Chiara Matriccino

Transformative Learning Experience: Writing Instruction

In every discipline, e.g., psychology, business, science, mathematics, and education,

research is conducted in order to introduce, foster, and improve awareness, knowledge,

techniques and/or methods of, for, and within that discipline. As defined by the Oxford English

Dictionary, research is the Systematic investigation or inquiry aimed at contributing to

knowledge of a theory, topic, etc., by careful consideration, observation, or study of a subject

(research, def. 2a). Research provides forms of evidence that may benefit specific disciplinary

growth. In many fields of study, those within each discipline use the evidence from the provided

research to understand the problem and determine the best solution (if the research had not

explicitly done so already). However, each discipline, of course, contains many subparts.

Educational research, or the research concerning the way by which educators teach, is too broad

a term to discuss in its entirety. The way one teaches mathematics differs than the way one

teaches writing; therefore, the research and the evidence will differ drastically. This paper

focusses on how to best teach writing instruction, specifically grammar instruction, using

Evidence-Based Practices (EBP) for a transformative learning experience.

Much research has been produced and implemented concerning the transformative

experience intervention in courses such as psychology, science, and mathematics (Hulleman,

2010); however, little research has been conducted and implemented concerning the

transformative experience intervention in terms of writing instruction, specifically grammar

instruction. Though little research has been conducted and implemented concerning the

transformative experience intervention in terms of grammar instruction, educators must attend to

the the research that is available that targets assessment, instruction, evaluation, and

management (Graham, Harris, Chambers, 2016, p.211) instead of relying on the conventional

practices used in public education. Evidence-Based Practices does not negate neither

professional opinionnor teachers experiences (Graham, Harris, Chambers, 2016, p. 213) but

promotes the two as supplementary sources alongside Evidence-Based Practices. Thus,

Evidence-Based Practices should be studied, synthesized, and implemented in order to maximize

student transformative learning experience in writing instruction, or more specifically, grammar

instruction.

Intervention research studies work in several ways: [it] isolate[s] the effects of a specific

practice or set of practices when testing [students]...collects evidence on whether the

instructional practice produced the desired impact...provide[s] direct and compelling evidence on

the effectiveness of the target practice(s)...addresses issues involving generalizability and

reliability, as investigators conduct multiple studies to determine if a positive effect can be

replicated across students and situations (Graham, Harris, Chambers, 2016, p. 213).