The Boston Writing Project

Please direct your browser to our new Web site at http://www.bostonwritingproject.org. Thank you!

Founded in 1979, the Boston Writing Project (BWP) is a program of the Institute for Learning and Teaching (ILT)
in the Graduate College of Education (GCE)
at the University of Massachusetts, Boston.

The application for the summer institute (due April 15) is now available. Please click here for an up-to-date brochure with information about this year's institute, which runs from July 9 to August 2.

Please click here for information about the Massachusetts Writing Project's conference, featuring Sonia Nieto, on May 5, 2007.

Offerings
from the Boston Writing Project

Please go to the web site of the school of Continuing Education for information on registering for these courses http://ccde.umb.edu/.

Teacher as Writer BWPEDU 501
Bruce Rettman
Friday, 2:20pm to 5:30pm
The focus of the course is improving writing instruction by having teachers actively involved in all phases of the process: prewriting, drafting, revising and proofreading. Participants will improve their writing skills and learn effective practices for teaching writing.

Teaching and Writing Poetry K-12 BWPEDU 530
Marie Coleman
Saturday, 11:45am to 2:45pm 1:45am to 2:45pm
This course allows teachers to meet the standards while encouraging their own and their students' creativity. They will become familiar with a wide range of multicultural poems and poets.

Writing in the Content Areas BWPEDU 510
Saturday, 8:15am to 11:15am
This course is designed to address teachers' growing need to teach writing in specific disciplines. Through journals, writing prompts, and reader response methods, participants will integrate theory with practice.

Instructional Coaching BWPEDU 597
Special Dates between Sept 19 and December 12
In recent years, school districts across the country, especially urban districts, have turned to instructional coaching as an avenue to instructional reform and professional improvement for teachers. This course examines possibilities for one adult to work in a "coaching" capacity with another adult to improves teaching, especially literacy instruction. The course is intended for people who currently work in coaching roles, or who are interested in pursuing a non-administrative role for working with adults in schools to improve instruction in literacy and other disciplines. Course goals include: creating a conception of "coaching" that is appropriate to teaching and teachers; using current research from literacy and multiple fields to inform our notion of "effective coaching"; embodying principles of adult development into instructional coaching; analyzing the role of observation and conversation in coaching. Participants will engage in an individual inquiry to apply the knowledge and principles they are developing through the course.

(The above courses can be applied to the Boston Writing Project Graduate Certificate in the Teaching of Writing.)

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Harbor Islands Review, The Literary Journal of the Boston Writing Project, is now available. Please send your ten dollar check or money order to the Boston Writing Project, Graduate College of Education, University of Massachusetts Boston, 100 Morrissey Boulevard, Boston, MA 02125-3393.

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The Boston Writing Project's
Graduate Certificate in
The Teaching of Writing

The Program

This fifteen-credit certificate program is designed for K-12 teachers and administrators in all subject areas who want to learn strategies to strengthen students' writing and thinking skills, develop expertise in teaching writing and literacy across the curriculum, gain a deeper understanding of literacy learning, and improve their own writing. Participants will examine current readings in composition, literacy and writing pedagogy, share successful teaching practices, develop and implement curriculum, and document the effects of their teaching by collecting and analyzing student work.

The Boston Writing Project (BWP) is part of UMass Boston's Institute for Learning and Teaching (ILT), located in the Graduate College of Education. An affiliated site of the federally-funded National Writing Project (NWP), the BWP has provided comprehensive instruction in the teaching of writing since 1979. Courses draw on the NWP "teachers teaching teachers" model, which research and assessment have demonstrated to be among the most effective methods for creating authentic, lasting improvements in curriculum, learning, and teaching.

Certificate Requirements

The following three core courses (totaling 9 credits) are required:

Participants also select two elective courses (6 additional credits) which may include:

The Faculty

Instructors are practicing teachers with a minimum of five years classroom teaching experience, master's degrees or doctorates and extensive staff development experience. They are teachers and writers whose areas of expertise include composition, special education, early literacy, bilingual education and history. Their common ground is their affiliation with the Boston Writing Project and the shared NWP philosophy of teachers teaching teachers.

Schedule, Location, and Cost

Courses and institutes are offered as intensive two and four-week summer sessions and evening or weekend courses during the fall and spring semesters. They may be held at on or off-campus locations.  Course fees for 2005-2006 school year are available from the registrar. Some institutes offer stipends or tuition waivers.

Applications and Additional Information

Applicants must be practicing teachers or administrators.  A master's degree is preferred. Pre-service teachers may be admitted to one or more of the courses if space is available. Applicants may be able to transfer up to six credits from previous BWP courses (completed within the past seven years).

If you are interested in applying to the program, you may apply online through Graduate School Admissions to the Boston Writing Project.*   Applications should include a letter of intent declaring your interest in the BWP Graduate Certificate in the Teaching of Writing.  The application process also requires that all undergraduate and graduate transcripts be submitted as part of your application along with an application fee of $40 for in-state residents and $60 for out-of-state applications.  Deadlines for applications are August 1st, 2006 for Fall semester and December 1st, 2006 for Spring semester, 2007.

(*You can also make a Graduate Academic Information Request by following the above link and clicking on request materials be mailed to you and then clicking on graduate information request form .

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Congratulations to BWP Fellow Dave Russell           
for being recognized by the Boston Celtics as one of the Heroes Among Us.

"The Heroes Among Us Award is presented to an individual or individuals who, through their unique commitment and humanitarian spirit, have made exceptional and lasting contributions to our community. At each home game, the Celtics and their fans have saluted the exemplary efforts of these citizens during a special in-game presentation on the legendary parquet floor."
                                                                              from Celtics' 'Heroes Among Us'

Dave is the man in the tie.

"David is a teacher at the McKinley South End Academy, a school for students with serious emotional and learning disabilities. With his intense dedication to his students and his profession, he has distinguished himself as a leader in his field. David has been recognized as the Teacher of the Year by the Boston Public Schools in 2001. That same year he also received the prestigious "Golden Apple" award.

When David is not teaching, he can be found mentoring first year teachers through the "Mentor Teacher" program. This year, David is proud to celebrate his 20th Anniversary as a teacher at McKinley South End Academy!"   from Celtics' citation

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