ABSTRACT
Important skills need to be seen in context before students are instructed in their use. One would do better in learning piano notes and chords by first hearing music or learning soccer skills after first seeing a game. Writing essays or research reports without first reading model examples leaves a student unnecessarily perplexed and unmotivated. A testing-driven tendency to focus on parts (“rush to rubric”) before students have examined several whole models leaves students unable to produce quality products and unable to use or disinterested in using the rubric, or parts, to plan or evaluate their work. The importance of using whole models applies to all forms of writing, as well as to problem-solving and other forms of inquiry.
