The Effectiveness of Teaching 10th-Grade Students STOP, AIMS, and DARE for Planning and Drafting Persuasive Text

Explicitly and systematically teaching strategies for planning and drafting specific types of text has improved the writing of elementary and middle school students with disabilities in previous studies. In this investigation, we examined the effect of teaching a planning and drafting strategy for persuasive writing to high school students with disabilities who were also struggling writers. Six 10th-grade students (4 boys, 2 girls) were taught how to plan and write persuasive essays using the Self-Regulated Strategy Development model. A multiple baseline design, with multiple probes during baseline, treatment, and postinstruction, was used to evaluate the effectiveness of instruction. During and following instruction, all students spent a greater amount of time planning and writing their papers. Their compositions became longer, more complete, and qualitatively better. Students, teachers, and parents were also positive about the treatment and its effects.