Papers by Susan De La Paz
Using virtual teacher PD to support implementation of a historical literacy curriculum
Social Studies Research and Practice
PurposeThis study aims to explore how teachers in a large, diverse district could use a complex a... more PurposeThis study aims to explore how teachers in a large, diverse district could use a complex adolescent literacy curriculum, and it coincided with the start of the coronavirus 2019 pandemic, also a time of great upheaval for this nation. The authors and district partners collaboratively designed document sets that could help students explore socially complex historical topics with discipline-specific reading and writing support. These challenges led to fully virtual PD and redesigned cognitive tools and lesson materials that could be used in a fully distanced learning environment.Design/methodology/approachPD and data collection were ongoing and iterative, as the authors' goals were to understand variability in teachers' understanding and how the social unrest in the nation and the need for distance learning would influence their application of our curriculum. Data sources included teacher artifacts, interviews and implementation surveys and anonymized student work sample...
Addressing an Unfulfilled Expectation: Teaching Students With Disabilities to Write Scientific Arguments
Written Communication
Students with disabilities (SWD) in general education science classes are expected to engage in t... more Students with disabilities (SWD) in general education science classes are expected to engage in the scientific practices and potentially in the writing of arguments drawn from evidence. Currently, however, there are few research-based instructional approaches for teaching argument writing for these students. The present article responds to this need through the application of an instructional model that promises to improve the ability of SWDs to write scientific arguments. We approach this work in multiple ways. First, we clarify our target group, students with high incidence disabilities (learning disability, ADHD, and students with speech and language impairments), and discuss common cognitive challenges they experience. We then explore the role of argumentation in science, review research on both experts’ (scientists’) and novices’ (students’) argument writing and highlight successful cognitive strategies for teaching argument writing with neurotypical learners. We further discus...
Historical Argumentation: Watching Historians and Teaching Youth (Poster 4)
Proceedings of the 2022 AERA Annual Meeting
Effects of a Cognitive Apprenticeship on Transfer of Argumentative Writing in Middle School Science
Learning Disability Quarterly
Writing in science can be challenging for all learners, and it is especially so for students with... more Writing in science can be challenging for all learners, and it is especially so for students with cognitive or language-based learning difficulties. We examined the effects of a cognitive apprenticeship on student disciplinary writing skills as well as near and far transfer of learning outcomes. This instructional approach included a gradual release of responsibility for learning through four, 3-day investigations that included authentic scientific experiments, small- and whole-group discussions, and the construction and revision of scientific arguments. Intervention students showed significant gains for both near (effect size = 1.08) and far (effect size = 0.76) transfer disciplinary writing outcomes. These results held true even when compared with a nonequivalent control group (effect size = 1.95). Students with disabilities demonstrated similar rates of growth as peers without disabilities, especially with respect to the quality of their claims and ability to provide scientific e...
Scientific argumentation and responsive teaching: Using dialog to teach science in three middle‐school classrooms
Science Education
Despite broad consensus on the value of classroom dialog for promoting scientific argumentation, ... more Despite broad consensus on the value of classroom dialog for promoting scientific argumentation, tensions have emerged in the literature regarding the degree to which teachers should guide the dialogic process (dialogic stance). We use the lens of responsive teaching to examine how one teacher adjusts his instruction to foster dialog in three middle‐school science classrooms. Applying grounded theory to classroom dialogs and teacher interview data, we examine the dynamic interplay of the teacher's overarching goal and moment‐to‐moment pedagogical aims to understand shifts in his dialogic stance. Our findings illustrate the value of foregrounding responsiveness to students' disciplinary thinking when offering guidance to teachers about when and how to support students in peer‐based argumentative dialog.
sj-docx-1-ldq-10.1177_07319487211018213 – Supplemental material for Science Writing Intervention Research for Students With and At Risk for Learning Disabilities, and English Learners: A Systematic Review
Supplemental material, sj-docx-1-ldq-10.1177_07319487211018213 for Science Writing Intervention R... more Supplemental material, sj-docx-1-ldq-10.1177_07319487211018213 for Science Writing Intervention Research for Students With and At Risk for Learning Disabilities, and English Learners: A Systematic Review by Yewon Lee and Susan De La Paz in Learning Disability Quarterly
Strategies that promote historical reasoning and contextualization: a pilot intervention with urban high school students
Reading and Writing, 2021
The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of two types of historical problem-sol... more The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of two types of historical problem-solving instruction with advanced urban high school students’ ( N = 231) ability to reason with and contextualize historical evidence. Contextualization is a critical heuristic in the process of disciplinary thinking among historians. Yet, prior research shows students face significant challenges when contextualizing information (Reisman and Wineburg in Soc Stud 99:202–207, 2008; van Boxtel and van Drie in Cognit Instr 30:113–145, 2012). Seven teachers who collectively taught 14 sections of social studies were randomly assigned to explicit instruction in sourcing, contextualization and corroboration (a) that emphasized the role of individual cognition or (b) the same explicit instruction plus small group and whole class discussion. Students were administered pretests on relevant content knowledge and a historical writing task. After a one-week intervention, students completed a parallel writing task and a second reasoning task that required short written responses. After controlling for teacher and pretest scores, the findings indicated that students who were taught the cognitive approach scored higher on historical writing (ES = 0.33). Further analysis revealed they included greater contextualized thinking (ES = 0.44) and use of evidence (ES = 0.32) in post-intervention essays; in contrast, sourcing scores were comparable. Students in both groups performed equally well on the second reasoning task. Findings highlight the importance of teaching writing explicitly as part of history instruction and the role of cognition to enhance learning.
Developing Historical Reading and Writing: Relationships Among Professional Development, Fidelity of Implementation, and Student Learning
Learning Disabilities: A Contemporary Journal, 2013
This article provides a review of effective and reform-based approaches to instruction that focus... more This article provides a review of effective and reform-based approaches to instruction that focus on teaching and learning of history for students with LD. Historical thinking goals, such as learning to think like a historian, to develop contextualized understandings, and to apply domainspecific approaches when reading and writing with primary source documents are now the norm in secondary history classrooms. Promising approaches that are designed to meet these goals, as well as interventions involving historical discussion and those that allow students to engage in inquiry are shared, as well as recommendations for further research and practice in history instruction.
A teacher works with and guides a small group of students as they analyze primary sources and pre... more A teacher works with and guides a small group of students as they analyze primary sources and prepare to write an argument. Photograph by CJ Breil.
RTI in writing instruction: Relating evidence-based interventions to Curriculum-Based Measurement: A Critical Account of the Science and Practice
Reading, Thinking, and Writing About History: Teaching Argument Writing to Diverse Learners in the Common Core Classroom, Grades 6-12
Historical Reading and Writing Apprenticeships for Adolescent Readers: Integrating Disciplinary Learning With Cognitive Strategies
Writing Scientific Explanations: Effects of a Cognitive Apprenticeship for Students With LD and English Learners
Exceptional Children, 2021
In the current study, we examined the effect of cognitive apprenticeship with contextualized lang... more In the current study, we examined the effect of cognitive apprenticeship with contextualized language instruction on students with LD (SWLDs) and English learners’ (ELs) ability to compose scientific explanations using a multiple-probe, multiple-baseline single-case design. Six middle school students (three in each subgroup) participated in ten 30-min sessions in an after-school program. The intervention was implemented with high fidelity, and all participants believed they benefited from the writing instruction. After instruction, SWLDs and ELs had similar gains. They wrote better explanations, as demonstrated by substantial improvements in the quality of their causal and mechanistic reasoning ( τ = 1), grammatical and lexical sophistication ( τ = 1), and holistic writing ( τ = 0.95–0.96). Changes in writing performance were maintained for 4 or more weeks. We discuss implications of these findings for science classrooms and suggest areas for future writing research.
A Synthesis on the Impact of Self‐Regulated Instruction on Motivation Outcomes for Students with or at Risk for Learning Disabilities
Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 2021
In this synthesis, we examined and assessed the impact of self‐regulated instructional components... more In this synthesis, we examined and assessed the impact of self‐regulated instructional components on the motivation of students with or at risk for learning disabilities (LD) in reading, writing, or mathematics intervention studies. Elements such as goal setting, self‐monitoring for task completion, self‐monitoring for emotions, self‐talk for task completion, self‐talk for emotions, and self‐talk for progress monitoring were identified as relevant constructs, and were further examined to determine their effect on students’ motivation for learning and academic functioning. Results indicated major differences in the application of these self‐regulated instructional components across academic domains. Quantitative analyses also revealed that interventions with self‐regulated instructional components resulted in positive effects on motivation measures such as self‐efficacy, self‐esteem, attributions, value for task, affect, expectancy for success, and intrinsic motivation. Finally, our ...
Focus on Exceptional Children, 2017
In 1992, the U.S. Department of Education awarded a major grant to the National Council of Teache... more In 1992, the U.S. Department of Education awarded a major grant to the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and the International Reading Association (IRA) to define content standards for the English language arts, grades K-12. After more than 3 years and the involvement of thousands of contributors (including teachers, parents, administrators, researchers, and policy analysts), a set of 12 standards was established, defining what the IRA and NCTE believe students should know and be able to do with language by the time they complete their secondary schooling (NCTE/IRA, 1996). These standards, though listed as a set of 12 interrelated ideas, can be subgrouped into areas of understanding (via reading and appreciating text from a variety of cultures, ethnic groups, and so on), language use (including spoken, written, and "visual" language), conducting research (to pose and answer problems via a variety of informational sources), and lifelong learning (as a member of a literate community and for individually set purposes). Three of the English content standards relate directly to written language proficiency, although each was written more broadly to include other forms of language use as well. 1. Students are expected to communicate effectively for a variety of audiences and purposes (Standard 4). 2. Students are expected to use different writing process elements strategically (Standard 5). 3. Students are expected to apply knowledge of structure, conventions, genre, and so on to create and analyze texts (Standard 6). Thus, competent writers "are sensitive to the needs of different audiences and to the ways in which the purpose of a communication shapes the kind of ideas and information they choose and the way in which they present them" (NCTE/IRA, 1996, p.34). Moreover, proficient writers have learned to "vary their organizational strategy" depending on whether they are explaining something, arguing, persuading, or telling a story. Students are expected to learn more than individual elements of the writing process, as they should use writing techniques flexibly, knowing when to proceed methodically and when to adopt alternative strategies. Finally, students are charged with having a working knowledge of
Strategy Instruction in Planning: Effects on the Writing Performance and Behavior of Students with Learning Difficulties
Exceptional Children, 1997
Students with learning difficulties typically approach writing by retrieving from memory whatever... more Students with learning difficulties typically approach writing by retrieving from memory whatever seems appropriate and writing it down. This retrieve-and-write process minimizes the role of reflection and planning in the composing process. In the current study, we taught three students with learning difficulties a strategy designed to help them become more reflective when writing opinion essays. Following instruction in the strategy, students wrote essays that were longer, provided more support for their premise, and were qualitatively better. Two of the students also changed their approach to writing, developing an initial plan prior to writing that they continued to elaborate and refine as they wrote. Changes in both writing performance and behavior were maintained over time.
The Journal of Special Education, 2005
This study extended the work on curriculum-based measurement to examine the criterion-related val... more This study extended the work on curriculum-based measurement to examine the criterion-related validity of curriculum-based measures in written expression for middle school students, the differences in validity coefficients for various lengths of text, and the sensitivity of curriculum-based measures to change in student performance. Curriculum-based measures were the number of correct word sequences (CWS) and correct minus incorrect word sequences (CIWS) written in expository essays. Criterion measures were the number of functional elements in and quality ratings of student essays. Results revealed a strong relationship between curriculum-based and criterion measures.
Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 2009
This article describes a study in which eighth grade students in one school learned to create mul... more This article describes a study in which eighth grade students in one school learned to create multimedia mini-documentaries in a six-week history unit on early 19 th-century U.S. history. The authors examined content knowledge tests, group projects, and attitude and opinion surveys to determine relative benefits for students who participated in a technology-assisted project-based learning experience, and contrasted their experiences to those of students who received a more traditional form of instruction. Results from content knowledge measures showed significant gains for students in the project-based learning condition as compared to students in the comparison school. Students' work in the intervention condition also revealed growth in their historical thinking skills, as many were able to grasp a fundamental understanding that history is more than presenting facts. Implications and suggestions for technology-enhanced project-based learning experiences are indicated.
Source Interpretation
Journal of Learning Disabilities, 2007
We review domain-specific teaching approaches for students with learning disabilities in social s... more We review domain-specific teaching approaches for students with learning disabilities in social studies, then present De La Paz's 2005 historical reasoning strategy so that readers understand the rationale for and have information on each stage of instruction. Next, we highlight the role of self-regulation for the reasoning process. We then turn to describing the role of each teacher (Morales as the social studies educator and Winston as the special educator), first as they collaborate with De La Paz and each other, then as Morales works alone, 1 year later. Implications are given for changes in teaching. The topic of women's suffrage is used throughout the article to highlight the teaching approach and to present student work.
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Papers by Susan De La Paz