In an often divided world, it can be easy to oversimplify opposing viewpoints, reduce complex topics to pro and con, or steer away from issues that might cause controversy.
In order for youth to participate in important conversations -now and in the future - they must must be equipped with the skills and abilities to find truth in the “complex middle” (Deborah Tannen, The Argument Culture).
The National Writing Project’s
College, Career, and Community Writers Program (C3WP) answers the contemporary call for respectful argument discourse with instructional resources that help teachers and students read critically, explore multiple points of view, and take a stand on important issues. This
interactive session will engage participants in strategies for using reading, writing, research, and discussion to support students in becoming informed, making claims, and using writing to communicate with audiences about topics that matter to them.
Participants will...
- Understand the importance supporting students in writing to the complex middle
- Know more about the resources and practices of the National Writing Project's College, Career, & Community Writers Program (C3WP)
- Know and be able to replicate three writing strategies to support complex thinking for student writers
NAGC Standards AddressedStandard 3: Curriculum Planning and Instruction3.4. Instructional Strategies. Students with gifts and talents become independent investigators.
- 3.4.1. Educators use critical-thinking strategies to meet the needs of students with gifts and talents.
3.6. Resources. Students with gifts and talents benefit from gifted education programming that provides a variety of high quality resources and materials.
- 3.6.1. Teachers and administrators demonstrate familiarity with sources for high quality resources and materials that are appropriate for learners with gifts and talents.