Writing - Use of Evidence

          Today's post will begin to move into the particulars of 12th grade writing.  I will compare and contrast the requirements for use of evidence in the old Arizona standards for English Language Arts  and the new Arizona Common Core English Language Arts Standards.  My three major areas of concern in this area, as with each of the standards are: 1) Are the new standards better, worse, or the same as the old? 2) Does proficiency in the new standards represent the degree of skill necessary for college or career readiness? 3) Do the standards show any political bias?

The Facts:

• Both sets of standards require students to use sufficient, relevant evidence in expository, persuasive, literary, and research writing situations.  In both cases, they speak to the necessity of using details, facts, examples, etc.  Both also require that direct quotes be correctly included and citations and works cited pages be formatted according to an appropriate convention.
• Both sets of standards also require students to use evidence from the texts to compare the treatment of a common theme from two different literary works.  The new standards include the requirement that students do such comparison between two foundational works of American Literature.
• While both sets of standards require students to weigh and consider the relative value of multiple sources and pieces of evidence, the new standards put a much greater emphasis on this topic.  While the old standards mention this skill as a bullet point in the Research strand of writing, it is a common theme running through several of the new writing standards.  For example, the new standards require that students "develop claim(s) and counterclaims fairly and thoroughly, supplying the most relevant evidence for each while pointing out the strengths and limitations of both in a manner that anticipates the audience's knowledge level, concerns, values, and possible biases."
• The new standards also require students to "clarify the relationship between claim(s) and reasons, between reasons and evidence, and between claim(s) and counterclaims."  This is something that was not mentioned in the prior standards.
• Technology use is also required in the new standards.  Students must use technology to post and update their writing "in response to ongoing feedback , including new arguments or information."  They must also "[use] advanced searches effectively" to gather "relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources."
• The new standards require students to evaluate evidence from "seminal U.S. texts, including the application of constitutional principles and use of legal reasoning". 

My Opinion

          While both the old and new standards required students to use evidence appropriately in their writing and cite it correctly, the new standards give much greater emphasis to the development of this skill than the old.  In fact, of the nine writing standards for 12th graders, six of them deal, in some part, with proper use of evidence in writing.  The old standards list use of evidence in 6 out of 18 main concepts.  Part of this discrepancy is due to the way each set of standards is organized, but it is very apparent when reading through the new standards that skillful use of evidence is paramount to proficiency in writing.  Because of the additional emphasis on evidence and the fact that the new standards lack nothing on the topic that was present in the old, my analysis is that the new standards are superior is this facet.
          My next concern is whether or not these standards (if followed with fidelity) will produce college and career ready writers.  As I consider my own college experience (warning: anecdotal evidence to follow), I think that there were two main struggles preventing high grades in writing.  The first, poor use of conventions (spelling, grammar, etc.) will be addressed in subsequent posts.  But the second was definitely: making assertions without evidence or relying wholly on a single unreliable source for evidence.  The new standards make it clear that neither of these choices are acceptable.  In this regard, the new standards focus teachers and students on a topic that will certainly better prepare students for college coursework.  As far as careers are concerned, those careers that require evidence based research and/or writing are also looking for people who can accurately analyze and synthesize relevant information.  This is certainly a required skill for many careers.  However, most of those careers also require a college degree.
          Finally, I am always watching for political bias in academic standards.  As both standards require ample use of evidence and even a warning in the new standards to be on the look-out for potential biases, I think this passes the test of political neutrality.  Real, solid evidence is not political.  It is sustained by fact.  It outweighs bias.  Further, the new standards require an emphasis on seminal U.S. texts and historical American literature.  They require students to understand constitutional principles and apply them to their writing.  While teachers may choose historical documents and texts that fit their own political bias, the standards themselves are certainly not biased in this regard.
          As the standards apply to use of evidence in writing, my opinion is that the new standards are superior and place greater emphasis on proper use and evidence.  I see no reason to oppose this section of the standards or to add to it in any way.  Students who master the concepts outlined will doubtless be proficient writers as they enter the next stage in their lives.  Regardless of whether or not they attend college, students who know how to use evidence appropriately in their writing will be better able to participate in their communities, to make their voices heard through writing, and to influence those around them.  This is what I want for my own children and for all students who attend our schools.