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Choosing how to plan informative synthesis texts: Effects of strategy-based interventions on overall text quality

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Abstract

The current two studies examined the effects of an instructional unit on synthesis writing for 9th grade students on holistic text quality. Because students' writing routines have been shown to affect the effectiveness of writing instruction, we designed a unit that aimed to be equally effective for all writers, regardless of their routines. On two occasions in the unit, we provided students with options to choose between a Preplanning or Drafting strategy. They could create an individual learning path within the unit. We tested the effects of the unit in two consecutive studies with independent samples, using a quasi-experimental pretest–posttest design with switching panels. Study 1 included three teachers and 152 9th grade students from five classes in one school. We found a significant effect of the unit on text quality in both panels. However, analyses showed that this effect was moderated by writing routine. To generalize the effect across writing routines, we provided students in Study 2 with an extra session on metacognitive knowledge about (synthesis) writing processes, enabling them to make better-informed strategy choices. Study 2 included six teachers and 233 students from 10 classes in three schools, all different from Study 1. Analyses again showed a significant effect of the experimental condition in panel 1, which was replicated in panel 2. Moreover, the effect was no longer moderated by writing routine. This indicates that the redesigned intervention was equally effective for students with different routines.

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Acknowledgements

Special thanks to Huub van den Bergh (Utrecht University) for helping us with the statistical analyses, and to the students and colleagues of the participating schools for their great efforts.

Funding

This work is part of the research program ‘Promotiebeurs voor leraren’ with project number 023.007.011, which is financed by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Institute for Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam, Nieuwe Achtergracht 127, P.O. Box 15776, 1001 NG, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Liselore van Ockenburg, Daphne van Weijen & Gert Rijlaarsdam

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  1. Liselore van Ockenburg
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  2. Daphne van Weijen
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  3. Gert Rijlaarsdam
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the studies' conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Liselore van Ockenburg, Daphne van Weijen and Gert Rijlaarsdam. The first draft of the manuscript was written by all three authors and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Liselore van Ockenburg.

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Study 1: ERB_Approval_9673; Study 2: ERB_Approval_10908.

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van Ockenburg, L., van Weijen, D. & Rijlaarsdam, G. Choosing how to plan informative synthesis texts: Effects of strategy-based interventions on overall text quality. Read Writ 36, 997–1023 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-021-10226-6

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