Today's kids don't just write for grades anymore. They write to shake the world. Moreover, they are writing more than any previous generation, ever, in history. They navigate in a bewildering new arena where writers and their audiences have merged.

For these students, "Good writing changes something. It doesn't just sit on the page. It gets up, walks off the page and changes something," whether it's a website or a poster for a walkathon.

<p>When writing, let’s say, to the teacher, you are communicated to be evaluated.&nbsp; Assessment is the outcome, based on some set of expectations involving skills and/or knowledge. </p> <p>However, when writing to an authentic audience, what you are trying to earn is not an evaluation (though there may be one coming in the process).&nbsp; What you are writing for is a <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">response</span>, and that response will be directed toward what you have invested in the work, not just the facts you have included or the skills you have demonstrated.</p>

When students know that anyone in the school with an Internet connection – or around the world, for that matter – can read what they have written or created, it is remarkable how quickly their thinking improves, not to mention the final product.