Ratiocination: A Russian Gulag or a Trail to Freedom

Ratiocination is a systematic process by which a person considers a problem or mystery through a reasoned train of thought. It is pronounced rat’-ee-oh-sin-ay’-shun. My first exposure to ratiocination was during a New Jersey Writing Project of Texas Institute. The steps to this deductive process applied to writing are simple:

1. Share a “code”
2. Brainstorm solutions.
3. Students code their texts.
4. Students resolve the codes.

Unfortunately, the application of this simple process by some turns this powerful process into a Russian Gulag: a mindless, laborious punishment inflicted on students after they have completed a draft. Papers end up looking like mechanical paint by number projects instead of articulately, well chosen revisions that advance the writer’s purpose and prepare the text for the reader.

Here’s an example of how the process can be abused by making ratiocination a list of instructions. A sheet like this one is an assignment. Instructions. That is not the same thing as instruction. The document linked above is a good example of things that a writer could do to ratiocinate. But no writer would be willing to inflict that list upon themselves as a trial by ordeal.

The proper use of ratiocination happens when the teacher purposefully selects mechanical, grammatical, structural, or development needs from what she is reading in student papers or from the required curriculum of her course.

1. The class/teacher identifies and names an issue. (Varied sentence beginnings, capitalization, developing details for declarative statements/passive voice)
2. The class develops or uses a standard proofreading code to mark the text.
3. The class generates solutions from their background. The class generates solutions from mentor texts. Or the teacher explicitly teaches the conventions, processes, or strategies that match the writing issue identified in step one.
4. The solutions and strategies to resolve the issue are listed with the code on a class anchor chart.
5. In collaborative groups, students examine a text, code it for the target issue, and co-create revisions or edits based on the solutions identified and recorded on the chart.
6. The class meets back together to share key insights and discusses the impact on the message, craft, purpose, reader experience, etc. Any additional solutions are recorded on the chart with examples cut from the collaborative revisions and edits.
7. Students work in pairs to code texts from their original compositions. Then, students can work independently to resolve one or two of the codes. They meet back in pairs to share the changes and reflect on the impact on the text as well as the key elements of their learning.
8. Students offer one or two examples as evidence of their learning to be evaluated by the teacher. More feedback or individual instruction is offered to bridge gaps in understanding and application.
9. Once the teacher has verified student  understanding and application of the issue, the item is now moved to the student’s editing and revision list. When the student begins to resolve the issue automatically, the student can remove the item from his independent writing checklist. (Of course, the solutions he learned to use can be kept in the writer’s notebook for future reference and use.)

Here are three of my favorite  samples of ratiocination:

1. Ratiocinate for Structure

Create a visual code for the parts of an effective expository essay.

Put a star by the Hook

Highlight the thesis

Underline the reasons

Box the explanation

Circle the conclusion

Read and code the text

Examine the patterns and discuss. You may wish to directly teach about any elements that are missing or truncated – probably the explanation. Discuss the location of each piece. Discuss how listing reasons does not allow for depth. (I like using CAFE SQUIDD for expository development.)

Students return to papers and revise.

2. Ratiocinate for Sentences:

Students highlight from capitol letter to ending punctuation. Then change highlighter colors, alternating by color for each sentence.

Compare and discuss sentence length and variation.

Directly teach sentence structures that will be helpful for editing or revision.

Students return to papers and revise.

3. Ratiocinate for Sentence Beginnings

In the margin of the paper, write the first word of each sentence, using one line per word.

Circle repeated words.

Directly teach sentence structures for varying sentence beginnings. Another resource.

Students return to papers and revise.