Disabling Assumptions

Long before the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) movement was a glimmer in a corporate CEO's eye, good teachers have been differentiating instruction to engage all students in high-level intellectual tasks that motivate learners to read, understand, and write about a variety of texts. Good teachers also know that students need motivation and encouragement to revise their drafts. The following ideas for reading, writing, and responding to student writing can be used to differentiate lessons for students with individualized education plans (IEPs), but they can support everyone, thus reducing possible stigma for some students and increasing options for all. An additional benefit is that, in the implementation of these ideas, some of society's disabling assumptions about how "reading," "writing," and "responding" are defined may need to be revisited. Technology today offers a variety of composing choices. All students should have access to the voice-to-text technologies that may help them produce better first drafts.