Teaching Adolescent Writers Chap 1

The document discusses the growing literacy demands students face and their lack of preparedness to meet these demands. It uses the metaphor of a stampede of bulls to represent the increasing literacy demands of the information age. Students are either working to improve their literacy skills to "run with the stampede" or risk being "trampled". Test results show most students have insufficient writing skills, with less than a third demonstrating proficiency. The document argues that as demands increase, teachers must improve writing instruction to ensure students leave school as effective writers able to succeed.