Project Summary

The Rhode Island Writing Project, a program at Rhode Island College, contracted with The Education Alliance to evaluate the "New Approaches to Reading and Writing in the Secondary Content Areas" Project. Funded for four years by the Rhode Island Office of Higher Education, the Project engaged teachers from middle and high schools in Woonsocket, Providence, Warwick and North Providence, RI.

It provided them with intensive professional development in how to infuse reading and writing in their content area instruction. The evaluation found that in all four years, teachers reported high levels of enhanced literacy practices, from journaling to revision strategies, to revamped use of core texts. The evaluation also focused on the relationship between professional development and professional collaboration centered on literacy.