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Alyssa Randall

Keywords

persuasive writing, essay-free writing, writing formats, methods of teaching, persuasive essays

Submission Type

Research

Preview

As many of you may be aware, the ninth grade Utah persuasive writing test was changed to the eighth grade year. The state core requirements, however, did not reflect this change, and as many of you probably did, I began thinking of the challenge I faced to fit a persuasive writing unit into my already tight schedule. The more I thought about how to implement this new requirement, the more I thought about the typical persuasive essay that seemed mandated by the test and I cringed. While I believe the five-paragraph essay to be an important writing tool, I did not want to hear the unavoidable groans from my students as they started another bland essay. And I did not want to read a stack of them either! My desire to avoid another essay drove me to consider breaking away from the popular persuasive writing format. As I researched such a change, I asked three questions: 1) Am I validated in trying other persuasive teaching methods? 2) If I choose to expand beyond the essay, what methods would I use? and 3) Will my students still succeed on the state test if I teach persuasive writing without the expected 5-paragraph essay focus?

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