To be totally honest, it was not until I became an examiner in 1999 that I truly appreciated the curse of the discursive marker. Unfortunately, over time, this has got steadily worse. There is a place for discursive markers, but they need to be taught well!
I am fully aware for the necessity of getting those D students a C, and the formulaic teaching of structure and technique using discursive markers is certainly a way of reminding students to structure, and it also suggests a way of developing argument. Unfortunately, when you get to the 250th written response and they are all exactly the same, such a technique grinds you down. Another issue is when they should be an A/A*, but they are writing a C style response because of the limitations of how they have been taught. Such limitations are also connected to the age old complaint from employers that they appoint young people who ‘can’t write’. This is not strictly true, many them have been taught to write well enough to pass their examinations, but the reality of the issue is that too many students have not been taught enough independent understanding about how to write well in a variety of contexts to transfer their ideas into the workplace.
I recently marked a cross section of essays from one centre where I have their discursive markers branded onto my brain:
In this essay…
Firstly…
Secondly…
Similarly…
Moreover…
Having read..
Every single essay! Even when the students had responded independently to the actual texts, their repetitive opening to the paragraphs left any individuality they could muster totally redundant.
There are two issues:
1) This is how students have been taught to write and they will assume it is correct
2) The teachers clearly feel that this is a legitimate way of teaching essay skills
Depressing on both counts! The impression they gave was very much that of the completion of a cloze exercise, and this does not give the students any opportunities to reach the higher bands.
Sentence Starters
A polite request to all teachers – please encourage the students to come up with their own ways to start a sentence. If they are truly struggling, give them an individual starting point, but don’t write a series of sentence openers for them and get them to choose. Invariably, 99% of students pick the first one anyway. BY GCSE most 15 years olds are more than capable, with a little encouragement, of starting their own sentences. This is a particularly important shift to make in relation to teaching Linear GCSE. In a 100% examination scenario, students will have to be confident in starting their own sentences! English teachers will have to put a determined effort into developing confident writers who can develop an individualistic style of writing.
Teaching Structure
It is essential to teach students how to structure a response. They need to understand the context of a response, who they are writing to and for, how to write, and the sentence types needed for a particular genre of writing. They also need to appreciate the need to use language for effect and to understand levels of formality. A succinct conclusion is essential – the need to effectively finish a piece of writing should always be incorporated into their response. Writing well, and with a sense of purpose, is an essential life skill for these students, it is not just a functional exercise to pass an examination.
Use a model to show them how to write – free write with them, give them the structure so they can focus on how to to write within in, but do not write it for them, they need to know how to do it for themselves. Independent thought and independent writing has to be our ultimate aim. Realistically, they have years of school time to practice, it can be done.
Intervention
Intervene early if there are issues with their writing, don’t wait until the few months before their actual GCSE. Use the time in KS3 as an opportunity to identify individual needs and organise intervention linked to specific needs, not just a blanket – all Level 3B students get extra support – they may need different things. Identify their needs, and then implement intervention.
A Privilege
Teaching students how to write is a privilege. Writing well will make a significant difference to their life chances. If they have got the confidence and the skills to write independedntly for a variety of audiences, they will go far. It is up to teachers to get this technique right, and to teach it consistently well. There is no doubt that examination results are important, but so its their need to use these skills in their further study, and in the workplace. Exorcise the curse of the discursive marker, teach writing well!