assignments ENGL301 Writing & The Teaching of Writing: Assignment Design

Need to be in touch with me? 
LEE TORDA
310 Tillinghast Hall
Bridgewater State University
508.531.2436
ltorda@bridgew.edu
www.leetorda.com

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER
(as we develop assignments)
 
 
1.What is the role of error in our assignments?

• How do we make space for error as a moment of intellectual growth?
• How does the assignment promote and reward risk?
• How does the assignment help students minimize future error?
• How does error figure into assessment?

 
2.How does the assignment allow the lives of our students into our classrooms/how do we teach to the whole student?

• Does it allow students to consider their own experiences?
• Does it allow them to reflect on their lived experiences?
• Does it make them powerful in the world beyond the classroom?
  
  

3.What are our expectations for student performance in the assignment and how do we communicate them to our students in the assignment design and explanation?

• Do we just want correctness?
• Do we want them to respond with information we’ve already given them or are we asking them to do something with that information?
• Do we assess authentically, in a way that matches what and how we’ve communicated expectations to our students?
  
  

4.How does the assignment train students to be students?

• Do we challenge students?
• Do we reward risk?
• Do we prepare them for a next, harder assignment?