice. Thus it could

be concluded that the samples submitted for this study were the students' best. Besides, alI

sarnples were volunteered by their authors, and the Ministry Test stipulated that the efforts of

students who had fiequent absences during the 3-week session were not assigned a mark.

Selections for this study had ail been assigned a mark. The possible effects of defects in the ability

of the individual administrators were also reduced to a minimum in this way. To offset assessor

lack of expertise teachers were chosen who had expenence with the teaching of English at Grade

9 level in both the growth andprocess methods as well as in the genre-based approach. Defects in

the measuring instrument have also been minimized by the fact that it is based on the very

constitutive components of genre-based narrative writing, viz., its 3-factor Register and its speciai

emphasis on grammar, as aiready described in keeping with the philosophy of the Studies

Directorate of the N.S. W. Department of Education and the Education Research Network

(Macken et al., 1989~) .

Examining the reliability of student scores is really concerned with finding out the extent

to which their scores/performance is due to error in measurement or to adverse factors that

impinge on the student's linguistic performance. "The investigation of reIiability is concerned with

asking the question, 'How much of an individual's test performance is due to measurement error,

or to factors other than the language ability we want to measure?' and with minimizïng the effects

of these factors on test scores. " (Cronbach, 1990, pp. 160- 16 1). By analogy therefore, testing the

reliability of the test instrument must be concerned with fïnding out the extent to which the results

obtained are due to the inability of the instrument to rneasure adequately what it claims to

rneasure. This meanire of inability cm be obtained by comparing the results obtained by any two

assessors when they applied the new criteria scale to the same set of essays. A CO-escient of

reliability of the scores can be calculated through the employment of the "top-quarter

tetrachorics" method (Diederich, 1974, pp. 32E). According to this method, each assessor must

indicate which essays were placed in theû judgment in the top quarter, i.e., in the top 25 in this

study. The reliability of the scores obtained (and therefore, of the measurement instrument --

prescindiog from all other souces of error, such as fatigue, difference of interpretation of

parameters) will increase, the greater the match between the number of essays each of the

assessors judges to be eligible for a place among the top 25. This application was carried out in

accordance with the directives of Diederich (ibid.) for every pair of assessors, the number of pairs

being calculated by using the formula 7C2, i.e., the nurnber of combinations to be made among 7

items taken two at a tirne. The number of pairs was 2 1. A CO-efficient of reliability for the scores

obtained through the application of the Traditional Assessment Scale (TAS) was also calcdated

for comparison purposes, using the tetrachorics method. Both sets of results are tabulated in

Figure 14 below.

C. Reliabilitv results

&ure 14: Reliability CO-efficients for assessment scores

Assessors : A.,B,C,D,E,F,G. G : Genre-based assessrnent using NAS T : Traditional mode of assessment using TAS n : number of essays in the top 25 Trch: Tetrachoric CO-efficient (Diederich, 1974) R. : Reliability CO-efficient

Pairs A & B A & C A & D A & E A&F A & G B & C B & D B&E

G & T G & T G & T G & T G & T G & T G & T G&T G & T n 14 13 19 12 19 14 14 14 18 13 16 14 12 6 14 17 13 16 Trch -64 -57 .89 .50 .89 .64 .64 -64 -85 .57 .75 -64 -50 .O0 -64 30 -57 -75 R. .78 -73 .94 -67 .94 -78 .78 -78 -92 .73 -86 .78 -67 .O0 -78 .89 .73 .86

Pairs B & F B & G C & D C & E C & F C & G D & E D & F D & G

G & T G & T G & T G & T G & T G & T G & T G & T G & T n 15 19 15 16 20 14 13 13 17 13 18 14 12 16 17 20 17 17 Trch -70 .89 -70 .75 -92 -64 -57 -57 .80 .57 -85 .64 -50 .75 .80 -92 .80 -80 R. -82 .94 -82 .86 .96 .78 .73 .73 .89 .73 -92 .78 -67 -86 -83 -96 -89 -89

Pairs E & F E & G F & G

G & T G & T G & T n 20 19 16 15 20 18 Trch .92 -89 -75 .70 .92 3 5 R. -96 -94 .86 -82 -96 .92

The total number of essays assessed by each person of the respective pairs to be in the top

25 are entered opposite "nu in Figure 14. These figures are percentages of the whole since the

total number of essays was 100. The correspondhg tetrachoric correlation for each pair on the

results obtained through the use of both NAS and TAS was taken fiom the tetrachonc table

(Diederich, 1974, p.33) and entered opposite Trch. These results represent an estimate of the

agreement between the scores obtained nom the application of both NAS and TAS to the same

set of essays by each of the 21 pairs of assessors, and this is regarded as the reliability meastue of

one rating (Diederich, ibid., p.33). Applying the Speannan-Brown Prophecy Formula to each of

the results (i.e. each correlation x2 and divided by 1 plus that correlation) the reliability measures

for the scores and therefore for the grading instruments (NAS and TAS) were calculated and

entered opposite R in Figure 14. Ten pairs (on NAS) had a reliability CO-efficient of over -80 each,

8 were over .70 and only one between -6 and .7. This represents a mean reliabitity CO-efficient of

-8461.

A reliability CO-efficient for each pair of assessors in applying the Cooper & Odeil (1977)

schema (TAS) was also calculated (using the same rnethod) and entered under "T" in Figure 14

for the purpose of cornparison. The results here showed the reliability CO-efficient for 1 1 pairs

over 30 and an overd mean CO-efficient of -78. It is understood that "the standard error of a

tetrachoric is approxirnately twice as large as that of a product-moment correlation for groups of

the same size" (Diederich, p.33). Yet Diederich accepts this method as being "adequate for

practical decisions in the ordinary course of school work." He also accepts that a reliability co-

efficient of 3 0 as between pairs of markers is adequate for the purpose of assessing school essays

(ibid.) with a view to making practical classroorn decisions. The airn of this study also is to

develop assessment criteria for classroom use so as to facilitate those same practical classroom

decisions, and the reliability figure obtained has exceeded by .O4 that accepted by Diederich for

that same purpose.

It remains now to report on the validity of the new assessment scale (NAS).

D . Validitv results

In a ~ . opening discussion of validity (pp. 3-7 of this study), it was pointed out that

dthough, traditionally, the concept has been treated as ifit comprised the different types --

content, criterion and construct validity, measurement experts such as Messick have developed

the view that these are merely aspects of an integrated concept that subsumes them all. Messick

(1988b) describes validity as "an integrated evaluative judgment of the degree to which empiricai

evidence and theoretical rationaies support the adequacy and appropriateness of inferences and

actions based on test scores" (p. 13). Here in this study my interest is in empirical evidence as

support for the adequacy of the inferences that are made about the new writing assessment criteria

that are based on the scores obtained (appendices B, C, and D) when the criteria were applied to

writing sarnples. APA (1385, p. 13) supports this view of validity in its most recent review of the

Standards when it states: "Validity.. .is a unitary concept.. xalidity aiways refers to the degree to

which the evidence (which can be collected in many ways) supports the inferences that are made

fi-om the scores. Validity is a unitary concept that is related to and dependent on how adequately

and appropriately scores are interpreted. "

The point has been made above that the reliability o f test scores is mLuamized by the

rninimization of the effects of factors that interfere with these scores. Besides, the more reliable

the test scores are, the greater their capacity for vaiidity. Moreover, in the absence of reliability,

there cannot be validity since "in order for a test score to be valid it must be reliable" (Cronbach,

1990, p. 160). Accordingly, the argument of this section is that the higher the reliability of a test

instrument the greater must its capacity for vaiidity be, ai l other variabtes being controlled.

Validity and reliability are complementary facets of a common concern to control and eventudy

eliminate the negative effects of factors that interfere with alI aspects of testing in education. If the

exarnining of the reliability of an instrument of measurement seeks to m e r the extent to which

test scores are due to defects in the instrument, the study of the validity of that instrument seeks

to determine the extent to which test scores are due to the aptitude of the hstmment to measure

what it claùns to measure. Reliability and validity studies of measurement instruments thus

complement each other inasmuch as the former aims to reduce to a minimum the eEects of

inherent error and the latter seeks to augment the ability of that instrument to measure what it

claims to measure, viz., in this study, competence in -en language. Here, as reported above, a

mean reliability rating of more than .80 (the acceptable n o m for practical classroom decisions)

has been obtained, when assessrnent results using my new criteria have been correlated on the

basis of the compared results of paired assessors. Ten pairs had a reliability rating of over .80,8

pairs were over .70, and one pair was at .67. Such consistent results on the reliability of the new

criteria point to their probable high competence to measure what they claim to measure, and

therefore to their validity.

Cronbach (1 990) strongly stresses the complementary nature of reliability and validity,

with the implication that distinguishing between them can at best be arbitrary @. 241). Using

Oller's (1979a) concept of "reliable variance", he summarizes their complementarity by sayhg

". . .reiiabiiity is concened with detennining how much of variance in test scores is reliable

variance, whiie validity is concemed with d e t e m g what language abilities contibute to this

reliable variance" (p. 239). Yet he must also admit that "despite this apparently clear demarcation

of the domains of reliability and validity, distinguishing between the two for language tests is not

always clear-cut", and he proposes that in language tests "our concern is to identiQ and estimate

the relative effects of ali factors that affect test performance" when we develop tests, and in this

way both concerns will have been addressed.

Messick's (1988b) quadrupartite approach (as described in chapter 1) provides the best

analysis of validity to date, since it directs that in a comprehensive approach to the validity of tests

(and here he includes aii forms of educational assessment), the source of the justifkation of test

resuits must be the evidence or consequences or both; and in treathg of the funaion or outcome

of the testing one must include either interpretation or use or both. This present study is

concemed to provide a justification in the form of evidence for the value that is claimed for the

assessment cnteria of genre-based narrative writing. The APA (1985, p. 9) has based validity on

the inferences that are made on the basis of test scores when it defines validity as "the

appropriateness, meaningfulness and usefulness of the specific inferences made nom test scores."

To estimate the vaiidity of the interpretation of a test, evidence is needed. This evidence can be

seen (cf above) as being differentiated into 3 types: relatedness of content, relatedness of

criterion, and meaningfidness of construct.

1. Validation of Content

In addressing the validity of the content ofthe writing genres criteria, content coverage

and content relevance must be discussed (Cronbach, 1990, p. 244E). "The investigation of

content relevance requires the specification of the behavioural domain in question and the

attendant specification of the task . . . " (Messick, 1980, p. 10 17). The ability domain involved here

is the cornpetence of the authors of 100 samples of written narrative as demonstrated in the?

ability to satis% the demands of Field, Tenor and Mode, as analysed above (chapter 4). It also

inciudes the teacher expertise in applying the parameters of both genres and traditional assessment

rnethods. Both have been proven to be present fkom the analysis of the scores obtained (Figure 14

above). The test methods, also involved in content relevance, refer to the use of a traditional

method of assessment on the essays and the cornparison of its analytical parameters with those of

the new criteria so as to correlate the results obtained from the application ofboth methods.

The correlated results were cdculated in accordance with Diederich (1974, pp. 32E). The

top 25 essays as examined by each assessor according to both TAS and NAS were noted and the

results are presented in appendix A The number of essays menting a place in the top quarter (25)

on both counts with each of the 7 assessors were as follows: 15, 14, 18,20, 17,20,22. These

figures are percentages of the whole, since the gross number of essays assessed was 100, and by

reading the Tetrachorics Table (Diederich, ibid., p.33) one sees that they have a corresponding

tetrachoric correlation respectively of -70, -64, -85, -92, .go., -92 and .92+. These results represent

an estimate of the agreement between the two assessment methods as applied by each assessor,

and this is regarded as the validity measure of one rating (Diedench, 1974, p.33). Applying the

Spearman-Brown Prophecy Formula to each of the results (as indicated above), the validity

measures for this grading instrument as calculated fiom the paired applications of the 7 assessors

are: .82, .78, -92, .96, .89, -96, and .96+. This represents a mean of .90 which has exceeded by .10

the validity n o m accepted by Diederich for practical classroom decisions.

Content coverage referring to the extent to which the speci6ed tasks in a test suEciently

cover the domain in question, was also satisfied since the essays were written in the narrative

mode, the parameters of assessment were squarely based on the very constitutive characteristics

of genre-based narrative as outlined in the relevant literaîure (especially Macken et al., 1 9 8 9 ~ ) ~

and the assessors applied these parameters diligently to the writing samples. It is understood that

there are many ditnculties involved in spec-g domains in language tests (cf Cronbach, 1990 p.

246). The sampling of essays was randornly made fiom a total of seven schools. Even though

content relevance demonstrates that the contents of a test represent accurately a given area of

ability, yet it does not account for the variance in performance or for the interpretation of the

scores, and this is another reason that content validity does not afFord adequate evidence for

validity. Content relevance is not adequate for validity because "it does not permit inferences

about abilities and does not take into consideration how test takers perform." (Cronbach, 1990, p.

247).

2.Criterion Validity

Criterion validation refers to the process "which demonstrates a relationship between test

scores and some criterion which we believe is also an indicator of the ability tested" (Cronbach, p.

248). In this study the ability is narrative writing expertise, with its criteria created fiom the salient

characteristics of genre-based Miting (Macken et al., 1989c), and the critena taken as established

indicators of good writing are those of Cooper and Odeli's traditional mode of assessment. The

content of the genre-based criteria scale (NAS) are shown below (Figure 15) to correlate

signincantly with that of their counterparts in the traditional assessment scale (TAS).

Figure 15 Cornparison of factors on TAS with those on NAS

Traditional Assessrnent

A. Role of author: 1s initial and proper role as participant/observer kept?

B. Stylehoice: Does the author express really personal attitudes and convictions and hence capture the reader's interest?

Genre-b4~sed Assessrnent

ATenor (1) Does the author assume an authontative role?

B. Tenor (2): Does the text describe characters in such minute detail, including their actions and dialogue, that the

Centrai figure: Does the descnption make the character(s) real for you the reader? Background: 1s the setting of the action so detailed that it gives the events a "red" place to happa?

Sequence: h the order of events clear and appropriate to a nanative, giving the reader a precise view ofthe series of incidents that are woven into a story? Theme: Does the author choose the incidents for some reason? Is there evidence of some purpose behind the choice of subject matter, Le., a theme holding it together?

reader experiences frateniity with or distance fiom them? C. Tenor (3):Does the text inciude weU-marked dialogue and an indication of interpersonal meanings? D. Field (1): 1s the author's description duenced by the context, which is aIso situabond and integrated with a certain culture? E. Field (2): Is the text an account of incidents that progress through a series of stages as the story unfolds?

F. Tenor (4): Does the author describe events in terms of the needs and motives of persons so that they have a personal significance for the reader?

The correspondence between the Diction-syr~tux~mechonics fhctor of the traditional mode of

assessrnent (cf Cooper & OdeIl, 1977, pp.2 1-24) with the modal parameter of genre is not

immediately obvious. Yet on closer examination both approaches are seen to possess many

commonalities in this area, even though there is a contrasting emphasis on the use of langage

fkom one to the other. Both stress correctness of expression; but while the standard measure of

this correctness consias of what is acceptable according to a pre-detennuied code of correctness

in the traditional approach, the standard of correctness in the genre-based approach is the

suitability of the words chosen for the conveying of the intended meaning. The writer in the

genres tradition chooses words that will prove to be the best possible means to convey the

intended meaning. The writing subject in the traditional mode dso has a prirnary pre-occupation

with a suitable linguistic vehicle for the expression and conveying of meaning, but one whose

suitability is measured according to a generdy accepted syntacticai and grammatical code.

. . Traditional assessrnent

Wording: Are words employed in a unique and interesthg way to express meauing?

Syntax: Does the author show a cornpetent control of sentence structure that results in a smoothly readable text?

Usage: Does the text confonn to generdy accepted conventions for expressing meaning?

Punctuation & spelling

p. Theme: Are words positioned in a sentence so as to convey a certain pre-conceived module of meaning? Positionhg cm be topicai, textuai or interpersonal.

q. Conjunction: Has the author connected sentences logically in order to convey meanhg adequately, and to ennire a pleasingly readable text?

r. Transitivïty: 1s the choice of words (especiaiiy verbs) weU suited to the expression of meaning and the transactions that are described in the text ?

S. Reference

In this fourth category, the correspondence between the traditionai parameters of

"punctuation and spelling " and the genre characteristic of "reference" is less obvious, and the

match is more strained. Punctuation, in referring to the division of word groups that enshrine

individual concepts, and speiiing which ensures that the reader will recognize the words and so

understand the meaning, are both concemed with the presentation of meaning to the reader.

Reference, being both specific and generic is aiso concemed with the conveying of rneaning, in as

much as the proper use of both specific and generic references will ensure the creation of a text

that is cohesive, and me that will convey to the reader a clear understanding of a series of events,

passing fiom stage to stage of the narrative without serious interruption of the thought pattern.

From the viewpoint of content, both examine the author's role (referred to as [a] in the

column titles of appendices B, C, and D), both involve the reader pl, both create mie-to-life

characters [cl, both show the rdatedness of the events to the context in which they occur [dl,

both take cognizance of a well-stnictured account [el, both refer to the events and interactions

as refiecting human needs and how to satisQ them [fJ.

From the standpoint of the language used, both focus on the choice and o r d e ~ g of words

to convey meanhg [pl, both focus on the creation of a cohesive and easily readable account [q],

both focus on the importance of the verb as a prime conveyor of meaning [r], and both, fïnaily,

are concemed with using the standard or usuaily accepted form of the words normaiiy used to

convey meaning so as to create a text that presents an easiiy and pleasuigly readable account [SI.

However, any evidence of correlation derived fkom scores obtained fiom the use of the new

cnteria and those of a traditional mode of assessment is just that, viz., evidence based on a

correlation with an assessment whose validity derives not oniy fiom its accepted use over a

number of years, but also f?om the fact that it originated Ui a factor-anafysis of the qualities or

factors teachers traditiody looked for (Cooper & Odeii, 1977) in their assessrnent of narrative

wnang .

Hence, without independent evidential support in the strict sense for the interpretation of

the new critena of good wiiting being discussed here, one may not probative- assume that a high

correlation between the assessed resuits obtained by using them and the results fiom the use of a

traditional scale of assessment is a proof of their validity. " . . . only the process of constnict

validation can provide this evidential basis of validity" (Cronbach, 1990, p. 249).

. . 3. Çonstruct Vahdity

Constmct has already been defhed (chapter 1). To state the concept in praaicd tems,

Messick 0975, p. 957) writes: "A [vaiid] measure estimates how much of something an individual

displays.. .Constnict validation seeks to know what is the nature of that something. " The scores

obtained in educational tesMg are imerpreted as symbolic of a certain degree of ability, and

asking what the ability is that is measured is to involve constnict validation. Constnict validity is

seen as a m@ing concept, and construct validation as a process that involves content and

cntena. Tonstruct valiais, is iadeed the w g concept that integrates cntenon and content

considerations into a common franiework for testing rational hypotheses about theoretically

relevant relationships" (Messick 1980, p. 10 1 5).

Central to this evaluation study are the new critena of genre-based narrative writing and

the validation of these; but it mua be admitted that the evidence supporthg them as the construct,

as presented here, is lùnited to the degee to which they compare, from the viewpoint of content

and assessment results, with one other (traditional) scale of assessment, viz., that of Cooper and

Ode11 (1977). What is lacking is input f?om the assessors who applied the new criteria on how, for

example, they interpreted them. Huot (1990) atfirms that "Assessmerrt is basically a new area in

composition scholarship, and it will take some time and concentrated effort for theory and

research to catch up with practice" (p. 257), and that "Other than resuits that measure the

importance of content and organktion in rater judgment of writing quality, little is known about

the way raters arrive at these decisions" (p. 258). Hence he points to the need (ibid., p. 257) for

research into how, in assessing written texts, "the rating procedures influence reading and

judgment." Such research in the case of this study, would seek answers to such questions as the

following: Were the assessors of the impression that the 10-factor schema (NAS) led to a

comprehensive assessment of the texts? Could they comfortably apply them as explained on the

cfiart, without any need to revert to their personal rnethod of rnarking essays? What were the

actual criteria they used? What was their average rnarking time per essay ? Lacking also is factual

information as evidence about the texts themselves; and even though "research on student text

[hm] been inconclusive in establishing a h n relationship between syntax and wrïting quaiity,

[and] has aiso been ineffective in promoting any theoretical knowledge about the rating process"

(Huot, ibid., p. 258), a text andysis of the essays could provide a further source of evidence for

the vaiidity of the consîruct. Notwithstanding, Cronbach (1990 p. 258) attests that correlations

among test scores are not the only evidence relevant to validation; but neither are such

correlations sutficient. There are other types of empiricai evidence that can be used in constnict

validation. Among these other types he notes "the examination of patterns of correlations arnong

item scores and test scores, and between characteristics of items and tests, and scores on items

and teas." (ibid.) Such patternkg is drawn upon in his study.

A pattern has been found, and already discussed under validity results (above) among the

results obtained by 7 independent assessors when they applied the new criteria and those of a

standard method of assessment (albeit not universdy standardued) in assessing 100 essays. The

pattern, denved fkom the inclusion of 15, 14, 18,20, 17,20, and 22 essays in the top 25% on

both counts (through the application of the Spearman-Brown Prophecy Formula) gave validity

measures of . 82, -78, .92, .96, .89, .96, .96+, ((mean = .90) and a mean reliability score of .846 1

based on the scores firom the essays placed in the top 25 by dl seven assessors taken in pairs.

Furthermore, since reliabifity and validity are complementary measures of any constmct

(Cronbach, passim), these measures also point to a high degree of validity.

The mean scores fiom the seven assessors on each of the 10 cnteria in both scaies of

assessment and dso the correspondhg standard deviations (SD) from the means were also

calculated in the case ofthe 39 essays that were numbered in the top 25 by aII seven asssessors on

both scales of assessment. These are presented in Appenciix B. Simdar calcuiations were made for

the 1 1 essays judged to belong to the top 25 by the traditional criteria oniy (Appendix C), and the

6 essays by the new criteria ody (Appendix D). Whde the means varied fiom 9.85 to 6.28 in

appIying TAS and fiom 9.57 to 5.71 in applying NAS (AppendBc B), the mean of the means

varied only from 6.638 (TAS) to 6.16 (NAS). This high correlation of the means of the scores

assigned on al1 10 cnteria by the 7 assessors in using both methods, points to a high degree of

similarity between the scores assigned through the use of the two scaies of assessment and, since

TAS is a method whose value has been proven over the past 30 years, to a high degree of validity

of NAS. The SDs nom the mean varied fkom 0.53 to 3.32 (NAS) and fiom 0.37 to 2.93 (TAS).

The means of die SDs varied fiom 1.198 (TAS) to 1.3 88 (NAS). This close correlation ùi the

case of the standard spread of scores around the mean provides yet another pointer to the validity

of NAS scores and to the value of the instrument itself. Furthemore this latter set of statistics

shows a smaller spread of scores f?om the mean in NAS than in TAS, a factor which points to the

greater degree of agreement in assigning scores ushg NAS and therefore, a greater accuracy,

which fact again points to the validity of NAS.

In the case of the 11 essays (Appendk C), while the mean scores on aiI 10 criteria varied

fiom 7.28 to 5.14 (TAS) and fiom 7.28 to 5.00 (NAS), the mean of the rnean scores varïed from

7.025 (TAS) to 6.12 (NAS). The close similarit- between the spread of scores showa by a strong

comparison of the span fkom greatest to least, can be seen as pointing to the validity of NAS

scores even on essays that were not numbered in the top 25 on NAS basis. The SDs varied nom

2.47 to 0.81 (TAS) and fiom 2.21 to 0.37 (NAS), while the means of the SDs contrasted at 1.71

(TAS) and 1-30 (NAS). The comparison of mean SDs points to a s d e r spread of scores about

the rnean on essays assessed by NAS which were judged by NAS not to belong in the top 25,

another pointer to the validity of these scores and of NAS.

6 essays were among the top 25 on NAS assessment alone (Appendix D). The mean

scores varied £tom 7.7 1 to 4.71 (NAS) and fiom 8.14 to 5.14 (TAS), while the mean of the means

varied fkom 6.47 (NAS) to 6.71 (TAS), which close correlations of NAS scores with TAS scores

point again to a probable high degree of validity of NAS. In the case of the SD fiom the mean

scores varied fiom 2.73 to 0.78 (NAS) and fiom 2.22 to 0.48 (TAS), while the mean SDs were

1.69 (NAS) and 1.37 (TAS). These fast means, whiie closely correiated and thus suggesting a

high degree of NAS validity , nevertheless point to a lesser spread (and thus more accurate

scores) on TAS, even though these 6 essays were not judged to be among the top 25 on the

strength of TAS alone. However, this anornaly need not necessarily point to the infenority of

NAS -- it can be interpreted merely to Say that on these 6 essays there was a cioser match

between scores on TAS than on NAS.

A commentary has already been given on the characteristics of the items chosen as

assessment criteria in the genre-based mode of assessment, especially in light of how they are

based on the saiient characteristics of genre-based narrative, and on how each has its counterpart

in the traditional mode of Cooper and Ode11 (1977). The similarities found between the factors of

the two methods also point to a positive correlation and therefore to the likelihood of increased

validity. Cronbach (1990, p. 258) as mentioned above in the context of the process of constnict

validation., listing a number of "types of empirical evidence" which a person may use, States that

"Two of these types of evidence, correlational and experimentai, are particularly powerful in my

opinion.. . " (ibd), thus strengthening the daims of this study.

E. Summarv of the r e s d t ~

This study set out to design an acceptable schema of assessrnent criteria for genre-based

narrative writing at the Intermediate (grade 9) Iwel. These critena wiU augment the mategies

repertoire of general classroom practitioners and in addition shouid act as an incentive to those

who are still using traditional approaches to undertake the teaching of writing fkom the genres

poim of view. This development is seen to fiil6l a need for the further reasons that fhtly, no

criteria of this kind are known to exist; secondly, that the genre-based approach to writing is now

slowly being adopted by reachers in North America and Canada and is seen to be a more efficient

method through which to teach writing (Cope & K a l h s , 1993 ; Huot & Williamson, 1993);

and thirdly, that increased incidence of use demands a system of evaiuation.

At the sarne tirne it is the aim of this study to show (albeit implicitly) that there is a strong

quality of continuity in evidence as among the growth, process and genres approaches to teaching

writing in the classroom. The growth and process models encourage the writhg of a number of

successive drafts, which entails honing and refbing unal a "perfect" redaction is achieved; but the

method used to refine is bea described as "trial and error correction" as pointed out by the

teacher or peer editor in what could be descnbed as a readve sense. The genres approach, on the

other hanci, is proactive and teaches the student explicitly the strategies of how to achieve a good

narrative. This is done by training the student in the elements of structure, by explaining and

directing the studems' attention to nich aspects as field and tenor and by teaching them how to

employ apt vocabulary, variant word order in sentence structure, and a syaem of reference that

ensures a smoothly running and pleasuigly readabIe story.

In developing a code for the assessrnent of narrative writing, a continuous effort was made

to relate the parameters of the code to the salient characteristics of genre-based writing as these

were delineated by the experts in the relevant iiterature. At the same time, care had to be taken to

avoid two attractive but deceptive extremes: over-simplitication in order to "seil" the method to

as yet disinterested teachers on the one hand, and the inclusion of every smdest detail in the

interests of showing how thorough the approach is, on the other, with the probable remit of

deterring many Eom irnplementing the approach. The former error was made in the drafting of the

pilot set of criteria, but this was soon to corne to light in the pilot testing when teachers found it

truiy impossible in their assessments to take cognizance of the many factors subsurned under each

parameter of assessrnent It was therefore decided to delineate a greater number of simple unitary

factors to test the students' employment of the different characteristics of the genres approach in

their narratives, and to assign variant ratings to them according to the Unportance seen to atîach

to them in the achievement of an acceptable text. The traditional mode1 chosen was that of

Cooper and OdelI (1977). This choice was made, both because the mode1 had originated from a

factor analysis of the characteristics on which teachers of Enghsh traditiondy focussed when

assessing witten mative , and because an examination of those characteristics showed that

while each might have borne a titie in keeping with its ongin and ratiode, the aspects of writing

focussed on by them resernbled closely the salient features of genre-based writing stressed in the

descriptive literature.

It was decided therefore, in assessing the reliabitity and validity of the new assessment

criteria, to examine the extent to which the results obtained fiom the application of them to the

100 essays correlated with the resuits obtained Grom the application of the Diederich (1974)

mode1 as interpreted by Cooper and Odell(1977) to the same 100 essays by the same teachers,

with the caveas mentioned earüer. High reliabiiity incikators were in fact obtained for each of all

21 possible pairs of the teachers according to the "top quarter tetrachoncs" method (Diederich,

1974) and the application of the Spearman-Brown Prophecy Formula (ibid.). It is appreciated that

the standard error of a tetrachoric was approximately twice that of a product-moment correlation

for groups of the same size; but the purpose of the study was achieved, viz., to provide a reliable

system of narrative essay grading for the classroom teacher that would be adequate for practical

decisions in the day-to-day course of school work.

Reliability and validiry were seen to be comp!ementary characteristics of assessment

systems, and a high reliability pointed to a high degree of validity, other factors being equal.

Content and criterion valiaity were seen to resdt f?om the high measure of agreement between

the factors (a) to (f) and (p) to (s) of the new criteria, and the corresponding factors of the

standard method empioyed.

The new criteria have thus been shown to have the degree of reliability and validity

required for their safe and profitable use by the generai practitioner in the classroom.

Limitations of this stu&

1. The study was dependent on the uncontrollable variable of the number of teachers

conversant with, skilled in, and at present implementing a genre-based approach to the teaching of

writing in grade 9.

2. ne study was also dependent on the uncontroilable variable of the number of writing

samples that could be obtained, both because of the time limit set and because the of students'

reluctance to share their writing samples. It was aiso found that teachers were not overly

enthusiastic, because of schooI-work overload, about assurning the extra burden of marking 100

essays.

3. Only TCDSB personnel were invited to take part

4. Great dificdty was encountered nom the start of the study in retrieving copies of

pubiished or other source materiais seen to be essential to the carrying out of the study, especiaiiy

those of Australian origin. These Iast had to be ordered fiom Australian libraries and this ofken

entailed a long wait.

5. Samples of writing not received by the closing date were not uicluded in the study

6. Evidence in support of the validity of the new cnteria of assessrnent (referred to above,

pp. 2 17-2 18) is also limited.

Chapter Six

IMPLICATIONS

The importance of ability to write well for everyone who wishes to be a success in Life in

Our contemporary western society is dficult to overestimate. Compared with the demands made

on people of al1 ages half a century ago when an adequate education, which usually tenninated at

twelve years of age, meant at best the ability to read the Bible and write an occasional business or

fi-iendly letter, the young are now expected to attempt secondary level education, and an

increasing number (under pressure from community demands) are seeking a university degree. To

be successful at these levels, a high degree of efnciency in writing skiils is necessary. Besides, the

increasing complexity of modern Me, with its trade union activity, law courts, banks, trade and

varied media of communication, including the electronic, produces such a volume of print that the

ways literacy is used by society and its signincance in the community have changed. Being literate

is no longer an option; it is now necessary, if one is to participate successfùily in one's community.

Such participation includes schooling and success there; and success entails the writing of

reports, notes, essays, summaries, project accounts and examinations. Teachers everywhere

therefore, are al1 teachers of wnting.

An article in The Globe and Mail ( M y 22,1996) written by Jennifer Lewington reported

on how one comrnunity is answering the need for literacy. Their answer was a project that was

g a t h e ~ g momentum in York Region Flowerdale Public School to reinstall a programme "that

includes phonics instruction for reading, teacher-guided instruction, a school-based cumculum

and a discipline code" (ibid.). The school-based cuniculum would certainly include writing, and

one does not need to search very far in order to fùid the reason.

An effort was made in this study to create a consciousness of the factors responsible for

the Werent ways in which we use language. The contexts in which we use language and the

purposes we have in mind demand different kinds of language, and "to leam to operate

successfidly in each context is to learn to create the text type appropnate to that context"

(Christie, 1989). Thus, a remote aim of this study has been to re-awaken an interest in the art of

writing in general and in narrative writing in particdar for the reasons already given, and also

because the narrative as a writing genre is so extensively cded upon and used to focus attention

on the expectation that everyone has the abiiity to tell and write a story. The proltimate aim was

to create, discuss and make available to classroom teachers a formula for the evaluation of genre-

based narrative writing, which though focussed on grade 9 could be adapted to both lower and

higher levels, and in addition to bring into the open through my personal writing programme a

method of approach to writing genres in the classroom. This formula (as the developed criteria of

this study), the results of the application of which correlate highly with the results obtained from

the use of a more traditional method of assessment and seeming therefore to add iittle to the

assessment repertoire of the teacher/assessor, is seen by this author to serve a useful purpose,

nevertheless, in as much as it highlights the skius on which teachers must focus in instructing

students in the art of good narrative writing. In teaching these skills explicitly by drawing the

students' explicit attention to them as generative of good writing and as the explicit focus of

evaluation, the teacher/assessor is using yet another powemil strategy to achieve the desired aim.

It was for those reasons that an attempt was made to elucidate the characteristics both

theoretical and practicd, of genre-based writing. The acquiring of the art of writing is really the

coming to a realization that different types of text are possible and useful, and can and are being

continually created and used in the multiplicity of contexts in which people operate and

cornmunicate fiom day to day. These types are called genres, and they are created in accordance

with the choices in the use of language that we make. Such varied uses - and therefore also such

choices -- that we make, are determuied by the kinds of meanings we create and wish to convey

through the repeated language patterns we produce as we write (and as we speak). Also implicit

in this study is the desire to stress the tmth that good education recognizes and respects the kinds

of choices that learners need to know how to make in order to create the genres they need if they

are to cornmunicate successfùlly in Merent contexts. Moreover, a comprehensive education is

one that will familiarize students with these genres in a variety of ways as they proceed through

the courses of study they choose during their school years.

The eariier discussion on writing genres also explained the idea of a tex1 and of texture in

language as concepts that relate to wholeness and cohesion or that which ensures that an account

is weil knitted together and conveys a certain meaning clearly and precisely without meandering

f?om the main line of thought. A text is therefore much more than a collection of words, and the

process by which it is woven into a whole is not at ail simple. Words have meaning only in so far

as they are the buildins blocks of the organized and pattemed expanses of language which are

used to build and convey certain meanings. In language teaching, the teacher is ideally concerned

to engage the leamers in the conveying of meaning by means of prolonged strearns of language,

and it is with the macro unit of meaning rather than the micro components (namely, the words)

that the teacher should be prirnarily concerned. The concem of every writing programme should

be the production of various kinddgenres of texts çuited to the kinds of meaning students wish to

convey. Students have need to convey the personal meanings they have created in order to play an

effective role in their community and bring about developmental changes there in the interests of

progress. Expertise in the production of a varied systern of wrinen and spoken genres is

necessary for this .

The idea of genres in wrïting (Le., types of wrîtten text) was also discussed. Text types

are patterns of language created within a specinc culture and influenced by it, and used for

specific purposes in one's relationships with others. Such texts have each its own peculiar shape

or overall structure or schema, and they vary according to the way they are used in letters, public

speeches, sermons, instructions, reprimands and on numerous other occasions. They are essential

and integral aspects of every culture and are a daily feature of day to day Living. Hence, learning

the genres of one's culture is a necessary part of becoming educated, and teachers must attend to

this if their students are to graduate from school and become successfu1 members of their

comrnunity. Martin & Christie (1 984) define genre as "a staged, purposeful, goal-directed

activity.. ." and it is as such that it is being discussed here in the conte* of written language

leaming; and a genre is created because a person wishes to cany out some task in language as an

integral part of living in society; but since language (especially written language), is one of the

most significant means of accomplishing things in school teachers must see to it that students are

well-versed in the skills of creating and interpreting written language genres.

Students should also become explicitly and consciously acquainted with the different

situations or contexts in Life that c d for varied h t t e n genres: writing a letter of cornplaint,

applying for a job, reporting an incident to the police. Indeed it c m be truly said that to operate

successfidly in those and other related situations is simply to be able to write the appropriate text

for each. This ability entails becorring familiar with the appropriate stages or steps involved in

each, for omitting one such step wodd result in embarrassrnent to oneself, a sense of

dissatisfaction and perhaps fdure to accomplish the a h desired. It is the context that creates the

need for the particular genre, and hence it wiil be necessary for the teacher in school to create

learning contexts that are maximaily differentiated, so that the oppominities to leam new genres

wiii be at their highest peak. Genres theorists speak of such contexts as they occur in real life as

contexts of sztuutzon, and these are related to the much wider context which the context ofculture

entails. Contexts of culture m e r fkom each another, and a way of acting that is productive in one

culture may be only counter-productive in another. This has becorne an item of acute importance

for teachers in Canada, in view of the hi& percentage of immigrant students who populate our

schools. If these students are to be mccessful in their adoptive country, they mua be enabled to

l e m appropriate and effective ways of making meaning and of dealing with experience. Of

course, these ways are not codined to language alone, though language is one of our principal

ways of making and receiwig meaning.

Another necessary ski11 to be learned and used by the teacher in educating students is that

of analysing different contexts of situation. For it is possible for the teacher, conftonted with the

challenge of understanding how dEerent genres emerge creatively fiom the variant contexts of

situation in which others are prone to act, to examine analytically the characteristics of those

situations and see how they M e r one f?om another. Genres experts speak of the area cf register

in this comection. Different contexts of situation make different language demands on those

involved, and these demands are dictated by (1) the nature of the social activity involved, e-g., a

telephone conversation between friends, a class session with a teacher; (2) how the people

involved relate to each other and their individual roles; and (3) how language is used in the text

that is bom nom the situation. These three factors are known in genres contexts asfield, lenor

and mw'e. respectively; and when persons change fiom involvement in one situation to

involvement in another they necessarily rnake a shift in register if their participation is to be

effective. Andysis offield (for both teacher and pupil) will entail observing how the participants

engage in the activity and what their characteristics are. Examination of tenor will lead the

teacher to ask what is the attitude/relationship of the writer to the characters and how do they

interact. The mode wili reved the role of language in the interaction. 1t is useful for teachers to

l e m these skills, for when we as teachers open up new ways and new opportunities for students,

native or immigrant, we are making available to them new approaches to the examining and

understanding of their world and of operating successfùlly in it, so that they can contribute

towards making it a better place for themselves and for others.

The importance of creating a classroom environment favourable to genres

leaminglteaching cannot be overstressed. Modelling the genres is as important here as in other

aspects of teaching. At grade 9 level it will be necessary to introduce the genres appropriate for

successful writing not only in English but in other subject areas as well. Teachers must also guide

students in their reading choices and involve them in writing tasks that give practice in the genres

being leamed. Hence the detailed system of coaching (involvhg exploring, explaining,negotiating)

described earlier in the process of the students' becomùig proficient vniters. Nor do the benefits

arising fiom the teaching of written genres apply to students only. The challenge ofthis "new"

approach resdts in the teachers' being constrained to develop the expertise of talking about

language, and particularly about the characteristics of different genres so as to equip the students

also to verbalize in their class discussions what particular genre, for example, is best suited to a

certain situation and why, and to explain also why certain vocabulary choices and a certain

structure are chosen in preference to others. Being analytically familiar with genre-based writing

also equips teachers with a creative and accurate approach to the evaluation of their students'

compositiow. Such teacher expertise in expounding and evaluaîing written language should result

in better teaching in general and in more efEéctive learning.

Working in a genre-based approach to d t t e n language creates in the teacher a sharpened

sense of how one can use language as the raw material to build up the patterns that are integral to

different genres. Such expertise belongs in the area of systemic linguistics pioneered by M. AK.

Halliday (l985a), which is the science of describing anaiytically how language is structured (at

word, phrase, clause, sentence levels) to create and convey meaning; and how different verbal

choices are made in order to create difSerent kinds of meaning. This takes the teacher and the

student into the areas of theme, conjunction, reference. and transitivzty, already explained in

detail.

In sum, the genres approach to written language composition is seen as a very effective

way of leadhg students to become efficient and proficient writers in their preferred language. This

in tum Leads to their becorning successfbl shidents at school. It equips them, too, with an

important key to success in their chosen career in He, whether they enter this via university or

from secondary school. Most importantly, they develop expertise in observing situations, in seeing

how and why people interact, in assessing how language is both an emergent product of and a

constitutive factor in such situations, and how consequently, to become involved in them. In a

word, a successful encounter with genre-based writing, (and this entds the availability of an

efficient set of evaluation criteria) whether in the narrative or other modes, provides the sîudent

with an important key to success, a key which should capture the committed interest of ail

teachers .

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HAMMONDI 1. (1 986) The effect of modelling reports and nanatives on the d n g of year 2 childm from non-English speaking backgmunds. Ausf/a/ian Renéw ofApp/iedL/'nguiSf/*cs, 9,2,75-93.

HAMMOND, 1. (1 987) An ovewiew of the genre-based appmach to the teaching of writing in Australia, Ausfim/ian Review ofAppfied LinguistrLcc, 10,2, 163-1 81.

HAMMONDI 1. (1 990) Is learning to read and mite the same as leaming to speak? In Frances Christie (ed), Litency fwa changing wod6 pp. 26-53, AusWian council for educational meardi, Melbourne.

HASAN, RUQNYA (1 985) The structure of a ted. In M.A.K Halliday and Ruqaiya H m , LInguage, mconteit and &.ut Aspects of hguage in a socia/semioocperqpe&e7 Deakin Univeaity pms, Geelong.

HUOT, B. (1 990a). Reliability, validity, and holistic xori'ng: What we know and what we need to hou. Cd/qe composib;on andcommunit;d5,bn7 41,201 -21 3.

HUOT, B. (1 990b) The literature of direct miting assessrnent Major concems and prwailing trends, Revim of Educa~onal Research, 60 (2) , 237-263.

JONES, B.E.W. (1 978). Making of student vriting by high x h w l kachers in Virginia during 1 976. Dikse/tafion ab*& hternationaJ 38,391 1 A.

KALANTZIS, MARY and COPE, BILL, (1 989) An o ~ ~ w = T e d & i ~ ~ a r n i q d / i t e r a c y , C o m m ground, Sydney.

KINGMAN, lOHN (1 988) Report of ~e Commr'ffee of Inquii ihtb ~e teaairii of the Eng/kb hnggrrage, Department of Education and science, HMSO, London.

KNAPP, PETER & KRESSI G.R. (1 992) G e n ~ sndgnmmar, Thomas Nelson, Melbourne. KRESS, G.R. (1 982) Leaming to d e , Routledge and Kqan Paul, London. KRESS, G.R. (1 986a). Reading, miting and power. In Claire Painter and J.R. Martin (eds) Wn'f7'ng fo lm,

Applied linguistics association of Austrdia, Occasional papers 9, Melbourne.

KRESS, G.R. (1986b) Curriculum amas and f o m of miting: leaming what wnting is nally about. In R .D. Waishe and P. & D. Jensen (4s) Wrifing aandeaming in Ausfra/iaJ Oxford university press, Melbourne.

KRESS, G.R. (1 987) Genn in a social theory of language. In lan Reid (ed) nie Phce ofgenre in feaming, Deakin University pms, Geelong.

KRESSI G .R. (1 992a). Genn in a social theory of language. Engfish in eduaa'on, lune edition. KRESS, G.R. (1 992b). Leaming to wnieJ Routledge and Kegan Paul, London. MACKEN, M. & ROTHERY, 1. (1 991 ) . hve/oping aifr'Câ//ifdracy ltrmug sysfemK hrn&o~ld/linguisf!*cc: an

anahsi3 of the Mng task in a year 10 ~femnce test, Disadvantaged schools' prugram, Metropolitan East Region, NSW Department of ducation, Sydney.

MACKEN, M. & SLADE, D. (1 993). Assmment: A foundation for effecüve learning in the school context. In B. Cope and M. Mantzis (e&) , Tlie powen of laemy: a gem apprwch tu teadhg wdllng, pp. 203- 23 1. Pkburg: Falmer press.

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MACKEN, MARY, KALANTZIS, MARY, KRESS, GUHTHER, MARTIN, J.R., COPE, B I u 6 ROTHERY, IOAN, (1 989b) A genrebasedapprvach fo feadiing wn'fi'ngJ Yeas 3-6, &uk 2: Facfud Wng: A teachihg mi? k e d on teports a h u t sea mammakI Diredorate of studies, NS W Department of Education, in association with the üteracy and Education Research Network, Sydney.

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MACKEN, MARY, KAUWTZISl MARY, KRESS, GUNTHER, MARTIN, J.R., COPE, BILL & ROTHERYf JOAN (1 989d) A gem-based approch to feaching wn'fj;ng, Yearr 3-6, Book 4. 7ne b(Zeov and prarfr'ce ofgenre-ked &ng, Directorate of studm, NSW Department of Education, in association with the Literacy and Education Research Network, Sydney.

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MARTIN, 1.R. (1 986) lntervening in the process of nmting development. In Clain Painter and J.R. Maitin (eds) , Wmg tv mean: Tea&inggenms a m ~e twmiufum, Applied linguistics association of Australia, Occasionai papcrs 9, 1 1-43.

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disadvan~gedschoo/spmg/am: Facfual wntngprojcî evaluaon. National centre for English language teaching and research, Macquarie University, Sydney.

WARDHAUGH, RONALD (1 967). Ability in d e n composition and transfomational grarnmar. h a / o f edutafiond research, 6 0,9.

W ILUAMSON, M.M. and HUOT, BRlAN (eds) (1 993). Validating ho/sfr'c scunirg #br w&" assessment:7neoretica/and ernpin'kd f o u n d a Cresthill, M.: Hampton P m s Inc.

LIST OF TOP 25 ESSAYS

NO.

25

29

30

3 1

22

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

1

A

G T

J ./

J J

J

C

G T

J

J J

J

J J

J J

d

B

G T

J

-

J

I

42

42

43

D

G T

J

J J J

. 44 1

51 . / J J 4 4

52 J J J J J J 4 J J / J

53

54 J / 4' l

55 A 1 I

E

G T

J J J

J

45

46

47

48

49

1 J J

c/

/ J

J J J J J

J d

J J

./

F

G T

I

J

J J

J

J

50

1

G

G T

J

J

J J J J

/

J J

J

J J

J

J J

J J

I

J J

NO-

56

A

G T

f

C

G T

B

G T

D

G

' J J

J

E

T G T

57

58

59

60

61

62

J

J J

J

J J

J J

J

I

J J J

F

G T

63 1 64

65

66

67

J

J J

i

G f

G T

I J

J J

J J

I J

4 J

J J

J J

d

58 l J / I / I / 4

l J

69 1 70

71 ( J / 1

72 1J J -- 12

74

75

J J J

76

77

78

79 .

80

81

82

83

J J

J

J J

J J J

J J J / J J

. / . /

J

J k

J J

J

J

J J J I

' J J

tf /

I

J J

tf I J / d J

J

1

I

J J

./ J % J J

NO.

8 4

85

56

87

88

89

90

91

92

93

94

95

96

97

E

G T

J

J J J

J J

J

/ J

J

A

G T

A

J J J

J J 1

C

G T

B

G T

J

J J

D

G T

J J J

J J i d

F

J J

J J J

J J

98

99

100

J J

J

J J

J J

J J

J

J

J

- - -.

G

G T

J

J

J J

J

J

J - J Id

J

I

J J

J J J

J

J

J J J

J

J

- - -

J

J J

J

J J

J

Explanatory note for appendices B. C. and D

Appendices B, C, and D present the mean assessment scores (M) and the standard deviations Born the mean (SD) of the 7 assessors on each of the criteria in the TAS and NAS IO-factor scales of assessment .

Appendur B presents those scores for the essays (serial numbers listed vertïcally) judged by aii 7 assessors to be among the top (best) 25 on the results obtained on the strength of both TAS and NAS.

Appendix C presents those essays (and corresponding scores) that were judged by aii 7 assessors to be among the top @est) 25 on the strength of TAS only.

Appendix D presents those essays (and corresponding scores) that were judged by al1 7 assessors to be among the top (best) 25 on the strength of NAS only.

Lepend for appendices B_ C' and D

LECEWD;6EWRES (a) Tenor (1): author's rolc (b) Tenor (2) : ch&r description (c) Tenor (3): inttrpenond meaning (d) Field (1 ) : inf iu~ce of corrtext (e) Fidd (2): intqdyof stages LE6END; TRAMMWAL (a) Rok of author (b) S tyk or voice (c) Is mtd figure mai? (d) is the dsecribed Ktting mai? (e) Is the order of evtnts d m ?

( f ) Tenor (4) : personai significancc of evcnts for nader (p) Theme: meuiing shown by word positions (q) Conjunction: is essay cohesive? (r) TRnsiavity: verb cfioices (s) Rcference: sm&, msybfollow text

(f) Does the fhme hou togethtr? (p) b word use unique? (q) Docs sentence stnicture kad b easy reading? (r) Is usage e m r fme? (s) Are punchücm and spdiing crwnct?

COMPARISON OF SCORES ASSICNED TO THE TOP 25 IN APPLYING BOTH NEW AND STANDARD CRITERIA

MODES TRAD GENRES TRAD

M iYt Si) FOR 1NDlVIDUAL

CRlTERlA

COMPARlSON OF SCORES ASSIGNED TO TIIE TOP 25 JN APPLYlNG BOTH NEW AND STANDARD CRITERIA

TRAD TRAD l ASSESSMENT MODES 1 GENRES TRAD GENRES

1 G R A N D I ( & SD

SI) nr

1.70 9.28

nt sn FOR INDIVIDUAL

CRITERIA

MEAN SCORES AND STANDARD DEVIATIONS FOR ESSAYS M TOP 25 (ONLY WHEN ASSESSED BY NEW CRITERIA)

TRAD TRAD -

TRAD GENRES GENRES GENRES GENRES ASSESSMENT MODES

TRAD

GRAND .ilf & SD

411 & SD FOR INDIVIDUAL

CRlTERlA

(vI?~RLIZI~ MIIN Aff CIYSSItSSV N3HM AIN0 ) SZ dOL NI SAVSSB 80i SNOJIVIA3U ûHVûNVIS UNV S3H03S NV3MI

APPENDIX E

bibl i -aphic k f e n a t l o n en Che bcck. autbor, publ isber , ~ l a c a cf p ~ . & l l s h l ~ ç ,

(b) &I- o u t l i n e t of the- c?aractarl s persocaliq. (t 'sr e x a n p l e s f r o m t3e s t o r y tu back-up yaur geints. ) - - --

5: A one page caxn~~cntlry on the aut?crr s style. Cor.sFde= vDat)ler +le tscP vls Fztcrestinç tc read . Hcx fses th aut5or cantribute to yu- cancluaicn? What açe group vould tse book a p t e a l tu? Is the autsar tzyiaç t= çet aczaas a spec i i iC thme or aessaqe? Would ycr rr-orser.2 t!!is book to ot'lers fer raading? ( Aqain, zst exa-ples whara you can ta j u s t i f y any points you m a k e .

usage

The studeatsf essags were assesseci on a 5 9 s s d , ta the i o l l i x r i n g q u g ? 4 S e s of the* -dtFrg ( S d s : 1 = Lawz

My Strengths

Name: Date:

To the Student I t is aiways better to focus on witat you can do w e l rather than on your weakncsses, Use this arcie to rhink and wite about sornc OZ your srtengths.

Wrice three quali ties Write tfxree important you liice about tliings you have younelf. accornplished-

List three tiiings that make you feeI proud.

Different Roles

Namet Date:

To the Student Everyone piays diTererit mIcs at diiferent t h é s a d in aiif't pl-- As p u amplete ~ h e sentences Wow, consider the rula t h a ~ you play-

1

Wheri i am done, 1 often

2. Wheri 1 an wirl i my famiiy, 1 am the one who

3. When 1 am in a dassroom, 1 ~ ~ ~ u a i l y

4 When I am wi th my fnerids, I am the one in the p u p who 6

5. W h a I a.m aL work, 1 am the one who

6. Whe9 1 am on a team o;in a ciub, 1 am the one who

B u i c L&h OAIP

Work and Study Habits

7

To the Student Part of pur mark in &&su is b d on dcvdopins goad wo& ana nudy habits. As you m e r e u h question beiow, think about how your work and stuciy habits aif- your I k n s

YES NO

i. Bèiore d a , do you :

(a) t u a i i d about w i i a p u ' i i n d ?

(b) @hcz whac you n d for cks?

(c) think about wùar rnight happes in dass!

(ci) look forward ta gjing ~o &us?

(ej tdk wirh otha studests in the dass?

(f) p h to arrive on cime?

3 AC& dm, do you :

(a) &in& about w h a ~ yau have leuad?

(b) bt youncff by making up and answering quatians?

(c ) wiih 0th- abouï w h a YOU ha= learnd?

(ci) uy to use whac you Iye Icanicd?

(e) s d y with a partnet or a friud?

(f) study wilfi an aduit?

(g) 4 up on wodc missed?

(h) cornpiete homcwark a? - -?cd?

Work and Study Habits Pqe 3

3. h k d o y o u :

(a) attend mplar iy?

(b) particiuart wi'rlinsiy?

(cf pay artentaan to wuat ïs expec=ed oi you?

(d) u>-operate with the b e r and other students?

(e) arrk questions?

If) volunteer answcrs?

(g) think &out whac o u are Ie~ning?

(h) as% for heip w h t n you n& it?

(i) taie nom?

(jj orpaizlc your norcbooic d ~ i v c y ?

(k) write down iusipmerits to be aone!

(1) wicc down the d a t a ai mu?

(m) hand work in on tirne?

(n) use dau timc wiseiy?

(O) gcr dl your w o r ~ done?

Amas oE Strcngth: - -

Areas of N d :

Guide to Assessrnent

Work and Study Habits -

I

P UNCTUAUTY D o a the studuc

(a) arrive for c h s on time?

(b) arrive for appaintmmts an time?

ORG X L I Z A T I O N D ~ U t k d~dtrrt: (a} Orgapizr aoemoks/binders as quircd?

(b) kcr;, notebooiu up to datt?

(cf pian &cad to m e c atabiuired dcjdlina?

(a) bcing in n v supolia and equipmclt?

EFFORT D o a the studenc (a) . show willingnas ta leam?

(b) work mnsistcntly? (c) &ve ta improve? (d) try ta overame difficdtia? (e) xdc hdp w k n ri-?

(C) w i v e for quality OC workmansnip? - (g) partiCipaît2 in a variecy of acivi t i a ?

Bvic G* OAIP

Work and Study Habits Page 3

SELE-DECLPLINE Dou the studut :

(a) wait b asic/aaswer questions? (b) iuc a p p r o p W Ianguqe?

( c ) p c r j c v e in cornpleung a b k ? (a) work wtil without supcvision?

(cf respe: othed pmperty?

DEPEYDABZITY Dou ~ h e scuarrit:

I (aj corne ro c h s gre?arcci?

(b j foilow ins~nx5oas? (c f cumpiere =-qnrnr.iuT (a) ki1ow throuqh on ammit;r;-xrsl

CO-OPERATION Doa the stucient:

(a ) foilow dasnrwrn ? r o c t i u m i

(b) work with pem in snarino; ideas utà in iowion?

(cf rapec: ideas ana apiliions oi orhc-?

(à) particpate in a 4 c ; y OC a d v i t i a ? -

Woric and Study Habits Page 3

Doa the studeac: I

i (a) can~ïourc new iaeas?

(b] artempt diifcent or new =ivirie? 1

i ( c ) recqnize t a ~ j c j m be aone m a cio theml

(a) ask appropriate quationsi

1 ( c ) have an a-u oc ? m g e s ?

i 1

APPENDIX J Y%maiLve T e s t s , *'--O-' rc.=t40n~+ T?xfec t s

Sample One

Writing Conference ~irnuktion

1. You ~d Chris arc working tagther in a writing conkWce- Your job is tic$ C S N improve ma deveioo the smry providcd beiow. R e d cx&uily ana wrirc down queyions you couid asK C k s about the story.

This way, ihey d ich ' t have ta talk b eaù othcc &out ~ h t a igh becore. %IL

Y rhe siiencg b t ~ m e unoearjbiç they r d L d thar they cod&'t p r e m a ir hain': Iiappenei, Tkey aruldn't acny th= thcr a i d e ~ t &id had b brousnt home by rhe poiict T?xy werc forcd w co- the snodc and emo-rntrir oi h u r i n s about Chris's bcslaviour h m a unihnncd strulg~t.

*Y- 1 .how. 1 just havu't b œ n &le b face i i . that'3 dl."

Fmistcps above rhCr h c j b warned t h c n rhat Chris w a ï UO a d pmo&iy r w d y for breakiast, They w u c n ' t Iookins forwarù b those finr rnomcztcs wnen t!ey would have ta meet t h a r ckiid's e y a -

% O O ~ morning, Chris, Wanr scimc breakfast?"

T m nor v e v Iiungry dter !arc ni&+"

uCSris, wh y did p u r .-! W h marie you do tu& a thinj?" .--

Sampie Twa

Predicting a Story Ending

1

This axt or examination quarion foUaws squut;'aüy frorn Sample One ma is inre3aed as a s u m d v c cduasion oi miring s k i i k

T'ne question rnay bt s ~ u c = d iu an a 4 k v i t y in wiu'ciz the stuciut *A che ' d e r how the s t o q mi& aontimre; aitenaciveiy, the studeat '~ story mains could be recorcied, wRc-, drawn, or p r t s e x e i

S tudent Lnsrructions

i. .%=xi Chris's smry cyefuily.

2. T l ~ i n k about â e v t d ways you S g h r aeveiop :he s t a q ~ .

3. C!ioose the idca you lik k t and .înisn the s t o r ~ for CSris.

Sample S i x

Imaginative Probiem-Solkg

This example pmvida studests with an opporrunity to imagine w k i i wouid be k'ke *a be anatber person- It may be donc traditiady as an aciminariaa quatioa eo be a ~ ~ ~ e t e d o n papcr- ft may a b be done o d y , as a mieplay, on or in a prauafaLion, Thù question QP be adaptcd to any unit.

Student ~truczzoas

(b) how it && jrou at the Ume, auci how it stiii G ~ 5 you toaay, ana

Camp le Eight

of the

This sampie proviaa stuauts wirh an opponuniry KI r d e c , upon a unit ~ h e y have arn~ieted. It may Se aonc traditioadty as an examinarion quuriuu anzwetcci on pape. It may d s & useci iu a kacbcr-student interview, a p- intcm'ew, or a j o u d u ~ r y . h o t h a intcat ing appmach would be to have studurs v u r i c e a lcrrtt in w&c5 bey answv rhae quatiolu.

S tudent Instructions - Think badc to the unit you have jlut cornple:ed, and answcr the questions thar foilow.

1. Whar did you feei was the m a s i n m t i n g ac iv i ty in this unit? Why?

2. Whar did yau lecl was the Icast interuting z i v i t y in the unir? Why?

3. In wniùz aczjviry do p u fd you Ieruncd the Imst?

5. W h a ~ was the most i m p o w ~ tthing t h a ~ you leamta in this unir?

6. Tdentiîy tiuo d o i c u or decùions that you rnade in this unit.

7. Wur you p l a t c d with the àxaicn or dcujioru char yau d e ? Why or why nor?

Please respond to the text you hwe just nad, by using the following suggestions. There are some to be done alone, some witf~ one partner, and othen are best done in a group which may be small or large.

Read the passage siledy and preparie to tell the story odly. In your presedon you may want to use such aids as a namîtor, role-play or d e r imaginative devices to make your p resedon more appealing.

Choose one of the chiuacters and write and present a chaacter sketch in praise of that character.

Choose another charader and wnte a cornmendatory speech to be given at an awards assembly.

Suppose you want to pattern p u r life on that of either character a h . Write some diary notes describing how you are going to change your lifeîtyle.

Imagine younelf as one of the charaders in the passage and how you got into a discussion vrith another character on a favaunte topic of your own. Oexribe the context of this discussion and d e out one phase of the dialogue as you envisage it. M a t topics might you avoid? Imite a friend in class to take part in the dialogue and present it to the class as a role-play.

The principal of your school has announced a "Uiallenge of a IWmen compeütion for the pupils and teachers and you want to take part. Cornpetitors will be judged on the strength of their written description of what they pmpose to do as ml1 as on their livc performance. Your &en account must describe in detail your "challenge" and how winning the cornpetition will affect your fife aflerwards.

You are asked to imagine that as a remit of a leg injury m e 4 during an ice-hockey match, you must make use of crutches for a month. Wtite a Ietter to a pen friend in a foreign country describing the game, the injury and what things in school you are going to Iike and dislike ocrerthe next month.

Describe what you think would be the events of a typical day in the life of any one of the characters in the passage read.

Choose two (orthnze) of the charade= in the story and imagine a difference of opinion arising among them. Describe the cause of the disagreement, how it became mom complicated, and how you think it could have been setîied. Think of it as being partiy face-to-face and partly in writing.

A ship is wrecked in a storm off an uninhabited tropical island and three men manage to make it to the shore safely, but one is very badly shaken and the otherhiro could never I k in harmony while on board ship. Describe how ~ e y lived and grew to tolerate one another for the two months they spent on the island before being rescued. Imagine yourself as someane sent to help them during that time. How would you hefp?

You are the principal teacher of the school in #6, and your f int concern is to rnake sure üiat each of the students in the audience understands the challenge being faced by and preserrted by the cornpetiton. Create three questions that you would ask each student in order to satisfy your concern.

One of the characters in the story is due to leave home and p~~ mon. Tite parents an old and not in good heakh and there is a great dangerthat she may never see them alive again. Cmate a " k t haif-hour" conversation among the three. Presenî it with two friends to the cfass as a mle-play.

APPENDIX K AUotrnent of marks

CumcuZzïm GuzCreIine: Englsh, 1977 Uicludes a schema for evaluation (p. 12). The reporting profile (Appendix L, p. 279) accommodates that formufa so as to d o t a mark of 25% to each of the four specïfïed areas represented by one quadrant of the profile.

AREA TO BE EVALUATED ENGLISH GUDELINE

Writîng as process 20-30%

Srnall-group or interactive leanilng, speaking & listening 20-30s

Work & study habits & independent leaming 20-30%

Sumative tests or examinations

Total marks 1 O0

BASIC ENGLISH OAlP

Profile

Tests. Examinacians, and Proiecrs

Speaking ana List&g/ Srnail Group Lzarning

MARE[: /2!5

APPENDIX M

(Adapted h m Macken et al., 1 989c. p. 57)

Working in your groups of five, use the folloing framework to pian and constnict a narrative text with the üüe "The Sugar Monster". Yau must compose your own written version.

m; THE SUGAR MONSlER

COMPUCATlON (S)

COMPUCATiON (S)

CODA

APPENDDC N (Adapted fmm Macken et al., 1989c, p. 59)

Worlsing in gmups of fïve, use the following framework to plan and constnrct a news story üüed "Woman injured in police chase". You most compose and submit your own written version.

HEADUNE;

NEWSWORTHY EVENTS; (Sensational w n t s mttt their why, &en, where, who ...)

- BACKGROUND EVENTS: (Background information about why euents happened and what rnay be the outcorne)

- -

SOURCES OF INFORMATION: (Peopies' commments, qwritnesses' statements, reactions of public penons - police, docton, paramedics.. .)

Independent Construction

Directive auestions/~geshons for nudents

(i) What kind of nory are you planriing?

(ü) Are you basÏng it on evems familiar to you or have you a new srory in mind?

(i) You mi-& k e to use some ideas kom your lm nory (or fhm our Reader) to improve the orientaüon, compliwtion, wduation, reçoiution, of this presem nory.

(iv) From whch point of view (h or thkd penon?) are you go& to mire?

(v) O . k , now diat you have decided, wrice yourself some notes as an outline iike rhis:

Evening . . . . cottage.. . . . weatfier? . . . . . niend.. . . . . . ..boat.. . . . . . ..fisbing gound.. . . . . sky p w da&. . . .nimbling in the disrance.. . . . winds p w blustery.. . . . hi@ waves.. . Lets go! ... too late .... boat b e i q lifteci out of the water .... almoa m e d over ... tefieci .... reached the fàr shore .... wet but safe on land ..... waited four hours.. home by 3.00 un!

(vi) Now wnte the fidl accomt.

(vii) Next to improve in whar you have wrireeq review the skeieron notes agab, and work wirh a pamer on the following - Give in p a r e r detail infiormarion about the setth- and charaaers thar ties up widi e~em coming iater. Orientation.

- hciucie an Et 'a ldon nage, e.g &er the desion to JO fÏshing include a dialogue cemering on the iikefiood of a aorm

- Work in more Interpersonal mecmings to hefp the reader focus on the ctiaracters' needs, feelings, rno.tives for acting as they do.

- Create more aaire suspense, humour, in the nory. - More vivid description of peopk, places, thinp, happenings. - hctude a second/third CompIidoon and try to resoive them in a realisàc and

crediiie wav-

. LUacken, Mary (1989) A G e n r e - b d Approach to the Teachzing of Wn'n'ng Yems 3-6. Book 3 Wn'ting Slones.

THE ATTAC'X; OF TEE SUGAR -MOtSER

&pendix R: An e lanatory note for the teacher

In this approach to writing, a piece of writing (Le. a composition or essay) is known as a text; so this term cm be defined as "any coherent, rneaningfd stretch of language, regardless of its length." (Christie et al. 1989 Wn'ting in Schoois: SSh-y Guide pg.8) Texts are important in Our lives (and they are both spoken and written) because they are part of the instniments or methods we use to get things done. A text is the basic unit of meankg, and words have tme meaning (according to genre theorists) only inasmuch as they are the building blocks of texts.

Texts ciiffer in overd characterization, and they Mer because people who create them have either different meanings to convey in similar circumstances or the same meanings in Merent circumstances, i-e. in different contexts (of culture or situation), and these different contexts demand dEerent hguistic choices. This Merence is characterized as the RegrSter of the text. An analysis of Register reveals three constitutive factors, and these three factors determine the linguistic choices an author makes in composing the text, and hence the kind of genre created. These factors are Field. Tenor. and Mode. Field refers to the content of the text: what is "going on" and what is being discussed. Tenor refeis to how the characters relate to each other and to how the writer relates to the reader. Mode refers to the role of language in the type of text being composed.

An analysis of the texts of similar genres reveals that they progress through the same stages as the meaning their author wishes to convey udoIds. Thus a genre is a "staged, purposefui, goal directed text" that is created by an author who needs to achieve some aim in language as an aspect of living, working or playing. The author's action is innuenced by the context in which he is -- a context which is situational and integrated within a certain culture. His action will dse r accordingly, e.g. a business letter wiil differ kom a love letter, because the situations of both are different. A love letter written in English will H e r in Linguistic style eom one written in French because both cultures are different. The stages of a genre are, stated simplisticaiIy, a beginning, a body and an ending or summing up; e.g. a Ietter of compla.int to the landiord wiil indicate the cause for cornplaint in the first paragraph. Subsequent paragraphs may give details of duration, seventy, inconveniences caused by the matter for cornplaint. A closing paragraph will urge the landlord to act quickly and will express the hope that he will.

In narrative writuig, the stages are as foliows: The Orientation where the author descnbes the setting and introduces the characters. The Complication where thùigs go wrong and the main character(s) face(s) a challenge. The Evahifftion where the character(s) survey(s) the difficulty and devise a tentative

solution. The Resolution where the tentative solution is tned and succeeds, or fails and leads ta a füxther tentative solution. The Co& where there is a return to the onginai state of equilibrium with which the story began.

The Role of Gramrnar

Grammar pertains to the rn& aspect of Register. It is the stress on the role of grammar in Ianguage that Merentates the genre-based approach to writing fiom the traditional models, and the concept is used here in the hc t iond sense, i.e. as a tool to convey meanin8. Thus, since different grammatical forms are chosen to create different meanings, it c c be projected that certain grammatical forms will tend to pmdominate in individual genres, and the degree of excellence of the individual genre will be innuenced by the extent to which the appropriate grammatical f o m are purposeMiy employed and integrated in the text.

How, then, it mus be asked, does the language used serve to realize or build up the genre with its three register variables of field, tenor and mode? According to linguists, there are four systems in English fiom which to draw in order to create different meanings. These are, neme, Conjunction, Reference c d Trm-tivity- Theme refers to the concept that is determined by the writer or speaker to be of first importance in the sentence, Le. it is the point of depamire for the message of the sentence. It can be topical. znteqpersonal. or textual. The theme position in a sentence is the first part of the sentence. and when the subject of the sentence is in this early position, it is said to be unmurked. m~ went home on Friday) Ifanother idea takes that position, it is said to be a marked theme. (On Friday he went home) Textual theme is that which makes links between clauses, through the use of such words as but, now, yet, though, and , or. Interpersonal theme is that which implies a relationship between the writer and the reader, e. g. John, how are you today? PersonalZy,I think you look weii. Appropriate choice of theme is necessary for good writing, according to the linguists, and good narrative writing will be appropriately characterized by dl three kinds.

Conjunction is the system on which authors draw in order to build up logical relationships between clauses. Conjunctions are temporal (1 sit when 1 am tired), contrastive (1 sit but 1 am not tired), adiiitive (1 sit I am not tired), comparative (I sit longer 1ha.n you), corrsequentzal(I sit because 1 am tired). AU of these conjunctions will feature in genre-based narrative writing, but especiatly temporal, additive and consequentiai .

Reference is the system drawn upon to refer to characters or things in the te*. Reference can be generic (People are mortal.) or ~peczfic (Mary is a nice person. a is a nice person.) Proper use of both genenc and specific references will ensure the creation of a text that is cohesive, and will enable the reader to follow the sequence of events without undue diiculty, passing fiom stage to stage of the narrative without interruption of the thought pattern.

Transitivity refers to the verb choices used and is the system drawn upon to refer to what is being transacted in a te-, i.e. what processes are involved in the use of the language. Linguias lia five processes in English, as follows:

Material refer to actions that are the objects of the senses (He !& the ball. She crashed the car. The dog died.)

ReldonaI (Le. relating or telling the situation) refer to a state or existing situation (She queen. He becme MVP. She seerns happy.)

Ejn'stential refer to situations in which a sentence begins with the expletive "There" (There

& no beer in the house.) Mental refer to processes of thinking (We jhink it will rain. 1 recoaiized her in the hall.) Verbal refer to processes of saying (She @ good stories. She announced his arrivai.)

Narrative writing is characterized by d these processes especially those of material or action.

Mood and Voice (which can be seen as sub-systems of Transitivity) are also important. n i e Indicative mood (in either its declarative or interrogative fonns) is comrnonly used in narrative, as also is the Imperative; while a blend of Active and Parsive Vozce ensures against monotony in the text.

In applybg the foregoing fiamework to narrative writing, the teacher or assessor will follow the ensuing directives.

Regarding the narrative genre, it rnust be asked: - 1s the story complete in terms of orientation, evduation, complication, resolution, coda? - 1s the world of the narrative plausibly like the real world? - Can you, the reader, recognize pointers that help you position yourseif in the narrative in place

and tirne? Can you recognize places, objects, persons that are important in the story? - 1s the story credible, and does it have ideas-for-Me for you the reader? - Does the stow hang together cohesively? Are the characters' behaviours congruent with their

personai descriptions, as provided by the author?

In the area of Repster: Regarding Field. it must be asked conceming the textual discourse:

- Does it enable you to know the characters through a description of their factual or vicarious experiences?

- Do descriptive epithets and dialogue help you to understand their behaviours? - Does the text provide you with a series of sequential activities, an explmation of them, speciflc

character descriptions done in a way that evokes a response from you, through reflection by the author on the persona1 value of the expenences described?

Regarding Tmor, it must be asked: Does the author assume an authoritative role? 1s the text of the kind that involves you in the events of the story, enabling you to experience katemity with or distance fiom the characters, or among them? Does it descnbe the characters rninutely, include well-marked dialogue and an indication of inter-personal meanings? Does it describe events in terms of the needs and motives of persons, so that they have personal significance for you?

Regarding Mode, it must be asked: Has the writer used textual resources that are adequate to the creation of a reaily possible world for you, the reader? Has the writer employed any or ail of the foilowing: embedding (subordinate noun clauses), hypotaxis (relative clauses), direct and indirect speech marked and integrated, cunjunctions and comectives that give the story integrity (unity) and cohesion alI through?

Low

Tenor (l)/hthofs Role

Tenor (2)/Reader i d d e s

Tenor (3)Lkader moral

Field (1) EEtm of Comexr

Fidd (2) Stages

Tenor (4) Reader si@cmce

O'Connor House, 5, Avumvick Gate, Don Mils, Ontario, M3A m 5

The Minister of Education, Queen's Park, Ontario.

Dear Sir,

I am completing a doctoral thesis at the University of Toronto entitled "Evaluation of genre-based made 9 narrative witing". 1 would like permission to allow inclusion of the foiIowing materid in the thesis and permission for the National Library to make use of the thesis (Le. to reproduce, loaq distribute, or seU copies of the thesis by any means and in any form or format.) These rights will in no way restnct republication of the material in any other fonn by you or by others authorized by you.

The excerpts to be reprinted are the following fkom the Ontario Muiistry publication "Basic Enerlish: Assessrnent Strategies and Material$"' 199 1 :

Dzferent Roles: page 26 Work and sttdy habits: pages 28 & 39 Serfassessor tmget: work and stu+ habits: page 45 Gtride to assesment: pages 62, 63, 64 Wrzting conference simulation: pages 97, 98, 102, IO4 Reporthg profile: page 118

If these arrangements meet with your kind approval, please sign this letter where indicated below and retum it to me in the enclosed retum envelope. 1 thank you for your assistance in this rnatter and I look forward to your favourable reply.