Educators across many campuses are reflecting on how to strengthen instruction for constructed response writing. While mid-year student samples show encouraging progress, many still lack critical elements that elevate a response from adequate to exceptional.
Let’s start by examining a typical student response. At first glance, it appears to follow the RACE strategy (Restate, Answer, Cite, Explain) correctly. However, even when all parts of the RACE framework are present, responses can fall short of being truly effective and well-developed.
So, What’s Missing?
This is where Empowering Writers makes a powerful difference.
After receiving direct instruction through Empowering Writers’ approach, students begin to integrate specific, high-impact writing skills into their responses. These include:
- Crafting strong main idea sentences
- Adding elaborative detail
- Paraphrasing and citing textual evidence
- Using effective sentence starters
- Employing word referents for varied word choice
- Concluding with purpose
The result? Responses that not only meet RACE expectations but go beyond to demonstrate depth, clarity, and structure.
Ready to Take the Next Step?
Join us for an in-depth exploration by watching the full webinar, Beyond RACE Strategy - How EW Can Refine Constructed Response on Your Campus Webinar.
Want to bring this level of writing instruction to your school or district? Contact us today to schedule a session with one of our Master Trainers. We’ll help you evaluate your current writing instruction and provide actionable strategies to better support your teachers and students.