Real Writing: Modernizing the Old School Essay [Hardcover]

High-school writing prompts often ask students to provide overly simplified responses to complicated issues, but a persons stance in the real world can rarely, if ever, be reduced to agree or disagree. Arguments are complex, with more than two points of view and a range of evidence to consider; however, writing classes dont always embrace that complexity. Real Writing: Modernizing the Old School Essay contends that engaging fully with complex texts and difficult, nuanced arguments helps students become better thinkers and writers, more fully prepared for life both in and after high school.

By offering students current texts to read and issues to discuss, teachers introduce their students to more complex arguments. Real Writing: Modernizing the Old School Essay recognizes the value of various types of texts, but the need for contemporary readings in our literature and composition classes is important for relevancy related to student engagement, the Common Core State Standards, and participation in our democratic society. This book shares curricular moves to engage students in reading and writing authentic arguments.

Mitchell Nobis is an English teacher and department chair at Seaholm High School in Birmingham, Michigan. Mitchell is a co-director of the Red Cedar Writing Project at Michigan State University where his work revolves around the National Writing Project tenets that the best professional development is teachers teaching teachers and to best teach writing, teachers must be writers themselves. He is also the 2016 president of the Michigan Council of Teachers of English. In his spare time, he writes and plays basketball. He is in his 20th year of teaching. Follow Mitch on Twitter at @MitchNobis.

Dan Laird is in his 16th year as an English teacher at Leslie High School in Leslie, Michigan and is also a teacher-consultant for the Red Cedar Writing Project for which he is the co-director of the RCWP Greenrock Writers Retreat for wrl“