C.S.E.T.
The way to make your writing
in class much betterer.
LEQ: How can I use
C.S.E.T.s to increase the
quality of students’ text
based writing?
Ever had an unhelpful friend?
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You: I just found out that the director of The
Dark Knight has another film called Inception.
Should I see it?
Your friend: Yep.
You: Well, why? What is it about?
Your friend: Dreams.
You:…that’s it. That wasn’t very helpful. You
are a terrible friend.
A better response…
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Provides the information you’re looking for:
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The recommendation
An brief set-up of the evidence that sheds light
on the recommendation
A specific example of a good or bad part
(depending on your recommendation) to back
up the recommendation
An explanation of how the example helps prove
the recommendation/summary statement.
I don’t know much about
Inception. What is it about?
Should I see it?
Inception is a movie you need to see right now.
The film bends the audience’s view of reality.
There is a crazy scene where they enter one
dream that is collapsing and the hallway is
spinning during a fight scene. During this
scene I couldn’t tell which way was up, which
was really exciting and unique and why you
should see in as soon as possible.
This new and better answer is
brought to you by…
C.S.E.T
.
Why C.S.E.T?
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Text based writing is a skill that requires
constant practice and attention to detail
It is a major focus of the CCSS.
Currently, we have identified through DDI
and our own classes that the students
seldom provide textual support or explain the
support they do provide.
Easy to immediately implement
Many students and faculty members
currently use the strategy regularly.
C.S.E.T.
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Claim
Set-Up
Evidence
Tie-In
Claim-to say something as true
This is the opening sentence of your answer.
○ It is the simple answer to the question.
○ Must be a complete sentence.
○ Should avoid pronouns.
○ It usually provides a rephrasing of the
question.
○ Question: Who is the best running back of all
time?
○ Claim: Barry Sanders is the best running back
of all time.
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Set up: explain why your claim is
true!
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This is the part that explains the thinking
behind your answer.
It must be a logical reason behind your claim.
Question: Who is the best running back of all
time?
Claim: Barry Sanders is the best running back
of all time.
Set-Up: Although he doesn’t hold the records
for yards, or any super bowl rings, a close
look at the numbers show his superiority.
Evidence: specific information that
backs-up your support.
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The more specific this information is, the
harder it is to “refute your claim.”
Evidence: According to the NFL , Barry was
the first running back to ever have over 1,000
yards per year in ten straight seasons. Emmitt
Smith has 3086 more rushing yards, but
Emmitt Smith played an additional five years
and for much better teams.
Evidence: this is specific information
that backs-up your support.
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looks different in different subjects:
English: usually quotes from the readings
Math: the work you do when solving a problem
Science: measurements from a lab experiment
Social studies: quotes from documents, or
data from tables or surveys
Tie Up: Connect your quote back
to your main claim
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Explain how your quote helps make
your point. This is where the analysis
happens
○ Tie up: Just looking at total yards isn’t
enough. Emmitt Smith may have more yards,
but, when noting the number of yards per year
and the fact that the superior offensive line
gave him more opportunities to run, it
becomes clear that Barry Sanders is the only
choice.
Put it all together.
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Barry Sanders is the best running back of all time.
Although he doesn’t hold the records for yards, or any
super bowl rings, a close look at the numbers show his
superiority. Barry was the first running back to ever
have over 1,000 yards in ten straight seasons. Emmitt
Smith has 3086 more rushing yards, but Emmitt Smith
played an additional five years and for teams who had
a superior offensive line. Just looking at total yards isn’t
enough. Emmitt Smith may have more yards, but,
when noting the number of yards per year and the fact
that the superior offensive line gave him more
opportunities to run, it becomes clear that Barry
Sanders is the only choice.
Some examples from last year
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Many students in William Penn have already
been using CSET.
Ideal Answer (cleaned up
grammatically)
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Claim: States should require all students to
take civics
Set-up: because the United states is a
democracy which requires citizens to
participate in the operation of the government.
Ideal Answer Part 2
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Evidence: As stated in the book, one of the
qualities of a good citizen is to be “well informed
on important issues and [be willing] to take a
stand on these issues when conscience demands
it.”
Tie-In: If a person is not informed on the issues
and workings of government they will not be able
to take care of their responsibilities as a citizen;
therefore, it is important that states make it
necessary to teach Civics.
Science CSET
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Claim: The solid golf ball had more energy.
Set-Up: We could tell that the solid golf ball had more
energy because it had a greater impact crater.
Evidence: The solid golf ball created a 5cm crater when
dropped from 25cm. The hollow only created a crater
of 4.5 when dropped from 100cm.
Tie-In: The solid ball, when dropped from the smallest
height made a larger impact crater than the hollow ball
at four times the height. Therefore, the solid golf ball
created the most change and had the most energy.
“That looks like a lot of writing
to grade...”
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It is a bit more than you are used to seeing,
but it will help you in several ways:
Their answers will be clearer and stronger,
which means better assessment scores.
○ It becomes easier to see the gaps in the
students’ understandings.
○ Eventually, you will see how CSET can be
modified for different types of writing.
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We are going to try it…
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Please answer a CSET for the following
poem:
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We Real Cool by Gwendolyn Brooks
THE POOL PLAYERS.
SEVEN AT THE GOLDEN SHOVEL.
We real cool. We
Left school. We
Lurk late. We
Strike straight. We
Sing sin. We
Thin gin. We
Jazz June. We
Die soon.
Now the CSET…
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Take a moment to answer the following
question using a CSET.
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What message is Gwendolyn Brooks giving us
about men like the ones in the poem?
A model answer…
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Claim: Brooks is criticizing the type of men
she depicts in the poem.
Set-up: She uses deliberately incorrect
grammar and a poor outcome for the men to
show that they are not as cool as they think
they are.
Evidence: For example, in the first line, the
men declare “We real cool”, but in the final
line they state “we die soon”.
Tie-In: It is hard to argue that dying soon is a
good—or cool—outcome, so it is clear that
she believes that men who leave school to
pursue partying are foolish.
Another Answer…
○ Claim: Brooks admires the type of man that she writes
about.
○ Set-up: In her poem she careful word selection and
repetition in order to catch the reader’s attention and
provide a certain style to the poem.
○ Evidence: She uses the words, “Sing sin” and repeats
the word “we.”
○ Tie-In: The men seem to be aware of their failings and
the word “sing” seems to imply that they enjoy it. the
repetition of the word “we” to establish them as the
speakers of the poem who are aware of their
consequences and choose to do what they do anyway.
These facts can imply that they find the men admirable.
Scoring Rubric
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Because we have broken the answer down
to four parts the scoring rubric reflects this
It will help us zero in on what part of the
writing the students are actually having
problems with.
Remember: You are not grading the same
question four times; you are grading the four
parts of the question once
It will take a few to get the hang of it, but it
really doesn’t take much longer.
Rubric
2-Claim correctly and insightfully answers the question
1-Claim and only partially answers the question
0-Claim is missing and/or incorrect
2-Set-up provided clearly helps reader understand thinking behind the author’s
claim
1-Set-up’s logic is present, but not fully explained or clear.
0- Set-up is insufficient, completely inaccurate/irrelevant, or missing
2-Evidence is relevant and specific and reinforces all aspects of the claim
1-Evidence may be related to the claim and support, but may not fully reinforce
them
0- Evidence is missing or completely irrelevant to the claim
2- Tie In correctly and clearly explains how the evidence reinforces the claim.
1- Tie In is included, but does not fully explain the evidence provided.
0- Tie In is missing or unrelated to the rest of the answer
Let’s try it (if we have time)
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Switch answers with a partner.
Use a CSET rubric to grade the response.
Try it again on your own…
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Use, “I Wandered Lonely As a Cloud” by
William Wordsworth.
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After reading the poem answer the following
question:
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The word wealth can mean many things. What
does the word wealth mean to the speaker?
Use CSET to answer this question.
Why C.S.E.T?
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○
○
Text based writing is a skill that requires
constant practice and attention to detail
It is a major focus of the CCSS.
Currently, we have identified through DDI
and our own classes that the students
seldom provide textual support or explain the
support they do provide.
Easy to immediately implement
Many students and faculty members
currently use the strategy regularly.