Teaching and Learning Writing with Ecree: Insights for School and District Leaders

Teaching and Learning Writing with Ecree: Insights for School and District Leaders

Published: Jul 28, 2023
Publisher: Mathematica
Key Findings
  • Ecree likely improved the quality of students’ writing, especially for students with less advanced writing skills at the start of the school year.
  • More than half of surveyed teachers agreed Ecree was useful to help students improve their writing, but some students may be overwhelmed by the feedback.
  • About half of surveyed students agreed Ecree was easy to use and helped improve their writing.
  • Teachers used Ecree less than intended, and some reported they did not have enough time to learn Ecree and integrate it with their instruction.
  • Districts' cost for use of Ecree depend on implementation and support needs and the price per student would likely be lower for larger districts.

This brief aims to provide information to school and district leaders that can inform their decision to use automated writing feedback tools like Ecree in middle and high schools. The brief summarizes the experiences of students and teachers who used Ecree in grade 8–11 English language arts classrooms during the 2021—2022 school year and provides strategies for school and district leaders to support using Ecree.

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