HOWPRESERVICETEACHERS’ATTITUDESANDBELIEFSABOUTWRITING
INFORMTHEIRVIEWOFWRITINGINSTRUCTION:ACASESTUDYby
DeniseGlaserMalloy
Adissertationsubmittedinpartialfulfillmentoftherequirementsforthedegree
of
DoctorofEducationin
CurriculumandInstruction
MONTANASTATEUNIVERSITYBozeman,Montana
November2016
iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Asaparent,Iwholeheartedlyagreethat“ittakesavillagetoraiseachild.”
Butasadoctoralcandidate,Ibelievethisaxiomholdstrueforthosewhopursue
advanceddegrees.Forme,ithastakenavillagetoreachmydestinationingraduate
school.Iamgratefulforthesupportofmyfamily,mywiseandcaringcommittee
members,andmyfriendsthroughoutthisjourney.
Dr.AnnEllsworth,mycommitteechair,deservesthehighestorderofpraise.
Herunwaveringfaithinmyideasprovidedtheconfidencetopursuemydoctorate.
Merewordscannotexpressmygratitudeforherguidance,expertise,andkindness.
Whilealwaysholdingmetothehighestofstandards,herencouragementhelped
propelmetothefinishline.Ithasbeenaprivilege,indeed,tobepartofhercircle.
Mythoughtfulcommitteemembersgavemeunparalleledsupport.Dr.David
Henderson,Dr.JoyceHerbeck,Dr.ChristineRogers‐Stanton,andDr.SarahSchmitt‐
Wilson,Iamhumbledandever‐soappreciativethatyoueachwerewillingtofreely
sharethewisdomofyourcollectiveexperienceandyourprecioustimewithme.
Thankyouforinspiringmythinking,challengingmyknowledge,andmakingme
seeknotonlynewanswers,butnewquestions.
Imustalsogiveanenormousthankyoutothestudentswhoagreedto
participateinmystudyandsharetheircandid,intenselypersonalresponses.
Withoutthem,thisdissertationwouldnothavebeenpossible.Iamdeeplygrateful.
iv
TABLEOFCONTENTS
1.INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................................................................1BackgroundoftheStudy.....................................................................................................................2StatementoftheProblem...................................................................................................................3BackgroundoftheResearcher..........................................................................................................5ResearchQuestions...............................................................................................................................6LimitationsoftheStudy.......................................................................................................................6DelimitationsoftheStudy..................................................................................................................7SignificanceoftheStudy......................................................................................................................72.LITERATUREREVIEW......................................................................................................................11HistoryofWritingInstruction........................................................................................................11DevelopmentofProcessWriting...................................................................................................13Writing–the“NeglectedR”..............................................................................................................17WritingInstructioninTeacherEducationPrograms...........................................................22TheNationalWritingProject:AddressingtheConcerns....................................................26TheUniqueSocializationofTeachers..........................................................................................28SituatedLearning.................................................................................................................................29RoleofAttitudeinWriting................................................................................................................31DevelopmentofWritingAttitudesandBeliefs........................................................................32RoleofSelf‐EfficacyinAttitudesandBeliefsaboutWriting..............................................34PreserviceTeachers’AttitudesandBeliefsaboutWriting.................................................36ChapterSummary.................................................................................................................................393.METHODOLOGY...................................................................................................................................41CasestudyResearchDesign.............................................................................................................43SocialConstructivism.........................................................................................................................45BackgroundoftheResearcherMyWritingHistory..............................................................46MyTeachingHistory...........................................................................................................................50RoleoftheResearcher........................................................................................................................54SiteSelection...........................................................................................................................................56HistoryoftheTeacherEducationPrograminThisStudy..................................................58HistoryofEDU330–EmergentLiteracy....................................................................................60TheCourse:EDU330–EmergentLiteracy................................................................................61Participants.............................................................................................................................................62DataCollection.......................................................................................................................................65
WritingApprehensionTest(WAT)...................................................................................66Questionnaire.............................................................................................................................67
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TABLEOFCONTENTS‐CONTINUED
Semi‐StructuredInterviewsandGraphicRepresentation......................................68ClassObservations....................................................................................................................70FocusGroup.................................................................................................................................71StudentWorkSamplesandJournalEntries..................................................................72AdditionalInformation...........................................................................................................73
DataAnalysisStrategiesandProcess..........................................................................................74MethodsofAchievingTrustworthinessandCredibility......................................................75ChapterSummary.................................................................................................................................764.RESULTS.................................................................................................................................................78Participants.............................................................................................................................................80ReluctantWriters.................................................................................................................................81
Sadie................................................................................................................................................81SadietheWriter..........................................................................................................85SadietheFutureWritingTeacher.......................................................................83
Sydney............................................................................................................................................84SydneytheWriter......................................................................................................85SydneytheFutureWritingTeacher...................................................................87
SummaryofReluctantWriters............................................................................................88EmergingWriter...................................................................................................................................89
Amber.............................................................................................................................................89AmbertheWriter.......................................................................................................91AmbertheFutureWritingTeacher....................................................................91
SummaryoftheEmergingWriter......................................................................................92ConfidentWriters..................................................................................................................................93
Kay...................................................................................................................................................93KaytheWriter..............................................................................................................94KaytheFutureWritingTeacher..........................................................................95
Lily...................................................................................................................................................96LilytheWriter..............................................................................................................98LilytheFutureWritingTeacher...........................................................................99
Gina...............................................................................................................................................100GinatheWriter.........................................................................................................101GinatheFutureWritingTeacher......................................................................102
Mary.............................................................................................................................................103MarytheWriter........................................................................................................104MarytheFutureWritingTeacher.....................................................................106
SummaryoftheConfidentWriters................................................................................107Themes...................................................................................................................................................109
ProvidingExplicitandMeaningfulFeedback............................................................110
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TABLEOFCONTENTS‐CONTINUED
OfferingChoiceinWritingTopics...................................................................................113MakingWritingFun/Enjoyable/HavinganEnthusiasticTeacher...................115ProvidingAdequateInstructioninWritingFoundations,Skill,andGrammar................................................................................................................116AllowingAdequateTimeforWritingPractice...........................................................118HelpingStudentsUnderstandthe“Why”ofWriting..............................................119
ChapterSummary.................................................................................................................................1215.CONCLUSION......................................................................................................................................122ApprenticeshipofObservationandSituatedLearning.....................................................122MeaningfulFeedback.......................................................................................................................125Choice.....................................................................................................................................................128MakingWritingFun,Enjoyable,andPossessinganEnthusiasm..................................130InstructioninFoundations,Skills,andGrammar................................................................131Practice...................................................................................................................................................133Understandingthe“Why”ofWriting........................................................................................135Recommendations.............................................................................................................................136
PreserviceTeachersasWriters.......................................................................................137StudentsasFutureWritingTeachers............................................................................140
SuggestionsforFutureResearch.................................................................................................142SummaryandConclusion...............................................................................................................143REFERENCESCITED............................................................................................................................145APPENDICES...........................................................................................................................................154
APPENDIXA:EDU330–EmergentLiteracysyllabus–Spring2016..............155APPENDIXB:Daly‐MillerWritingApprehensionTest(WAT)...........................172APPENDIXC:WrittenQuestionnaire.............................................................................176APPENDIXD:GraphicRepresentation:WritingMemoriesMatrix..................178APPENDIXE:Semi‐StructuredInterview#1.............................................................181APPENDIXF:FocusGroupQuestions............................................................................183APPENDIXG:Semi‐StructuredInterview#2.............................................................185
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LISTOFTABLES
Table Page
1. EnrollmentbyGender......................................................................................................57
2. SummaryofParticipants................................................................................................65
3. DataSources.........................................................................................................................65
4. Participants’AttitudesandSelf‐Confidence...........................................................81
5. Pre/PostWATTestScores..........................................................................................109
6. Feedback.............................................................................................................................110
7. Choice...................................................................................................................................114
8. MakingWritingFun,EnjoyableandPossessingEnthusiasm......................115
9. Foundation,Skills,andGrammar.............................................................................117
10. Practice................................................................................................................................118
11. Understandingthe“Why”ofWriting.....................................................................120
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GLOSSARY Attitudes:“internalbeliefsthatinfluenceactions”(Schunk,2012,p.220).
Beliefs:“unquestionedpresumptionsandpersonaltruths”whichare“built
onmemorableepisodesin[aperson’slife]”(Brindley&Schneider,2002,p.328).
Pre‐serviceteacher:studentswhoareeducationmajorscurrentlyinthe
methodscourses,butnotyetinstudentteaching.
Writing:useofthewrittenwordtoconveymeaning.Forpurposesofthis
study,writingreferstobothformal,academiccommunicationaswellasinformal
expressionsuchasjournalorletterwriting.
Englishlanguagearts:includesreading,writing,speaking,listening,and
viewing(NationalCouncilofTeachersofEnglish,2015)
Methodsclass:courseworkthatrequirespreserviceteacherstoblend
theoryandpracticethroughplacementinaK‐8classroomworkingunderthe
supervisionofacooperatingteacher.
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ABSTRACT
Attitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingheldbypreserviceteachersplayasignificantroleinhowtheywillapproachwritinginstructionintheirfutureclassrooms.Teacherswhoengageinregularwritingpractice,possessknowledgeofEnglishlanguagefoundationsandgrammar,andhaveapositiveattitudeaboutwritingwillbebetterpreparedtoaddressthechallengesofteachingstudentshowtowrite.Thisstudyexaminedtheattitudesandbeliefsofsevenelementaryeducationmajorswhowereenrolledinonewriting‐intensiveEnglishlanguageartscourseduringthespringsemesterin2016.
TheparticipantsinthisqualitativecasestudywereselectedaftertakingtheWritingApprehensionTest(WAT)aspartoftheircoursework.Asocialconstructivismparadigmprovidedthetheoreticalframeworkforthisstudy.Datasourcesincluded:aquestionnaire,twosemi‐structuredinterviews,awritingmemoriesmatrix,dailyclassobservations,afocusgroup,fieldobservernotes,andstudentworksamplesandjournalentries.Thedatawasanalyzedinthecontextofstudentaswriterandstudentasfuturewritingteacher. Sixthemesemergedwithintheframeworkoftheanalysisforbothwriterandfuturewritingteacher:providingexplicitandmeaningfulfeedback;offeringchoiceinwritingtopics;makingwritingfun,enjoyable,andpossessinganenthusiasmforthesubject;providingadequateinstructioninwritingfoundations,skill,andgrammar;allowingadequatetimeforwritingpractice;andhelpingstudentsunderstandthe“why”ofwriting.Thisstudyoffersinsightintohowpreserviceteachersperceiveandpracticethewritingprocess,whatfactorswereinfluentialinthedevelopmentoftheirattitudesandbeliefs,andwhatrolethosewillplayinwritinginstruction.Inaddition,thisstudyexploreshowprovidingpositiveexperienceswiththewritingprocesswithinthecontextofthesixthemescanbolsterconfidenceandskilllevelsforsoon‐to‐beteachers.Finally,thisstudyconcludeswithsuggestionsforhowteachereducationprogramscanoptimizeinstructiontoremediateandreinforceskills,fosterpositiveexperienceswithwriting,andsupportfutureteachersintheirjourney.
1
CHAPTERONE‐INTRODUCTION
Writing,thecreativeeffort,theuseoftheimagination,shouldcomefirst,‐atleastforsomepartofeverydayofyourlife.Itisawonderfulblessingifyouwilluseit(Ueland,1983,p.14).
Thepurposeofthisstudyistoexaminepreserviceteachers’attitudesand
beliefsaboutwritingandtheirimpactuponwritinginstructionintheK‐8classroom.
Workingcloselywithprospectiveeducatorsduringtheirformativeteacher
preparationcourseworkandinstudentteachinghasgivenmeauniqueperspective
intothemakingofateacher.Thesestudentsenterteachereducationprogramswith
avarietyofexperiencesrelatedtoschoolingandacademicpreparationwhichform
beliefsandattitudesabouttheirownabilitiesandmasteryofsubjects.Ofcourse,
thisholdstrueforwriting.Somestudentsmayhavehadahit‐or‐missapproachto
writingintheirelementaryschooling.Othersmayhavenotreceiveddirect
instructioningrammarnoranyclear,constructivefeedback.Stillothersmaylacka
thoroughunderstandingofrevisionandediting.Withthecurrentemphasison
writinginthecurriculumaspartoftheCommonCoreEnglishLanguageArts
Standards,whichsetcompetencyrequirementsforK–12writing,thereisno
questionthatwritinginstructionwillnowplayabiggerroleinelementary
classrooms(CommonCoreStateStandards[CCSS],2015).
2
BackgroundoftheStudy
Throughoutastudent’sschoolcareer,hisorherattitudesandbeliefsare
shapedbyacademicexperiences.Likewise,otherfactors,suchasfamily,can
contributetothedevelopmentofthesenotionsregardingtheirabilitytolearna
particularsubject.Developedovertime,theseattitudesandbeliefsareinstrumental
inshapingperformance(Brindley&Schneider,2002;Rosen,Glennie,Dalton,
Lennon&Bozick,2010;Shofel,1991).Eventually,theyformthestudent’score
expectationsabouttheabilitytomastersubjectmatter(Parajes,2003).Depending
upontheexperiencesoftheindividual,theattitudesandbeliefsformedmaybe
positive,negative,orneutral.
Whenstudentsentertheuniversity,whetherornotthereisalevelof
awareness,thesepreviouslyformedattitudesaccompanythem(Florio‐Ruane&
Lensmire,1990;Lortie,1975).Forstudentspursuingacareerinteaching,these
dispositionsplayanevenmorecriticalrole(Lortie,1975).Withoutquestion,these
attitudesandbeliefs,whichmayhavebeenformedmorethanadecadeago,will
haveawide‐sweepingimpactacrossthecurriculum,includingpedagogicalpractices
(Dart,Bouton‐Lewis,Brownlee,&McCrindle,1998;Whitney&Friedrich,2013).
Lortie(1975)investigatedthesignificantroleattitudesplayonteachersinthe
classroom,intheformulationoftheiridentityasaprofessional,andinhowthese
attitudespermeateeveryinstructionaldecision.
Theattitudesandbeliefsthatteachershaveaboutthemselvesaswritersare
particularlyimportant.TheNationalWritingProject,professionaldevelopmentin
3
responsetoteachers’concernsthattheyareunpreparedorunderpreparedtoteach
writing,providescompellingevidencethatourcurrentteacherpreparation
programsarenotadequatelypreparingstudentstoteachwriting(Bratcher&
Stroble,1994;Street,2003;Whitney&Fredich,2013).Moreover,thisunderscores
thenotionthatnewteacherslackconfidenceorskillsinwriting(Bratcher&Stroble,
1994;Street,2003;Whitney&Fredich,2013).Yetdespitebeingenrolledin
accreditedteachertrainingprograms,manypreserviceteachersfeelunpreparedor
underpreparedaswritersandasfutureteachersofwriting(Zimmerman,Morgan&
Kidder‐Brown,2014).
StatementoftheProblem
Researchclearlydemonstratesthepowerfulinfluencethatpriorattitudes
playinhowapreserviceteacherwillultimatelyapproachteaching,including
writinginstruction(Chambless&Bass,1995;Colby&Stapleton,2006;Lortie,1975;
Morgan,2010;Street,2003,Street&Stang,2009).Theseself‐efficacybeliefs,formed
overaperiodoftime,willgreatlyinfluencethepreserviceteacher’sviewsofthe
writingprocessandinstruction(Bandura,1997).Understandingtheseattitudesand
beliefs,howtheyareformed,andwhatcanbedonetochangethemcanhelpguide
andinformtheapproachtowritinginstructioninteachereducationprograms.
AccordingtoEsquith(2007),“simplesolutionstocomplexproblemsareembraced
fartoooften”(p.xii).Forpreserviceteacherstobecomecompetentandconfident
4
writers,teachereducationprogramsmustacknowledgethataproblemexistsand
takestepstoremediatethedeficiencies.
NotonlymustfutureteachersunderstandthefundamentalsoftheEnglish
language,theymustbeactiveparticipantsintheprocess(Gebhardt,1977).Inother
words,writingteachersmustwrite(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,1990;Brooks,2010;
Cremin,2006;Morgan,2010;Murray,2003;Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse
&Talbot,2007).Considertheprospectoflearningtodrivefromsomeonewhocould
recitethedriver’smanualverbatim,yethasneveroperatedamotorvehicle.Could
onelearngolffromsomeonewhohasneverhitateeshotorputtedagolfballonthe
green(Gebhardt,1977)?Sowhywouldwecontemplatethatapersonwhodoesnot
activelyengageintheprocessofwritingcouldteachanotherhowtowrite?Could
thatpersonpossiblyexpressthefrustrationsandfearofstaringattheblankpageor
sharethesatisfactionofthefinishedpieceofclearandconciseprose?Accordingto
BratcherandStroble(1994),ColbyandStapleton(2006),Morgan(2010),andSmith
(1983),theanswerisno.
Tofullyunderstandwriting,futureteachersmustexperiencethefrustrations
andjoysofwriting(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,1990;Gebhardt,1977;Murray,
2003).Theymustwrestlewiththeirfearofrevealingapartofthemselvesonthe
page(Augsburger,1998;Bloom.1990;Cremin,2006).Gebhardt(1977)statedthat
futureteachersofwritingmustbecome“experiencedintheagoniesoftryingto
write”(p.137).AccordingtoCremin(2006),teacherswhoarewritersarebetter
preparedtosharetheinherentchallengesastudentencounterswhilewriting.
5
Zinsser(2006)stateditsuccinctly:“writingishardwork”(p.9).Inwriting,aswell
asinallofeducation,inthewordsofEsquith(2007),“therearenoshortcuts”(p.
xii).
BackgroundoftheResearcher
Asonewhohasengagedinthedailypracticeofwritingforthelasttwenty‐
sevenyears,Ifindthatwritingbringsmeclarityandasenseofdelight.Occasionally
whenIstareattheblankpageorscreen,adeepleveloffrustration,angst,andfear
result,asitdoesforanyonewhowrites.Althoughthetaskofwritingtakes
enormouseffort,forme,itisworthit.
IadmitthatIloveeverythingaboutwriting.Thejoyofhavingacreative
outlet.Theabilitytothinkonthepagetosortandunderstandmyinner‐most
thoughtsortomasternewsubjectmatter.Thewonderofstringingwordstogether,
likesparklinggems,inpreciselytherightordertoconveyideas.Thethrillof
knowingthatmychoiceofwordshasthepowertobringsomeonetolaughteror
tears.Initially,Ibelievedthateveryoneelsesharedmydeepandcompellingloveof
thewrittenword.However,throughmyworkwithuniversityfreshmenand
studentsinateacherpreparationprogram,IlearnedthatIwasmistaken.
Afterenteringmydoctoralprogramincurriculumandinstruction,writing
andthewritingprocessquicklyemergedtotheforefrontofmyinterestareas.While
teachingaseminarsectionforeducationstudents,andlatercompletingateaching
internshipwithaseniorprofessorinanearlylearning‐to‐readcourse,Idiscovereda
6
similartrend.Aswritingwasdiscussed,studentswouldfreelyadmittheir
apprehensions.“I’mnotaverygoodwriter,”wasfrequentlytheirlament.Others
expressedopenhostilityaboutwriting:“Ihatewriting,”“It’sachore,”and“Writing
issohard.”Afterlisteningtopreservicestudents’comments,onequestionemerged
againandagaininmymind–whatimpactwilltheseattitudeshaveontheirability
toteachwritingintheK‐8classroom?Iwonderedifandhowtheirless‐than‐
positivemindsetswouldimpactpreserviceteachers’approachtowriting
instructionintheirfutureclassroom.
ResearchQuestions
1.Howdopreserviceteachersperceiveandpracticethewritingprocess?
2.Whatexperiencesshapedtheirattitudesandbeliefsaboutthewritingprocess?
3.Howdopreserviceteachers’viewsoftheprocessinformtheirthinkingabout
teachingwriting?
LimitationsoftheStudy
Thisstudyislimitedtoelementaryeducationmajorsinonewriting‐
intensive,EnglishLanguageArts(ELA)courseatonewesternUnitedStatesland‐
grantuniversity.Consequently,thedataislimitedinscopeandthefindings
potentiallyapplicableonlytothisparticularteachereducationprogram.Atthis
institution,thestudentpopulationispredominatelyWhiteandthemajorityof
studentsdeclaredaselementaryeducationmajorsarefemale.Consequently,the
7
genderandethnicitydiversityofthisislimitedduetotheenrollmentinthis
institutionandinthecourse.
Anotherlimitationofthestudyisthepossibilitythatstudentsadjustedtheir
responsesoutofconcernthattheywouldbesharedwiththeinstructor.Although
studentswereassuredthattheirparticipationwascompletelyconfidential,andat
nopointinthestudydidIshareanyinformationregardingtheparticipants’
identitiesorresponseswiththeinstructor,thepossibilityexiststhatsomeoftheir
answerswerealteredbasedonthisapprehension.
Finally,thisstudyusesconveniencesamplefromthepoolofstudentsinthis
course.Asaresult,thefindingsmayreflecttheexperiencesofalimitednumberof
students.However,everyeffortwasmadetoobtainarangeofstudentattitudes
aboutwritingtoprovidethegreatestdetailandscope.
DelimitationsoftheStudy
Thisstudywillexaminestudentsinoneliteracymethodscourse.Students
willhavecompletedapproximatelytwoyearsofthecoreeducationcurriculumprior
totheirentranceintheteachereducationprogram.Noparticipantswillbeinthe
studentteachingphaseoftheirprogram;allarejuniorstanding.Secondary
educationmajorswillnotbeexaminedinthisstudy.
8
SignificanceoftheStudy
Theabilitytocommunicateclearly,succinctly,andcompetentlyinwritingis
anessentialskillforthe21stcentury(CommonCoreStateStandards,2015).
Whetheronewishestosharetheresultsofresearch,gainentryintotheworkforce
orhighereducation,orpenasentimentofloveandaffection,atbest,theeffective
useofthewrittenwordcanbethedifferencebetweenconveyingalackluster,
mundanemessageandonethathasaprofoundimpact.Unclearorincoherent
writingmayresultinagarbledcommunication,wherethereaderisunabletoglean
themeaningthewriterintendedtoconvey.Atworst,thewriter’smeaningmaybe
lostinaseaofcompletelyunintelligiblewords,thoughts,andideas.
ThemostrecentNationalAssessmentofEducationalProgressinGrades8
and12fortheyear2011(NationalCenterforEducationStatistics[NAEP],2012)
confirmedthattheoutlookforwritingisdismalatbest.Accordingtothe2011
NAEP,over70%ofstudentsingrades8and12arewritingatthebasicorbelow
basiclevels.Asaresult,manyofthesestudentsareenteringuniversitieswithalack
ofmasteryofeventhemostbasicwritingskills.Someofthesestudentswill
eventuallybecometeachers.
Asthesestudentsenteruniversitiesandteachereducationprograms,the
problemiscomplicatedfurther.Atthe1300teachereducationprogramsacrossthe
nation,instructioninwritingmethodscontinuestobeignored(Daisey,2009).
AccordingtoTulley(2013),only“24.6%ofEnglishdepartmentsofferedcoursesin
theteachingofwritingtopreserviceteacherssincethelate1970s”(p.38).This
9
uniformlackofcourseworkdevotedsolelytowritingistruedespiteTheNational
CommissiononWriting(2003)recommendationthat“universitiescanhelpadvance
commonexpectationsbyrequiringcoursesinteachingwritingforallprospective
teachers”(p.32).Moreover,stateshavethepowertobuttressthisexpectationby
“insistingonsuccessfulcompletionofacourseinwritingtheoryandpracticeasa
conditionofteacherlicensing”(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.32).
However,thiscalltoactionhasbeenunheeded.
Onthecontinuumofliteracyresearch,thereisanoveralldearthofresearch
aboutwriting(Tulley,2013).Inthecontextofteachereducationprograms,some
studieshavebeenconductedregardingwritingattitudesofcurrentpractitionersin
thefield.TheNationalWritingProjectacknowledgedthatteacherswholack
confidenceintheirwritingabilitieswill“trulyneverbeabletoteachtheirstudents
towritewell”(Street&Stang,2009,p.76).ThroughthecreationoftheNational
WritingProject,professionaldevelopmentisinplacetobridgethegapbetween
theoryandpractice,helpingteacherstransformintoconfidentandcompetent
writers.
However,nosuchsafetynetexistsforpreserviceteachers.Thereisno
uniformityintheamountofinstructiononwritingpedagogyrequiredinteacher
educationprograms(Chambless&Bass,2010;Daisey,2009;Morgan,2010;Tulley,
2013).Likewise,theamountoftimespentwritingintheseprogramsvaries
dramatically(Daisey,2009;Norman&Spencer,2005;Tulley,2013).Asaresult,itis
nosurprisethatteachersareenteringtheprofessionwithvaryingattitudesabout
10
writing,skills,andself‐confidenceaboutthemselvesaswriters.However,research
demonstratesthatattitudesarefluidandcanbechanged(Street&Stang,2009).As
theNationalWritingProjectsoclearlyillustrates,theinterplayofallthesefactors
willinfluencethenewteacher’sabilitytoandattitudesaboutteachingwriting
(Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&Talbot,2007).Asaresult,thereisa
tremendousneedformoreresearchregardingwritinginteachereducation
programs,abouttheattitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingthatpreserviceteachers
bringtotheseprograms,andwhattheseprogramscandotoinfluencethem.
11
CHAPTERTWO–LITERATUREREVIEW
Wemust speak to our studentswith an honesty tempered bycompassion:Ourwordswillliterallydefinethewaystheyperceivethemselvesaswriters(Fletcher,1993,p.19).
HistoryofWritingInstruction Overall,therearefewspecifichistoricaldocumentsthatprovideaclear
descriptionofthehistoryofwritinginstructionintheUnitedStates(Hawkins&
Razali,2012).Infact,thereis“nosingularversionofhistorytorecounthere,for
multiplehistoriesofwritinginstructionintheU.S.exist”(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.
306).Formostofthenineteenthcentury,writinginstructionamountedtolittle
morethananemphasisonhandwritingtechnique,(NationalCouncilofTeachersof
EnglishReport,2009)andmasteryofspelling(Graves,1994).Duringthattime
writingwasconsidered“thephysicalactofputtinginktopaper”(Hawkins&Razali,
2012,p.306).Atthecloseofthenineteenthcentury,writinginstructionwas
typicallyofferedattheendoftheelementaryschoolyears,basedonthelogicthat
studentswouldbebetterpreparedtowriteoncetheyhadmasteredbasicliteracy
skills(Hawkins&Razali,2012).
Aroundthetransitiontothetwentiethcentury,classroomsofferedpractice
ingrammar,punctuation,andspellingwithteacherled“sentencecorrection
exercises”(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.310).Whileletterwritingpracticewas
common,manytimesstudentssimplydemonstratedproficiencybyreplicatinga
samplepieceofwriting(Hawkins&Razali,2012).AfterWorldWarI,educators
12
begantoembraceamoreprogressiveviewinspired,inpart,byJohnDewey
(Hawkins&Razali,2012).Asthetransitionmovedtoward“individualismandself‐
expression,”educatorswerechargedwithcreatinganenvironmenttofoster
creativity(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.310).Textbooksinthe1940sfeatured
“chaptersforteachingwrittencomposition,”ashiftfromthefocusonstrictly
grammarandhandwriting(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.310).Throughoutthe1950s
and60s,textbooks“promot[ed]theneedforstudentstowritefrompersonal
experienceforauthenticpurposesandaudiences”(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.311).
Untilthe1970s,writinginstructionfocusedprimarilyona“sequenceof
essentialskills”(NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003,p.19).Teachers
emphasized“inauthenticword‐andsentence‐level”instruction(Hawkins&Razali,
2012,p.311).Althoughthecornerstonesofwritingpedagogycenteredon
demonstratingknowledgeofgrammar,punctuation,andunderstandingthe
differencesbetweendistinctwritinggenres,anoticeableshiftbegantowardviewing
languageacquisitionfromaholisticperspective(Gebhardt,1977;Hawkins&Razali,
2012;NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003).Asaresult,writinginstruction
becamemoreauthenticwithagoalofcommunicatingideas(Hawkins&Razali,
2012).Atthatpoint,expertsbegantoembracetheideathat“childrencouldonly
learntowritebywriting”(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.311).
Historically,masteryofwritingwasassessedthroughthelensofthefinal
product(Calkins,1986;Dreher,1990;NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003;Perl,
Pekala,Schwartz,Graves&Silver,1983;Street&Stang,2009).Calkins(1986)
13
describedwritinginstructionduringthateducationaleraassomethingthat“was
assignedandthencorrected”(p.13).However,researchdemonstratedthat
presentingwritingskillsindependentlyfromactualpracticedoeslittle,ifanything,
tofosterwritingimprovement(NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003).Bean
(2011)describedthisprescriptivemodeofinstructionas“view[ing]writingasaset
ofisolatedskillsunconnectedtoanauthenticdesiretoconversewithinterested
readersaboutrealideas”(p.17).Althoughwritingisobviouslyawaytoconvey
ideas,itisalsoatoolforthinking,understanding,andlearning(Daisey,2009;
Graves,2003;Murray,2003;NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003;Street&Stang,
2009).
DevelopmentofProcessWriting
Theneedtocommunicateisabasichumandesire.AsearlyastheLascaux
cavepaintingsinFranceandEgyptianhieroglyphs,peoplesoughttoconvey
thoughts,feelings,andinformation.Childrenarenotexemptfromthiswishfortheir
ideastobeheard.Itisessentialforteacherstoincubatethisinnatedesireoftheir
students.AccordingtoGraves(1983):
Childrenwant towrite.Theywant towrite the firstday theyattendschool.Thisisnoaccident.Beforetheywenttoschooltheymarkedupwalls,pavements,newspaperswithcrayons,chalk,pensorpencils...anythingthatmakesamark.Thechild’smarkssay,“Iam.”(p.3).
Tofosterthatintrinsicwish,teachersmustnotonlycreateaclassroomenvironment
thatprovidesampleopportunitytoengageinwriting,butalsoonethatconveysa
senseofenthusiasmforwriting(Atwell,1998;Calkins,1986).
14
Untiltheearly1970s,teachingwritingrequiredstudentstoidentifyand
describethe“modesofdiscourse”(Calkins,1986,p.14).Historically,thesewere
distilledintothreeclassifications:“narration,persuasion,andinformation”
(Benjamin,2013,p.17).However,Calkins(1986)outlinedfourcategories:
“persuasive,expressive,referential,andliterarydiscourse”(p.14).Thistrend
evolvedasresearchersbegantoinvestigatethewaysinwhichstudentswrite–an
areathathadbeenlargelyignoreduntilthattime.Inanefforttounderstandthe
manysubtleelementsthatencompasstheactofwriting,researchersbeganto
examinehowstudentsapproachedthetask,ortheactualprocessofwriting(Atwell,
1998;Calkins,1986;Emig,1971;Graves,1983,1984;Nelms,1994;NCTE,2009;
Perl,Pekala,Schwartz,Graves&Silver,1983).Likewise,researchersalsobeganto
explorethewritingprocessutilizedbyprofessionalwritersinanattempttodiscern
whatbehaviorsdifferentiatetheskillsandhabitsofpublishedauthorsfromthose
employedbythenovice(Calkins,1986;Elbow,1998;Murray,2003;Street&Stang,
2009).AccordingtoStreetandStang(2009),therearetwounifyingprocessthreads
forprofessionalwriters:theyarepassionateaboutreadingandtheyrevisetheir
workwithregularity.However,regardlessoftheproficiencylevelortheprocess
used,bothbeginnersandadvancedwritershadoneunderlyingobjectiveinwriting
–thedevelopmentandcreationofthefinalwrittenproduct(Pritchard&Honeycutt,
2007).
Graves’(1983)observationsofchildrenwritingalongwithEmig’s(1971)
studiesoftwelfthgraders’compositionhabitshelpedshiftthefocusofwriting
15
pedagogyfromsingularskillinstructiontoanewformofprocessdiscourse.Itis
noteworthy,however,thatthisshiftbegantoemerge“aroundthetimethatANation
atRisksuggesteda‘back‐to‐basics’approach”wouldleadtoimprovedstudent
achievement(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.313).Theemphasistransitionedtoanin‐
depthexplorationofthemultipleeventsthatoccurduringtheprocessofwriting
ratherthanmerelythefinalpieceofwrittenwork(Tompkins,2004).Teachers
eagerlyembracedthisnewandpromisingapproach(NCTE,2009).Regardlessofthe
terminology,researchersidentifiedthreedistinctphasesofthewritingprocess:pre‐
writing,orwhathappensbeforestudentswrite;composing,theactofputting
thoughtsdownonpaperordigitallyasadraft;andfinally,post‐writing,orwhat
happensaftertheinitialwriting,orrevisionandediting(Calkins,1986;Graham,
MacArthur,&Fitzgerald,2007;Graves,1983,Tompkins,2004).
Perl,Pekala,Schwartz,Graves,andSilver(1983)explainedtheemergenceof
theprocessapproachasa“complexshiftinattitudes,behaviors,ideas,and
approaches”(p.21).Afterexaminingthiscomponentpartsofthismethod,these
researchersoutlinedsixbasicprinciplesaboutwritinginstruction(1)“experience”‐
studentslearnwritingbywriting;(2)“self‐observation”‐writersengageinself‐
analysisoftheirownwritingprocess;(3)“range”‐writersexperimentwithand
masternumerousgenres;(4)“collaboration”–givingandreceivingmeaningful
feedbackimproveswriting;(5)“audience”–writersmustunderstandandadaptthe
writingdependinguponwhoisreadingtheirworkand,(6)“authorship”–the
responsibilityforthewritingrestswiththewriter(Perl,Pekala,Schwartz,Graves&
16
Silver,1983,p.22).Thisprovedtobeasignificantshiftintheapproachtowriting
instruction.
Althoughthewritingprocesswasignoredhistorically,Murray(2003)argued
thatitisoneofthemostcriticalelements.Byexaminingtheprogressionofevents,
providingdirectinstruction,andmodelingtheprocessofwriting,ratherthan
merelyteachingisolatedskillsetsandgrammar,Graves(1983)opinedthatteachers
couldbetterassiststudentsinbecomingproficientwriters.Yet,thereisaunique
subsetoftasksin“theactofwriting(planning,drafting,revision,editing)”(National
WritingProject&Nagin,2003,p.22).Withintheprocessmodelofwriting,students
wererequiredtothink,reflect,andanalyzeastheymakedecisionsintheirwriting
processratherthanengaginginrotememorizationoftherulesofgrammar,spelling,
andpunctuation(Bean,2011;NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003).Butthis
furthercomplicatedtheissue.InthewordsofresearcherDonaldGraves:
Thewritingprocessisanythingawriterdoesfromthetimetheideacameuntilthepieceiscompletedorabandoned.Thereisnoparticularorder.Soit’snoteffectivetoteachwritingprocessinalock‐step,rigidmanner . . . If you provide frequent occasions for writing, then thestudentsstarttothinkaboutwritingwhenthey’renotdoingit.Icallita state of constant composition (National Writing Project & Nagin,2003,p.23).
Buttheconceptofprocesshasevengreaterimplicationsthansimplyhow
oneapproachesthetask.Inaddition,thisperspectivebroughtanotionoffluidityto
thebeginningideasofapiecewhichthewritingprocesstransformsinto“more
coherent,complex,andclear”thoughtsthroughrevisions(Gebhardt,1977,p.137).
AccordingtoGebhardt(1977),processgivesstudentstheopportunityto
17
comprehendthatwritingisnota“staticthing”(p.137).Inotherwords,writing
unfoldsorganically.
Gallagher(2011)suggestedthatnotonlymuststudentshaveafundamental
understandingoftheprocessofwritingandengageinfrequentpractice,students
mustfullycomprehend“whytheyshouldwrite”(p.7).Withoutthisbasic
understanding,studentswillnotseewritingasameaningfulandworthwhile
activity(Daisey,2009;Gallagher,2011).Instead,theywillregardthetaskas
somethingunavoidableandonlyrequiredtopassacourse(Daisey,2009;Gallagher,
2011).Effectivewritingteacherssharenotonlytheprocessofwritingand
mechanics,butalsowhytheyvaluewriting(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,1990;
Cremin,2006;Gallagher,2011;Morgan,2010).
Writing–the“NeglectedR”
Today,thetriadofbasicskillstaughtinschoolisstillknownasthe3Rs–
reading,writing,andarithmetic.Whileattentionandresearchislavisheduponthe
twinpillarsofreadingandmathematics,writinginstructionhasbeenroutinely
ignoredand“hasbecometheneglectedelementofAmericanschoolreform”
(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.9).The1975,NewsweekMagazinecover
story,“WhyJohnnyCan’tWrite,”madethisdismalproclamationtoreaders(Sheils,
1975).Inthisarticle,professorsfromthenation’sIvyLeagueinstitutionsalong
withmajoremployerslamentedthemarginalwritingskillsdisplayedbyhighschool
18
andcollegegraduates(Sheils,1975).Despiteputtingthegrimstateofwritingof
highschoolgraduatesinthenationalspotlight,thewarningsremainedunheeded.
Twentyyearslater,MacDonald(1995)revisitedemployers’concernsabout
thelackofcompetentwritingskillsforstudents,graduatesofbothhighschooland
college,whowereenteringtheworkforce.Theauthorstatedthatwritinginstruction
wasespeciallysignificantintermsof“graduates’job‐readiness”(MacDonald,1995,
p.3).AccordingtoMacDonald(1995),althoughwritinginstructionhadtransformed
overtheyears,onesimplefactremained:teacherswerestill“nottalkingandwriting
about...howtoteachstudentstocomposeclear,logicalprose”(pp.3‐4,emphasis
inoriginal).Thiswastrueeventhoughdevelopingcompetentandconfidentwriters
has“alwaysbeenafundamentalaimofeducation”(NationalCommissionon
Writing,2003,p.13)
Afewyearslater,theNationalCommissiononWriting(2003)underscored
thecriticalvalueofthisthirdpillarinschools,bycallingwriting“anoverlookedkey
totransforminglearningintheUnitedStates”(p.13).TheCommissionconcluded:
Writing isnot simplyaway for students todemonstratewhat theyknow.Itisawaytohelpthemunderstandwhattheyknow.Atitsbest,writingislearning...Asanation,wecanbarelybegintoimaginehowpowerfulK–16educationmightbeifwritingwereputinitsproperfocus. Facility with writing opens students up to the pleasure ofexercising their minds in ways that drilling on facts, details, andinformationneverwill.Morethanawayofknowing,writingisanactofdiscovery(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,pp.13‐14).TheNoChildLeftBehindAct(NCLB)of2001,whichofferedthepromiseof
everychildtestingatgradelevelinreadingandmathby2014,providedlittlein
termsofmeetingthestatedobjectives(Garcia&Thornton,2015).Despitethese
19
grandandwide‐sweepingpromisesofeducationalreformandachievement,NCLB
simplydidnotdeliver.Moreover,NCLBvirtuallyignoredwritingachievement
(Colby&Stapleton,2006).TheimpactofthemorerecentlyadoptedCommonCore
StateStandards(CCSS),whichplacesarenewedemphasisonwritingthroughout
thegradelevelsandacrossthecurriculum,remainstobeseen.However,onething
iscertain:writingproficiencynolongerremainsintheshadows.
NotonlydidtheNationalCommissiononWriting(2003)reportsoundthe
alarmonthedismalstateofwritingperformance,itoutlinedfourspecificchallenges
toimprovewritinginstructionandstudentachievement.First,allottingadequate
timeforwritinginstructionwasdeemedparamount(NationalCommissionon
Writing,2003).Thereportnotedthatdevelopingthoughtsonpaper,findinga
writingvoice,andunderstandingthedifferencesinaudienceareconceptsthatneed
timetodevelopandpractice(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.20).
Accordingtothisreport,“theseskillscannotbepickedupfromafewminuteshere,
andfewminutesthere,allstolenfrommore‘important’subjects”(National
CommissiononWriting,2003,p.20).Simplystated,writingcannotbeeffectively
taughtorlearnedinapiecemealfashion.
Next,theNationalCommissiononWriting(2003)reportstatedthatcareful
evaluationofwritingisessential,but“agenuinechallenge”existsduetobothtime
constraintsandthecomplexityofwritingassessment(NationalCommissionon
Writing,2003,p.21).ApositionstatementbyTheNationalCouncilofTeachersof
English(2002)indicatedthatonepieceofworksimplycannotpaintanaccurateand
20
completepictureofwritingproficiency.Thischallengerelatedbacktotheissueof
time,bothforstudentstomovethroughtheprocessof“plan[ning],produc[ing],
revis[ing],andedit[ing]asinglepieceofwrittenwork”andforteacherstoassess
thefinalproduct(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.22).
Giventhedisparityofevaluationutilizedbydistrictsacrossthecountry
coupledwiththesubtlelayersofintricacyofwritingassessment,itwasnosurprise
thattheNCWreportdeemed“writingassessment[is]agenuinechallenge”
(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.21).Anotherconcernarisesfromthe
taskofevaluatingwriting–whatmakesapieceofwriting“good?”Writingexperts
suchasAtwell(1998),Calkins(1994),andSpandel(2009)haveofferedguidance.
The“6+1Traits”model,developedbySpandel(2009),provideda“research‐tested”
definitionofgoodwriting(Nauman,Stirling,&Borthwick,2011,p.318).Spandel
(2009)statedthatwritingassessmentismosteffectivelyconsideredthroughthe
lensofsixtraits:ideas,organization,wordchoice,sentencefluency,voice,and
conventions.Thisprovidedaclearframeworkforevaluatingstudentwriting.
PriortoSpandel(2009),thenotionofwhatconstituted“good”writingwas
readilyunderstood,yetnoteasilydefined.Mosteducatorscouldidentifyastrong
pieceofstudentwriting,buttheycouldnotnecessarilyexplain“why”itwasgoodin
thesameway(Spandel,2009).ThankstotheworkofSpandel(2009),teachersand
studentsarenowabletosharethiscommonlanguage,whichhasproventobea
significantcontribution.
21
Next,thethirdchallengeistechnologyasitrelatestowritinginstruction.The
NationalCommissiononWritingreportoutlinedthepositiverolethattechnology
hasplayedinwriting,suggestingthatitistransformativeinhowstudentsare
“generating,organizing,andeditingtext”(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.
22).Inaddition,thereportnotedthatstudentstodayarecomfortablewithsuch
technologicalwaysofproducingideasandtextandare“eagertousethem”
(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.21).Thechallenge,accordingtothe
report,liesinmakingsurethesetechnologicalresourcesandadequatetrainingin
howtousethemarewidelyavailableanddistributedequitably(National
CommissiononWriting,2003).
Finally,thepredominantthemerelatestounderlyingchallengesofteaching
writing(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003).TheNationalCommissiononWriting
(2003)reportnotedthedistressingconcernthat“teacherstypicallyreceivelittle
instructioninhowtoteachwriting”(p.23).Specifically,thereportstated:
Nomatter how hard theywork, these instructors, lacking any realunderstanding of what good writing is or looks like, are often illequipped to teach it. Part of the difficulty is the pre‐and in‐serviceteacher professional development rarely offers teachers anopportunitytoseethemselvesaswriters–toexperiencethepowerandsatisfactionofwritingasameansoflearningandself‐expression.. . Writing is a prisoner of time in the preparation and continuingprofessional development of teachers (National Commission onWriting,2003,p.23).
AlthoughtheNationalCommissiononWriting(2003)reportoffered
constructivesuggestionsforreform,resultsofthe2011NationalAssessmentof
EducationalProgress(NAEP)atGrades8and12(2012)offeredlittle
22
encouragementthatprogresshasbeenmadeinlevelsofwritingproficiencyinU.S.
schools.TheNAEP(2012)assessmentwasadministeredusingtechnology,which
offeredauniqueglimpseintohowstudentsutilizecomputersintheprocessof
writing(NationalCenteronEducationStatistics,2012)The2011NAEPreport
defined“basic”as“partialmasteryofprerequisiteknowledgeandskillsthatare
fundamentalforproficientworkateachgrade”(NationalCenterforEducation
Statistics,2012,p.7).Thereportdefined“proficient”assolidacademic
performance”andstated“[s]tudentsreachingthislevelhavedemonstrated
competencyoverchallengingsubjectmatter”(NationalCenterforEducation
Statistics,2012,p.7).Ingrades8and12,only24%ofstudentswereproficientin
writingand3%wereadvanced(NationalCenterforEducationStatistics,2012,p.1).
Nearly75%ofstudentsatthesegradelevelsareateitherbasicorbelowwriting
abilities(NationalCenterforEducationStatistics,2012,p.1).
WritingInstructioninTeacherEducationPrograms
Thevastmajorityofpreserviceteachersreceivemoretraininginreading
principlesandpedagogythaninwritinginstruction(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2014;
Norman&Spencer,2005).Teachereducationprogramsthroughoutthecountry
varydramatically,notonlyintheamountofwritingrequiredofpreserviceteachers,
butintherequirementofastandalonecourseinwritingtheoryandpractice
(Chambless&Bass,2010;Daisey,2009;Tulley2013).Mosttrainingprogramsdo
23
notrequireawritingcourseforgraduation,nordoteachercertificationstendto
requireit(Norman&Spencer,2005).
However,theresearchisunequivocal:theonlywaytoimprovewritingskills
atanylevelisthroughwritingregularly(Colby&Stapleton,2006).Thisshould
comeasnosurprisesincethetaskoflearningtowriterequiresbeingactively
engagedintheprocessofwriting(Bratcher&Stroble,1994;Colby&Stapleton,
2006;Shofel,1991).However,tobeaneffectivewritingteacherdemandsmore.
AccordingtoMorgan(2010),teachersmustbeinvolvedinthewritingprocessto
fullyunderstandandexperiencethedifficultiesoftheprocess,aswellasthe
pleasurewritingcanbring.Simplystated,inordertoteachwritingeffectively,
teachersmustbewritersthemselves(Bratcher&Stroble,1994;Colby&Stapleton,
2006,Morgan,2010;NationalCommissiononWriting&Nagin,2003;Street,2003,
Street&Stang,2009).
Writingteachersmustwritesotheycanhelpstudentsunderstandnotonly
theprocess,butthechallengesandstruggles(Augsburger,1998).Further,
Augsburger(1998)arguedthatwritingisan“intimateandintimidatingtask”that
includesanunderlyingelementoffear(p.549).AccordingtoGebhardt(1977),“the
importanceofpositiveinstructionbyteachersexperiencedintheagoniesoftryingto
write”(p.137,emphasisGebhardt’s).Inotherwords,teacherscannotprovide
effectivewritinginstructionunlesstheyarewritersthemselvesandhave
experiencedtheinherentstrugglesandfears.Murray(2003)echoedthese
sentiments:
24
Teachersshouldwritesotheyunderstandtheprocessofwritingfromwithin.Theyshouldknowtheterritoryintellectuallyandemotionally:howyouhavetothinktowriter,howyoufeelwhenwriting.Teachersof writing do not have to be great writers, but they should havefrequentand recentexperience inwriting . . . If youexperience thedespair, the joy, the failure, the success, the work, the fun, thedrudgery,thesurpriseofwritingyouwillbeabletounderstandthecomposing experiences of your students and therefore help themunderstandhowtheyarelearningtowrite”(p.74).
Onlybyexperiencingtheups‐and‐downsofthewritingprocessfirst‐
handcanteachersfullycomprehendandempathizewiththestruggles,
frustrations,andjoysoftheirstudents(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,
1990;Morgan,2010).
Moreover,Smith(1983)opinedthatteachersmustviewthemselvesas
writersandlikenedtheprocessofteachingthiscomplexsubjecttobeingadmitted
toaclub.AccordingtoSmith(1983):
Thefirstresponsibilityofteachersistoshowchildrenthatwritingisinteresting, possible, and worthwhile. But there is also no way ofhelping children to write if the teacher does not think writing isinteresting,possible,andworthwhile.Teacherswhoarenotmembersoftheclubcannotadmitchildrentotheclub.(p.566).
Inaddition,Smith(1983)suggestedthatas“membersoftheclub,”teacherswill
haveexperiencedthe“emotionalconcomitantsofwritinganditsblocks”(p.564).
Smith’s(1983)viewssquaredirectlywithAugsburger(1998),Bloom(1990),and
Morgan(2010)whoarguethatitisdifficult,ifnotimpossible,tosharethiscritical
underlyingknowledgeoftheprocessofwritingunlessithasbeenexperiencedfirst‐
hand.
25
Althoughwritinginstructionlacksacohesiveapproachoverallinteacher
training,thebestpracticesinteachingwritingareclear.Inonemeta‐analysisforthe
CarnegieCorporationofNewYork,abroadspectrumofmethodsofwriting
instructionwereexaminedinthecontextofmiddleschoolinstruction(Graham&
Perin,2007).GrahamandPerin(2007)identifiedthetenbestpracticesofeffective
writinginstructionas(1)timespentonwritinginstruction,(2)useofdifferent
formsofwriting,(3)teachingthefullspectrumofwritingprocess,(4)engaging
students,(5)utilizingdifferentmethodsofclassroominstruction(wholeclass,small
groups,etc.),(6)utilizingmodelingtechniques,(7)offeringsupport,(8)enthusiasm
forwriting,(9)havinghighstudentexpectations,and(10)adaptingassignmentsto
meetstudentneeds.Whileschoolreformeffortsovertheyearshaveplaceda
brighterspotlightontheneedforimprovedwritinginstructionintheK–12
classroom,theseimplicationshavenotfilteredintoteachereducationprograms.
Manyteachersinthefieldexpressconcernsthattheiruniversitytrainingdid
notpreparethemforwritinginstruction(Chambless&Bass,1995;Daisey,2009;
Martin&Dismuke,2015;Morgan,2010;Tulley2013).Arguably,thisisadirect
resultofthelackofemphasisonwritingpedagogyinteachertraining(Hall&
Grisham‐Brown,2014).Sincetheamountofattentiongiventowritinginteacher
trainingprogramsvariessowidely,theperceptionthatnewteachersfeel
unpreparedorunder‐preparedtoteachwritingisnotsurprising(Daisey,2009;
Tulley,2013).Consideringmostinstitutionsprovidewritingpedagogywithina
reading‐intensivemethodscourse,learningopportunitiesarelimitedforwriting
26
(Martin&Dismuke,2015;Morgan,2010).ThedevelopmentoftheNationalWriting
Projectsitesthroughoutthecountryonlyservestobuttresstheassertionthat
teachertrainingprogramsdonotprovidesufficientinstructioninwritingnor
writingpracticetodevelopcompetentandconfidentteachersofwriting.
TheNationalWritingProject:AddressingtheConcerns
ThedevelopmentandevolutionoftheNationalWritingProjectoffers
compellingevidencethatteachereducationprogramsaremissingthemarkwhenit
comestopreparingfuturewritingteachers.In1974,JamesGrayfoundedtheBay
AreaWritingProjectattheUniversityofCalifornia,Berkeleyfor25teacherswho
wereinterestedinimprovingwritinginstruction(Whitney&Friedrich,2013;
Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&Talbot,2007).TheNationalWriting
Projecthasgrownfromthismodestbeginningtoafederallyfundedorganization
withnearly200university‐basedlocationsinall50statesthatservesteachersfrom
pre‐schooltocollege(NationalWritingProject,2015;Whitney&Friedrich,2013;
Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&Talbot,2007).Teachersvoluntarily
participateina4‐to‐5weekintensiveprofessionaldevelopmentworkshopwhich
hasthreecomponents:writingeachday,workshoppingtheirownwrittenwork,and
publication(Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&Talbot,2007).After
completingtheinitialphase,participantsaretheneligibletoparticipateinother
NationalWritingProjectworkshops(Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&
Talbot,2007).
27
TheNationalWritingProject’smissionistofocuson“theknowledge,
expertise,andleadershipofournation’seducatorsonsustainedeffortstoimprove
writingandlearningforalllearners”(NationalWritingProject,2015).TheNational
WritingProjectfocusesonfive“coreprinciples”toimprovewriting:
1. WritingshouldnotonlybeassignedbutalsotaughtK‐16,
2. Althoughthereisnoonerightapproachtotheteachingofwriting,some
practices are more effective than others; a research‐informed
community of practice is positioned well to design and develop
comprehensivewritingprograms,
3. To develop professionally, teachers need frequent opportunities to
systematicallyexamineresearchandpractice,
4. TeachersK‐16aretheidealagentsofreform,andschoolsanduniversitiesare
theidealpartnersforinvestingtogetherinthatreform,
5. Teachers of writing must write (National Writing Project, 2015; Whyte,
Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&Talbot,2007).
Throughsustained,thoughtful,andresearch‐basedprofessionaldevelopmentfor
educatorsinP‐20,theNationalWritingProjectbelievesitcanachievethegoalof
everyonebeing“anaccomplishedwriter,anengagedlearner,andanactive
participantinadigital,interconnectedworld”(NationalWritingProject,2015).
Whiletheseareloftygoalstobesure,theneedforcompetentandconfidentwriters
inthe21stcenturymandatesthateducatorsferventlypursueit.
28
TheUniqueSocializationofTeachers
AccordingtoLortie(1975),individualsareinductedandpreparedforentry
intocareerpathsthroughvariouscombinationsofeducationandexperience.
Teachingrequiresbothgeneralschoolingandthe“apprenticeshipofobservation”
(Lortie,1975,p.61).Unlikeothercareerpaths,suchasthemedicalprofessionthat
requiressignificantshadowingofothercurrentpractitionersintheprofession,
studentswhobecometeachershavebeenactivelyengagedwitheducatorsduring
theiracademiccareers.
Thosewhoteachhavenormallyhadsixteencontinuousyearsofcontactwithteachersandprofessors.Americanyoungpeopleinfact,seeteachersatworkmuchmorethantheyseeanyotheroccupationalgroup; we can estimate that the average student has spent 13,000hours in direct contact with classroom teachers by the time hegraduatesfromhighschool...Theinteraction,moreover,isnotpassiveobservation‐itisusuallyarelationshipwhichhasconsequencesforthestudentandthusisinvestedwithaffect.(Lortie,1975,p.61).
Consequently,teachersthroughoutstudents’academiccareershavean
enormousamountofinfluence,eitherdirectlyorindirectly,onteacher
candidates.Toastrongdegree,theirinfluences,bothnegativeandpositive,
willlargelyshapehowteachercandidatesapproachsubjectsintheirown
classroom.
29
SituatedLearning
LaveandWenger’s(1991)situatedlearningprovidesahelpfulframework
andcontextforunderstandingwritinginstruction.Unlikeanyotherprofession,the
choicetobecomeateacherbringswithitroughly12yearsofacademicexperience
withpasteducators.Whetherornotstudentsareaware,theyhavebeenengagedin
the“apprenticeshipofobservation”oftheprofessionoverthelifespanoftheir
schoolcareer(Lortie,1975,p.1).Thisinfluence,bothdirectandindirect,playsakey
roleintheattitudesandbeliefsstudentsholdaboutparticularsubjectsandlearning
aswellasthewaytheywillultimatelyapproachteachingit.Ofcourse,theeffects
mayhavebeenpositive,negative,orsomecombinationofthetwo.
LaveandWenger(1991)offeredadifferentperspectiveonthenotion
ofapprenticeshipswhichhasbeenapartoflearning,bothhistoricallyandin
contemporarysociety(p.63).Learning,asasocialpractice,isapartofall
activities(Lave&Wenger,1991).Althoughlearningoccursregarding
“specificactivities,”italsorelatesto“socialcommunities”(Lave&Wenger,
1991,p.53).
Byparticipatinginlearningexperiences,studentsmasterknowledge
andjoincommunitiesofpracticethroughaprocessknownas“legitimate
peripheralparticipation”(LPP)(Lave&Wenger,1991,p.29).LLPdescribed
thewaythatnewmembersofthegroupinteractwithestablished
practitioners(Lave&Wenger,1991).Participationis“basedonsituated
negotiationandrenegotiationofmeaningintheworld”(Lave&Wenger,
30
1991,p.51).Inaddition,LLPexplainedhownewparticipantsbecomefully
integratedintothecommunityofpracticeandacquirenewknowledge(Lave
&Wenger,1991).
LaveandWenger’s(1991)notionsofsituatedlearningconflatewith
Lortie’s(1975)observationsofateachercandidates’apprenticeshipwithin
theprofession.Preserviceteachershavedirectlyobservedteachersintheir
pastclassroomexperiences.Regardlessofthesubjectarea,students
experiencedasubtle,nuancedinteractionatplayduringinstruction.
Studentsintheclassroomwereunwittinglylearninghowteachersteach.
Lortie(1975)firstexplainedthenotionofthe“apprenticeshipof
observation”asawayoflearninghowtoteach(p.61).Likewise,Laveand
Wenger(1991)laterobservedthat“participation[is]awayoflearning–of
bothabsorbingandbeingabsorbedin–the‘cultureofpractice’’’(p.95,
emphasisLave&Wenger’s).
Inthecontextofwritinginstruction,thisapprenticeshipandcommunityof
practice,knowinglyorunknowingly,invitesstudentstoassimilatetheirmentors’
attitudesandbeliefs(Lave&Wenger,1991,Lortie,1975).Teachers’attitudesand
beliefsaboutwritingplayadistinctroleinthedevelopmentofhowastudentfeels
abouttheprocessandpracticeofthecraft(Brooks,2007;Graves,1990;Daisey,
2009;Street&Stang,2009).Thesecollectiveexperiences,whichmayhavebeen
positive,negative,orindifferent,ultimatelyshapeapreserviceteacher’sthoughts
aboutwriting(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2014).AsGreenleaf,Jimenez,&Roller(2002)
31
soaptlystated:“teachersdon’tjustappearoutofthinair.Theyaretheproducts–as
wellasactiveagents–oftheworldsfromwhichtheycame”(p.487).
Whenstudentsentertheuniversity,theattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting
thatwereformedthroughouttheiracademiccareersfollowthem(Florio‐Ruane&
Lensmire,1990;Lortie,1975).Theywillhaveadirectimpactonhowfuture
teachersapproachwritinginstruction(Dart,Bouton‐Lewis,Brownless,&McCrindle,
1998;Whitney&Friedrich,2013).Thesethoughtswillbeapartofevery
instructionaldecision(Lortie,1975).
RoleofAttitudeinWriting
Throughthiscommunityofpractice,asdescribedbybothLortie(1975)and
LaveandWenger(1991),preserviceteachersnecessarilyassimilatetheirmentors’
attitudesaboutclassroomsubjects.Teachers’attitudestowardwritingplayakey
roleindevelopingachild’sattitudesaboutreadingandwriting(Brooks,2007;
Graves,1994;Daisey,2009,Street&Stang,2009).AccordingtoBrooks(2007),
“studentsaremorelikelytobecomesuccessful,enthusiastic,andengagedreaders
andwriterswhentheylearnfromandareamongteacherswhodisplaythesame
traits”(p.177).Notonlydoeseffectivewritinginstructionrequireathorough
knowledgeofEnglishlanguageconventions,itdemandsconfidentteachers
(Graham,Harris,Fink,&MacArthur,2001).Ifteachersaretoserveasmentorsinthe
writingprocess,itfollowsthattheymustbecomfortableinthisrole(Everson,
32
1991).Consequently,theattitudesandbeliefsthatwillultimatelyguideandshape
theconfidencelevelsoffutureteachersareworthyofin‐depthexamination.
DevelopmentofWritingAttitudesandBeliefs
Asstudentsentertheuniversitysetting,theybringwiththemroughly
eighteenyearsoflifeexperiencesthatmoldedandshapedtheiracademicself‐
conceptandself‐efficacybeliefs(Lortie,1975;Parajes,2003;Rosen,Glennie,Dalton,
Lennon,&Bozick,2010;Shofel,1991).Althoughstudentsmaylacksophisticationin
theirunderstanding,theyalsograspbasicconceptsofteachingandlearningbased
ontheirpriorschoolexperience(Dart,Bouton‐Lewis,Brownlee&McCrindle,1998;
Lave&Wenger,1991;Lortie,1975;Martin&Dismuke,2015;Parajes,2003).Martin
andDismuke(2015)suggestedthatthesepreviousexperiencescancreateunique
challengesforteachereducatorsinthattheattitudesandbeliefsstudentsbringto
theirprogramsmaybedeeplyembedded.Greenleaf,Jimenez,andRoller(2002)
stateditsuccinctly:“teachersdon’tjustappearoutofthinair.Theyareproducts–as
wellasactiveagents–oftheworldsfromwhichtheycame”(p.487).Regardless
whenorhowtheseattitudesandbeliefswereformed,thetotalityoftheseprior
experiences,nonetheless,mergestoformthecurrentbeliefsthatpreservice
teacherswillcarryintotheirfutureclassrooms(Morgan,2010;Street,2003;Street
&Stang,2009).
NormanandSpencer(2005)examinedresponsesfrom59preservice
teachersregardingindividualswhoplayedaroleinthedevelopmentoftheir
33
identityaswriters.Inthisstudy,80%statedthatteachershadthegreatestinfluence
(Norman&Spencer,2005).Outofthatgroup,theoverwhelmingmajorityfoundan
elementaryteachertohavethemostpowerfulimpactonhisorherwritingability
andconfidence(Norman&Spencer,2005).Respondentsdescribedtheirteachersas
“enthusiastic,supportive,andencouraging”(Norman&Spencer,2005,p.30).
Providingopportunitiesforindividualchoiceofrelevantandmeaningfulwriting
topicsandjournalwritingwerecitedbystudentsasinfluential(Norman&Spencer,
2005).Incontrast,teacherswhofocusedon“conventionsratherthancontent”hada
negativeimpactonattitudes(Norman&Spencer,2005,p.31).
Likewise,feedbackfromteachersplayedadistinctroleinattitude
development(Norman&Spencer,2005).However,theperceptionsoffeedback
depended,inpart,uponastudent’smindsetaboutwriting.NormanandSpencer
(2005)foundthatstudentswhoconsideredwritinganinnateabilitydidnotview
“correctivefeedbackinapositivelight”(p.34).Incontrast,NormanandSpencer
(2005)foundthatstudentswhoperceivedwritingabilityasflexiblebelieved
feedbackandencouragementfromtheirprofessorhelpedthemimprovetheir
writingskills.ThisfindingisconsistentwithDweck’s(2006)notionofgrowth
mindset.
StreetandStang(2009)examinedthedevelopmentofself‐confidencein
writingof25teachersinthefield.Anoverwhelmingmajority,80%,indicatedthat
priorteachersandschoolexperienceshadadirectimpactoftheirviewofself‐as‐
writer(Street&Stang,2009).Notably,theexperiencesoftheteacherswholacked
34
self‐confidencereflectedrecollectionsof“criticism,harshness,andresentment”
(Street&Stang,2009,p.84).Theresearchersfoundthesenegativeexperienceshad
a“lastingeffect”thatcontinuedintoadulthood(Street&Stang,2009,p.85).Street&
Stang(2009)statedthatthe“collectiveexperienceswithschool‐basedwritingand
thedisturbingconsistencyamongtheparticipantsregardingtheirnegativeschool
memoriescannotgounstated”(p.85).Consequently,teachereducatorsmust
acknowledgeandhaveanawarenessoftheexperiencesthatshapetheattitudesand
beliefspreserviceteachersbringtotheirprograms.
RoleofSelf‐EfficacyinAttitudesandBeliefsaboutWriting
Self‐efficacyisthebeliefsystemthatanindividualperceivesastrue
regardinghisorherabilitytonavigateaparticulartask(Pajares,2003;Zimmerman,
Morgan&Kidder‐Brown2014).AccordingtoSchunk(2012),self‐efficacyisdefined
as“personalbeliefsaboutone’scapabilitiestolearnorperformactionsata
designatedlevel”(p.146).Beswick(2006)explainedthatbeliefsare“anythinga
personregardsastrue”(p.37).Bandura(1977)statedthatself‐efficacybeliefscan
predictbehavior.Incontrast,attitudesare“apositiveornegativeassessmentofa
psychologicalobject”(Beswick,2006,p.37).Althoughattitudesarisefrombeliefs,
thereis“notaone‐to‐onecorrespondencebetween”them(Beswick,2006,p.37).
Whilebeliefsareformedoveraperiodoftimeandastheamalgamofa
myriadofexperiences,theyareultimatelyresponsibleforhowwellanindividual
believesheorshewillbeabletocompleteagiventask(Bandura,1977;Fishbein&
35
Ajzen,1975;Zimmerman,Morgan&Kidder‐Brown,2014).Self‐efficacyspecifically
referstothebeliefsorperceptionsregardingthecapabilitytocompleteataskrather
thanhavingtheskillstocorrectlydoso(Fishbein&Ajzen,1975;Schunk,2012).The
levelofskillisirrelevantintermsofself‐efficacy;incontrast,whatisrelevantisthe
beliefregardingthecapability(Bandura,1997;Fishbein&Ajzen,1975).Notably,
self‐efficacyisnotconsistentacrossaspectrumoftasks(Zimmerman,Morgan,&
Kidder‐Brown,2014).Instead,self‐efficacybeliefsare“taskspecificandcontextual
inthatone’sself‐efficacycanvaryacrossthevarietyoftasksandcircumstancesthey
mayencounter”(Zimmerman,Morgan,&Kidder‐Brown,2014,p.143).Forexample,
astudentmayconsiderreadingandwritingeasy,butbelievesheisnotstrongin
math.Likewise,astudentmayfeelconfidentinmathandscience,yetbelievehis
writingskillsarepoor.
Informationaboutaperson’sself‐efficacybeliefscanbediscernedfromfour
sources(Parajes,2003).AccordingtoParajes(2003),themostimportantsourceis
fromthe“interpretedresultofone’sperformance,ormasteryexperience(p.140).
Successfullycompletingataskincreasesself‐efficacy,whilefailingtomasteratask
maydiminishit(Parajes,2003).Thenextfactorwhichexertsastronginfluenceon
beliefsisobservingothersperformingataskwhichallowsfor“social
comparisons”(Parajes,2003,p.140).Inaddition,verbalfeedbackandsocialcues
providebothpositiveandnegativefeedbackwhichcanimpactattitudesandbeliefs
(Parajes,2003).Finally,thephysicalstateoftheindividual,suchasbeinganxious
aboutperformance,canshapebeliefs(Parajes,2003).
36
AccordingtoLavelle(2006),thereisadirectcorrelationbetweenastudent’s
self‐efficacyandfeelingsaboutwriting.Withhigherlevelsofself‐efficacy,writers
aremorelikelytopersist(Bandura,1977;Brindley&Schneider,2002;Lavelle,
2006).Self‐efficacyis“aparticularlypowerfulconstruct,asitisoneofthefew
teachercharacteristicsthatreliablypredictsteacherpracticeandstudentoutcomes”
(Graham,Harris,Fink&MacArthur,2009,p.205).StreetandStang(2009)stated
that“teachers’histories“playanimportantroleintheirability–orinability–touse
writingwiththeirstudents”(p.91).
Whileathoroughunderstandingoftheintricaciesandconventionsofthe
Englishlanguageisessentialforwritingteachers,alevelofself‐confidenceiscritical
tothemannerinwhichwritingwillbetaught(Graham,Harris,Fink&MacArthur,
2001;Lavelle,2009).Althoughasmallnumberofstudiesexploredself‐efficacyin
thecontextofmathandsciencecoursesforpreserviceteachers,theintersectionof
self‐efficacybeliefsandwritinghasbeenlargelyoverlookedbyresearchersin
teachereducation(Graham,Harris,Fink,&MacArthur,2001).Likewise,aneven
smallernumberofstudieshaveexaminedteacherperceptionsabouttheirown
writingability(Lavelle,2009).
PreserviceTeachers’AttitudesandBeliefsaboutWriting
Teacherattitudesplayaroleineveryfacetofthecurriculum.Infact,teacher
attitudesandbeliefsaboutsubjectmatterpervadeallareasofdecisionregarding
classroompracticesandpedagogy(Dart,Bouton‐Lewis,Brownlee&McCrindle,
37
1998).AccordingtoDart,Bouton‐Lewis,etal(1998)teacherattitudeshaveadirect
impactonclassroompracticesandteachingpedagogy.McCartheyandMkhize
(2013)statedthattheseattitudesinfluenceateacher’sapproachtowriting
instruction.StreetandStang(2009)agreedthatateacher’sbackgroundand
experiencewithwritingwillplayasignificantroleinhisorherapproachto
teaching.Someofthesebeliefswillhaveapositiveinfluencewhileothersmay
presentobstaclestoteachingandlearning.Inadditiontobackground,thelevelof
“relationaltrust”fosteredbytheteacherwillhaveacriticalimpactonstudent
performance(Palmer,2007,p.28).
Researchdemonstratesthatinordertoteachwritingeffectively,teachers
mustbewritersthemselves(Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,&Radencich,2000;
Hollingsworth,1988).Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,andRadencich(2000)cautioned
teachereducatorstoavoidtheassumptionthatpreserviceteachersactuallywriteor
enjoywriting.Further,theseresearchersemphaticallystated:“wedonotbelieve
thatteacherswhodislikereadingandwritingcaneffectivelyfostertheloveof
readingandwritinginthechildrentheyteach”(Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,&
Radencich,2000,p.187.)
InNormanandSpencer’s(2005)study,91%ofthepreserviceteachers
viewedwritingasatraitthatwas“classifiedaseitherfixed–writingisagiftof
talentoneeitherhasordoesn’thave–ormalleable–writingisacraftthatcanbe
improvedwithinstructionandcorrectivefeedback”(p.34).Thisalignswith
Dweck’s(2006)viewsonfixedandgrowthmindset.
38
Street(2003)examinedhowpre‐serviceteachers’attitudesaboutwriting
influencehowtheyteachwriting.Self‐confidenceinwritingisabsolutelycritical
(Street,2003).Self‐confidence,orlackthereof,informsthechoiceofactivities,level
ofeffortdemonstrated,andpersistencewithchallengingtasks(p.34‐35).According
toStreet(2003),understandingateacher’slevelofself‐confidenceinwritingis
essentialinfosteringimprovementinbothwritingandinstruction.
Studentswhoseattitudesandbeliefswereshapedbysuccessfulexperiences
withwritingwillgenerallyhavemorepositiveattitudestowardwriting(Chambless
&Bass,1995;Colby&Stapleton,2006).Thisconfidenceinwritingwillinformthe
approachtowritinginstruction(Colby&Stapleton,2006,p.354).Tobecome
confidentandeffectivewriters,teachersmustbecomecomfortablewiththeconcept
ofwriting,theprocessofwriting,andbewritersthemselves(Bratcher&Stroble,
1994).
However,notallstudentshavehadpositiveexperienceswithwriting.This
willbereflectedinstudents’attitudesandbeliefs.Accordingly,teachereducation
programsmustbepreparedtoaddressstudentswithvariedwritingabilitiesand
attitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting.Teachertrainingprogramsmustrecognizethat
students’pastexperiencewithwritingdramaticallyinfluenceshowtheywill
approachwritinginstruction(Street&Stang,2009).Street(2003)statedthat
writingattitudescanbechangedbycoursesthatfosterpositiveexperiencesand
outcomeswithwriting.
39
ChapterSummary
Preserviceteachersbringanamalgamofexperiences,bothpositiveand
negative,thatcollectivelyshapetheirattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting(Hall&
Grisham‐Brown,2014).Sincethiswillformtheunderlyingapproachtoinstruction,
itisessentialforpreserviceteacherstoacknowledgethese“deeplyheld
assumptions”aboutwriting(Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,&Radencich,2000,p.187).
Thisisespeciallycriticalsincetheseattitudesandbeliefswillplayadirectrolein
thewaythesepreserviceteachersvaluewritinginstructionandapproachpedagogy
intheirfutureclassrooms(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2011).HallandGrisham‐Brown
(2011)statedthatthesebeliefsarenotnecessarilystaticandfixed.Asaresult,
throughguidanceinteachereducationprograms,theseattitudesandbeliefsmaybe
changedovertimeintonew,morepositiveattitudesaboutwriting(Hall&Grisham‐
Brown,2011).
HawkinsandRazali(2012)statedthatourwritinghistory“influencesnot
onlythepractice[ofwriting]itself,butthewaysinwhichweeachengagewithand
enactthesepracticesinourclassrooms”(p.305).Byexaminingone’shistorywith
writing,preserviceteachersareableto“stepbackandsee[themselves]and[their]
teachingasresidingwithinalargerstory(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.305).Norman
andSpencer(2005)agreedthatself‐examinationiscriticaltotheprocessof
understandingcurrentattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting,butalsotochangethe
trajectoryoffutureones.Infact,thiselementofreflectionispromisingforteacher
educationprogramstofosteracultureofchangeinbeliefsandattitudesabout
40
writing(Norman&Spencer,2005).StangandStreet(2011)contendedthatthese
writinghistories“provideaplaceforteacherstogrow”(p.40).Thisfurther
underscoresnotonlythecriticalrolethatwritinghistoriesplayinstudentattitudes
andbeliefs,butintheimpactthatteachereducationprogramscanhaveinreshaping
them.
41
CHAPTERTHREE‐METHODOLOGY
Basically,ifyouwanttobecomeagoodwriteryouneedtodothreethings.Readalot,listenwellanddeeply,andwritealot(Goldberg,1986,pp.53‐54)
Thisqualitativestudyexaminedthewritingattitudesandbeliefsofseven
preserviceteachers.Thepurposeofthisstudywastounderstandhowpreservice
teachersviewandpracticethewritingprocess,toidentifythoseexperiencesthat
shapedthoseattitudesandbeliefs,andtounderstandhowtheirviewsoftheprocess
informtheirthinkingaboutteachingwriting.
Thisstudytookplaceduringonesemesterinawriting‐intensiveEnglish
LanguageArts(ELA)coursepriortoparticipants’studentteachingexperience.To
exploreandunderstandthefactorsthatshapedtheparticipants’attitudesand
beliefsaboutwriting,multiplesourcesofdatawerecollectedincluding,pre‐and
post‐courseWritingApprehensionTest(WAT)scores,aquestionnaire,twoin‐depth
semi‐structuredinterviews,afocusgroup,classobservations,journalsentries,GPA,
ACTorSATscores,WRIT101grades,andworksamples.
Aqualitativeapproachwasusedbecausethisallowsforan“interpretive
naturalisticapproachtotheworld”(Denzin&Lincoln,2008,p.4).Patton(2002)
explainedqualitativeresearchgivesa“holisticperspective”totheproblemtobe
examined(p.76).AccordingtoLeedyandOrmond(2005),qualitativeresearch
providestheopportunitytoexaminereal‐world“phenomenainalltheircomplexity”
(p.133).DenzinandLincoln(2008)describedqualitativeresearchasa“situated
activitythatlocatestheobserverintheworld”(p.4).Consideringquestionsthrough
42
aqualitativelensallowstheresearcherto“studythingsintheirnaturalsetting[s],
attemptingtomakesenseof,orinterpret,phenomenaintermsofthemeaningsthat
peoplebringtothem”(Denzin&Lincoln,2008,p.4).Thisapproachoffersthe
researchertheopportunitytoengagein“acomplexdescriptionandinterpretation
oftheproblem”(Creswell,2013,p.44).Furthermore,aqualitativeapproachpermits
datacollectionthroughmultipleavenuesthatdeveloparichandin‐depth
understandingoftheparticipants,theirperspectives,andhowtheydeveloped.
DenzinandLincoln(2008)likenedthequalitativeresearchertoa“quilt
maker”(p.5).Byadoptingthismoreflexibleandfluidapproachofmaking
connectionsofmeaning,theresearcherisableto“invent,orpiecetogether,new
toolsortechniques”(Denzin&Lincoln,2008,p.5).Withaqualitativedesign,the
researcherhastheopportunitytoactivelyseekconnectionsbetweenseemingly
disparatepiecesofinformationinanefforttodiscernmeaning.Qualitativeresearch
toolsalsoofferthefreedomtostitchtogethermultiplesourcesofinformationand
perspectives,theveryfabricofresearch,intoafinalformthatbringsfortharich
tapestryofmeaningandunderstanding.
Moreover,employingqualitativemethodshonors“thevoicesofthe
participants”(Creswell,2013,p.44).Throughtheinterviewprocess,valuable
insightintotheparticipants’“interiorexperiences”isgleaned(Weiss,1994,p.1).
AccordingtoWeiss(1994),aqualitativeapproachprovidestheopportunityto
understand“howeventsaffectedtheirthoughtsandfeelings”aswellas“what
peopleperceive[d]andhowtheyinterpret[ed]theirperceptions.”(p.1).By
43
interviewingparticipants,theresearchergainsadeepunderstandingofthefactors
thatshapetheirviewpoints(Weiss,1994).Theinterviewprocessoffersaunique
windowofunderstandingintotheirvariedandcomplexinteriorstories.
Byexaminingmultiplelayersofdataholistically,theresearcherhasan
avenuetoaccountforthemulti‐facetedinterplayoffactorsthatshape“situations,
settings,processes,relationships,systems,orpeople”(Leedy&Ormond,2005,p.
134).Thisprovidestheopportunitytodigdeeplyandunearthvastsourcesof
informationinordertobuild“richdata”(Maxwell,2013,p.126).Byanalyzing
numeroussourcesofqualitativedata,theresearcherdevelopsarichandmulti‐
dimensionalportraitofeachparticipants’inner‐landscape.
CaseStudyResearchDesign
Thenatureofthisresearchwaswell‐suitedforacasestudydesign.
AccordingtoCreswell(2013),thecasestudydesignallowstheresearcherto
“explore[s]areal‐life,contemporary...caseovertime,throughdetailed,in‐depth
datacollectioninvolvingmultiplesourcesofinformation”(p.97).Creswell(2013)
suggestsacasestudyisappropriatewhenthereare“clearlyidentifiablecaseswith
boundaries”andagoaltoprovideand“in‐depthunderstandingofthecases”
(p.100).AccordingtoStake(1995),thegoalofthecasestudygoesbeyondmere
understanding;theobjectiveisto“appreciatetheuniquenessandcomplexityofthe
case,itsembeddednessandinteractionwithitscontexts”(p.16).Yin(1994)
explainedthatcasestudiesmaybe“explanatory,exploratory,ordescriptive”(p.1).
44
Thisinquirywasdefinedbytheparametersofspecifictimeandplace,ora
“bounded”casestudybyexaminingstudentsinonewriting‐intensiveELAcourse
throughoutasinglesemester(Creswell,2013,p.97).Theboundedcasestudydraws
“attentionto[thecase]asanobject,ratherthanaprocess”(Stake,1995,p.2).The
datacollectedduringthatdefinedtimeperiodgivesanin‐depthunderstandingof
theissuesexplored(Stake,1995;Yin,1994).
Thiscollectivecasestudyexaminedsevenstudentswithinonewriting‐
intensiveELAcourseduringonesemester.Acollectivecasestudyexamines
multipleparticipantstoascertainthe“importantcoordinationbetweenthe
individualstudies”(Stake,1995,pp.3‐4).Acasestudyis“notsamplingresearch;”
instead,theobjectiveisto“maximizewhatwecanlearn”(Stake,1995,p.4).Case
studiesmaybe“intrinsic,”whenaresearcherseekstounderstandaparticularcase,
or“instrumental,”withagoalofunderstandingsomethingbeyondaspecificcase
(Stake,1995,p.3).Stake(1995)acknowledgedthatgiventhenatureoftheresearch
design,“notallcasesmayworkoutwell”(p.7).Nonetheless,acaseisa“specific,a
complex,functioningthing”(Stake,1995,p.2).Thisstudyisinstrumentalinseeking
tounderstandtheimpactofattitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingonpreservice
teachers’futureclassrooms.
Withacasestudyapproach,the“researcherisakeyinstrument”(Creswell,
2013,p.45).Byplacingmyselfinclosecontexttotheparticipants,inthemethods
classandbyinterviewingparticipantsoverthecourseofthesemester,Ihadthe
abilitytocarefullyevaluateandconsidertheinformationgleanedandformulate
45
patternsofmeaning(Denzin&Lincoln,2008;Leedy&Ormond,2005).Through
multiplein‐depthinterviewswithparticipants,conductingafocusgroup,and
visitingthemethodscourseeachclassperiod,Isituatedmyselfinthe“activitythat
locatestheobserverintheworld”(Denzin&Lincoln,2008).
SocialConstructivism
Asocialconstructivismtheoreticalframeworkperspectiveprovidedthe
frameworkforthisstudy.AccordingtoCreswell(2013),thegoalofsocial
constructivismistounderstandtheworldand“developsubjectivemeaningsof[the
participants’]experiences”(p.24).Throughthisframework,theresearcher
examinestheproblemthroughawidelenstounderstandandexplorecomplex
patternsofexperience.AccordingtoPatton(2002),socialconstructivismexplores
whatisknownaboutrealityratherthan“constructingreality”(p.96).The
researchergathersdatathroughopen‐endedquestionsthataredevelopedtobe
generalinnaturetoallowparticipantsto“constructthemeaningofthesituation”
(Creswell,2013,p.25).Thesocialconstructivismframeworkguidedthe
developmentofinquiryusedinthequestionnaire,theinterviews,andthefocus
group.Inaddition,thisframeworkguidedthecreationofthewritingmemories
matrix.Throughmultiplelinesofinquiry,participantsdescribedtheattitudesand
beliefstheyhaveconstructedtheirperceptionsaboutwriting,exploredtheforces
whichtheparticipantsbelieveshapedthemovertime,andhowthoseviewswill
informtheirapproachtowritinginstruction.
46
Constructivismassertsthathumansunderstandandcreatetheirperceptions
ofrealityandtheworld.However,itisimportanttonotethatconstructivismis
regardingthe“construct[ion]ofknowledgeaboutreality,notconstructingreality
itself”(Patton,2001,p.96).AccordingtoPatton(2001),humanperceptionisthe
resultofbeing“’madeup’andshapedbyculturalandlinguisticconstructs”(p.96).
Newell,Koukis,andBoster(2007)statethatthetotalityofcircumstancesand
experiencesintersecttoformperceptionsofreality.Ratherthantakingan
exclusionaryperspective,theconstructionistapproachexaminesthesumtotalof
experienceswhichcombinetodefineperceptions(Newell,Koukis,&Boster,2007).
BackgroundoftheResearcherMyWritingHistory
Inordertofullydiscussmywritinghistory,Imustfirstaddressmylifelong
relationshipwithreading.Oneofmyearliestandmostfondmemoriesisreading.
Mystay‐at‐homemotherreadtomedailyandasmuchasIrequested.Mymother
laughswhensherecallsfinishingabookasIsatonherlap.“Again!”Iwouldchant
andclapmyhandsuntilshestartedreadingtome.
Althoughmyparentswerenotcollegegraduates,theyfullyunderstoodthe
importanceofeducationandthepowerofreading.Butinourblue‐collarfamily,
moneywasscarceandpurchasingbookswouldhavebeenaluxurybeyondour
budget.Yetmyparentswerefirmlycommittedtoexposingmetotheprintedword
andreadingregardlessofourfinancialstate.Asaresult,ourFridaynightoutings
revolvedaroundvisitingtheShelbyParkLibrary.Irememberthethrillofwalking
47
hand‐in‐handwithmymotherupthestepstothebeautifulCarnegiebuilding,
knowingthatontheothersideofthoseenormouswoodendoorswasanewworld,a
worldofbooks.
Whenweentered,thelibrarianscalledmebyname.Whiletheywould
strictlyenforcethecheck‐outlimitwithotherpatrons,theywouldbendtherulesfor
me.I’dleaveeachFridaynightwithmyarmloadofbooks;Iwasgiddyknowing
thesebooksweremine–atleastfortheweek.AsIgrewolder,myfeelings
blossomedintoviewingbooksaspossibilities.Throughthem,Icouldbeanyone,do
anything,andgoanywhere.
Thatsentimentaboutbookspermeatesmylifetothisveryday.Icannot
imagineadaywithoutreading:forinformation,forescape,orforsheerpleasure.A
stackofpossibilitiesalwayssitsbymybedside,beckoningme.Mylifeisenrichedon
adailybasis,thankstomyloveoftheprintedword.Iowemyparentsadebtof
gratitudethatcanneverberepaidforcreatingabook‐filledhome(thankstothe
publiclibrary)fosteringenthusiasmforreading,andsettingthestageforalifelong
joyoflearning.
Ifyouaskedmymotheraboutmyreadinghabits,shewouldtellyouithas
beenalifelongpursuit.Butifyouaskedheraboutmywriting,shewouldsaythatI
havebeentryingtowritesinceIcouldholdoneofthosechubby,first‐gradepencils.
WhileIdonothavemymother’srecollectionsofmyenthusiasticmarkmaking,I
haveavividmemoryofthefirsttimeIreceivedattentionformywriting.Insecond
grade,Mrs.Kemperaskedustowriteastoryaboutourfamily.Atthattime,Iwas
48
lobbyingfornotjustasibling,butspecificallyababysister.Iwroteasomewhat
embellishedtalethatIproudlyreadaloud.IrecallMrs.Kemper’sexpressionasmy
storyentitled,“TheArgument,”unfolded.Afterhearingmytaleofwoe,myseven‐
year‐oldmindenvisionedthatshewouldcallmyparentstotellthemtheywere
beingunfairtotheironlydaughter.Indeed,Mrs.Kemperdidcallmyhouse.
However,theendresultwasnottheoneIexpected.
Whilehercallwasmainlytoletmyparentsknowthattheirdaughterwas
spinningyarnsinfrontoftheclass,theothermessagewasmoresubtle,yet
incrediblysignificanttome.AsInervouslywatchedmymother’sreactiontoMrs.
Kemper’scall,atthatmomentIrealizedanimportanttruthaboutwriting–words
couldinfluence,persuade,andconvince.Mywords.AlthoughIwasonlyasecond
grader,Ifundamentallyunderstoodagreatermessage.Writingwas,inessence,
power.
Throughoutelementaryschool,teacherspraisedmywriting.Theirpositive
feedbackfueledmydesiretoexcelandinspiredmetoengageincomposition
outsideofschool.Eachday,Ifaithfullyrecordedmyinnermostsecrets,dreams,and
desiresinmyswirly,dramatichandwritinginaseriesofdiariesthateachlocked
withatinygoldkey.Duringmyjuniorhighyears,Iwroteconstantlyandsecretly
beganworkonanovel.Countlesshourswerespentdevelopingmycharacters,
outliningtheplot,andcreatingscenesthat,atleastinmyyoungmind,hadthe
perfectbalanceofliterarytension.AsIwroteandre‐wrotemystoryinlonghandon
yellowlegalpads,IdecidedthatIwasgoingtobecomeawriter.
49
Oneday,Isummonedthecouragetoannouncemycareeraspirationstomy
parents.Mymother,whohadjustgraduatedcollegewithadegreeineducation,was
quicktoshareheropinionaboutmyvocationalchoice.“Choosearealjob,”she
advised.“Youcanwriteontheside.”Myfather,whoearnedalivingasashift‐
workeratanoilrefinery,agreed.“You’llnevermakingaliving[asawriter],”he
cautioned.Inretrospect,Iknowtheywerewell‐meaningandquitecorrectintheir
commentary.However,thosewordsspokenwiththebestofintentionsextinguished
theflamesthatforsolonghadfueledmyloveofwriting.Ivividlyrecallsulkingup
thestepstomyroom,gatheringthestacksofyellowpaperthatcontainedmy
carefullypennedwordsandstuffingtheminthetrashcan.Forthenextthirteen
years,Iwrotenothingmorethanwhatwasrequiredofme.
Aftergraduatingfromcollegeandteachingseveralyears,IjoinedthePeace
Corps.BeforeIleft,afriendgavemeagift‐‐onethatchangedmylife‐‐abeautifully
boundtraveljournal.“Youneedtowriteaboutyourexperience,”sheadvised.“You
thinkyou’llremember,butyouwon’t.”Ithankedherforthethoughtfulgiftandeven
packeditmysuitcase.ButIwascertain,formanyreasons,thatIwouldn’tbeusing
it.First,thejournalwassolovely,Icouldn’tenvisionmarringthepageswithmy
mundanethoughts.Second,andmoreimportantly,duetomyparents’comments
aboutbecomingawriter,Iwasterrifiedtocommitmywordstopaper.ButItooka
leapandbegantorecordmyobservationsandreflectionsaboutlifeasaPeaceCorps
volunteer.Twenty‐sevenyearsand45journalslater,Irarelymissadayofputting
pentopaper.
50
UponreturningfrommyPeaceCorpsadventurewithmyloveofcomposition
firmlyintactonceagain,Ienteredlawschool.Itwastherewheremypassionfor
writingwastakentoanewlevelthroughthelensoflegalwritingandresearch.In
mydoctoralprogram,Iamnowconsumedwithapassionforresearchabout
writing.Ithaspropelledmeinmyquestforknowledgeandunderstandingthe
attitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingthatpreserviceteacherswillultimatelytakeinto
theclassroom.KnowingthatnoteveryoneloveswritinginthewaythatIdo,Iseek
tounderstandhowtheattitudesandbeliefsthatpreserviceteachershaveabout
writingwillinfluencehowtheyteachthisabsolutelycriticalskillinthefuture.
MyTeachingHistory
Aftergraduatingfromcollege,myteachingpositionswereatinner‐city
elementaryandmiddleschools.Whileteachingiscriticalatanyage,themiddle
schoolplacementhadadditionalchallenges:Howtomakeeducationmatterand
motivatestudentstostayinschool.Manyhadbeenheldback,experiencedfailure,
orlivedinconditionsthatIcouldnothaveimagined.Althoughourhouseholdcould
affordjusttheessentials–noextras‐Ihadastablehomelifeandfeltloved.But
seeingmystudentshavingtodealwithhunger,notknowingwheretheywould
sleepthatnight,orfamilyinvolvementinthelegalsystem,itwasdifficulttomake
schoolandhomeworkapriorityintheirlives.Moreover,mystudentsandtheir
familiesoftenfailedtoseetheimportanceofaneducationorhadless‐than‐positive
experiencesdealingwiththeeducationalsystem,administration,andteachers.
51
Othersviewedschoolingassomethingtotolerateuntiltheyreachedtheagewhere
theycouldsimplydropout.Iknewthesestudentswereathighriskofcontinuing
thepathoftheirparents,enteringasystemthathadtaughtthemtodistrustthe
establishment.Formost,itwasasystemthathadfailedthemrepeatedly.Believing
thateducationcouldprovideawayoutofpoverty,Iwantedtocreatean
environmentthatwouldencouragethemtoremaininschool.Throughwriting,my
studentscouldtelltheirstoriesandlettheirvoicesbeheard.
Thelanguageartsbookmandatedbythedistrictcontainedbothwritingand
grammarinstructionpresentedinamannerthatmystudentsfounddryandutterly
irrelevant.Thus,mygoalbecametofindawaytomakewritingmeaningful.Atthat
timeduringtheearly1980s,rapmusicwasgainingpopularity.Mystudentslistened
toartistssuchasL.L.CoolJ.,RunD.M.C.,andTheSugarHillGang.Althoughthebeat
ofthetunesthatechoedfromstudents’boomboxeswasengaging,through
conversationswithmystudents,Idiscoveredthatthewordsofthesongsresonated
deeplywiththem,conveyingeloquentlywhattheywerefeelingand
experiencing.Listeningtotheirdiscussionsaboutthelyricsgavemetheideato
havestudentswritetheirownrapsongs.Asaclass,wewouldanalyzethewordsof
theirfavoritesongsexaminingwordchoice,structure,andcontent.Thenthe
studentsworkedinpairstowritetheirownrapsongsthattheywouldsharewith
theclassonThursdayafternoon.Ifthestudentsactivelyparticipatedduringthe
weekandpresentedtheirworktotheirclassmates,onFridaystudentscouldbring
inaboomboxandlistentomusic.Studentsenthusiasticallyembracedthis
52
approachtowritingthroughouttheyearanddidnotbalkasmuchatotherwritten
assignmentswhichwereintroduced.WhileIamconfidenttheirattitudesabout
writingimproveddramaticallyinmyclass,Iamuncertainastowhetherthis
approachcarriedovertoothercontentareasorgavethemanymotivationto
continuetheireducation.
AsaPeaceCorpsvolunteerwithpreviousclassroomexperience,Iwas
assignedtoteachmethodscoursesatWesternSamoaTeacher’sCollege,theonly
teacherpreparationprograminthecountry.WhileinstructioninEnglishwasa
challenge,wasthateducationisauniversallanguage.Studentsatthecollege
wantedtoeffectivelyfindwaystoengagetheirpupils.Giventhelackofsupplies
thatwascommonthroughouttheschoolinthecountry,thesecourseswere
especiallyimportanttohelpthemfindcreativeandlow‐costwaystodeliver
content.
Althoughmylegalcareerfelloutsidethecontoursoftheclassroom,itwas
remarkablehowmuchteachingwasapartofmylifeinthelaw.Asanattorney,it
wascriticaltohavetheskillstodistillthecomplexitiesofthelawbothinwriting
andspeakingwhenconveyinginformationtoaclient.Asalitigatorinthe
courtroom,itwasmytasktoeducatethejuryaboutthecase.Clearlyconveying
information,bothverballyandinwriting,wasessential.These,too,areskillswhich
areattheheartofbeingateacher.
Aftermovingtoauniversitytown,IhadtheopportunitytoteachFirst‐Year
Seminarcoursesforincomingfreshmen.Theseminarcoursewasnotonlydesigned
53
tohelpstudentsconnectwiththeirinstructorandpeers,butalsotofostercritical
thinking,discussion,andwriting.Gradingtheirfirstwrittenassignmentwasa
soberingexperience.Itwasastonishinghowvastlythestudents’writingabilities
varied.Whilesomestudentswereundoubtedlycapableofcollege‐levelwriting,
othersstruggledtowriteathesisstatement.Shockingly,somestudents’papers
consistentlylackednoun‐verbagreement.Otherstudentswroteinasimplistic
mannerthatsuggestedthattheysufferedextremewordpovertyorneverhad
instructionregardingtheimportanceofwordchoice.Someturnedinwhatcould
onlybedescribedasafirstdraft.Clearlytheseindividualshadneverbeentaught
revision.Iwasalarmed.Althoughitwasnotpartoftheformalcurriculum,norwas
itawritingclass,Iincorporatedwritinglessonseachweek.Iboughteverystudent
inmyclassaspiralnotebook.Afterstudentsconveniently“forgot”theirnotebooks,I
decidedtokeepthenotebooksmyselfandbringthemtoclasseachday.Myfirm
beliefwasthatthemorestudentswrote,thebettertheirworkwouldbecome.While
theygrumbledandgroanedearlyinthesemester,theyengagedindailywriting
practice.Notonlydidthishelpimprovetheskillsofthestrugglingwritersinclass,it
madestrongerwritersevenbetter.
Afterenteringmydoctoralprogramincurriculumandinstruction,writing
andthewritingprocessquicklyemergedtotheforefrontofmyinterestareas.While
teachingaseminarsectionforeducationstudents,andlatercompletingateaching
internshipwithaseniorprofessorinanearlylearning‐to‐readcourse,Idiscovereda
similartrend.Aswritingwasdiscussed,studentswouldfreelyadmittheir
54
apprehensions.“I’mnotaverygoodwriter,”wasfrequentlytheirlament.Others
expressedopenhostilityaboutwriting:“Ihatewriting,”“It’sachore,”and“Writing
issohard.”Afterlisteningtopreservicestudents’comments,onequestionemerged
againandagaininmymind–whatimpactwilltheseattitudeshaveontheirability
toteachwritingintheK‐8classroom?Iwonderedifandhowtheirless‐than‐
positivemindsetswouldimpactpreserviceteachers’approachtowriting
instructionintheirfutureclassroom.
RoleoftheResearcher
Myexperienceasawriter,professionallyandpersonally,hasshapedthe
formulationandrefinementofmyresearchinterestsinmydoctoralprogram.My
lifelongwritingexperiencesmadeitvirtuallyimpossibletoseparatemyselffromthe
topic.However,thisapproachpermittedmetoexaminemythoughts,beliefs,and
motivationsastheresearcher(Creswell,2013).Withoutquestion,bysituating
myselfintheresearch,Ibroughtmyconsciousorunconsciousviewsintothe
researchprocess(Maxwell,2013).Asaresult,Icouldnotextricatemyselffrommy
perceptionsoftheresearchquestions.However,byidentifying,acknowledging,and
examiningtheseviews,Iwasbetterpreparedtoaddressmysubjectivityandmake
choicesthatwouldavoidunwittinglyintroducingbias.
Toreflectuponmyexperiences,Idrafteda“researcheridentitymemo”prior
tobeginningmyresearch(Maxwell,2013,p.34).Throughthismemo,Iexamined
“mygoals,experiences,assumptions,feelings,andvaluesastheyrelate[d]to[my]
55
research”(Maxwell,2013,p.34).Moreover,thismemoallowedmetoconsiderany
concernsthatinterjectingmyidentityinthestudymightcreate(Maxwell,2013;
Silverman,2005).Inthisway,Ihadtheopportunitytoreflectandmakeresearch
decisionsthatweremindfuloftheidentitythatInecessarilybroughttomystudy.
Likewise,theresearcheridentitymemowasalsousedtoexplorepossible
biasregardingmycommitteechair,whoallowedmetoconductmyresearchwithin
herclassroom.Itwascriticaltomaintainanawarenessofanyinfluencethis
relationshipmighthaveonmyresearchorinterpretationofthedata(Maxwell,
2013).Byregularlyengaginginmindfulreflection,Imadeeveryefforttoavoidany
possibleconflictsorbias.Irevisitedmyresearcheridentitymemoatvarious
milepostsalongtheway,suchasthecodingandinterpretationofthedata.Ibelieve
mybackgroundinthelawalsogavemeauniqueperspectivethatallowedmeto
approachsituationsinmystudyfromanobjectiveandneutralstance.Byhaving
legalexperienceandutilizingthoseskills,IbelieveIhadanaddedlayerof
protectioninguardingagainstbias.
Inadditiontomyresearcheridentitymemo,Ikeptdetailedfieldnotesofmy
classobservations.Otherthanintroducingmyresearchtostudentsonthefirstday
ofclass,Ihadnostudentinteractionwiththeclassasawhole.Myroleduringthe
classobservationswasthatstrictlyasanobserver.Duringthoseobservations,I
tookfieldnotes(Maxwell,2013).Thefieldnotesservedthreedistinctpurposes.
First,thenotesdocumentedmyobservationsastheyhappened.Next,Iusedthis
journalasaplacetoreflectuponnotonlytheobservations,butalsomyresearchas
56
itunfolded.Finally,mynotesservedasanotherlayerofreflectiontoguardagainst
researcherbias.
Tounderstandmyparticipants’responsesinthecontextofthesocial
constructivismframework,Iutilizedmembercheckingandrespondentvalidation.
Duringtheinterviews,Iparaphrasedstudentresponsesatregularintervalsto
derivetheirsubjectivemeaning(Creswell,2013).Bydoingso,Icouldtake
immediatestepstocorrectmyunderstandingandadjustmyquestionsaccordingly.
Similarly,Iendeavoredtoaskopen‐endedquestionsthatwouldpreventleadingthe
participanttoadesiredresponse.Whilethesemi‐structuredinterviewquestions
weredevelopedbeforehandwiththisgoalinmind,follow‐upquestionsnecessarily
arisethatwerenotpreviouslyscripted.Ithenhadtheopportunitytoreflectupon
theparticipantresponses,myfollow‐upquestions,andmyinterpretationof
answersinmyresearchjournalandbyrevisitingmyidentitymemo.
SiteSelection
Myresearchtookplaceatonemid‐sized,researchinstitutionintheRocky
Mountainwest.TheenrollmentatthisinstitutioninSpring2016was14,631with
12,706undergraduates(T.Dysart,personalcommunication,April6,2016).The
distributionofthetotalstudentpopulationwas6,819females(47%)and7,812
males(53%)(T.Dysart,personalcommunication,April6,2016).Theethnicitydata
fortheoverallstudentpopulationisasfollows:White(84%),International(5%),
Hispanic/Latino(3%),Tworaces(3%),AmericanIndian/AlaskaNative(2%),
57
Black/AfricanAmerican(1%),Asian(1%),Unknown(1%),NativeHawaiian/Pacific
Islander(0%)(T.Dysart,personalcommunication,July8,2016).Thisuniversityis
considereda“highresearchactivity”institutionbytheCarnegieFoundationforthe
AdvancementofTeachingofferingarangeofundergraduatebachelor’sdegreesand
awards50ormoredoctoraldegreeseachyearspanning15ormoredisciplines
(CarnegieFoundationfortheAdvancementofTeaching,2015).Atthisschool,the
DepartmentofEducationishousedintheCollegeofEducation,Health,andHuman
Development,thethirdlargestcollegewithnearly2000students.
InSpring2016,therewere402studentslistedaselementaryeducation
majorswhichis3%ofthetotalundergraduatestudentenrollmentattheland‐grant
institution(T.Dysart,personalcommunication,April6,2016).Ofthesestudents,
340(85%)werefemalesand62(15%)weremales(T.Dysart,personal
communication,April6,2016).Theethnicityofstudentsenrolledintheelementary
educationmajorareasfollows:White(92%),Hispanic/Latino(3%),Tworaces
(1%),AmericanIndian/AlaskaNative(1%),Asian(0%),Black/AfricanAmerican
(0%)(T.Dysart,personalcommunication,July8,2016).InstitutionalReviewBoard
(IRB)approvaltoconductthisstudywasreceivedonDecember3,2015.
Table1.EnrollmentDatabyGenderStatus Enrollment Female MaleTotalnumberofstudents 13,631 6,819(47%) 7,812(53%)Graduatestudents 1,925 1,034(54%) 891(46%)Undergraduatestudents 12,706 5,785(46%) 6,921(54%)Elementaryeducationmajors 402 340(85%) 62(15%)
58
HistoryoftheTeacherEducationPrograminThisStudy
Theland‐grantinstitutionlocatedinthenorthwestattheheartofthisstudy
hasalonghistoryofprovidingteachereducation(D.Redburn,personal
communication,December15,2016).Initially,educationcourseworkfocusedon
agricultureandindustrialsubjects(D.Redburn,personalcommunication,December
15,2016).In1944,thecollegeformedadepartmentofeducationwithagoalto
prepareteachersforjuniorhighandhighschoolclassrooms(D.Redburn,personal
communication,December15,2016).Inresponsetotheteachershortagebetween
1955‐1970,thecollegerespondedbyexpandingtheprogramtoincludeabachelor’s
degreeforelementaryteachers(D.Redburn,personalcommunication,December
15,2016).In1987,thedepartmentofeducationjoinedforceswithanother
departmenttoformthethirdlargestcollegeattheinstitution(D.Redburn,personal
communication,December15,2016).Theunifiedstructureofthesetwo
departmentsasonecollegeatthisinstitutionremainstothisday.
Thedepartmentofeducationoffersthreeundergraduatemajors:elementary
education,K‐12education,andsecondaryeducation.Studentsintheelementary
educationprogram,whichprovidesthefoundationforcertificationforK‐8teaching,
werethefocusofthisstudy.Theelementaryeducationprogramprovidesgeneral
education,whichincludestheuniversity‐widerequiredWRIT101CollegeWriting,
theAdvancedPlacement(AP)equivalent,oranACTEnglishscoreof28orhigher,an
SATCriticalWritingscoreof650 orhigher(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,
September14,2015).Consequently,astudentcouldmoveforwardinthe
59
elementaryeducationprogramwithouteverhavingcompletedacollege‐level
writingcourse.
Thisteachertrainingprogramoffersmethodsclassesinlanguagearts,math,
socialstudies,science,art,andhealthacrosstheK‐8gradelevels(A.Ellsworth,
personalcommunication,September14,2015).Finally,thisprogramrequires
extensivefieldworkandpracticumexperiencesthataretakeninconjunctionwith
themethodscourses(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).
Elementaryeducationstudentsarerequiredtospendfourhalf‐daysinpracticum
placementwhileenrolledinmethodscoursesforLanguageArts,CreativeArts,Math,
SocialStudies,Science,andHealthEnhancement(A.Ellsworth,personal
communication,September14,2015).
Priortotakinganyofthemethodscoursework,studentsarerequiredto
completeEDU382Assessment,Curriculum,&Instruction,a3‐creditcourse(A.
Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).Totakemethodscourses
forsocialstudiesorscience,studentsmusthavesuccessfullycompletedidentified
subject‐areaprerequisites(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,
2015).Likewise,mathmethodsstudentsmusthavecompletedthethreerequired
mathcourses.LanguageartsmethodsstudentsmustcompleteEDU331Litand
LiteratureforChildren,athree‐creditsurveyofchildren’sliteraturecourse(A.
Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).However,studentsare
notrequiredtocompleteEDU330EmergentLiteracy,athree‐creditlearning‐to‐
readcoursepriortotheK‐8languageartsmethodsclass(A.Ellsworth,personal
60
communication,September14,2015).Thisprogramdoesnotrequireacourse
devotedtowritinginstruction,norisonecurrentlyoffered.
HistoryofEDU330–EmergentLiteracy
Thefoundationallearning‐to‐readandearlyliteracycourseinthisprogram
isEDU330EmergentLiteracywhichisthreecredits(A.Ellsworth,personal
communication,September14,2015).However,priorto2009thiscoursewasEDEL
305PrinciplesandPracticesofEarlyLiteracyK‐3forfourcredits(A.Ellsworth,
personalcommunication,July31,2016).In2009,inconjunctionwithstandardizing
coursenumberingwithintheuniversitysystem,thedecisionwasmadetomakeall
coursesintheprogramthreecredits(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,July31,
2016).Asaresult,elementaryeducationstudentsareonlyrequiredtotakethe
followingcoursestofulfilltheirdegreerequirements‐EDU330EmergentLiteracy,
EDU397K‐8Methods:LanguageArts,andEDU438LiteracyAssessment,Diagnosis
andInstruction‐foratotalofninecreditsinEnglishLanguageArts(A.Ellsworth,
personalcommunication,July31,2016).
Today,EmergentLiteracyintroducesstudentstotherichandcomplexworld
ofphonics,developmentallyappropriateclassroompracticesforliteracy
instruction,andtranslatingtheoryintopracticeusingauthentictextsandreal‐world
examples(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).Inaddition,
studentslearnhowtoassessprogrammingforstrugglingreadersanddevise
differentiatedinstructionalplans(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,
61
September14,2015).Thepre‐requisiteslistedinthecoursecatalogueareEDU331
LitandLiteratureforChildren,EDU382Assessment,Curriculum,&Instruction,and
juniorstanding(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).While
ideallyEDU330shouldbetakenbeforeEDU397K‐8Methods:LanguageArtsto
scaffoldthelanguageartsmethodscourse,manystudentstakethecourses
concurrently(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).
Consequently,thesestudentsareatadistinctdisadvantage(A.Ellsworth,personal
communication,September14,2015).
Onewriting‐specificthree‐creditcourse,EDU263MethodsofTeaching
Grammar,wasdevelopedtogivestudentsarevieworfoundationalskillsin
grammar(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).Even
thoughthecoursewasoffered,itwasnotrequired(A.Ellsworth,personal
communication,September14,2015).Thiscourseremainslistedinthecourse
catalogue,buthasnotbeenofferedsince2012(A.Ellsworth,personal
communication,September14,2015).
TheCourse:EDU330‐EmergentLiteracy
Participantswereenrolledinonewriting‐intensiveELAcourse,EDU330‐
EmergentLiteracy,duringtheSpring2016semester,whichranfromJanuary13
untilMay6.Therewere35studentsenrolledintheclasswith30(85%)femalesand
5(15%)males.ThisisconsistentwiththeoverallenrollmentoftheDepartmentof
Educationdemographic.ThecoursemetonTuesdaysandThursdaysfrom1:40p.m.
62
until2:55p.m.Duringthefallsemester,twosectionsareoffered.Inthespringand
summer,onesectionisavailableeachterm.Nowriting‐specificmethodscourseis
offeredorrequiredinthecurriculum.SinceIcompletedateachinginternshipinthis
ELAcourseaspartofmydoctoralprograminFall2014,Irequestedaccesstothis
courseinSpring2016toconductmydissertationresearch.Ichosethiscoursefor
mystudyforthreereasons:theprofessorprovidesdaily,intensiveinstructionon
writingskills;shehasadeepunderstandingofboththeconventionsandprocessof
writing,andshewritesforprofessionalandpersonalreasons.
Accordingtothecoursecatalog,therearethreepre‐requisiteslisted:junior
standing;EDU331,achildren’sliteraturecourse;andEDU382,anassessment
course.ThecatalogdescriptionofEDU330readsasfollow:“Currenttheory
concerningEmergentLiteracyanddevelopmentallyappropriateclassroom
practices.Emphasisisonabalancedapproachwhichincludesphonicsandothercue
systems,useofauthenticchildren'sliterature,anduseofprogrammedreading
materials.”Writinginstructionisincorporatedindirectdailyinstruction,writing
journals,casestudies,andotherwrittenassignments.TheEDU330Spring2016
syllabusisattachedasAppendixA.
Participants
Duringthefirstweekofclass,allstudentsenrolledinthecoursetookthe
WAT(Daly&Miller,1975)(AppendixB).TheWATassessmentwasadministeredas
partofthequizzessectiononthesyllabus.Onthefirstdayofclass,theprofessor
63
excusedherselffromtheroomneartheendoftheperiod.Atthattime,Iintroduced
myselfandmyresearchproject.IexplainedthatIwouldbeobservingintheclass
eachdayduringthesemester.Finally,afterIexplainedtheparticipation
requirementsandthetimecommitmentforparticipants,IadvisedstudentsthatI
wouldgiveeveryonewhocompletedthestudya$25giftcard.
IreviewedandrankedtheWATscoresfortheentireclass(N=35).WAT
scoresfallonacontinuumfrom26,thehighestapprehensionlevel,to130,the
lowestapprehensionlevel.Inthisclass,thescorerangewas49–121withamedian
of85.30.Myoriginalplanwasforparticipantstohavehigherlevelsofwriting
apprehensionasevidencedbyascorebetween26and59,butnothigherthanthe
WATmedianscoreof78.However,beforeIstartedmystudyIanticipatedthatI
mightberequiredmodifymyparametersforseveralreasons.First,thescoresmay
nothavefallenwithinmydesiredrange.Next,studentswhowereinvitedto
participatebasedontheirscoresmaydeclinetoparticipate.Asaresult,Iwasfully
awarethatImightberequiredtoreframethecriteriaformystudy.
ElevenstudentshadWATscoresthatwerebelowthemedianof78as
definedbyDalyandMiller(1975).OnJanuary15,2016,Isenteachofthese
studentsanindividualemailinvitingthemtoparticipateinmyresearch.Three
studentsrespondedaffirmatively.Fivestudentsdeclinedcitingwork,school,or
personalreasons.Threestudentsdidnotrespond.OnJanuary17,2016,Iemailed
thenextfourstudentswhowererankedbasedontheirWATscores.Tworeplied
thattheydidnotwishtoparticipateandtheothertwodidnotrespond.OnJanuary
64
19,2016,Iemailedtheremainderoftheclassseekingparticipants.Fourstudents
respondedaffirmativelyandtwostudentsrepliedthattheywouldbewillingto
participateifneeded.ThefinalfourparticipantshadWATscoresrangingfrom91–
113,whichindicatedlowerlevelsofwritingapprehension.Eachstudentchosea
pseudonymbywhichtheywouldbeidentifiedinthestudy.
Myoriginalplanforthisstudywastopurposefullyselectfivetoseven
participantsfromtheinitialgroup(Maxwell,2013;Patton,2001).However,this
planassumedthattherewouldbeapoolofstudentsthatfitthecriteriaformystudy
andthattheywouldbewillingtoparticipate.AccordingtoStake(1995),“choosinga
casemay“beno‘choice’atall”(p.3).Whiletherewere11studentsthatfellbelow
themedianscoreof78,onlythreeagreedtobeapartofmystudy.Asaresult,Ihad
toquicklyreframemystudyinordertoproceedduringtheSpring2016semester.
TheWATscoresofthenewparticipantsgavemetheopportunitytounderstand
whatfactorsinfluencedtheattitudesandbeliefsofwritersacrossthespectrum,and
toexaminehowtheseattitudesandbeliefsinformbothapprehensiveandconfident
writers’approachestowritinginstruction.WhileStake(1995)statedthatdifferent
numbersofparticipantsareappropriatefordifferentstudies,“balanceandvariety
areimportant;opportunitytolearnisofprimaryimportance”(p.6).
65
Table2.SummaryofParticipantsParticipant Age Year GPA
GradeWRIT101 ACTEnglish/
ReadingScoreWAT#1
Sadie 20 Junior 3.74 A 26/28 49Sydney 20 Junior 3.3 B 21/20 62Amber 20 Senior 4.0 Exempt 32/36 64Kay 21 Senior 3.38 B‐ 22/25 82Lily 20 Junior 3.93 A 24/27 93Gina 32 Senior 3.65 B Notavailable 94Mary 20 Junior 3.94 A 26/25 113
DataCollection
Multiplemethodsfordatacollectionwereusedwiththeparticipants:WAT
scores,aquestionnaire,agraphicrepresentation,twosemi‐structuredface‐to‐face
interviews(oneatthebeginningandthesecondneartheendofthesemester),a
focusgroup,classobservations,observerfieldnotes,participantworksamples,GPA,
WRIT101grade,andACTorSATEnglish/readingscores,andselectedwriting
journalentries.
Table3.DataSourcesDataSource WritingApprehensionTest(WAT)pre‐andpost‐test (AppendixB)Questionnaire (AppendixC)Twosemi‐structuredinterviews (Interview#1–
AppendixE,Interview#2–AppendixG)
Graphicrepresentation–Writingmemorymatrix (AppendixD)Classobservations Fieldobservernotes
Focusgroup (AppendixF)Studentworksamplesandjournalentries ACTEnglish/readingscore GPAandWRIT101grade
66
WritingApprehensionTest(WAT)
ThedevelopmentoftheWATbeganwith63itemsratedonafive‐point
Likertscale(Daly&Miller,1975).Itemsoriginallyincludedweremodeledbasedon
apreviouslytestedcommunicationapprehensionsurvey(Daly&Miller,1975).Daly
andMiller(1975)groupedtheitemsintocategoriesthatexploredconcernsabout
“anxietyaboutwritingingeneral,teacherevaluationofwriting,peerevaluationof
writing,aswellasprofessional”(p.245).Afactoranalysiswasconductedonthe164
studentresponsesfromundergraduates(Daly&Miller,1975,p.245).
Thefinalinstrumentconsistedof26statementsthatparticipantsrankona
scaleof1(stronglydisagree)to5(stronglyagree).Scoresrangefrom26to130with
ameanof78.Scoresbetween97and130indicatealowlevelofwriting
apprehension.Scoresbetween60and96donothaveasignificantlevelof
apprehension;however,participantsscoringontheouterrangeswillexperience
apprehensionlevelssimilartotheneighboringcategories.Scoresbetween26and
59suggesthighlevelsofwritingapprehension.Lowernumbersinanyscorerange
suggestgreaterlevelsofanxiety(Daly&Miller,1975).
DuringtheSpring2016semester,theWATwasadministeredonthefirstday
ofclassandgiventomeinasealedenvelope.IgradedandrankedtheWATscoresto
determinemyinitialpoolofpossibleparticipants.Forpurposesofthequizgrade
points,Iadvisedtheprofessorthatallofthestudentscompletedtheassessmentand
shouldbeawardedthethreepoints.TheWATscoreservedastheinitialscreenfor
67
selectingparticipants.ThesecondWATwasadministeredonlytostudyparticipants
atthebeginningofthefinalinterview.
Questionnaire
Studyparticipantsrespondedinwritingtoaquestionnairewithtenopen‐
endedquestions.Thesequestionsweredesignedusingthesocialconstructivism
frameworktogleaninformationabouttheparticipants’pastexperienceswith
writingandwritingteachersthroughouttheiracademiccareersthatmayshedlight
upontheirattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting.Questionsalsoaskedparticipantsto
considerthewritingprocessandmajorinfluences.Thisquestionnairewas
developedtoprovideaviewintotheinner‐thoughtsoftheparticipantsutilizinga
socialconstructivismframework(Creswell,2013).Thesequestionsweretestedina
pilotstudywithjunior‐standingelementaryeducationstudentsinSpring2014and
againinFall2015.Pilotstudiesareausefultoolintheclarificationofvarious
aspectsofdesignelements(Maxwell,2013).Afterreviewingstudentfeedbackfrom
thepilotstudy,Irevisedeachsetofquestionsforclarity.Asaresultofthesetwo
small‐scalepilotstudies,thequestionshadbeenrefinedtoobtainspecific
informationaboutattitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingandthefactorsthatinfluenced
theirdevelopment.
Beforetheface‐to‐faceinterviews,studyparticipantsreceivedacopyofthe
questionsviaanemailcommunicationandwereaskedtorespond.Oncecompleted,
studentswereaskedtoemailtheirresponsesbacktome.Thisapproachallowedthe
participantstohavetimetoengageinathoughtful,reflective,andunhurried
68
response.Byreviewingtheiranswerspriortoourfirstinterview,Icoulddevelop
follow‐upquestionsformysemi‐structuredinterview.Inaddition,this
questionnairegavemetheopportunitytohaveanintroductoryglimpseofeach
student’swritingandthoughtprocessaboutwriting.
Semi‐StructuredInterviewsandGraphicRepresentation
Twosemi‐structuredinterviewswereconductedwithparticipants,oneat
thebeginningandthesecondattheendofthesemester.AccordingtoWeiss(1994),
itispreferabletoconductmorethanoneinterviewwiththesameparticipant.The
questionsweredevelopedusingasocialconstructivismframework.Creswell(2013)
statesthattheinterviewquestionsshouldbeframedtoelicitmorespecificand
detailedresponsesratherthangeneralities.Inaddition,interviewsalsoprovided
theopportunitytogainin‐depthinformationthatcouldnotbegleanedfrom
observationorothersources(Weiss,1994).
Atthebeginningofthefirstface‐to‐faceinterview,participantscompletedan
informalsketchordrawinginawritingmemorymatrixtorepresenttheir
recollectionsaboutwritingfromfourdifferenttimeperiodsintheiracademiclifeto
facilitatediscussionandprovideanother,non‐verballayerofmeaning.Thisgraphic
representationelement,whichwasdevelopedtoallowtheparticipanttoconstruct
meaningfrompastexperiences,wastestedinapilotstudyinSpring2014.Student
feedbackfromthepilotstudywasenthusiasticandindicatedthisactivitywasan
enjoyablewaytobeginourface‐to‐faceinterview.Studentsinthepilotstudyalso
reportedthatithelpedthemfeelmorerelaxed.However,theprimarygoalofthe
69
writingmemoriesmatrixwastoallowtheparticipantstoutilizeamultimodal
expressiontopromotedeeperthinkingandengagementwiththeirattitudesand
beliefformation.Studentsaffirmativelystatedthatthisactivitygavethemthe
opportunitytoreflectupontheirwritinghistoryinauniquefashion.Thedata
collectedthroughthequestionnaire,thetwosemi‐structuredinterviews,thewriting
memoriesmatrix,andthefocusgroupwasself‐reported.Follow‐upquestionsat
eachstageallowedmetoseekclarification,butallanswerswerebasedonthe
participants’self‐perceptionofbeliefsinresponsetothequestions.
Studentswereofferedachoiceoflocation,eitheronoroff‐campusforthe
interviews.Afterdiscussingeachstudent’spreference,alloftheinterviewstook
placeinmyofficebecauseitwasquiet,comfortable,andconvenient.Thechoiceof
locationallowedstudentstospeakfreelyduringtheinterviewsinceitwasprivate.
Thefirstinterviewtookplaceduringthesecondweekofthesemesterandlasted
approximatelyonehourforeachstudent.Thesecondtookplaceduringthe
fourteenthweekofthesemesterlastedlessthan45minutes.Eachinterviewwas
audiorecordedandtranscribedbyme.Duringtheinterview,Ialsotooknotes.
Tovalidatethedata,Iusedmembercheckingor“respondentvalidation”
(Maxwell,2013,p.126).AccordingtoMaxwell(2013),thisisthe“singlemost
importantwayofrulingoutthepossibilityofmisinterpretingthemeaningofwhat
participantssayanddoandtheperspectivetheyhave”(p.126).Duringthe
interviews,Iwouldperiodicallysummarizetheresponsesandaskifmy
understandingwascorrect.Atthisjuncture,theparticipantwouldagreethatmy
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summarywascorrect,offeradditionalinformationtoclarifymyunderstanding,or
correctanymisinterpretations.Byhavingparticipantsengageinfrequentand
immediateclarification,IwasalsoabletobesureIwasnotinadvertently
interjectingbiasintomyquestionsormyinterpretation.Tofurtherguardagainst
anymisconceptionsinmyinterpretationofthedataandprovideasecondary
review,Iaskedparticipantstoreviewtheirtranscripts.
ClassObservations
AccordingtoCreswell(2013),observationsprovidea“keytoolforcollecting
datainqualitativeresearch”(p.166).Observationsincludedetailsaboutthe
“physicalsetting,participants,activities,interactions,conversations,andyourown
behaviorsduringtheobservations”(Creswell,2013,p.166).Duringthespring
semester,IattendedEmergentLiteracyeachclassperiodandsatinthebackofthe
roomsoasnottointerfereorbeadistraction.Itookdetailednotesonthewriting
instructionprovidedatthebeginningofeachclass.Ialsonotedanyreactions,
questions,orcommentsfrommystudyparticipants.Mywrittenobservationswere
recordedduringtheclassperiodobserved.Afterreviewingmynoteseachday,I
madeadditionalnotationstofillingaps,elaborate,ortoreflect.
Onthefirstday,IinteractedwiththestudentswhenIexplainedmyresearch
project.Forallremainingclassperiods,Isimplyobservedtheinstruction(Creswell,
2013).Inthatrole,Iwasan“outsiderofthegroupunderstudy,watchingandtaking
fieldnotesfromadistance”(Creswell,2013,p.167).AlthoughIobservedthe
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writinginstructionspecifically,Ialsonotedanyquestions,comments,orconcerns
frommyparticipants.
FocusGroup
Thegoalofafocusgroupistofosterdialogueanddiscussionamong
participantstolearntheirthoughtsandfeelingsonatopic(Krueger,1998;Krueger
&Casey,2000).Sincethegoalisself‐disclosure,itiscriticalthatfacilitatorscreatea
“comfortable,permissiveenvironment”(Krueger&Casey,2000,p.9).Focusgroups
typicallyhavefivetotenparticipants,whichis“smallenoughforeveryonetohave
anopportunitytoshareinsightsandyetlargeenoughtoprovidediversityof
perceptions”(Krueger&Casey,2000,p.10).Thefocusgroupquestions,whichwere
developedusingasocialconstructivismframework,wereopen‐endedand
presentedinalogicalfashion(Krueger&Casey,2000,p.12).AccordingtoKrueger
andCasey(2000),a“questioningroute”isthepreferredforacademicresearchand
wasusedtodevelopthequestions(p.43).Thismethod,incontrasttothe“interview
guide,”providedamorecompleteandsequencedlineofinquiry(Krueger&Casey,
2000,p.43).Questionsshouldbe“clear,short,open‐ended,”“movefromgeneralto
specific,”and“usethetimewisely”(Krueger&Casey,2000,pp.42‐43).Finally,the
roleofthemoderatoristoelicitthe“feelings,comments,andthoughtprocessesof
theparticipants,”nottoachieveconsensus(Krueger&Casey,2000,p.12).
Thefocusgrouptookplacetheweekaftertheclassmid‐termexaminationin
aconferenceroomoncampus.Sixofthesevenparticipantsattended.Ginawas
unabletoattendduetofamilycommitments.Ispecificallychosethisweeksothe
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studentswouldnotbedistractedbyexampreparation.Ifacilitatedthefocusgroup,
whichlastedapproximately90minutes.Themeetingwasaudiorecordedand
transcribedbyme.Duringthefocusgroup,Ialsotooknotes.AlthoughIcreated
questionstoguidethegroup,manyofthestudentresponseselicitedadditional,
tangentialinformationfromotherparticipants.
StudentWorkSamplesandJournalEntries
Aspartofthedatacollectionprocess,Iexaminedandanalyzedexemplarsof
participants’writtenwork.Bydoingso,Igainedanotherperspectiveaboutthe
problembeingstudied(Maxwell,2013).Thisapproachaddedalayerofdepth
throughtheexaminationofactualwritingsamplesofbothformalandinformalwork
products.Inaddition,thisservedasapointoftriangulation(Maxwell,2013).
Throughoutthesemester,Icollectedandanalyzedparticipantjournal
entries.Thesemoreinformalwrittenpiecesofferedaglimpseintoattitudes,beliefs,
andfeelingsaboutwritingdependingupontheprompt.Thejournalentrieswerein
responsetoanassigned,weeklyprompt,suchasafavoritequote,aresponsetoan
inspirationshortreadinginclass,orafreewrite.Responseswerehandwrittenand
weretypicallyonetotwopages.Thejournalgradeswereforcompletionofthe
response.
Inaddition,Icollectedandanalyzedtwoformalwrittenassignmentsthat
wereapracticalapplicationoftheskillslearnedinclass.Intheseassignments,
studentsassumedtheroleoftheschoolreadingspecialistwhoevaluatedandmade
recommendationsforafictionalstudent.Further,theseexemplarsallowedmeto
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observetheparticipants’writingoverthecourseofthesemester.Iuseda6+1traits
analysistoevaluatetheassignments(Spandel,2009).
Priortothebeginningofthesemester,theprofessorandIdiscussedplans
regardingthecollectionofstudentworkproductduringthesemester.Thejournals
werekeptinindividualnotebookswithnamesonthefrontcover.Onceaweek,
studentsplacedtheirjournalsintwocanvasbags.Afterclass,Itookbothbagstomy
office.Iretrievedtheparticipantjournalsfromthebags,madecopies,andthen
placedthembackinthebagsinarandomfashion.Forthecasestudies,students
placedtheirworkinanenvelope.Attheendofclass,Itooktheenvelope,made
copiesoftheparticipants’work,thenreplacedthemarbitrarily.Ithenreturned
themtotheprofessor.Afterthecasestudiesweregraded,Iwasabletoaccess
participants’gradesthroughtheonlinegradebook.Ipurposefullycollectedthework
inthismannertoprotecttheidentityofmyparticipants.
AdditionalInformation
Inaddition,thefollowingquantitativedescriptivedatawascollectedfor
participants:overallGPAandtheWRIT101grade.Ipersonallycollectedthis
informationfromtheelectronicdatabase.Thesedatapointsservedasanother
methodoftriangulation(Maxwell,2013).ACTEnglishandReadingscoreswere
collectedifavailable.TheACTtestisastandardizedbenchmarkthatmeasures
academicreadinessforcollege.Thereadingsectiontestscomprehensionandthe
Englishtestsusage,mechanics,andrhetoric.
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DataAnalysisStrategiesandProcess
Inqualitativeresearch,dataanalysisoccursinthreephases.First,the
researchermustprepareandorganizethedata(Creswell,2013).Next,the
researcherdeterminesthemesforthedatabycodingthecontent(Creswell,2013).
Thentheresearcherisabletodistilltheinformationintoconclusions(Creswell,
2013).Mydataanalysisutilizedthesocialconstructivismframework.
AccordingtoCreswell(2013),theresearchershouldalsodescribehisorher
personalexperiencesrelatingtothephenomenabeingstudied(p.193).The
purposeofthisstepisto“setasideresearcherexperiences”(Creswell,2013,p.193).
First,Ireviewedmynotestakenduringtheinterviewforeachparticipant
immediatelypriortobeginningmytranscription(Maxwell,2013).Listeningtothe
interviewasItranscribeditaddedanotherlayerofmeaningtomyperceptionsof
thecontent.AfterIcompletedthetranscription,Ithenreadtheinterviewas
transcribedandmadenotesonmyobservations.Thisallowedmetodevelop
“tentativeideasaboutthecategoriesandrelationships”(Maxwell,2013,p.105).
Next,Ireviewedthequestionnaireresponses,thegraphicrepresentation,andthe
observationnotes,andjournalentriesandcodedthedata.Icompletedthesame
procedureforeachparticipant.Incasestudies,Creswell(2013)statedananalysis
containsin‐depthdescriptionsthroughwhichpatternswillemerge.
Next,Icodedthedatabycompilingalistofsignificantstatementsfromthe
interviews,questionnaireresponses,andthedrawingstodescribetheparticipants’
attitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting(Creswell,2013;Maxwell,2013).Thesame
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procedurewasdoneforthefocusgrouptranscripts.Thesestatementswerethen
groupedintothemes,or“broadunitsofinformation”whichweredistilledintoan
overallgroupoffivetosixcategoriesthrough“leancoding”(Creswell,2013,pp.184
–185)Inaddition,awrittendescriptionoftheparticipants’experienceswas
developedtoprovidea“texturaldescription”oftheexperiencesthatincluded
verbatimquotes(Creswell,2013,p.193).The“structuraldescription”described
howthephenomenonwasexperienced(Creswell,2013,p.194).Thetexturaland
structuralelementswerecombinedtoformthe“essence”(Creswell,2013,p.194)of
theexperience.AccordingtoCreswell(2013),thisdescribesbothwhatwas
experiencedandhowitwasexperienced.Duringeachphaseofreview,Icreateda
memoobservationsandideasforfurtherdevelopment.
Next,Ireviewedthedocumentscollectedduringthesemester.Iexamined
thejournalentriesforcontent.Ianalyzedtheworksamplesusingthe6+1traits
model(Spandel,2009).Similarly,IreviewedthedescriptiveregardingGPA,ACTor
SATscores,andWRIT101grades.Icomparedtheworksampleswithgradesfrom
thewritingcoursetodeterminethelevelofcongruencebetweentheparticipant’s
writingintheELAclass.Thisallowedmetodrawinferencesthatcouldnotbe
gainedduringaninterview(Maxwell,2013).
MethodsofAchievingTrustworthinessandCredibility
Triangulationwasusedtocorroboratethedata.AccordingtoCreswell
(2013),researcherscollectdatafrommultiplesourcesto“providecorroborating
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evidence”(p.251).Thistechnique,whilenotfoolproof,canprovidevaliditytothe
data(Creswell,2013,p.251).Inaddition,Creswell(2013)statedvalidityand
reliabilitymaybeenhancedthrough“prolongedengagementandpersistent
observation”(p.250).Inthisstudy,datawascollectedfrommultiplesourcesto
providelayersofmeaningandovertheperiodofasemester.
Acasestudyinvolvesa“real‐life,contemporarycontextorsetting”(Creswell,
2013,p.97).Thisanalysisalsoprovidessignificantstatementsfromparticipants
andincorporatedverbatimquotes.Thislevelofdetailprovideda“rich,thick
description”whichaccordingtoCreswell(2013)allowsreadersto“makedecisions
regardingtransferability”(p.252)andvalidity.
Bykeepingaresearchjournalthroughoutthesemester,Iwasabletoguard
againstresearcherbias(Creswell,2013).Thisjournalservedasacross‐checktobe
sureIdidnotdistortingthedataormakeinterpretationsbaseduponmy
experiences,biases,ororientations(Creswell,2013).
ChapterSummary
Originally,Ienvisionedthisstudyinvolvingstudentswithhigherlevelsof
apprehensionaboutwriting.However,duetothestudentswhoagreedto
participateinmystudy,Ihadtoreframetheparameterstoincludemoreconfident
writerswithintheframeworkofmyresearchquestions.Whilethiswasnotthe
initialconception,thedatayieldedprovidedarichcomparisonoftheparticipants
acrossthespectrumaswriters,theattitudesandbeliefstheypossessaboutwriting,
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whatfactorsinfluencedthem,andhowthosewillimpactandinformtheirapproach
towritinginstruction.Consequently,Ifoundthatmyresearchevolvedintoamore
complexandinterestingstudythanIanticipated.
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CHAPTERFOUR‐RESULTS
“Ifyouknowthefundamentalsofwritingpracticeandhavebeendoingthem,youhavesomethingtostandon.Noonecanknockyouover.Thisistrueconfidence.”(Goldberg,1990,p.7).
Thischapterwillexaminetheresearchquestionsthatguidedthestudy
organizedaroundresponsesfromeachofthesevenparticipants:(1)Howdo
preserviceteachersperceiveandpracticethewritingprocess?,(2)What
experiencesshapedtheirattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting?,and(3)Howdo
preserviceteachers’viewsoftheprocessinformtheirthinkingaboutteaching
writing?Inordertobecomeconfidentandeffectivewriters,teachersmustbe
comfortablewiththeconceptandtheprocessofwritingandbewritersthemselves
(Bratcher&Stroble,1994,Street&Stang,2009).
Datawascollectedduringthespring2016fromparticipantsenrolledinEDU
330EmergentLiteracy,a3‐creditcoursedesignedtopreparefutureteachersinK‐8
toteachreadingandallotheraspectsofEnglishlanguagearts.Thiscoursemeton
TuesdaysandThursdaysfrom1:40until2:55p.m.eachweek.
Priortothebeginningofclass,anagendawaswrittenontheboardfor
studentstoprovidearoadmaptotheday’sactivities.Theclassfollowedasimilar
dailyformat.First,eachclassopenedwithashortselectionsharedtomotivateand
inspiresoon‐to‐beteachers.Then,theprofessorpresentedwritingtipsand
techniquestolaunchthenextlesson.Theseshortmini‐lessonsweretightly
sequencedandcoordinatedasskillsbuildingblocks.Earlyinthesemester,basic
grammarandwritingtips,suchassubject/verbagreementthe“ruleofthree,”were
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reviewed.Theinstructionwasprovidednotonlyasarefresher,butstructuredto
provideideasofhowtoapproachandintegratewritinginstructionintheirfuture
classrooms.Lessonswerepresentedthatdistinguished“teachertalk,”themore
academiclanguagethatfutureeducatorsmustknow,from“kidtalk,”thewayin
whichteachersshouldintroduceaconceptinadevelopmentallyappropriate
fashion.Formorepracticeandreinforcement,studentscouldcompletegrammar
reviewmodulesintheircoursepack.However,theseself‐checkingmoduleswere
optionalandnotpartofthegrade.Consequently,studentswhofeltproficientdid
notneedtocompletetheassignment.Thosewithunevenskills,whileencouragedto
completethepracticeexercise,werenotrequiredtodosoasthefocusoftheclass
wasreading,notlanguagebasics.Asthesemesterprogressed,thebuildingblocksof
morecomplexgrammarandwritingtipswerepresentedsuchasverbals,
appositives,andprepositionalphrases.
Likewise,strategiesforrevisionandeditingwereoffered.Studentspracticed
thedailyskillsinthecontextofauthentictextsuchasstoriesfromnewspaperand
magazinearticles.Forexample,onJanuary26,2016twosentencesfroma
newspaperarticleregardingtheFlint,Michiganwatercrisiswereontheboard.
Individually,eachstudenteditedthesentences.Thenasagroup,theclassworked
togethertorevisethesentenceomittingweaklinkingverbs,combiningthe
sentences,andremovingrepetition.Theprofessorworkedthroughtheexampleand
theclassdecidedonthefinalproduct.Finally,theprofessordiscussedhowto
incorporatethisactivitybygradelevel.Theobjectiveofthewritingtipswastohelp
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studentstransformtheirownwriting,aswellastheirfuturestudents,from
lacklusterandordinarytostrong,fluent,andconciseprose.
Thesegrammarandskillsmini‐lessonsweredesignedtolast10to15
minutesperclassperiod.However,severaltimestheselessonslastedbeyondthe
allottedtimebecausethemajorityofstudentshadnotmasteredtheconceptas
writers.Forexample,onFebruary9,2016,theclassstruggledduringthereview.As
aresult,onFebruary18and26theprofessorofferedtwo,optionalout‐of‐class
grammarhelpsessionstoreviewconceptscoveredto‐dateforstudentswhowanted
additionalassistance.Nineteenstudentsattendedthefirstsessionandseven
attendedthesecond.Theadditionofwritingbasicstotheschedule,however,did
subtractfromtimethatcouldhavebeendedicatedtoteachingchildrentoread.
Participants
Whileeachparticipantwillbeprofiledin‐depth,thefollowingtable
summarizestheattitudesandlevelofwritingself‐confidenceforeachofthe
participantsthatemergedafteranexaminationofthedatacollected.
Amongthesevenparticipantsinthisstudy,theattitudesandbeliefsabout
writingwerevariedaswouldbeanticipated.Likewise,studentlevelsofself‐
confidencefellatvaryingpointsalongthespectrum.Someofthestudents,likeMary
andGina,hadveryhighlevelsofself‐confidenceaswritersandstrongpositive
feelingsaboutwriting.Incontrast,SydneyandSadiefellattheoppositeendofthe
continuum.Bothstudentshadnegativeattitudesaboutwritingandlackedself‐
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confidenceaswriters.Althoughalloftheparticipantsexpressedvaryingattitudes
andlevelsofconfidence,everystudentindicatedthattheirfeelingsaboutwriting
wouldhaveastrongimpactontheirteachingofwriting.Categoriesdevelopedfor
groupingthestudentsasreluctant,emerging,andconfidentwriters.
Table4.Participants’AttitudesandSelf‐ConfidenceParticipant Attitudes Writingself‐confidence CategorySadie Negative Reluctant ReluctantSydney Negative Reluctant ReluctantAmber Neutral Emerging EmergingKay Neutral Medium‐high Confident Lily Positive Medium‐high ConfidentGina Positive High ConfidentMary Positive High Confident
ReluctantWritersSadie
Sadieisa20‐year‐oldjuniorwhowasborninasuburbofastatecapital.
SadiehadaGPAof3.74andWRIT101gradeofA.HerACTEnglishandreading
scoreswere26(78thpercentile)and28(88thpercentile).
Sherecalledonlylearningmanuscriptandcursiveletterformationregarding
writingintheearlygrades.Althoughshewascooperative,duringthefirstinterview
herbodylanguagesuggestedthatshedidnotliketalkingaboutwriting.Specifically,
shefidgetedwhendiscussingherwritingmemoriesatthebeginningofthe
interview;however,shedidnotappeardistressedoruncomfortable.Asthe
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interviewcontinued,shebecamemorerelaxed.Itisalsopossiblethatshewas
nervous.
Aroundthirdorfourthgrade,Sadiereportedsometeachersusedwriting
journalsthatwerenotgraded.Butshenotedthatmostwritinginstructionduring
thattimeutilizedworksheets.“Ihatedthem,”shestated.Whenshewas12‐years‐
old,shemovedtoasmallruralcommunityinadifferentstate.Insixthgrade,she
rememberedan“awesome”writingteacherwhohadtheclassexaminedifferent
typesofwritingand“submittheirworktocontests.”Sadienotedthisteacherhad
themostinfluenceonherwritingbecauseshepermittedchoiceontopics.Sadiesaid
thisclasswas“oneofthefirstexperiencesIhadwithrevisionandworkingon
multipledrafts.”Nonetheless,inmiddleschool,shedescribedwritingas“alotmore
structuredandalotlessfun.”
Therewereabout200studentstotalinherhighschooland50inher
graduatingclass.Sadiedidnotrecalldoingmuchwritingduringthattime.“We
wrotescholarshipessays,”shesaid.Whensheenteredcollege,Sadiewas“dreading”
WRIT101.“ThewritinginstructionIhadinschooldidn’treallypreparemefor
college,”shesaid.
Sadiefeltlikeshewouldbeabetterwritertodayifher“teachershadlether
writemore.”“Ididnothavetowritemuchduringmyschoolcareer,”shesaid.In
additiontoalackofpractice,Sadiealsoexpressednegativefeelingsbasedonthe
waywritingwaspresentedinschool.“Irememberwritingasbeingmoreofa
punishmentinsteadofafunactivity,”shesaid.
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SadietheWriter.Sadieusedwordssuchasdread,punishment,anddifficultto
describewriting.HerinitialWATscoreof49wascongruentwithhernegative
perceptionsofherselfasawriterandfellsquarelyintherangeof26to59which
indicatedhighlevelsofwritingapprehension.Herexperienceswithwritingwere
mixed.“Iliketowritewhenitisjournals,creativewriting,oropinion,”shesaid.But
sheviewedwritingpapersforclassina“formalstyle”asnegative.Inaddition,Sadie
foundrevisionprocessfrustrating.
Atthebeginningofthesemester,Sadiewas“kindofnervousaboutitand
dreadingallthewriting[I]wouldhavetodo.”However,shefelt“alittlemore
confident”towardtheendofthesemesterdueto“moreemphasisongrammar.”“I
feellikeI’mwritingbetter,”shereported.Herscoreof53onthesecondWAT
showedslightimprovement,butshestillremainedinrangeofhighlevelsofwriting
apprehension.
SadietheFutureWritingTeacher.Sadiehadstrongopinionsaboutwriting
instruction.First,thebestteachersmakewriting“funandenjoyable”forstudents.
“Itshouldn’tfeellikepunishment,”shesaid.Onewaytoaccomplishthiswasby
givingstudentschoiceregardingtopicsonassignmentsthatwereapplicabletoreal‐
lifesituations.Sadiealsostronglybelievedwritingshouldneverinvolveworksheets,
whichshedeemedbusywork.Teachersshould“nevergivepointlesswriting
assignments.”Thissentimentdovetailedintoheropinionthatteachersshould
alwaysexplainthe“why”ofwriting.
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Sadiewoulddifferentiateinstructionandbesupportiveofstudentefforts.“I
willmakesureI’mnotgivingassignmentsthatthestrongwriterswillbesuccessful
at,”shestated.Intermsofsupport,shewillbe“availableforstrugglingwriters.”In
addition,shewillofferopportunitiesforstudentstopracticewritingin“low‐risk”
settingssuchasjournalsorungradedassignments.Oneofthemostimportant
thingsshewilldointheclassroomisgiveherstudents“anunderstandingof
sentencestructureandgrammar.”“Studentsbelievetheirteachersknow
everything,”shesaid.“Butifateacherspeakswithbadgrammar,studentsmay
assumewhattheteacherhassaidiscorrect.Studentsmayevenrepeatwhatthe
teacherhassaidusingbadgrammar.”
Sydney
Sydneyisa20‐year‐oldstudentwhowasborninasuburbofamajor
metropolitanarea.SydneyhadaGPAof3.3andACTEnglishandreadingscoresof
21(58thpercentile)and20(52ndpercentile),respectively.Sydneywaspleasantand
appearedcomfortableduringourinterviews.
Beyondlearningmanuscriptandcursiveletterformation,shedidnothave
muchrecollectionofwritinginstructionduringherearlyschoolyears.Shestated,“I
rememberalotofsubjects[frompre‐Ktofourthgrade],butwritingwasnotoneof
them.”Duringfifthtoeighthgrade,Sydneyspecificallyrecalleddailyjournalwriting
infifthgrade.“Forsomereason,Ilovedtheprompts,”shesaid.“Theteacherdidn’t
gradethecontentbutjustmadesureweweredoingthem.”Duringthattimeperiod,
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teacherspointedoutherwritingmistakesinfrontofotherstudents.“Thatreally
broughtmyconfidencedown,”shesaid.
Sydneydescribedherhighschoolas“notveryprestigious”andnotedthatthe
“teachersdidn’treallycareifIcametoclassornot.”Inaddition,therewasrampant
misbehavioratherschool.Therewereabout300studentsinhergrade,butonly
200graduated.“Thatwasthenorm,”shereported.Whenaskedaboutheropinion
onthe66%graduationrate,Sydneystated,“Ithinkbecausestudentsdidn’tcareand
theydidn’thaveparentspushingthemandtheteachersdidn’tcare.”
Incollege,SydneydislikedherWRIT101courseinwhichsheearnedaB.The
teacherdidn’tmakethecourse“interesting.”AccordingtoSydney,thecoursework
requiredherto“readandwritepapers–thatwasprettyhard.”Sincewritingwasn’t
oneofherfavoritesubjects,shesaid,“readingabookaboutwritingwasn’tthat
intriguingtome.”Shedidn’tlikethetext,whichwastitledWritingAboutWriting.“It
wasthemostboringbookI’veeverhadtouse,”shesaid.
Throughouthereducationaljourney,Sydneyfoundtheconsistentlack
feedbackfrustrating.Despiteherlevelsofapprehension,receivingmeaningful
feedbackdidmakeadifferencewhetheritrelatedtoimprovementsneededor
pointingoutsolidwriting.Inheropinion,ameregradeonapaperwithoutfeedback
meantlittle.
SydneytheWriter.Overall,Sydneyreportedthatshehasneverlikedwriting
andfoundittobeanegativeexperience.“I’mnotverygoodatitandthatisprobably
whyIdon’tlikeitanditisfrustrating,”shesaid.However,havingchoiceinhertopic
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influencedherfeelings.Havinga“moreopen‐endedtopic”insteadofanassigned
onemadeherenjoywritingabitmore.Inaddition,shefeltthatwritingflowand
vocabularywereimportanttraitsinwriting,butspecificallyshenotedbothofthese
wereamongherweaknesses.Likewise,sheconsideredherspellingskillswere
deficient.
Sydneyhasneverseenherselfasawriter.“Idon’tfeelconfidentor
comfortableasawriter,”shesaid.“IfeellikeIhadn’tyetgottheskillsasajuniorin
collegetowrite.”WhileherinitialWATscoreof62didnotfallintothehighlevelof
writingapprehensionrange,26to59,itwaswellbelowthemeanof78.However,
herscorewasonthelowendofthemiddle‐range,wherestudentsdonottendto
exhibitsignificantapprehension.AccordingtoDalyandMiller(1975),scoresfalling
ateitherendofthemiddle‐rangemayexperienceapprehensionrelatedtothe
adjacentlevel.Asaresult,herreportedfeelingsaboutwritingwereconsistentwith
higherlevelsofapprehension.
ThemostinfluentialpersontoherwritingwasSydney’ssisterwhowould
proofreadherpapers.Sydneydescribedherwritingprocessas“notthebest.”She
faceddifficultywithprocrastinationwhenfacedwithawritingassignment.“Getting
startedonmypapersisthehardestthingbecausesometimesIhaveahardtime
puttingmythoughtsonpaper,”shesaid.Afterbeginning,“itusuallystartsgoing
good.”Whileteachersnotedthatshehadgoodideas,Sydneyfeltshelackedthe
vocabularytoexpressherselfadequately.
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Inaddition,shedidnotlikeeditingherpapers.“OnceI’mfinishedwithit,it
goesdownhillagain,”shesaid.“IknowIhavetore‐readitandIdon’tlikedoing
that.”However,shehadlittle,ifany,instructionhowtoeditherwork.“Iwasn’t
taughthowtoeditmypapersandreallydon’tseethevalueinit,”shesaid.However,
herdislikeofeditingherworkmayalsobelinkedtoherprocrastination.“Iwait‘til
thelastminute,soIdon’thavetimeto[edit],”shestated.“Idon’tthinkI’mlikea
strongwriter,soreadingbackiskindofpainful.”
However,Sydneyreportedthatherattitudeaboutwritinghaschangedfor
thebetteroverthecourseofthesemester.“Noonehadevertakenthetimetobreak
downapaperandgivemethewritingtoolstobeabetterwriter,”shesaid.Likewise,
shehaslearnedhowtoeditherpapersandunderstandstheimpactithasonher
finalproduct.“Beforethissemester,Iwouldn’treallyevenreaditandnowIre‐read
it,revise,andhaveotherpeoplelookatit,”shestated.“IguessIfeelmore
comfortablewithotherpeoplereadingmywriting,Iguess.”Sydneyfeltherwriting
had“definitely”improved,butshestilldidn’tlovedoingit.“Papersaredefinitely
easierformenowandwhenIre‐readthemnowI’mlike,wow,thatactuallydoesn’t
soundtoobad,”shereported.Herscoreof70forthesecondWATneartheendof
thesemesterwascongruentwithimprovedlevelsofapprehension.
SydneytheFutureWritingTeacher.AccordingtoSydney,teachersshould
makestudentsfeelcomfortablewriting.Inaddition,writingshouldbefun.Oneof
themostimportantthingsateachercandois“talktotheirstudentsaboutwhatit
meanstobeagoodwriterandwhyitissoimportantthatwehavethoseskills.”
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Givingstudentschoiceabouttheirtopicsand“lettingthemwriteabouttheirown
lives”wouldhelpthem“lovewriting.”
Sydneystatedthatthebestteachersareenthusiasticaboutwriting.“They
don’tjustcometoclassandsayhere’stheprompt,gowriteaboutit,”shesaid.
Patienceinhelpingreluctantwriters,specificallytakingthetimeto“talktostudents
aboutwhatitmeanstobeagoodwriter,”wasmentionedascritical.
Despitehernegativefeelingsaboutandexperienceswithwriting,Sydney
believedthatshecouldbringstrengthstoteachingtheprocess.“IthinkI’llhave
waystogetmystudentstoenjoywriting,”shesaid.Whenprobedaboutwaysin
whichshewouldmakewritingmoreenjoyable,shestatedthatshewouldgiveher
studentschoiceonthetopicsandletthem“writeabouttheirownlives.”Likewise,
Sydneybelievedthatteachingtheeditingprocesswasessential.“Iknowhow
important[editing]isbecauseIdidn’tdothatandIknowtheconsequencesofnot
doingit,”shesaid.Finally,shefeltthatgivingmeaningfulfeedbackgavewritersthe
opportunitytoimprove.
SummaryofReluctantWriters
SadieandSydneyexpressednegativityabouttheirpriorexperienceswith
andattitudesaboutwriting.Specifically,Sydneyfeltagreatdealoffrustrationabout
thewritingandrevisionprocessbecauseshe’dneverbeentaughthowtoapproach
thetasks.Likewise,bothfelttheyhadneverhadenoughwritingpracticeorskill
development.Neitherstudentfeltadequatelypreparedforcollege‐levelwriting.
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Sydneyspecificallynotedthatshehadrarelyreceivedmeaningfulfeedbackonher
writing.
Bothstudentsemphasizedtheneedformeaningfulinstructionthatprovides
thefoundationforfuture,morecomplexwritingtasks.Neitherrecalledhaving
significantclassroomtimedevotedtodevelopingbasicskills,learninggrammar,and
writingpracticeduringtheirK‐12schooling.Asaresult,theybelievedthattheir
writingwasdeficient.
However,SadieandSydneystatedtheirconfidencehadimprovedduringthe
semester.Althoughneitherstudentconsideredherselfawriter,eachstatedthat
learningthebasicshadanimpactonimprovingtheirlevelofconfidence.Both
studentsfeltbetterequippedtofacethechallengesofteachingwritingaftergreater
emphasisonfoundationalskills,grammar,andrevision.
EmergingWriter
Amber
Amberisa20‐year‐oldseniorfromamid‐sizedcity.AmberhadaGPAof4.0
andACTEnglishandreadingscoresof32(95thpercentile)and36(99thpercentile),
respectively,makingherthehighestachievingstudentinthisstudy.HerACT
EnglishscoremadeherexemptfromWRIT101.
ItisworthabriefdiscussionofthecompletionofAmber’sGraphic
Representationatthebeginningofthefirstinterview.AfterIexplainedthetask,
Amberappearedeagertobeginandaskedifshecouldusecoloredmarkers.She
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producedapackageofcoloredgelpensfromherbackpackandproceededto
meticulouslydraw.Duringthetask,shewascompletelyengagedanddidn’tseemto
noticeoracknowledgemypresenceassheworked.Herdetailedandcolorful
representationstookabout15minutes,roughly3timeslongerthananyother
participant.
Thefocusofherearlyschoolyearswastowritesmallwordsassociatedwith
pictures.Herdepictionincludedalinedtabletpaperwithdottedlines,upperand
lowercaseletters,andwords,suchas“flower”inneatmanuscriptandamulti‐
coloreddrawingoftheimage.Forgradesfivethrougheight,Amberdrewanice
creamconewith3colorfulscoopsandacherryontop.“Itwasonaboard
somewhereshowingushowtobuildaparagraphlikeyouricecreamconewithyour
supportingparagraphsthenyourconclusionislikethecherryontop.Iwrote5‐
paragraphessayslikenobody’sbusiness,”shesaid.“Ifeellikethatwasthereallybig
focusthroughoutgradesK‐12.”Inherhighschoolyears,sherecalledwritingabout
reading.However,shelamentedthatmostoftheworkwashandwritteninclass.“I
tendtobeaperfectionist,”shesaid,“sobeingabletotypethingsisdefinitelybetter
forme.”Sincebeginningcollege,Amberhaswritten“alotmorepapersthan[she]
everdidinhighschoolsynthesizinginformationandideas.”Ambercreditedher11th
gradeEnglishteacherwithhavingthemostinfluenceonherwritingbecausehe
gavebothmeaningfulassignmentsandspecificfeedback.Shealsostatedthathe
readeverywrittenassignment.Thiswasofparticularimportancetoher.
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AmbertheWriter.Amber’sfirstthoughtonwritingwas,“Ugh,whydowe
havetothisandhowlongdoesithavetobe?”Amberrepeatedlystatedshedidnot
likewritinganddidnotfeelthathereducationadequatelypreparedherforthe
rigorsofcollegewriting.“Idon’tfeellikeIlearnedmuchaboutwritinginhigh
school,”shestated.“IhadacoupleEnglishclassesthatwerekindofajoke.”
However,shescoredinthe95thpercentileontheEnglishportionoftheACTanda
perfectscoreonthereadingsection.HerWATscoreof64wasmiddle‐rangeand
wouldevidencenostrongfeelingsofwritingapprehension,butisnearthelower
endofthespectrum.HersecondWATscore,whileimproved,remainedinthe
middle‐rangeat73.
Amberfeltcreatingoutlinesforpapersandstructuringthemproperlywere
strengths,butadmittedprocrastinatingbeginningwritingprojects.“Becauseit’snot
oneofmyfavoritethings,Itendtoputitoff,”shesaid.“Theprocessofactually
writingisn’tsomethingIlookforwardto.”Butsheacknowledgedthatshewasable
towriteifforcedtodoso.“IthinkI’madecentwriterwhenIknowwhatI’m
supposedtobewritingabout,”shesaid.Instarkcontrasttoeveryotherparticipant,
Amberdidnotlikehavingchoiceherwritingtopics.“IdobetterifI’massigned
becauseIdon’tfeellikeI’mverygoodatcomingupwithatopic,”shesaid.
Additionally,feedbackwasofprimeimportancetoAmber.
AmbertheFutureWritingTeacher.Onmultipleoccasions,Amberexpressed
thatshedidnotlikewriting.However,shefeltthatmightmakeherabetterteacher.
“IunderstandtheperspectiveofnotlovingwritingsoIknowthateverystudentis
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notgoingtolovewriting,”shesaid.Assuch,sheconsidereditastrengthforthe
classroom.Shestated:
Toacertainextent,IthinkthefactthatIdon’tlovewritingiskindofastrength, in that, I remember having a lot of teachers who lovedwritingsomuchthatweallkindofjustputourselvesinadifferentbox.She loves writing, so that’s why she’s a good writer, but we hatewritingsothat’swhyIthinkhavingateacherwho’s,likeyouknow,Idon’tlovewritingeither,butherearewaysthatwecanenjoyitandtrytobecomebetterwriters.
Amberacknowledgedthatshehashadteachers“whohaveagenuineenthusiasmfor
writing.”Butshesaid,“I’mnotgonnafakethat.Idon’tlikewriting.”
SummaryoftheEmergingWriter
Amberusedwordssuchas“notoneofmyfavoritethings,”“don’tlove
writing,”anda“have‐totask”whendiscussingwriting.Despiteherobviousandself‐
professedanxietyaboutit,Amberachievedanear‐perfectscoreontheEnglish
portionoftheACTwhichtestsusage,mechanics,andrhetoric.Ofallofthe
participants,Amberhasthehighestlevelsofacademicachievement.Shevalued
structureandbeingassignedaspecificwritingtask.Inaddition,sheisaself‐
professedperfectionist.WhileherWATscoreisinthemid‐range,whichisnot
indicativeofwritingapprehension,shewasvocalaboutherdislikeofthetaskof
writing.
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ConfidentWritersKay
Kayisa21‐year‐oldsenior.KayhadaGPAof3.38andACTEnglishand
readingscoresof22(61stpercentile)and25(79thpercentile),respectively.She
earnedaB‐inWRIT101.
Duringourinterviews,shewaspleasantandcooperative.Shegrewupina
smallfarmingcommunitywithapopulationoflessthan300.Kay’shighschoolhad
29totalstudentsandfiveinhergraduatingclass.Shedidnothavemuch
recollectionofwritingintheearlygradesbeyond“abcstuff”and“picturesand
writingbelowthem.”Ingradesfivethougheight,Kayrememberedjournaling
promptsgivenbytheteacherandwritingforfivetotenminutesdaily.Therewas
“nopressurebecausehedidn’tgradethem,”shesaid,”soyoucouldbemoreopen
aboutyourwriting.”
DuringoneofherhighschoolEnglishclasses,thewritingrigorincreased
dramatically.“Wedidagrammareveryday,dailywritingprompts,andIgotmybutt
kicked,”Kaysaid.“Weshouldhavehadtheseskillsinelementaryschool,butshe
taughtmealot.”Kayfounditchallenging.“Itwasreallyhardforme,butIeventually
gotthere,”shesaid.“Shepushedusintoit,wedidn’twanttodoit,but,youknow,
sheforcedmetobeadecentwriter.”KaycreditedthishighschoolEnglishteacher
ashavingthemostinfluenceinhereducationandinstillingapositiveattitudeabout
writing.
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Butincollege,Kayhadadifficulttimewithwriting.“Ididn’thaveastrong
background,”shesaid.“SoIstruggledalotincollegeinthoseclasses.”Withthe
exceptionofherEnglishteacherinhighschool,Kaysuggestedthatherteachers
wereill‐preparedtoteachwriting.“Theywerereallynice,buttheyweren’tthebest
teachers,”shesaid.“IneverreallyfeltpushedwhenIwasinschool.”Shewrote,
“IneverhadalotofgrammarwhenIwasyoungerandIwonderifitcouldhavebeen
that[theteachers]didnotfeelconfidentinit.”
KaytheWriter.Kaylinkedherenjoymentofwritingtoherloveofreading.“I
likedthecreativeside[ofwriting],”shesaid.“It’sastress‐relievingthing.”In
addition,Kaylikedwritingsonglyrics.“Iwantedtowritemyownsongs,butwhenI
gotintohighschool,Istartedtowriteinmyjournalinasongfashion,”shestated.
Thisisconsistentwithhermid‐rangeWATscoreof82,slightlyabovethemedianof
78,isnotindicativeofwritingapprehension. However,intermsofhercurrentlevelofwritingskills,Kaywrote,“I
wouldn’tsaythatIamapoorwriter,butIfeelIneedhelp.”Althoughshedoesnot
mindthetask,Kaydoesnotlikehavinganyonereadherwriting.“Itreallygivesme
anxietytoknowthatsomeoneisgoingtoreadmywriting,”shesaid.However,she
couldn’tarticulatetheoriginsofthisfear.
Kayfounditeasytoputherinitialideasonpaper.“It’ssuper‐easybecauseI
knowIcanputthatintoanotherdraft–it’snotsomethingthatsomeone’sgoingto
read,”shesaid.Likewise,Kaylovedjournalingbecause“noonewillreadit”and
simplygettingherideasdownonpaper.
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Incontrast,itischallengingforKaytowriteabouttopicsforwhichshehas
nostrongopinions.Shealsonotedthatitisdifficulttowriteabouttopicsshedoesn’t
enjoy.Inaddition,havingpage“constraints”isafrustration.Ifthereisaminimum
numberofpages,Kayfeelslikesheis“alwaysrepeating”herselfinherattemptto
reachthetarget.“SoIjusttrytofill,”Kaysaid.“IthinkIhavetogetallthatfilledout
andIjustaddfillersandIjustthinkthatmakesmywritingpoor.”Bytryingtowrite
therequirednumberofpages,Kayfeltlikeherwritingwasactuallyworse“because
I’veextendeditandit’sfulloffillers.”However,Kaysaidthismaybebecauseshe
lacksanextensivevocabulary“togetthosestrongerideas.”
AlthoughKayalwayslikedwriting,hersecondWATscoreincreasedby
nearly20pointsto101,oneofthelargerincreases.Kay’snewscoreplacedherin
thetoprangeof97to130whichindicatesalowlevelofwritingapprehension.Kay
attributedherimprovedconfidencetoEDU330duringspringsemester.Regarding
herbiggestinfluenceinwriting,shesaid:
ActuallyI’dliketohearmyfirstinterviewbecausethisclass[EmergentLiteracy]hasreallyhelpedmeasfarastobecomeabetterwriter.Soit’smademebewaymoreconfident...Isawhowmuchdifferentmyattitudehaschangedinmywriting.Iguessit’sbecauseIwentthroughalittlebitmoregrammarthanIwasusedto.
KaytheFutureWritingTeacher.Kayfounditcriticalforteacherstomake
writingfunsoitdidn’tfeellikea“chore.”“Everystudent,nomatterhowtheylearn,
willlearnifyoumakeitfun,”shesaid.“Ifit’snotfun,itwillturnintosomethingthat
youhate.”Kaythoughtthatincorporatingchoiceintowritingwouldhelpachieve
thisgoalofmakingwritingenjoyable.“It’sveryhardtowrite,”shesaid,“butit’sfun
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whenyoucanreallygetintowhatyou’retalkingabout.”KayrecalledherEnglish
teachergivingtheclasschoiceona10–15pageresearchpaperandtheimpactthat
made.“Choiceishuge,”shesaid.“Whenyouareawritingteacher,youwantyour
kidstobegoodwritersanditreallyshouldn’tmattertoomuchonthecontent.You
wantthemtoenjoyitwhilethey’rewriting.”
Kaythoughtitwasimportantforstudentsto“goatacorrectpace.”She
acknowledgedthatstudentsofallabilitieswouldbeintheclassroom,soitwas
importanttochallengethemoregiftedstudentswhilesupportingthestruggling
ones.Kaystressedthatrepetition,dailywritingpractice,andgrammarskillswereof
theutmostimportance.Havingateacherwhohadmasteredthefundamentalsand
wasaconfidentwriterwouldbecritical.
Lily
Lilyisa20‐year‐oldjuniorwhowashomeschooleduntilthirdgrade.Lilyhad
aGPAof3.93andACTEnglishandreadingscoresof24(74thpercentile)and27
(81stpercentile),respectively.SheearnedanAinWRIT101.
Shewascomfortableandtalkativeduringourinterviews.Shereportedthat
shelearnedtoreadwhenshewasfour.Duringherhomeschoolyears,Lily
frequentlywroteinjournalsaboutactivitiesthatcenteredaroundnatureand
science.Hermostsignificantmemorywaswritingstorieswhenshewasseven
“aboutanimalslivingintheforest.”Althoughhermom,anEnglishmajor,“triedher
besttoteachmeabouttheEnglishlanguage,Iwastooobsessedwithsciencetocare
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thatmuch.”Asaresult,Lily’shomeschoolyearsconsistedof“mainlywritingina
journal,readingtheLittleHouseseries,anddevelopingscienceexperiments.”
AccordingtoLily,hermotherwasthemaininfluenceonherloveofwriting.
Lilydescribedhermotherasan“avid”journalwriter.Sheobservedhermother
write“forafewhourseachday”in“normalnotebooksthatshefilledupsinceshe
hadus.”Lilyhadthefollowingrecollectionabouthermother’sjournals:
Shesaidshelikedtodocumentthingsliketotalkaboutgoodtimesandtogetthroughthebadtimes.Shewouldreadoverthemyearslater.Sheletmereadafewofthem,butnotallofthem.Oneday,wecanallreadthem.Itwasweirdtoreadthem.Shesaidthingsthatwedidn’tknowabouther.Shemighttalkaboutproblemsthatshehadthatwedidn’tknowshehad.
HermotherboughtLilyherfirstjournalwhenshewas6‐years‐old.Lily
reportsstillwritinginherdiaryonaregularbasis,particularlywhenshe
travels.
In4thgrade,shebeganattendingpublicschools.Sherecalledwritingdaily
journalprompts,whichsheenjoyed.“Wecouldanswerthemhoweverwewished,”
shesaid.Inmiddleandhighschool,Lilywroteletterstohergrandparentsevery
week.Butherattendancesufferedinthemiddlegrades.“Ijustdidn’tgo,”shesaid.
“Itwasreallyboring.”Shethenattendedalargehighschoolinamid‐sizedcitywith
approximately1200students.HerhighschoolworldhistorycourseandAP
Literatureclassesrequiredextensivewriting.
Uponenteringcollege,Lilyhadn’thadtodoasmuchwritingasshe
anticipated.“Ihaven’twrittenalotincollegeandIdon’tknowwhy.Theclasseshere
don’trequirethatmuchwriting,”shesaid.“Iwrotealotmoreinhighschool.”
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LilytheWriter.Fromanearlyage,Lilyhasalwaysenjoyedwriting.“Havinga
relativewhowrotedailyandmadeitaprioritytowriteinspiredmetodothesame,”
shesaid.Lilystillwritesletterstofriendsandfamilyandinherjournaleachday.“It
[writing]isapositiveexperienceforme,”shestated.“Iwouldmuchratherspend
timeworkingonanessaythanstudyingforatest.”Overall,writinghasbeena
consistentlypositiveexperienceforher.
OntheinitialWAT,Lilyscoreda93,whichevidencedalackofapprehension.
Sinceitfallsattheupper‐endofthemiddle‐range,itwasconsistentwithherlow
levelsanxietyaboutwriting.HersecondWATscoreof104showedimprovement
andplacedherinthelow‐endoftheupper‐rangewhichwasindicativeoflow
writingapprehension.
Lilycharacterizedherselfasastrongwriter,butshenotedmanygapsinher
knowledge.“I’vealwaysgottenreallygoodgradesandIneverhadtoredothem
[papers],butIdon’tknowasmuchasIshould,”shesaid,“Idon’tthinkI’masgood[a
writer]asIthought.”Sheattributedthistoalackofinstructioningrammarskills
andfoundationalbasics.Likewise,shehadn’tbeenrequiredtopracticemuch
writingincollege.
Intermsofthewritingprocess,Lilylikedhavingchoice.Whenassigneda
topic,hereffortcorrelatedwithhow“seriously[I]wantedtotakeit”or“howmuch
itwasworth.”Shethoughtthatalsomadeherendproductsuffer.“Usuallythey
don’teverturnoutaswellbecauseI’mprettyboredwithit,”shesaid.Whenshe
couldchoose,Lilystatedtheentireprocesswas“moreenjoyableallaround”and
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enhancedtheresearchphaseofwriting.Theonlyexperienceshecharacterizedas
negativewithwritingwashavingtocompletea10‐pagegovernmentpaper“abouta
boringtopicthatIcarednothingabout.”
AlthoughLilysaidshedidnotlikewritingdraftsorediting,sincethey
weren’tcreative,sheclearlyarticulatedthatshenotonlyknewhowto,bututilized,
bothelementsoftheprocess.“Igobackandre‐readitaloudtomyselfandfixany
errors,”shesaid.“Icatchsentencesthatcouldbere‐writtenforbetterfluencyand
restructureparagraphs,ifneeded.”Finally,shehadothersproofreadherworkto
offerfeedback.However,attheendofthespringsemester,Lilynowconductsan
evenmorein‐depthcritiqueofherfinalproduct.
LilytheFutureWritingTeacher.Lilyexpressedstrongopinionsrelatedto
feedbackonwriting.Lilywouldhavepreferredittobespecificanddetailedbeyond
acursory“goodjob”or“great.”GoodgradesmadeLilyassumeshewasastrong
writer.Specificfeedbackcouldhavebeenbeneficialinstrengtheningherskills.Asa
result,Lilyplannedtoprovidedetailed,meaningful,andspecificfeedbackonboth
strengthsandweaknessestoherstudents.
Next,Lilybelievedthatwritinginstructionwasfunandengagingwhen
studentshadchoiceintheirtopics.Bygivingthemachoiceofshort,low‐stakes
projects,itwouldmakepracticeenjoyable.“They’renotgoingtowanttogetbetter
iftheydon’tlikeit,”shesaid.Likewise,sheplannedtoenhancestudentenjoyment
bymakingwritingassignmentsrelevanttotheirlives.Shealsonotedthatallowing
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studentstowriteinjournalsforshortperiodsoftimeeachdaywouldbefun,low
stakes,andgivemuch‐neededpracticetime.
Finally,Lilyfeltitwascriticaltosupportwritersofallabilities.“Iwillnever
discouragekidsfromwriting,”shesaid.“Ifthere’sastudentwho’snotastrong
writer,youdon’tsayyourwritingsucks,youwanttoshowthemhowtogetbetter.”
Tohelpwritersofallabilities,Lilyplannedtouseexamplesofgoodwriting,
modeling,andprovidemeaningfulfeedback.
Gina
Ginaisa32‐year‐oldnon‐traditionalseniorwhoismarriedwithchildren.
GinahadaGPAof3.65.ShereceivedaBinWRIT101,whichwastakenin2002at
anotherinstitution.Therewerenostandardizedtestscoresavailablebecauseshe
wasatransferstudent.OntheWAT,Ginascoreda94,whichisattheupper‐endof
themiddlerange.Thisscoreisconsistentwithherlackofwritingapprehension.Her
secondWATwas119,anincreaseof25points.
Sherecalledletterformationandafocusonhandwritingintheearlygrades,
butlittleelse.Ginahasalwaysbeenastrongwriterandstatedshewas“aheadofher
peers”inwritinginmiddleschool.Duringhighschool,shewashomeschooledby
parents“whoneverhadacollegeeducation.”Mainlysherecalledwritinginher
diary,becauseit“keptthingsinperspective.”Incollege,Ginacontinuedtokeepa
journalandwritelettersforpleasure.
Ginaattributedherpositivefeelingsaboutwritingtoherpastteachers.“I’ve
neverhadateacherwhomademefeelwritingwasachore,”shesaid.“Iwentto
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schoolwithkidswhostruggledwithwriting,butIhadteacherswhowerepositive
aboutthewritingexperience.”Duringhereducation,Ginahadgrammarlessonsin
herclasses.“Ithinkthathelpedimmenselybyknowingthebasicsandhavingthe
foundationsmadewritingnotoverlydifficult.”However,Ginaalsoattributedher
lackofwritingapprehensiontoheroverallpositiveattitude.“Alotofitisyour
mindset,”shesaid.Shealsonotedthatfriendsandfamilymemberswholikedto
readherworkcontributedtoherpositivefeelings.
GinatheWriter.ItwasclearthatGinaenjoyedwritingandthewriting
process.“Forme,writingiseasy,”shesaid.“Withouttheabilitytowrite,Iwouldfeel
lostinaworldofchaos.”Outsideofhercoursework,shewritesforpleasurein
journalsandasaformofescape.Althoughshelikeswritingforherownpurposes,“I
likehavingapaperthatIcanrelatetomyfuturecareer.”Shepreferredtodoher
writingbyhand.“Ithelpsmethinkandremember,”shesaid.Inaddition,Gina
appreciatedthatwriting“leavesmemoriesforanotherpersonintheformofletters
orcards.”
Ginadescribedherprocessas“keepingthepreptoaminimum.”Sheoutlines,
buttheyarebriefandconcise.Inherfirstdraft,sheignoresspellingandgrammar.
Althoughshedidn’tfeellikeherprocesshadchanged,shestated“throughoutmy
life,I’velearnedwhatmywritingprocesslookslikeandhaveembraceditinorder
touseittothebestofmyadvantage.”Inaddition,Ginavaluedfeedbackinher
writingprocess.Accordingtoher,even“goodwritingcanalwaysbebetter.”
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GinatheFutureWritingTeacher.Ginaclearlylooksforwardtothe
opportunitytoteachwriting.Duringbothinterviews,herbodylanguageandspeech
reflectedherenthusiasm.Shespokerapidlyandleanedinassheanswered
questions.Inaddition,hergesturesbecamemoreanimatedandexpansive.Iwrote
downmyobservationsofhermannerismsinmyinterviewnotes.
Ginahadstrongfeelingsaboutthenecessityofpracticeandfoundationsin
writinginstruction.Inaddition,shestatedthatitisessentialforteacherstobewell‐
versedingrammar.“Wecan’tteachwhatwedon’tknow,”shesaid.“Theknowledge
oftheEnglishlanguageisourresponsibility[asteachers].Imustbeproficientinthe
subjectmyself.”
InGina’sopinion,shewouldbewell‐equippedtohelpchildrenwhowere
strugglingandprovideindividualizedwritinginstruction.“Youneedtofindwhat
worksandinvestthetimeinthatchild,”shesaid.“Youneedtotakeinto
considerationthateverystudentisdifferent.”However,shestatedthatteaching
writingwasamulti‐layeredprocess.“Noteveryassignmentisgoingtomakeevery
studentproficientinwritingandthatiskey,”shesaid.Forexample,withareluctant
writer,Ginasaiditcouldbeassimpleasusing“blankcomicbookpagesto
encouragethemtowriteandmakeitfun.”AccordingtoGina,feedbackisessentialto
makegoodwritingbetter.
OneofthechallengesGinacontemplatedwaswherefamiliesweren’t
supportiveofordidn’tseethevalueinwriting.“Thatmightbeoneofthebiggest
issues,”shesaid.“Studentsmaycomefromhomeswheretheyaren’texposedto
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writingortheydon’tseethevalueinit.”Shealsonotedthatparentswhodon’tfeel
comfortablewithwritingmaybereluctant,orevenunable,tohelptheirchild.
Notably,Ginaobservedwhatshedeemedlackofinterestinwriting
instructioninteachereducation:
Idon’tfeellikethereisapushtoteachustoteachkidstowrite.ThereismorefocusontechnologyineducationthatIfinddisturbing.Asthemajorityofthestudentpopulationseemssatisfied,andperhapsevenhappyaboutthat,Iamafraidthatwewillseeadrasticdeclineinthelackofspellingskills,creativethoughtandthesimpleabilitytowrite.I’mgladthatIcanteachmystudentsnotonlytowrite,buttoenjoytheprocess.Ofallthethingsthatcanbetaken,yourwordsarecompletelyyours.
Mary
Maryisa20‐year‐oldjuniorwhohaslivedinmultiplecitiesduringher
childhood.MaryhadaGPAof3.94andACTEnglishandreadingscoresof26(82nd
percentile)and25(75thpercentile),respectively.SheearnedanAinWRIT101.
Fromherearliestmemory,shefosteredherloveofwritingthroughbooksand
reading.“MyparentsreadmeHarryPotterwhenIwaslittleandwhenIcouldread
themmyself,IreadallthatIcould.ButIreallylovedwritingsoIwouldgetthelined
paperwhereyoucoulddrawpicturesandwritemyownHarryPotterstories,”she
said.“IguessyoucouldsayIlearnedtowritefromJ.K.Rowling.”Infifththrough
eighthgrade,shesaidthatinstructionwasonmechanics.“Itwasasiftheywere
teachingmechanicsandherdingustowritethewaytheywantedustowrite,”she
said.Marydescribedherhighschoolyearsasthebestbecauseshehadaninspiring
instructorwhowas“ajoytohaveasateacher.”Incollege,shestartedasanEnglish
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major,butfeltthatteachingwashercalling.However,whenshechangedhermajor,
heradvisorintheEnglishdepartmenthadmisgivings.Marysaid:
WhenItoldmyteacherIwasswitchingtoelementaryeducation,myteacher told me you better come to me if you’re not academicallychallenged. Hewas serious because he said you’re not going to bereading these kind of books. Imean, hewas right in some aspectsbecausesomeoftheclasseswetakeare–theydon’tchallengeusverymuch.
Thedecisiontoswitchhermajortoeducationwasbasedonahighschool
programinwhichsheparticipatedingradesninethrough12thatallowedherto
teachintheschool’spreschool.“Ilovedteachingandbeingapartofthekids’lives,”
shesaid.“Bysenioryear,Iwastheheadteacher,”shesaid.“Igottoteachthe
teachers,thekids,andimplementprogramming.”Whilesheadmittedthatshe
enjoyedherEnglishmajorandtheprofessors,Marymissedteachingandchildren.
“WhenIwentbackafterspringbreak,IrealizedhowmuchImissedlittlekids,”she
said.“That’swhenIdecidedtoswitch.”Currently,sheteachespart‐timeina
Montessorischoolandworksasanannyforafamily.
Maryhasalwaysbeenastrongstudentwithadeeploveforwriting.“Ilove
school,‘causeschool’sjustfunandlearningisfun,”shesaid.“Thatsoundssocheesy,
butitisforme.”ShecreditedhermotherandJ.K.Rowlingasherbiggestwriting
influences,aswellasgrowingupinahomewhereshewassurroundedbybooks.
MarytheWriter.Maryrepeatedlystatedhowmuchshelovedwriting.
Likewise,shedescribedwithgreatenthusiasmthetypesofwritingprojectsshe
enjoys.Sheespeciallylikescreativewriting,butalsolikeswritingaboutchildren
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andteaching.Whenshegetsanideaforastory,shegetstriestocapturetheidea
rightaway.“WhenI’msittingthereandhavearandomideaforacoolstory,likean
ideathatIcan’tstopthinkingabout,that’swhenwritingcomeseasyforme,”she
said.“WhenI’mthinkingaboutsomethingreallyhard,itjustflows.IfIdon’thave
paper,Ijustusemyphone.”WhileMarypreferschoiceinhertopics,shefindsways
to“tweakittostimulateinterest.”ButMarylikestheprocessofwritingevenwhenit
ischallenging.“Evenifmyideasaredifficulttoputonpaper,”shesaid,“Ifeellike
I’munloadingmybrain.”
Sheenthusiasticallydescribedhermulti‐layeredprocessindetail.Shefound
gettingherideasdown,particularlywhenshehadachoiceofthetopic,especially
easy.Herfirststepistomakeanoutline,whichshewritesbyhand.Likewise,Mary
preferstohandwriteherfirstdrafts.“I’malotmorecreativewhenI’mwithapencil
andpaper,”shesaid.Duringthefirstdraft,Maryfocusedongettingherideasdown.
“Icanorganizeitlater,”shesaid.Next,shebeginsherrevisionprocess.Bylookingit
overmultipletimesindifferentways,Maryisabletomakethemostimprovements
andpolishherfinalworkproduct.“IreadmyformalpapersaloudsothatIcanhear
mistakesandsentenceflow,”shesaid.“Doingsohelpsmerevisemoreeasilythanif
Iweretoreadmyworksilently.”Maryreadseverypaperatleast2to3times,but
sometimesmore,andmakeschanges.
Atthebeginningofthespringsemester,Maryidentifiedasastrongwriter.
ThiswasconfirmedbyherinitialWATof113.Despitehavingafirmfoundationand
ahighlevelofconfidence,Marydidn’tfindthegrammarinstructionand
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foundationalelementsthatwerepartofeachclasstoberedundant.“Cominginto
thesemester,IfeltlikeIwasagoodwriter,”shesaid.“ButIstillfoundsomethingto
learn.”HersecondWATscoreof115evidencedacontinued,butslightlyimproved,
highlevelofwritingconfidence.
MarytheFutureWritingTeacher.Maryisclearlyexcitedtoteachwritingto
herstudents.Duringbothinterviews,Ispecificallynotedherdemeanor,whichI
characterizedaslively,enthusiasticandanimated,inmyinterviewnotes,whenshe
discussedwritinginherfutureclassroom.Thereisnoquestionthatwritingwillplay
akeyroleinMary’sclassroomandherenthusiasmwillbeevidenttostudents.
Tofacilitateinstruction,Marysaiditwouldbeimportantto“gettoknow
eachstudentasanindividualandtakethetimetounderstandtheirbackgrounds.”In
herview,thiswascritical.“Myphilosophywithteachingwriting,oranything,isto
gettoknowyourstudents,gettoknowtheirhomelife,gettoknowanythingyou
canaboutthemasanindividual,”shesaid.“Withwriting,thatwouldbeso
importantwhenyouarereadingtheirwork.Youneedtohaveinsightiftheyare
strugglingwithsomethingandhowyoucanhelp.”
Byallowingstudentstohave“creativity,freechoice,andsettinggoals”in
writinginstruction,Marywouldmaximizetheiropportunitiesforsuccess.Infact,
Marysaidthebestwritingteachers“stimulatecreativitywhilepromotinglearning
aboutwriting.”Butshewasmindfulthatnotallstudentswillshareherenthusiasm
forwriting.“Iknowthatnoteveryonethriveswhenthey’rewriting,”shesaid.“Some
kidsdetestwriting.”However,shefeltthatherself‐identifiedstrengthofexperience
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wouldbebeneficialwiththosestudents.“It[experience]willhelpbecauseI
understandtheprocess,”shesaid.“Icanhelpthemthroughit.”Inaddition,Mary
underscoredtheneedforfrequentwritingpracticeandexposuretobooksand
readingtosupportwritingdevelopment.
Marywishedherinstructorsintheprogramwould“challengeusmoreand
holdusaccountabletobegreateducators.”Shementionedthatherclassmates
struggledwithsomeofthebasicgrammarconcepts.“Theydidn’tseemtoknow
much[aboutgrammar].Icouldtelltheydidn’tgetitbasedontheirquestions,”she
said.Eventhoughsheisaconfidentandcompetentwriter,Maryexpressedgrave
concernregardingthelackofwritinginstructionintheteachereducationprogram.
HerwordsechoedGina’sobservations.Shestated:
In our teacher education program, there is not much writinginstruction.WRIT 101 and Emergent Literacy are the only writinginstructionI’vehadsofarinthismajor.Ifeelthatweneedtohavearequiredgrammarandwritingclass,becausesomanystudentsdon’tgetthatvaluableinstruction.
SummaryoftheConfidentWriters
Fourofthesevenparticipantswereconfidentwriters.Therangeofinitial
WATscoresforthisgrouprangedfrom82to113placingthreeofthefourinthe
middlerangewherestudentsdonotexperienceasignificantlevelofwriting
apprehension.OnlyMaryfellfirmlyinthelowlevelofapprehensioncategorywitha
scoreof113.Onthepost‐test,everyconfidentwriters’scoreimprovedtosome
degreewitharangeoftwoto25points.WhileMary’sscoreimprovedtheleast,her
initialscorewasthehighest.However,theremaining3participants’scores
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improveddramatically,rangingfromelevento25points.Thiswasthelargestpoint
increaseforalloftheparticipantgroups.
Allofthestudentsinthisgroupdiscussedtheimportanceoffeedbackin
becomingproficientwriters.Notably,thetwomostconfidentwritersinthisstudy
emphasizedtheimportanceofmeaningfulfeedback.InGina’swords:“Goodwriting
canalwaysbebetter.”Inputfromreaderswaswelcomedandembracedasapathto
improvement.Thesestudentsviewedfeedbackhashelpful,notpunitive.Infact,they
werecriticalofteacherswhoofferedminimalorcursorycomments.
Likewise,allofthesestudentswrotefrequentlyandregularly.While
obviouslytheycompletedpapersandessaysforschool,eachengagedinwritingona
personallevel.Theformatsincludedjournaling,songlyrics,letters,andcreative
writing.Eachstudentexpressedthatwritingprovidedalevelofenjoymentand
satisfactionintheirlife.
KayandMaryspecificallylinkedtheirloveofwritingtoreading.Duringtheir
childhoods,thesestudentshadvividmemoriesofbooks.Bothaffirmatively
expressedthatreadingandearlyexposuretobookshadaprofoundimpactontheir
attitudesaboutwriting.Readingwasassociatednotonlywithschool,butwithhome
lifewheretheyreadavarietyofgenresforpleasureandentertainment.Their
memoriesaboutreadingwerepositive.Whilebothstudentsnotedthattheyarestill
avidreaders,itwaschallengingtodosowhentheywereinschool.Marydidmore
readingduringthesemesterbreaks.Sherecalledreading40novelsoverthecourse
ofonesummer.
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Table5.Pre‐andPostWATScoresParticipant WATscore#1 WATscore#2 PointdifferenceSadie 49 53 +4Sydney 62 70 +8Amber 64 73 +9Kay 82 101 +19Lily 93 104 +11Gina 94 119 +25Mary 113 115
+2
Themes
Severalthemesemergedacrosstheparticipants:
• providingexplicitandmeaningfulfeedback
• offeringchoiceinwritingtopics
• makingwritingfun,enjoyable,andpossessinganenthusiasmforthesubject
• providingadequateinstructioninwritingfoundations,skill,andgrammar
• allowingadequatetimeforwritingpractice
• helpingstudentsunderstandthe“why”ofwriting
Eachthemewillbediscussedindetailandillustratedwithstudentquotesbelow.
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ProvidingExplicitandMeaningfulFeedback Everystudentspecificallymentionedfeedbackascritical,althoughthe
reluctantwritersexpressedthemostfrustrationatnon‐existentoranemicfeedback
fromteachers.Manystudentslamentedreceivinggenericremarkssuchas“good
job”or“great”orsimplyagradeontheirpapersanddeemedituseless.Overall,
studentsfeltfeedbackshouldunderscoreandreinforcewritingstrengthsandgive
specificwaysapapercouldbeimproved.Somestudentsexpressedfrustrationata
lackofmeaningfulfeedbackduringtheireducationalcareersandfeltlikethey
wouldbebetterwritershaditbeenprovided.Whilestudentsnotedthatsome
writingmustbeinanungraded,low‐stakessetting,suchasjournalwriting,when
feedbackisgiven,itmustbespecifictobeuseful.Knowingwhattheydidwelland
waystheirwritingcouldbeimprovedwereassociatedhigherlevelsofself‐
confidence.Alloftheparticipantswerecommittedtoprovidingin‐depthfeedback
topromotewritingsuccess.Theconceptoffeedbackappearedequallywithin
studentaswriterandstudentasfuturewritingteacher.
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Table6.Feedback Quote SourceandParticipant
(ifknown)“Buildingstudents’confidenceintheirwritingabilitiesreliesonpositivereinforcementandconstructivecriticism”
Questionnaire–Amber
“Thebestthingateachercandoisgivedetailed,helpfulfeedback.”
Questionnaire–Sadie
“Myhighschoolteacherwasalwaysopenforustocomeintoherclassroomforhelp.Shewouldsay,‘cometomyhouse,emailme,callme,Icanhelpyouout.’Beforeschool,lunch,orpreperiodsshewasalwaysopenforhelpingus.Havinghergiveuphertimeforusinstilledthisrespectthatshewastheretohelp.Shedidn’twanttogiveyoubadgrades,butifyouweren’twillingtowork,shewasn’tafraid.”
Interview#1–Kay
“Feedbackwasthenumberonethingthatfrustratedmeinhighschoolandcollege.Especiallygettingapaperbackthatsaidgoodjob.IhaddoubtsastowhetherItookallthistimetowritethisanddidmyteacherevenreadit?TeachersshouldputasmucheffortinasIdo.”
Interview#1–Amber
“Iwillfocusonthepositiveaspectsoftheirworkatalltimes.Itisimportanttocorrectapaperandreinforcetheconcepts.However,itisalsoimportanttopointoutwhatyourlikeandthethingsthatworkwellinastudent’swriting.Ifateacherconstantlypointsoutthethingsthatarewrongwithoutafocusonthethingsthatareright,thestudentwillquittrying.”
Questionnaire–Gina
“Itwouldhavebeenhelpfulifmyteacherscommentedmoreonmycontentinmypaperswithprobingquestions,notjustwritingexpandhere.”
Questionnaire–Mary
“Oneofthecrazieststylesofteaching(tome)iswhenteachersalwaysleterrorsslide.Teachingstudentshowtocorrecttheirerrorsmakesthembetterwriters.”
Questionnaire–Mary
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Table6Continued
“Iwishmyteacherswouldhavetakengoodwritingmoreseriouslyandspentmoretimegradingthemistakes.”
Questionnaire–Lily
“ThewayIseeit,ifIhavepapersreturnedthatsaywell‐writtenorgoodjob,that’sprettymuchuseless.Evenifit’sanApaper,youshouldbeabletogivesomesortoffeedback.Youcanalwaysimprove.Italsobuildsthatrelationshipthatshowsyourespectwhat[thestudents]aredoing.”
Interview#2–Amber
“Ifeellikebyreallyworkingwiththem,notjustthat‘yougota70onthispaper,’butactuallysittingdownwiththemandexplainingwhattheydidwrongandwhytheykeepmakingthosemistakessotheycanfixit.”
Interview#2–Sydney
“Theteachersjustgavemegoodgradesandtheyreallydidn’tanalyzemywritingverywell.Liketheteachersjustgavemegoodgradesandtheyreallydidn’tmarkituporsayevenifitwasgood.Theydidn’tsayIcoulddobetter.”
Interview#2–Lily
“I’llwanttospendtimeactuallycritiquingtheirwritingandactuallygivingthemsolidfeedbacktohelpthemgetbetterinsteadofjustgivingthemagoodorbadgradeandnottellingthemwhy.Ithinkalotofteachersinthepastdidthatanditdidn’thelpalot.”
Interview#2–Lily
“Iwillneverputdownakid.Ifyou’reputtingyourselfoutthereasawriteryou’realreadyinavulnerablestatebecauseyouareputtingyourthoughtsonpaper.Ifakidistrying,hemaynotbethereatall,butatleastifhe’strying,applaudthefactthathetried.It’safirststep.”
Interview#2–Kay
“Feedbackandknowinggoodgrammer[sic]helpsstudentshaveconfidenceintheirreadingandwriting.”
Journal‐Sydney
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Table6Continued “Givefeedback.Havingstudentswritesomething,collectingit,andneverdoinganythingwithitiscompletelyuseless.Practicewon’tbebeneficialiftheyaredoingitwrong.”
Focusgroup
“WhenateacherhandsmebackapaperwithaCorevenaDonitandonlyputthat,nofeedback,I’mlikewhattheheck.Yougavemethisbadgrade,butnofeedback,soIcan’tlearnfromthemistakesIdidmake.”
Focusgroup
“Theteacher’sroleinteachingwritingshouldbereallyfocusedongivingconstructivefeedback.Kidslearntowritebywriting,soIwillhavethemwriteandthenreallytakethetimetogothroughtheirworkandcommendthegoodthingswhilegivingsuggestionsonhowtoimproveotherthingsfornexttime.”
Focusgroup
“Iwishteacherswouldletstudentssharetheirwritingwitheachotherandgetfeedback.”
Focusgroup
“Ithinkmywritingneversoundsgood,butIdon’treallyknowwhattodoaboutit.”
Focusgroup
“SometimesIwonderediftheyreadit.Icouldtellbywhereitwasstapledandtherewasn’tevenafold.”
Focusgroup
OfferingChoiceinWritingTopics Likewise,themajorityoftheparticipantsmentionedchoiceasimportant.
Amberwastheonlyexceptionwhostatedshepreferredtohavetopicsassigned.
Studentsoverwhelminglybelievedthatitiseasierandmoreenjoyabletowrite
aboutatopicthatyouhadchosenorwasinsomewayrelevantormeaningfulto
theirlifeorcareer.Assignedtopicswereassociatedwithtermssuchas“chore,”
drudgery,”and“dread.”Mostindicatedthatchoicewasdirectlylinkedmaking
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writingfunandenjoyable,anotherprominenttheme.Theconceptofchoicerelated
toboththestudentaswriterandthestudentasfuturewritingteacher.Themajority
ofthestudentsindicatedtheywouldgivechoiceintopicsintheirownclassrooms.
Table7.ChoiceQuote SourceandParticipant(if
known)“Theworstthingawritingteachercandoisforcestudentstowriteaboutthingsthatarenotmeaningful.”
Questionnaire–Sydney
“Teachersshouldgivestudentsthechoiceofmeaningful,authenticexperienceswhenitcomestowritingassignments.”
Questionnaire–Sadie
“Myteachersdidagoodjobwhentheyletusbecreativeandpickourowntopics.I’vealwaysfounditmucheasiertowriteextensivelyonatopicachosethantowriteonatopicassignedtome.”
Questionnaire–Mary
“Writingisbetterwhenyouhavemorefreedomtoexploretopicsthatareofinteresttoyou.”
Questionnaire–Gina
“WritingiseasyandfunifIgetchoosewhatIwriteaboutorit’ssomethingthatinterestsme.”
Interview#1–Lily
“Givingstudentschoicemakeswritinglessofachore.”
Interview#2–Kay
“Youdon’tmindspendingalotoftimeonit.Itjusttakesthedrudgeryoutofit.”
Interview#2–Lily
“Ifyoucangetstudentstoconnectwiththingstheyareinterestedin,theywillenjoywritingmore.”
Interview#2–Amber
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Table7Continued “WritingissomucheasierwhenyoucareaboutthetopicandwhenIcantakeresponsibilityforwhatI’mwritingabout.”
Focusgroup
“IfIcareaboutthetopic,thewritingcomeseasytome.”
Focusgroup
MakingWritingFun/Enjoyable/HavinganEnthusiasticTeacher Alloftheparticipantsmentionedthatwritingshouldbeafunactivity,not
somethingtodreadorfear.Studentsbelievedthatenjoymentwasdirectlylinkedto
havingchoiceinwritingtopics.Therewasmuchoverlapontheconceptofchoice
andmakingwritingfunandenjoyable.Likewise,studentwholearnedfromteachers
whowereenthusiasticaboutwritingtendedtoenjoywritingmore.Studentssaid
theywouldmakeeffortstomakewritinginstructionfuntopromotepositive
attitudesaboutwritingfortheirfuturestudents.Likewise,theybelieveditwas
importantforteacherstohaveasincereenthusiasmforwriting.
Table8.MakingWritingFun/Enjoyable/HavinganEnthusiasticTeacherQuote SourceandParticipant(if
known)“Iwishmyinstructorswouldofferfunandexcitingwaystopracticemywritingskills.”
Questionnaire–Lily
“Irememberwritingbeingapunishmentinsteadofafunactivity.”
Questionnaire–Sadie
“Theworstthingateachercandoismakewritingboring.”
Questionnaire–Lily
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Table8Continued “Thebestwritingteachersalwaysgointoclasswithapositiveattitudeaboutwriting.”
Interview#1–Sydney
“Myteachersjustweren’tstimulatinginterest.Weretheyjustnotexcitedaboutwriting?Theyneversaidthingslikethisisgonnabeafunpapertowriteorletuschooseourtopics.”
Interview#1–Mary
“Ithinkteacherssometimesmakeitseemlikeokay,nowwe’regonnawrite,andit’sthishugedealandsoitmakesthestudentsfeellikeit’ssomethingtobefearedorthisbigchallengingthingtodo,butitshouldn’tfeelthatwaytostudents.”
Interview#1–Amber
“Don’tmakewritingallaboutrightandwrong.Findawaytoincorporatewritinginfunways.”
Interview#2–Gina
“It’salwayseasywhenIdothingslikeopinionpiecesoraboutsubjectsI’minterestedin.LikewhenIgettochooseatopic.It’seasytowriteaboutsomethingthatyoulike.”
Interview#2–Lily
“Thebestwritingteachershavealotofenthusiasmaboutwritinganddon’tjustcometotheclassandsayhere’stheprompt,gowriteaboutit.”
Interview#2–Sydney
“Everystudentwilllearnifyoumakeitfun.”
Interview#2–Kay
“Whendecidingonwhethersomethingisbusyworkorhomework,youshouldaskyourselfsomequestionsfirst:Willthestudent’s[sic]benefitorwilltheyjustbeboard[sic]?”
Journal–Sydney
“Iwanttohelpstudentslovewritingbylettingthemwriteabouttheirownlives.”
Focusgroup
“Iwanttokeepmystudentsfromthinkingwritingisascary,horriblething.
Focusgroup
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ProvidingAdequateInstructioninWritingFoundations,Skill,andGrammar Alloftheparticipantsnotedthatknowinggrammarandthefoundational
skillsofwritingwerecriticaltosuccessbothasawriterandateacher.Butmanyfelt
theywereill‐preparedforcollege‐levelwriting.Manystudentsstatedthatthey
lackedmanyofthegrammarbasicsandlamentedthattherewerenotmore
opportunitiestolearnandpracticethem.Likewise,severalstudentsexpressly
statedthattheyhadnotbeentaughthowtoreviseandeditpapers.Thelackofthis
basicknowledgehinderedtheirconfidenceinwriting.Whilethereluctantand
emergingwritersstatedthattheywouldlikemorecoursesingrammarand
foundations,notably,theconfidentwritersthoughtthiswasimportantand
welcomedmoreopportunitiestolearnandpractice.
Table9.Foundations,Skills,andGrammarQuote SourceandParticipant(if
known)“IfeellikeIhavebadgrammar.Ijustneverlearnedit.SoI’mprettybadwithit.Ifyouaskedmeaquestionaboutwhatarethedifferentpartsofspeech,Iwouldn’tknow.”
Interview#1–Lily
“Grammardoesmatter.Itshowsyourintelligence.” Interview#1–Sadie “ThewritingIhadinhighschooldidn’treallypreparemeforcollege.”
Interview#1–Sadie
“IfeellikenowifIdidhaveinstruction,IguessIwouldalwaysbethinkingabouthowIneedtotakelongeronmypapersandstarteditingthemandsendthemtosomeoneelsetolookover.”
Interview#2–Sydney
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Table9Continued “I’llshowwaysofdoingitthatarestep‐by‐stepwhojustcan’tsitdownandwritebecauseIcan’tdothat.”
Interview#2–Amber
“Grammarlessonsweredifficultgrowingup,butIthinkthathelpedimmensely.Knowingthebasicsandhavingthefoundationstobeagoodwritermadewritingassignmentsnotoverlydifficultbecauseweknewthefoundations.”
Interview#2–Gina
“Tocommunicateeffectively,ateachermustbeknowledgeableaboutthecorrectuseofgrammar...ateachermustputeffortintodevelopinghisorhergrammarskills.Weaseducatorsneedtomakesurethatwespeakandwritecorrectlytoupholdourcredibility.”
Journal–Mary
“Whenyouteachyourstudentsgrammer[sic],youarebuildingthemtohaveconfidenceintheirreading,writingandspeaking.Grammer[sic]isthebaseofEnglishandifwewantourstudentstosucceedinschoolnomatterwhatsubjecttheyfirstneedtolearngrammer[sic].”
Journal–Sydney
“UnderstandinggrammartranslatestounderstandinggrammartranslatestounderstandinghowtheEnglishlanguageworks,soifwearetoteachthenextgenerationtospeakandwriteproperly,wemustbeabletodosoaswell.”
Journal–Amber
AllowingAdequateTimeforWritingPractice Studentsacknowledgedthatthebestwaytobecomeaproficientwriterwas
byhavingtheopportunitytopracticeregularly.Whetherinungradedjournalsor
formalpapers,studentsstatedthatfrequentandregularopportunitiestowriteled
tosuccess.Allofthestudentsstatedthattheywouldcarrythisforwardintheirown
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classroomseveniftheyhadnothadtheopportunitytodosoduringtheir
educationaljourney.
Table10.PracticeQuote SourceandParticipant(if
known)“Thebestthingawritingteachercandoisprovidelotsofwritingopportunities.”
Questionnaire–Lily
“Youjusthavetopracticealot.Youhavetoworkatit.”
Interview#1–Lily
“It’sreallyjustahabitforme.IliketowriteandIdoitalot.”
Interview#1–Mary
“Learningwriting,youknow,it’srepetition,repetition.”
Interview#2–Kay
“Iwritealot.It’scommonsense–themoreyoudoit,thebetteryouget.”
Interview#2‐Gina
“I’mnotverystrongatit[writing]andIneedtopracticeitmore.”
Interview#2–Sadie
“Kidslearntowritebywriting,soIwillhavethemwrite.”
Interview#2–Amber
“Partofitisjustpractice.”
Focusgroup
“I’dmakewritingpartofthelearningeveryday.Itmightbejournalsorletters,buteveryday.”
Focusgroup
“Ijustdon’trememberspendingmuchtimewritingwhenIwasinelementaryschool.”
Focusgroup
“I’vewrittenfewerpapersincollege,soIhaven’thadmuchopportunitytoenhancemyskills.”
Focusgroup
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Table10Continued “Theyneedlotsofpracticeinalow‐keysetting.” Focusgroup “Theonlywayyougetbetteristopractice,practice,practice.”
Focusgroup
HelpingStudentsUnderstandthe“Why”ofWriting Someofthestudentsindicateditwasimportantforstudentstounderstand
the“why”ofwriting.Interestingly,thereluctantandemergingwritersstatedthis
wasakeyissuetheywouldaddressinwritinginstructionintheirclassrooms.This
couldbeaccomplishedbyallowingtheirstudentstoengageinreal‐worldwriting
opportunitiesormakeconnectionstothedifferentpurposesofwriting.Giving
studentsauthenticwritingexperiencesallowedgreaterenjoymentaswell.Thiswas
aconcepttheparticipantsplannedtotakeforwardintotheirfutureclassrooms.
Table11.Understandingthe“Why”ofWritingQuote Sourceandparticipant(if
known)“Takethetimetoreallytalktotheirstudentsaboutwhatitmeanstobeagoodwriterandwhyitissoimportantthatwehavethoseskills.”
Questionnaire–Sydney
“Teachersshouldtrytohelpbuildanappreciationforwritingsoitshouldn’tbescaryorhorrible.”
Interview#1‐Gina
“Givestudentsthewhy–whydoIneedtodothis?” Interview#1–Sadie “Makeitfunandsomethingthattheyneedtoknowforthefuturesoit’sapplicablefortheirlife.”
Interview#2–Lily
“Makewritingapplicableforreal‐lifesituationsandnotjustwritingfortheteacher.”
Interview#2‐Sadie
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Table11Continued “Idon’tthinkstudentsthinkaboutwhytheywrite.Youpassanotetoyourcrushingradeschool.Youtakenotesinclass.Youfillinatest,writeato‐dolist,andaddressandsignaValentine.”
Journal‐Gina
“It’sahugepartofit–showingyourstudentsawidevarietyofpurposesthatwritingserves.Iftheyknowtheywilluseaskilllaterinlife,theywillbemorelikelytolearnit.”
Focusgroup
“Sharethepurposeofwritingwithauthenticexperiences.”
Focusgroup
ChapterSummary
Thischapteroutlinedindetailtheresponsesanddatacollectedforeach
participantinthecontextoftheresearchquestions:(1)Howdopreserviceteachers
perceiveandpracticethewritingprocess?,(2)Whatexperiencesshapedtheir
attitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting?,and(3)Howdopreserviceteachers’viewsof
theprocessinformtheirthinkingaboutteachingwriting?Threecategoriesof
writingattitudesemerged:reluctant,emerging,andconfidentwriters.Thedatawas
presentedfromtheperspectiveofparticipantaswriterandparticipantasfuture
writingteacher.Fromthat,6themesemergedassignificantandinfluentialinthe
developmentofwritingattitudesandbeliefs:feedback,choice,fun/enjoyment,and
enthusiasticwritingteachers,grammarandfoundationalskills,practice,and
understandingthe“why”ofwriting.Inchapter5,Iwillconnectthedatapresented
andthemestotheresearchandmakerecommendationsastotheimplicationsfor
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CHAPTERFIVE‐CONCLUSION
“Writingishardwork.Aclearsentenceisnoaccident...Ifyoufindthatwritingishard,it’sbecauseitishard.”(Zinsser,2006,p.9).
Thisstudyexploredtheformationandinfluencesofwritingattitudesand
beliefsandhowtheywouldimpactwritinginstructioninfutureclassroomsfor
sevenpreserviceteachers.Theparticipants’confidencelevelsaboutwritingranged
fromreluctanttoemergingtoconfident.Thisstudywasframedbythreeresearch
questionsandconcludedwiththesixthemesthatemergedwhichplayedarolein
thedevelopmentoftheirattitudesandbeliefsandintheirfutureclassrooms:(a)
providingexplicitandmeaningfulfeedback,(b)offeringchoiceinwritingtopics,(c)
makingwritingfun,enjoyable,andpossessinganenthusiasmforthesubject,(d)
providingadequateinstructioninwritingfoundations,skill,andgrammar,(e)
allowingadequatetimeforwritingpractice,and(f)helpingstudentsunderstanding
the“why”ofwriting.Althoughtherewassomenaturaloverlapbetweenthese
categories,thethemesweredistinct.
ApprenticeshipofObservationandSituatedLearning
Lortie’s(1975)apprenticeshipofobservationandLaveandWenger’s(1991)
situatedlearningprovideacontextforunderstandingthesethemeswithinasocial
constructivismframework.Whenastudentconsidersafuturecareerpath,many
factorsshapethedecision.Achildmayaspiretobecomeaphysicianordentist
becauseofpositiveinteractionswithhisorherhealthcareprovider.Likewise,a
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familymemberinaparticularprofessionmayplayaroleinthedecision‐making
process.Someonemightchooseafield,suchasthelaworjournalism,basedupon
televisionshowsormovies.Butunlikeanyotherprofession,thechoicetobecomea
teacherbringswithitroughly12yearsofacademicexperiencewithpasteducators.
Whetherornotstudentsareaware,theyhavebeenengagedinthe“apprenticeship
ofobservation”oftheprofessionoverthelifespanoftheirschoolcareer(Lortie,
1975,p.1).Thisinfluence,bothdirectandindirect,playsakeyroleintheattitudes
andbeliefsstudentsholdaboutparticularsubjectsandlearningaswellastheway
theywillultimatelyapproachteachingit.Ofcourse,theeffectsmayhavebeen
positive,negative,orsomecombinationofthetwo.
LaveandWenger(1991)expandedthenotionoftheapprenticeship.The
socialpracticeofeducationisnecessarilyapartoftheclassroom.Althoughthe
learningcanrelatetospecificactivities,itisalsopartofthelargernotionofsocial
communities(Lave&Wenger,1991,p.53).Inmasteringknowledgeandjoining
communitiesofpractice,studentsengageintheprocessof“legitimateperipheral
participation”(LLP)(Lave&Wenger,1991,p.29).Thisparticipationisbasedon
“situatednegotiationandrenegotiationofmeaningintheworld”(Lave&Wenger,
1991,p.51).
InconsideringtheintersectionoftheoriesbyLortie(1975)andLaveand
Wenger(1991)regardingthedevelopmentofteachercandidates,thesestudents
havebeenobserversandparticipantsinallofthepreviousclassroomsthroughout
theirschooling.Thosesubtle,nuancedinteractionsgentlyshapedandmoldedthe
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students’attitudes,beliefs,andapproachtotheoveralleducationalprocessaswell
asspecificsubjects.
Inthecontextofwritinginstruction,thisapprenticeshipandcommunityof
practice,knowinglyorunknowingly,invitesstudentstoassimilatetheirmentors’
attitudesandbeliefs(Lave&Wenger,1991,Lortie,1975).Teachers’attitudesand
beliefsaboutwritingplayadistinctroleinthedevelopmentofhowastudentfeels
abouttheprocessandpracticeofthecraft(Brooks,2007;Graves,1990;Daisey,
2009;Street&Stang,2009).Thesecollectiveexperiences,whichmayhavebeen
positive,negative,orindifferent,ultimatelyshapeapreserviceteacher’sthoughts
aboutwriting(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2014).AsGreenleaf,Jimenez,&Roller(2002)
soaptlystated:“teachersdon’tjustappearoutofthinair.Theyaretheproducts–as
wellasactiveagents–oftheworldsfromwhichtheycame”(p.487).
Whenstudentsentertheuniversity,theattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting
thatwereformedthroughouttheiracademiccareersfollowthem(Florio‐Ruane&
Lensmire,1990;Lortie,1975).Theywillhaveadirectimpactonhowfuture
teachersapproachwritinginstruction(Dart,Bouton‐Lewis,Brownless,&McCrindle,
1998;Whitney&Friedrich,2013).Thesethoughtswillbeapartofevery
instructionaldecision(Lortie,1975).
Mypurposeinthischapteristodiscernhowtheparticipantsassimilated
theseattitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingduringtheirapprenticeshipsand
communitiesofpracticeandtosuggesthowthiswillinformtheirfutureteachingof
writing.Inaddition,mygoalistomakerecommendationsregardinghowteacher
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educationprogramscansupportwritersatallstagesofdevelopmentandfoster
improvedself‐confidenceandcompetenceinwriting.Finally,Isuggestareasfor
futureresearch.
MeaningfulFeedback
Feedbackwasoneofthemostsignificantthemesthatemergedinthisstudy
forboththestudentandthefuturewritingteacher.Frustrationwasacommon
sentimentregardingthequalityandamountoffeedbackprovidedbyprevious
teachers.Forthewriterswhoselevelsofself‐confidencewerereluctantor
emerging,thiswasparticularlytroubling.Theysimplydidnotknowwhattheywere
doingincorrectlyorhowtoimprove.Ateacher’sexperiencewithwritingwillhavea
significantinfluenceonhowheorsheapproacheswritinginstruction(Street&
Stand,2009).Ambercalleditthe“numberonethingthatfrustratedmeinhigh
schoolandcollege.”Regardlessofthequalityofthefinalproduct,“evenonanA
paper,”Amberstatedthatameaningfulcritiquecouldalwaysbeprovided.
Additionally,reluctantwriters,suchasSydney,statedthatfeedbackrequiredmore
thanjustagrade.Inherhighschoolherteacherssimply“didn’tcare.”Verbal
commentsandsocialcuesprovidepositiveandnegativefeedback,whichhavea
directimpactonastudent’sattitudesandbeliefs(Parajes,2003).Sydneyfelt
frustratedbythelackoffeedbackbecauseshedidn’tknowwhatmistakesshewas
makingorhowtofixthem.Students’writinghistoriesinfluencehowthey“engage
withandenactthesepractices”asteachers(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.305).
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However,theconfidentwriterslamentedaboutmarginalornon‐existent
feedbackaswell.Althoughstudentswhoseattitudesandbeliefswereshapedby
successfulexperiencestendtofeelmorepositiveaboutwriting(Chambless&Bass,
1995;Colby&Stapleton,2006),thewayinwhichtheyweretaughtwillstillhavean
influence(Street&Stang,2009).Lilyfeltcheatedbecauseherpastteachers“just
gave[her]goodgradesanddidn’tanalyze[her]writingverywell.”Asaresult,her
higherlevelsofwritingconfidencewereincongruentwithheractualwritingability.
Havingreceivedpapersinhercollegeclasseswith“A’s”or“NiceJob!”atthetop,Lily
believedshewasacompetentwriter;however,whenherwritingwascritically
examined,itfailedtomeetthestandardofclearprose.Consequently,Lilyfeltshort‐
changedandmisledbyteacherfeedback.Buteventhemostconfidentwriter,Mary,
foundittroublingwhenteachers“leterrorsslide.”Maryactuallywonderedifthese
teacherscouldnotcorrectthemistakesbecausetheydidnotknowthe
fundamentalsofgrammarthemselves.Toeffectivelyteachwriting,teachersmustbe
writersthemselves(Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,&Radencich,2000).Itisquitepossible
thatLilyandMaryhadteacherswholackedwritingskillsorconfidenceto
adequatelyassessastudent’swrittenwork.Manyteachersfeelunpreparedor
under‐preparedtoteachwriting(Daisey,2009).
Itwasinterestingtonotethatalloftheparticipantsarticulatedthatthey
plannedtogivedetailedfeedbackasteachers.Perceptionsoffeedbackdependona
student’smindsetaboutwriting(Norman&Spencer,2005).Studentswhoview
writingabilityasfixedconsiderfeedbackunhelpful,non‐supportive,andpunitive
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(Norman&Spencer,2005).Incontrast,studentswhobelievedwritingabilitywas
flexiblefoundfeedbackandencouragementhelpedtheirwritingimprove(Norman
&Spencer,2005).Inthisstudyeventhemostreluctantwriter,Sadie,statedthat
providingmeaningfulresponsestostudentwritingwas“themostimportantthinga
teachercando”andindicatedshewilldosoinherownclassroom.However,tobe
meaningful,theparticipantsagreedthatitmustbemorethantheassaultofthered
pen.Itmustbeabalanceofconstructivecriticismthathelpsthewriterunderstand
themistakesandlearnfromthem,butthatalsoprovidespositivereinforcementon
theaspectswhichweredonewell.Wordssuchasbeingavailable,takingthetime,
andexplainingwhattheydidwrongwereconsistentrefrainsinhowallofthem
plannedtoapproachthetask.Thispositiveviewoffeedbackforallparticipants
appearedconsistentwiththeimprovedlevelsofself‐confidenceasevidencedbythe
increaseineachstudent’ssecondWATscore.
Althoughmostofthesestudentsdidnotfeeltheyhadreceivedadequate
feedbackintheirpre‐collegeyears,movingforward,allofthemplannedtomakeita
priorityasteachers.Sydney,oneofthemostreluctantwriters,specificallystated
thatthefeedbackprovidedthissemesterinEDU330hadadramaticimpactonthe
improvementofherwritingandlevelofconfidence.AccordingtoStreet(2003),
writingattitudescanbechangedbycoursesthatfosterpositiveoutcomeswith
writing.Afuturestudycouldfollowthisgroupofparticipantsafterthreetofive
yearsofteachingtoseeiftheycontinuetoprovideextensivefeedbackforwriting.
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Choice
Studentsoverwhelminglydeemedchoiceinwritingtopicsasinfluentialin
theirattitudesaswritersandasfuturewritingteachers.AccordingtoNormanand
Spencer(2005),thechoiceofrelevantandmeaningfultopicsplayedapowerfulrole
indevelopingpositivewritingattitudes.Wordssuchasdrudgeryandboring
describedexperienceswithtopicsthatweremandatory.Amberadmittedthatwhen
facedwithawritingassignment,herfirstthoughtswere,“Ugh,whydowehaveto
dothisandhowlongdoesithavetobe?”Thisheldtrueforboththereluctantand
confidentparticipants.Oneofthereluctantwriters,Sadie,saidshelikedwritingin
“journalsorcreativewriting,”butdidn’tenjoyhavingtodomore“formalpapers.”
Likewise,Sydneyappreciatedthelow‐stakesdailyjournalwritinginelementary
school.
Notably,alloftheconfidentstudentswroteforpleasure.Kayenjoyed“the
creativesideofwriting,”suchassonglyrics.LilyandGinaappreciatedjournaland
letterwriting.ForGina,writingwasalsoawaytoclarifyherthinking.“Without
writing,Iwouldbelostinaworldofchaos,”shesaid.Marywasanavidcreative
writerandformerEnglishmajor.Allofthesestudentsclearlyexpressedthatthey
choosetowriteintheirpersonallives.However,intermsofassignments,theydid
appreciatetheopportunitytochoosemeaningfultopics.Lilycharacterizedheronly
negativeexperienceashavingtowritea10‐pagegovernmentpaper“aboutaboring
topicthatIcarednothingabout.”WhenKaywastaskedwithwritingaboutatopic
forwhichshe“hasnostrongopinions,”herwritingwasweakbecauseshetendsto
130
use“fillers.”Maryexplicitlystatedherpreferenceforchoiceoftopics,butcould
“findwaystotweakittostimulateinterest.”
Amber,theemergingwriter,wastheonlyexception.Shepreferredthe
structureofarequiredtopictoknowwhatshewas“supposedtobewritingabout.”
Amber“wasn’tgoodatcomingupwithideas.”
Indiscussingtheirfutureclassrooms,thenotionofchoicewasnearly
universalanddirectlyrelatedtothethemeofmakingwritingfunandenjoyable.
Teacherattitudeswilldirectlyinfluencetheapproachtowritinginstruction
(McCarthey&Mkhize,2013).Sydneyunequivocallystated,“Theworstthinga
writingteachercandoisforcestudentstowriteaboutthingsthatarenot
meaningful.”Buteventhemostconfidentwritersagreedthatchoicemadethetask
easier.Maryfoundit“mucheasiertowriteextensively”onatopicshehadchosen.
Lilysummeditupsuccinctly:“Ifyouhaveachoiceintopicsyoudon’tmind
spendingalotoftimeonit.Itjusttakesthedrudgeryoutofit.”
AlthoughAmberdidnotexplicitlyindicatethatchoicewouldbeimportantin
herfutureclassroom,shestateditwouldbehelpfulto“connect[writing]withthings
theyarealreadyinterestedin.”Thiswouldmakestudents“moreinclinedtolearn
andpracticenow.”Asanoutlierinthisstudy,itwouldbeinterestingtofollow
Amberasasinglecasestudyasshetransitionsintoherownclassroom.
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MakingWritingFun,Enjoyable,andPossessingEnthusiasm
Linkeddirectlytothemeofchoicewasthenotionthatwritingshouldbefun
andenjoyable.Studentsstatedthathavingchoicemadewritingamorepositive
experience.Embeddedwithinthisthemewasthethoughtthatteachersshould
possessasincereenthusiasmforwriting.Studentshaveabetterchanceofbecoming
“successful,enthusiastic,andengagedreadersandwriterswhentheylearnfrom
andareamongteacherswhodisplaythesametraits”(Brooks,2007,p.177).
AccordingtoNormanandSpencer(2005),teacherswhoare“enthusiastic,
supportive,andencouraging”aboutwritinghaveapowerfulinfluenceoverthe
attitudesandbeliefstheirstudentsholdaboutthesubject(p.30).
Inthisstudy,studentshadawiderangeofpastexperienceswithwriting.
Gina,aconfidentwriter,hadoverwhelminglypositiveexperiences.Studentswhose
attitudesandbeliefswereshapedbysuccessfulexperienceswithwritingwill
generallyhavemorepositiveattitudestowardwriting(Chambless&Bass,1995;
Colby&Stapleton,2006).“Ihadteacherswhowerepositiveaboutthewriting
experience,”Ginasaid.Incontrast,Sadie,oneofthereluctantwriters,usedterms
suchasdread,punishment,anddifficulttodescribeherrelationshipwithwriting.“I
rememberwritingasbeingmoreofapunishment,”Sadiesaid.Thislackofwriting
confidencewillinformherapproachtowritinginstruction(Colby&Stapleton,
2006).
Intermsofteachingwriting,itwasclearthatthemajorityoftheparticipants
wantedtomakethetaskanenjoyableexperience.Thereluctantwriters,Sadieand
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Sydney,agreedthatthebestwritingteachersmakewritingfun.Sydneydirectly
linkedthelevelofenjoymenttochoice.Inaddition,Sydneybelievedthebestwriting
teacherswereenthusiastic.Inaddition,theconfidentstudents,whoalreadyenjoy
theprocessofwriting,statedthatmakingwritingfunandenjoyablewouldbea
priority.AccordingtoLily,thefailuretodosomadethetaska“chore.”LikeSydney,
LilyandMaryarticulatedadirectlinkbetweenfunandchoiceinwritingtopics.For
Gina,findingwhatinterestsherstudentswouldmakewritingmoreenjoyable‐‐for
example,incorporatingblankcomicbookpages.GinaandMary,themostconfident
andcompetentwriters,displayedsuchanauthenticenthusiasmforwritingthatit
willunquestionablypermeatetheirclassrooms.Teacherswhoarecomfortablein
theprocessofwritingandareactuallywritersthemselveswillbethemosteffective
writingteachers(Bratcher&Stroble,1994).
InstructioninFoundations,Skills,andGrammar
Allofthestudentsstatedunequivocallythathavingadequatepreparationin
thefoundationallanguageelementsandgrammarwasabsolutelycriticalforthemas
writersandasfutureteachers.Yetseveralstudents,bothreluctantandconfident,
knewtheirwritingskillswereanemicwhentheyenteredtheuniversity.
Sadiechalkedupherinstructionaslittlemorethanaseriesofworksheets,
whichshe“hated”anddeemed“useless.”WhileSydneyknewhergrammarand
spellingskillswerelacking,shealsohadlittleinstructioninhowtoreviseandedit
herwork.Kay,aconfidentwriter,didn’thaveastrongbackgroundingrammaror
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thefundamentals.Athoroughunderstandingoftheintricaciesandconventionsof
theEnglishlanguageisessentialforteachers(Graham,Harris,Fink,&MacArthur,
2001;Lavelle,2006).Asawriter,Lilydidn’t“knowasmuchas[she]should.”
Kaydidn’thavemuchgrammarinschoolandwonderedifitwasbecauseher
teachers“weren’tconfidentinit.”Likewise,Maryquestionedwhethersomeofher
elementaryandhighschoolteachershadaworkingknowledgeoftheconventionsof
theEnglishlanguage.Marydeemedahavingknowledgeofgrammaressentialtoan
educator’s“credibility.”Manyprofessionalscurrentlyinthefieldexpressconcerns
thattheirteachertrainingprogramsdidnotadequatelypreparethemforwriting
instruction(Chambless&Bass,1995;Daisey,2009;Martin&Dismuke,2015;
Morgan,2010;Tulley,2013).TheNationalWritingProjecthasattemptedtomitigate
thisproblembyofferingintensiveprofessionaldevelopmentinwritingskillsand
practicesince1974forcurrentpractitioners(NationalWritingProject,2015).
However,notallcurrentteachershavetheabilityorarewillingtoparticipate.
Attheinstitutionwherethisstudywasconducted,itispossibleforastudent
toenterwithAdvancedPlacement(AP)creditforWRIT101.Likewise,ascoreof28
orgreaterontheEnglishportionoftheACTexemptsastudentfromWRIT101.
Consequently,thismeansthatastudentcouldattendfouryearsattheuniversity
withoutbeingrequiredtotakeacollege‐levelwritingcourse.Inthisstudy,Amber
wasexemptfromWRIT101basedonherACTEnglishscore.Whilethisistroubling
foralluniversitystudents,thisisespeciallyproblematicforfutureteachers,who
shouldbewell‐versedingrammarandwritingfoundations.
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Asfutureteachersofwriting,alloftheparticipantsacknowledgedthatthey
needtobecomfortablewithwritingfundamentals.Yet,teachereducationprograms
continuetoplaceminimalornoemphasisonwritingpedagogy(Hall&Grisham‐
Brown,2014).Furthermore,thereislittleconsistencyinprogramsacrossthenation
regardingtheamountofwritingrequired(Chambless&Bass,2010;Daisey,2009;
Tulley,2013).Ginacommentedthatshe“didn’tfeelliketherewasapushforusto
teachkidstowrite.”WithintheDepartmentofEducation,EDU263Methodsof
TeachingGrammarremainslistedinthescheduleofclasses.However,ithasnot
beenavailableforstudentstotakeaspartoftheirteachertrainingsince2012.
Mostprogramssimplydonotrequireastand‐alonecourseinwriting
principlesandpedagogy(Norman&Spencer,2005).ButastheNationalWriting
Projectsovividlydemonstrated,thereisclearlyaneedformorerequiredwriting
courseworkinteachertrainingprograms(NationalWritingProject,2015).Inthis
study,themorereluctantstudentsstatedtheywillneedtocontinueworkingto
improvetheirskilllevelinordertobeeffectiveteachers.
Practice
Foundationalskillsarecritical,buthavingtimetopracticewritingisalsoof
theutmostimportance.Theonlywaytoimprovewritingskills,atanylevel,is
throughwritingregularly(Colby&Stapleton,2006).Becomingabetterwriter
simplyrequiresbeingactivelyengagedintheprocessofwriting(Bratcher&Stroble,
1994;Colby&Stapleton,2006;Shofel,1991).TheNationalCommissiononWriting
135
(2003)deemedallottingadequatetimeforwritinginstructionasparamount.
Acommonrefrainfromparticipantsunderscoredthenecessityofpracticeat
thecollegelevel.AsKaysaid,“Learningwriting,youknow,it’srepetition,
repetition.”Lilysaidtheresimplyhadn’tbeenmuchopportunityforpractice.“I
haven’twrittenalotincollegeandIdon’tknowwhy,”shesaid.Theparticipants
weregenuinelycuriousandconcernedwhythereweresofewmeaningfulwriting
assignments,coupledwithpreciseandhelpfulfeedback,inaprogramthatwas
designedtopreparefutureteachers.Inthefocusgroup,oneofthestudents
wondered,“Idon’tknowhowcanIteachsomethingIdon’tknow.”However,the
participantsnotedthatpracticewouldbeakeycomponentintheirfuture
classrooms.AccordingtoLily,“Thebestthingawritingteachercandoisprovide
lotsofwritingopportunities.”Asfutureteachers,practiceintheirclassroomswould
befrequent,indifferentformatssuchas“journalsandletters,”andbebothformal
papersaswellas“low‐stakes”assignments.
Butpracticetakesonauniquemeaningforfutureteachers.Toteachwriting
effectively,teachersmustbewritersthemselves(Bratcher&Strobe,2010;Colby&
Stapleton,2006,Morgan,2010;NationalCommissiononWriting&Nagin,2003,
Street,2003;Street&Stang,2009).Morgan(2010)concludedthatteachersmust
writetofullyunderstandandexperiencetheprocess.Inthisway,teacherscan
betterhelpstudentsunderstandandnavigatethechallengesandstrugglesof
writing(Augsburger,1998).Murray(2003)arguedthatteachersmust“understand
thewritingprocessfromwithin”(p.74).AsAugsburger(1998),Bloom(1990),and
136
Morgan(2010)concurred,byexperiencingthejoys,struggles,andfrustrationsof
writingfirst‐hand,teachersareabletocomprehendandempathizewiththeir
students.Smith(1983)stateditwasdifficult,ifnotimpossible,tosharethiscrucial
underlyingknowledgeoftheprocessofwritingwithoutexperiencingitdirectly.
Understandingthe“Why”ofWriting
Intheparticipants’futureclassrooms,thefinalthemethatemergedwas
helpingstudentsunderstandthe“why”ofwriting.AccordingtoSmith(1983),
teachersmust“showchildrenthatwritingisinteresting,possible,andworthwhile”
(p.566).AccordingtoGallagher(2011),studentsmustfullycomprehend“whythey
shouldwrite”(p.7).Withoutthisbasicunderstanding,studentswillseenotsee
writingasameaningfulandworthwhileactivity(Daisey,2009;Gallagher,2011).
Instead,theywillregardthetaskasmerelyunavoidable(Daisey,2009;Gallagher,
2011).Effectivewritingteacherssharenotonlytheprocessofwritingand
mechanics,butalsowhytheyvaluewriting(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,1990;
Cremin,2006;Gallagher,2011;Morgan,2010).
Afewoftheparticipantsexpressedtheimportanceofmakingsuretheir
studentsunderstoodthisissue.Lilyplannedtohelpherstudentsknowthatwriting
is“applicablefortheirli[ves]”.Eventhemostreluctantwriter,Sadie,foundthis
critical.Sheintendedto“makewritingapplicableforreal‐lifesituationsandnotjust
fortheteacher.”Ginasuggestedthatstudentsrarely“thinkaboutwhytheywrite”
andplanstoaddressthatinhercurriculum.
137
Recommendations
Whenexaminingthedatacollectedinthisstudy,itwasclearthatallofthe
participants’attitudesandbeliefs,whichspannedthespectrum,hadbeenshapedby
their“apprenticeshipofobservation”(Lortie,1975,p.1)andtheir“situated
negotiationandrenegotiationofmeaningintheworld”(Lave&Wenger,1991,p.
51).Consequently,thesestudentscametotheirteachereducationprogramafter“a
processthattakesplaceinaparticipationframework,notinanindividualmind”
(Lave&Wenger,1991,p.15).Ineveryfirst‐yearTortsclass,lawstudentslearnthe
adage,“youtaketheplaintiffasyoufindher.”Thesamecouldbesaidofourteacher
candidates:Theycometouswithdifferentdegreesofwritingself‐efficacy,varied
foundationalknowledgeandskillability,andawiderangeofeducational
experiencesandinfluences.Whetherornotastudentisaware,thesepreviously
formedattitudes,beliefs,andexperiencesaccompanythem(Florio‐Ruane&
Lensmire,1990;Lortie,1975;Palmer,2012).Whilestudentsmayfailtograspthis
notion,teachereducationprogramsmustnotonlyacknowledgethesestark
realities,buttakeaffirmativestepstoaddresstheconcerns.FutureK–8studentsof
ourgraduatesdeservenothingless.
Thesixthemesthatemergedinthisstudy,(a)providingexplicitand
meaningfulfeedback,(b)offeringchoiceinwritingtopics,(c)makingwritingfun
andenjoyableandpossessinganenthusiasmforthesubject,(d)providingadequate
instructioninwritingfoundations,skill,andgrammar,(e)allowingadequatetime
forwritingpractice,and(f)helpingstudentsunderstandingthe“why”ofwriting,
138
wereinthecontextofboththeparticipantaswriterandfutureteachers.Since
teachertrainingprogramsmustdealwithstudents’writinglevels,aswellas
contemplatetheirmajorsasfutureteachers,recommendationswillbemade
regardingeachthemewithinthisframework‐‐preserviceteachersaswritersand
preserviceteachersasfuturewritingteachers.
PreserviceTeachersasWriters
Studentsenterteachertrainingprogramswithawidevarietyofwriting
abilities,educationalexperiences,andattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting.The
attitudesandbeliefstheybringtotheprogramplayapowerfulroleinhowtheywill
approachwritinginstruction(Chambless&Bass,1995;Colby&Stapleton,2006,
Lortie,1975;Morgan,2010;Street,2003;Street&Stang,2009).Theseconcerns
simplycannotbeminimalizedwhenconsideringcurriculuminteachereducation
programs.Iftheseissuesareignored,thereisaclearriskofperpetuatingthe
problem.Throughswiftandaffirmativeaction,teachereducatorscanbreakthe
cycleandcreateconfidentandcompetentwriterswhoarewell‐preparedforwriting
instruction.
Asthe2011NAEPNationalCenterforEducationStatistics(2012)reportso
dramaticallyillustrated,75%ofstudentsingradeseightand12arenotproficient
writers.Thesestudentsareenteringtheworkforceandouruniversities.Itfollows
thatsomeofthesestudentswillmajorinelementaryeducation.Yet,weexpectthese
verystudents,wholackcompetenceandconfidence,tobecomewritingteachers
139
whentheylacktheskillsthemselves.Withoutaddressingtheproblem,thiscyclewill
undoubtedlycontinue.
Attheinstitutionallevel,thefirststepistoacknowledgethattherearereal
problemswhichcollegestudentsencounter.Universitiesshouldconsideradding
morewritingrequirementsbeyondWRIT101.Infact,additionalwritingcourses
shouldbeembeddedwithineverymajorwithoneclassperacademicyear.Doingso,
however,requiresaninstitutionalcommitmenttoimprovedwritingacrossthe
curriculumandfinancialsupportfortheadditionalfacultyandcoursedevelopment.
Italsorequiresscaffoldingforfacultywhomaynotknowhowtoincorporate
writingintotheircontentarea.Butaconcertedeffortatthislevelwouldreap
countlessbenefitsforgraduatesandemployers.
ForDepartmentsofEducation,thesechangesrequirenotonlymonetary
contributions,butafirmbeliefthattheywillmeettheirstudents“wheretheyare.”
Bydoingso,programscanthenprovidethenecessarycourseworkandsupportfor
theirmajorstogrowandthriveaswriters.Teachereducatorsmustavoidthe
assumptionthatpreserviceteachersactuallywriteorenjoywriting(Draper,
Barksdale‐Ladd,&Radencich,2000).Sincestudentstypicallyreceivemoretraining
inreadingprinciplesandpedagogy(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2014;Norman&
Spencer,2005),onesimplesolutionistoofferawritingprinciplesandpedagogy
class.Inthiscourse,preserviceteacherscouldreceiveconstructivefeedbackto
improvetheirwriting,haveampletimetopractice,andestablishafirmfoundation
ingrammarandskills.Throughmodelinganddirectinstruction,studentswould
140
learnhowtoincorporatechoiceoftopics,whichalsomakeswritingfunand
enjoyable,aswellaslearnwaystoincorporatethenotionof“why”write.Withouta
coursestrictlydevotedtowriting,thereissimplynowaytoaccomplishthis
monumentaltask.
Alsowithinthecontextofawritingcourse,itwouldbecriticaltoincorporate
areflectioncomponentthatallowsstudentstodelveintoanexaminationoftheir
ownwritingattitudesandbeliefs.AccordingtoHawkinsandRazali(2012)writing
histories“influencesnotonlythepractice[ofwriting]itself,butthewaysinwhich
weeachengagewithandenactthesepracticesinourclassrooms”(p.305).Norman
andSpencer(2005)concurredthatself‐examinationofwritingattitudesandbeliefs
isnotonlycriticaltounderstandingthem,butforchangingtheirtrajectory.Inthis
way,trainingprogramscantakeacriticalstanceandfosterachangeinhow
studentsapproachwriting(Norman&Spencer,2005).AccordingtoStangand
Street(2011),anexaminationofwritinghistories“providesaplaceforteachersto
grow”(p.40).Teachertrainingprogramsaresingularlypoisedtohelpstudentsface
theirfearsaboutwriting,improvetheirlevelofcompetenceandself‐confidence,and
reshapetheirattitudesandbeliefsintomorepositiveonesbeforetheyenterthe
classroomfull‐time.Inaddition,awritingcoursewouldgivestrongwritersthe
opportunitytoreinforce,strengthen,andhonetheircraft.Attitudescanbechanged
andimprovedbycoursesthatfosterpositiveexperiencesandoutcomeswith
writing(Street,2003).
141
However,ifanadditionalcoursecouldnotbeincludedduetototalcreditsfor
graduationconstraints,anotheralternativewouldbeastandardgradingrubricfor
writingwithinthedepartmentofeducation.Allfacultymemberswithinthe
departmentcouldcometogethertodeveloparubricthatwouldbeusedtoevaluate
writtenassignmentwithinthedepartment.Usingamodelsuchasthe6+1traits
couldprovideaframeworkforevaluationandasharedlanguageforwriting
assignments.
StudentsasFutureWritingTeachers
Tobecomeconfidentandeffectivewriters,teachersmustbecome
comfortablewiththeconceptandprocessofwriting(Bratcher&Stroble,1994).But
itismorethanjustpossessingalevelofcomfort.Simplystated,teachersmustbe
writersthemselves.Theymustunderstandthe“processofwritingfromwithin”
(Murray,2003,p.74).Bybeingawriter,ateachercanhelpstudentscomprehend
thechallengesandstrugglesthatareaninherentpartoftheprocessbecausethe
teacherhasexperiencedthemfirst‐hand(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,1990;
Gebhardt,1977;Morgan,2010;Smith,1983).Thisshiftrenegotiatestheteacher’s
rolefrom“evaluative”or“judgmental”inthefinalproductviewtoamore
“cooperative,advisoryroleasconsultant”(Root&Steinberg,1996,p.xix).Although
itisimportantforwritingteacherstobeactiveparticipantsintheprocess,itisalso
criticalfromanattitudinalperspective.Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,andRadencich,
(2000)framedtheissueingraveterms:“Wedonotbelievethatteacherswho
dislikereadingandwritingcaneffectivelyfostertheloveofreadingandwritingin
142
thechildrentheyteach”(p.187).Inotherwords,ifteachersdonotunderstandand
engageintheprocessofwriting,itishighlyunlikelytheywillbeabletonurture
thosepositiveattitudesintheirfutureclassrooms.Whilenoteveryteachermay
ultimatelyenjoywriting,havingafirmgrasponthefoundationalskillswill
necessarilyincreasethelevelofconfidenceinwritinginstruction.
Byrequiringacoursedevotedtowritingprinciplesandpedagogy,
universitiescanbegintobridgethechasmthatleavesmanygraduatesfeelingill‐
preparedtowriteandtoteachwriting.Duetothewidedisparityintheamountof
writinginstructioninteachertrainingprograms,manycurrentteachershave
expressedthattheyfeltunpreparedorunder‐preparedtoteachwriting(Chambless
&Bass,1995;Daisey,2009;Martin&Dismuke,2015;Morgan,2010;Tulley,2013).
TheNationalCommissiononWriting(2003)expresslynotedthatthereistypically
“littleinstructioninhowtoteachwriting”andthatgraduatesare“illequippedto
teachit”(p.23).AccordingtotheNationalCommissiononWriting(2003),“no
matterhowhardtheywork,theseinstructors,lackinganyrealunderstandingof
whatgoodwritingisorlookslike,areoftenillequippedtoteachit”(p.23).
Similarly,theNationalWritingProjectfurtherunderscoredthatalackofemphasis
onwritinghasbeenanon‐goingissue(Whitney&Friedrich,2013).Atminimum,a
coursethatprovideswritingfoundations,grammar,andmeaningfulfeedbackand
practicewouldhelpremediateweakordeficientwritingskillsforthosewhodesire
toteachK‐8students.
143
Astand‐alonewritingcoursecouldalsobolsterlevelsofself‐confidenceof
teachercandidatesbeforetheyenterclassroomsoftheirown.Sinceeducation
majors’attitudesandbeliefsaboutparticularsubjectsandinstructionareuniquely
shapedoverthecourseoftheireducationalcareers,teachertrainingprogramshave
theopportunitytohelpstudentsexamineandreframethem(Martin&Dismuke,
2015).Thesenegativeperceptionsaboutwritinghavea“lastingeffect”willcarry
overintotheclassroom(Street&Stang,2009,p.85).However,theseattitudesare
notstaticorfixed(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2011).Thesedeleteriousfeelingscanbe
improvedbycoursesthatofferpositiveexperienceswithwriting(Street,2003).Asa
result,teachereducatorshavetheuniqueopportunitytoencouragereflectionupon
astudent’spersonalwritinghistoryandtakeaffirmativestepstofosterpositive
attitudinalshifts.
SuggestionsforFutureResearch
Writingistheneglectedelementintheinstructionaltriadknownasthe3Rs
–reading,writing,andarithmetic‐andithasalsobeenlargelyignoredinthe
research.Consequently,numeroustopicsareripeforfurtherinvestigation.
First,alarge‐scaleprojectcouldexaminethewritingattitudesandbeliefsof
studentswhoareenteringelementaryeducationprogramsnationwide.TheWAT
couldbeadministeredatthebeginningoftheprogramandagainatgraduationto
compareanychangesinattitudeduringtheirtraining.Datacouldbeassembledby
institutionandexaminedtodeterminethoseprogramswiththegreatestimpactin
144
fosteringpositiveshifts.Thoseprogramscouldthenbeexploredtodeterminewhat
factorsmayhaveinfluencedthechanges.
Next,moreresearchcouldexaminetheimpactofreflectionuponpersonal
writinghistoriesinteachereducationprograms.Infollowingtheresearchof
HawkinsandRazali(2012)andStangandStreet(2011),anin‐depthreviewofthe
waysinwhichprogramsutilizereflectiontoeffectuateattitudinalshiftscouldoffer
insightintowaystoincorporatethispracticeintocourseworkandpracticum
experiences.
Finally,researcherscouldexaminetheimpactofpost‐graduationwriting
supportforteachersintheirfirstthreeyearsintheclassroom.Bydoingso,
institutionscouldgleanavaluableunderstandingoftheneedsoftheirgraduates
withinthecommunity.Withthisknowledge,programscouldadjustandchangeto
betterservetheirgraduatesandtheK–8studentsintheircommunities.
SummaryandConclusion
Studentsinteachertrainingprogramscomefromawiderangeof
experienceswithwriting.Accordingly,thelevelsofwritingcompetencyastudent
maypossessvarygreatly.Thoseexperiences,bothintheclassroomandfrom
externalsources,arealsolargelyresponsiblefortheattitudesandbeliefsstudents
holdaboutwritingandthemselvesaswriters.Whiletheseattitudesmaybedeeply
held,theyarenotfixedandcanbechanged.Bybetterunderstandingtheseattitudes,
howtheyareshaped,andhowtheycanbetransformed,teachertrainingprograms
147
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EDU 330 Syllabus/Spring 2016
Bring EDU 330 coursepack and any readings assigned as HW to class. This tentative schedule may be adjusted due to student needs.
WEEK 1 Jan. 14 (Th)
Introduction to course
Survey, pre-assessments D’Nealian handwriting HW:
CP article: Why Teachers Need to Write Well
Writing Journal: Introduce yourself
Book Scavenger Hunts: Purpose and Construction. Practice with Sound It Out!
Module 1: nouns
Who are your instructors? Department of Education website search. Study any 4 c.v.’s in “Curriculum & Instruction.” One must be your instructor. Who has “walked the walk” and actually taught in K-8 settings?
WEEK 2 Jan. 19 (T)
WT: that vs. who, Rule of 3
4 language arts + 5 building blocks
Basal readers: Dick and Jane
D’Nealian handwriting: Palmer/vertical (ball-stick) vs. D’Nealian/Slanted HW:
WJ: Goals
Create scavenger hunt with BOL
D’Nealian –copy favorite poem as per CP instructions
Read D’Nealian handwriting notes in CP
Read Chapter 1 (Savage)
Design study guide for Chapter 1
Word Collection #1: Rule of 3
Module 2: verbs
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Jan. 21 (TH)
WT: appositives, sentence combining, avoid weak linking verbs
Reading teacher vocabulary
History of reading
Phonemes vs. graphemes
Building blocks: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension
HW:
Design study guide for chapter
Read D2L posting: Why Johnny Can’t Read excerpt
Design quiz for classmate on Rudolph Flesch’s excerpt
Read Chapter 2 (Savage)
Design a study guide for Chapter 2
Practice D’Nealian, review CP notes about rationale for teaching handwriting
Writing tips practice, appositive practice in CP
Modules 3 + 4 (Adjectives, Adverbs)
BA WEEK 3 Jan. 26 (T)
D’Nealian assignment due
WT: Varied openers—introductory prepositional phrases
BOL Scavenger hunt exchange activity
Phonemic awareness skills and activities
Syllables-in-my-name game HW:
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WJ: Prepositional phrase poems + reflection
Word Collection #2: Compound adjectives + noun
Read CP article by Yopp & Yopp on phonemic awareness
Prepare for quiz on Yopp & Yopp reading
Study CP pages on phonics order: Understand early. intermediate vs. advanced word/phonics study sequence
Study CP language activities. Select your favorite 3. Be prepared to lead class with one activity.
TBA
Jan. 28 (Th) WT: Varied openers—infinitive phrases
Phonics: 3-part definition, one-to-one correspondence, graphic organizer consonant doubles: blends vs. digraphs vs. silent combos vs. doublets
W vs. WH. Practice exercises CP. HW:
Read first section of Chapter 3 on “consonants” (Savage)
Design study guide for chapter 3/first section: consonants
Complete phonics + parts of speech matrix CP
Word Collection #3: Blends and Digraphs
Investigate special consonants C and G—what is the generalization? Hint: vowel markers. Write the generalization as Savage presents it in chapter 3 and be prepared to share this information in class.
Modules 5 + 6 (Prepositions, Direct/Indirect Objects)
Fun Quiz CP (As you have read chapters 1 + 2 in Savage, this quick review exercise should take you no more than 20 minutes.)
Write a paragraph that provides a phonics teaching sequence rationale: (1) consonants before vowels, (2) single consonants before double consonant units, and (3) C/G principle. Word process and double-space text. Create a key or code that identifies a particular color to a writing tip. Finally, use different colored
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highlighters to differentiate writing tips. Remember, content is king. First draft your initial thoughts and then go back and read aloud, revising as needed to incorporate all writing tips, which have been addressed in class. Your task is to have explained: Why do teachers teach the particulars of phonics (consonants and vowels) in a fairly standard order? (versus a willy-nilly, random approach to instruction?)
Note: you should be able to draft a rationale paragraph in 10-15 minutes; your revision with attention to writing presentation and writing tips should take no more than 10 more minutes. Total time for this assignment: 30 minutes or
less.
WEEK 4 Feb. 2 (T)
WT: Varied openers—verbals
Peer review of rationale paragraphs
Peer review of Word Collection #3
Quiz on Modules 1-6
Soft/hard C/G principle
Soft/hard C names activity
Activities to practice C/G, read aloud: Prince Cinders HW:
WJ: Dear Ann
C/G cloze activity in CP
Word Collection #4
Read chapter 3 in Savage (vowels). Study carefully short vs. long vowels.
Take-home quiz
TBA Feb. 4 (Th)
Review WT—subject/pronoun agreement, number/amount, few/less
Phonics BINGO
vowel categories: short/long/other; rationale for instructional order; full-time vs. part-time vowels, initial vs. medial vs. final position---English is a positional language
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Short vowels: patterns, phonograms, word families
Decodable text
High-image short-vowel words
Read aloud: Cats Know Best
HW: Courspack review exercises
Reread Chapter 3, vowels (Savage)
Design study guide for chapter 3/second section (vowels)
Module 7 (Predicate nouns, predicate adjectives)
Bring BOL to class
Take-home quiz
TBA WEEK 5 Feb. 9 (T)
WT: AAAWWUUBBIS words (subordinating conjunctions used to introduce dependent clauses)
Long vowels: patterns (magic-e, digraphs, 49% generalization “When two vowels go a-walking…), phonograms, word families
BOL search Section 1 for vowel lists, phonogram lists
Brainstorm CVC words that change their short-vowel sounds to become long-vowels with the “silent-e” (Compare with BOL list)
HW:
WJ: Grade inflation
Reread chapter 3 short section about “R-controlled vowels”
Reread the short paragraph in chapter 3 that presents vowel teaching order and rationales
Write a paragraph that presents a rationale for why teachers might elect to teach vowel elements in each of the following ways: (1) short vowels before long vowels, (2) long vowels before short vowels, and (3)
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short and long vowels together/contrast. Finally, take a stance and explain your positionality—why do you believe the approach you advocate is the best one? Word process, double-space text. Create a key or code that identifies a particular color to a writing tip. Finally, use different colored highlighters to differentiate the following: introductory prepositional phrases, introductory verbal phrases, introductory subordinate clause/introductory phrase that begins with AAAWWUUBBIS words, appositive phrases, and rule of 3. Remember, content is king; first draft your initial thoughts and then go back and read aloud, revising as needed to incorporate all writing tips, which have been addressed in class. [Note: you should be able to draft a rationale paragraph in 15 minutes; your revision with attention to writing presentation and writing tips should take no more than an additional 15 minutes. Total time for this assignment: approximately 30 minutes.]
Feb. 11 (Th)
WT: short sentence; review varied openers
R-controlled vowels (bossy-r combos, -ar, -or and other patterns)
Special vowel digraphs: long- and short-double o
Functions of Y as consonant and vowel (position): implications for decoding and encoding
HW:
Word Collection #5: Varied openers
Writing tips practice TBA
Y and W practice
List 5 example words for each generalization in CP
Categorize words and identify spelling pattern
Read Phonics in Proper Perspective excerpt (D2L pdf. file)
Module 8 (Four basic sentence types)
TBA President’s Day Federal holiday Feb. 15 WEEK 6 Feb. 16 (T)
WT: Point of view (POV)
Vowel diphthongs: au/aw, ou/ow, oi/oy
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Read aloud: Mrs. Huggins and her Hen Hannah HW:
WJ: Busy work
Word sort
Provide minimum of 5 example words for each vowel generalization
Complete Mrs. Huggins phonics word sort activity Feb. 18 (Th)
WT: Topic sentences/word choice
Phonics knowledge to aid in spelling short- and long-vowel words, homophones
Syllable patterns: closed, open, silent -e
Schwa
Direct, explicit instruction and the 4-parts of an instructional lesson HW:
Phonics and grammar review exercise
Topic sentence exercise
Read Chapter 4 in Savage
Design a study aid to accompany chapter 4
Phonics Mastery assignment
Take-home quiz
No Modules assigned this weekend; instead focus on upcoming mid-term
WEEK 7 Feb. 23 (T)
WT: Share topic sentence HW responses
Quiz on Chapter 4 (Savage)—open notes
Review explicit, systematic phonics approaches
Review activities in coursepack: vocabulary sort, expectancies HW:
WJ: Michael Stone, winners vs. whiners
Read chapter 6 in Savage
Design a study aid to accompany this short summary chapter
Read “Clarifying Phonics” in CP
Read “Basic Principles” in CP
Complete phonics cloze summary
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Take-home quiz Feb. 25 (Th)
WT: semi-colon
Phonics BINGO (expert version)
Review for mid-term
Review syllable patterns: open, closed, silent-e
HW:
Re-do Phonics Mastery assignment only if mastery not met
Mock mid-term
Mid-term preparation
Read Chapter 5 (Savage)
Design study guide
CP spelling questionnaire
T-chart: Characteristics of Able Spellers vs. Challenged Spellers (behaviors and attitudes)
TBA WEEK 8 March 1 (T)
Spelling and phonics
Spelling stages: scribbling….conventional
Able vs. tentative readers + spellers: behaviors and attitudes
Mid-term practice (item types: constructed response, application and analysis) HW:
WJ: Favorite Quote
Prepare for mid-term March 3 (TH) Mid-term—full class period HW
Word Collection #6: Varied word choice
Read pdf. file in D2L: So What’s a Schwa Sound Anyway?
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Compose a 2-paragraph response: paragraph 1 offers a narrative summary of salient points; paragraph 2 is your reflection/analysis of ideas. Word process, double-space.
Vowels Rule! CP spelling rules for primary-grade students
TBA
WEEK 9 March 8 (T)
What makes English spelling difficult?
Spelling generalizations and English orthography, Phonics informs encoding---how?
Able vs. tentative spellers: skills and behaviors HW:
WJ: Free choice
Read CP article: Spelling exceptions: Problems or possibilities?
Vowels Rule!
TBA
March 10 (TH) Activities and then follow-up quiz on FLSZ, Catch a Lunch, Kiss the Cat, the
Milk Truck, and other spelling rules
Spelling lists: Analyze grade 4 list
Modules 9 and 10 (Conjunctions and Sentence Patterns—simple, complex, compound, compound-complex)
TBA
HW (to be completed over spring break)
WJ: Identify 2-3 goals for yourself (check in with what you wrote during Week 2) as we enter the final third of the semester. How will you be pro-active in taking steps to realize these goals?
Read CP spelling article: What Can Children’s Spelling of….
Read Chapter 4 in Allington’s What Really Matters to Struggling Readers
Create a study guide to accompany Allington’s Chapter 4
Module 11
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Read Allington’s What Really Matters to Struggling Readers on your own time. I will not formally assign chapters; consider this a chance to pace yourself with your other assignments. Focus on chapters 2-6 for final exam.
WEEK 10--NO CLASSES week of March 14-18
March 17 WEEK 11 March 22 (T)
Past tense: /d/, /t/, and /ed/
Preview Word Collection #7: -ED as morphological marker
Fluency defined
Fluency, sight words, DOLCH words, how fluency impacts comprehension HW:
WJ: “Do-overs” vs. “getting it right” the first time
Word Collection #7: -ED as morphological marker
Read CP article on fluency: Reading Fluency Assessment and Instruction
Take-home quiz based on CP fluency article
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March 24(Th) Reader’s Theater
Morphemic analysis, word structure, free and bound morphemes, inflected vs. derived words, syllable patterns
Case study #1: Fluency + Word Recognition
HW: Case study #1
Module 12
Word Collection #8: Derived Words
TBA WEEK 11 March 29 (T)
Case study #1 due
Morphemic analysis, syllable patterns cont.
Mastery assignment: Morphemic analysis
HW:
WJ: Dear Ann
Word Collection #9: Syllable patterns
Read in Allington text: How to select vocabulary words
Read in Allington text: Tier 1, 2, and 3 words
TBA
March 31 (Th) Vocabulary pre-test
Vocabulary do-rights
Vocabulary levels (unknown, acquainted, established)
Lean versus rich context clues
Read aloud: The Story of Z
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HM: CP vocabulary support material
Story of Z activities
Module 13
Word Collection activities WEEK 12 April 5 (T)
Case study #2: Vocabulary
Comprehension skills, levels
Read aloud: Dandelion HW:
WJ: Dear Ann
Word Collection #10: Free choice
Take-home quiz April 7 (Th)
Teacher analysis of textual features: page layout, white space, sentence presentation, language features
Read aloud: Crow Boy
Vocabulary activities
HW: Case study #2
Module 14
Take-home quiz
TBA WEEK 13 April 12 (T)
Case study #2 due
Comprehension activities applied with read aloud: TBD
HW:
WJ: “Pretty good” might not be good enough
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WJ: Work on Showcase Writing journal entry to be shared
Take-home quiz
TBA April 14 (Th)
Early writing experiences: lists, writing from a picture
6+1 traits assessment of student writing HW:
Dyslexia reading (D2L pdf. file)
Take-home quiz WEEK 14 April 19(T)
Sharing Day for Writing Journals—3 copies to be randomly distributed to classmates
Dyslexia—preparation for case study
Case study #3: Dyslexia HW:
Case study #3
Take-home quiz April 21 (Th)
Poetry fun + reading comprehension
Review activities for the final
Sample exam items shared
HW: Case study #3
WEEK 15 April 28 (T)
Case study #3 due
Review activities for the final
Sample exam items shared
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HW: TBA April 28 (Th)
End-of-semester review activities to prepare for the final
FINAL EXAM: May 2, 12-2 p.m. Room TBA EDU 330 ASSIGNMENTS
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EDU 330 Emergent Literacy
Spring 2016
Instructor: Ann Ellsworth, Ph.D. Office: 138A Reid Hall Office Phone: 994-5793 Office Hours: Tuesdays/Thursdays 11:30-1:30; other times TBA; also by appointment Email Contact: [email protected] Required Texts (all are available in the MSU Bookstore) 1. EDU 330 Emergent Literacy Coursepack (Ann Ellsworth) 2. Sound It Out (John Savage, most recent edition) 3. What Really Matters for Struggling Readers (Richard Allington, most recent edition) 4. The Reading Teacher's Book of Lists (Ed Fry and Jacqueline Kress, most recent edition) Assignments* Due Dates Surveys (3 points) Throughout the semester Mastery: D'Nealian printing/manuscript (3 points) Week 2 Mastery: Phonics (2 attempts) (5 points) Week 6 Mid-term exam (35 points) Week 7 Mastery: Morphemic analysis (2 attempts) (5 points) Week 13 Quizzes (18 points) Throughout the semester Case study responses (36 points) Throughout the semester Writing Journal (15 points) Throughout the semester Word Collection (10 points) Throughout the semester Final Exam (comprehensive) (70 points) Finals Week/TBA Grading (total points: 200) *Due dates are approximate; they may be adjusted depending on pacing of course topics, etc.
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A 92-100% A- 90-91% B+ 88-89% B 82-87% B- 80-81% C+ 78-79% C 72-77% C- 70-71% To make continuous progress in the Teacher Education Program at Montana State University-Bozeman, students must earn a “C” or better.
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DALY‐MILLERWRITINGAPPREHENSIONTEST(WAT)Directions:Belowareaseriesofstatementsaboutwriting.Therearenorightorwronganswerstothesestatements.Pleaseindicatethedegreetowhicheachstatementappliestoyoubycirclingwhetheryou(1)stronglyagree,(2)agree,(3)areuncertain,(4)disagree,or(5)stronglydisagreewiththestatement.Whilesomeofthesestatementsmayseemrepetitious,takeyourtimeandtrytobeashonestaspossible.Therearenorightorwronganswers.Thankyouforyourcooperationinthismatter.1.Iavoidwriting.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree2.Ihavenofearofmywritingbeingevaluated.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree3.Ilookforwardtowritingdownmyideas.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree4.IamafraidofwritingessayswhenIknowtheywillbeevaluated.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree5.Takingacompositioncourseisaveryfrighteningexperience.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree6.Handinginacompositionmakesmefeelgood.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree7.MymindseemstogoblankwhenIstarttoworkonacomposition.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree8.Expressingideasthroughwritingseemstobeawasteoftime.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree9.Iwouldenjoysubmittingmywritingtomagazinesforevaluationandpublication.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree10.Iliketowritemyideasdown.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree11.Ifeelconfidentinmyabilitytoclearlyexpressmyideasinwriting.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree12.IliketohavemyfriendsreadwhatIhavewritten.
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(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree13.I’mnervousaboutwriting.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree14.PeopleseemtoenjoywhatIwrite.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree15.Ienjoywriting.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree16.Ineverseemtobeabletoclearlywritedownmyideas(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree17.Writingisalotoffun.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree18.IexpecttodopoorlyincompositionclassesevenbeforeIenterthem.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree19.Ilikeseeingmythoughtsonpaper.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree20.Discussingmywritingwithothersisanenjoyableexperience.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree21.Ihaveaterribletimeorganizingmyideasinacompositioncourse.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree22.WhenIhandinacompositionIknowI’mgoingtodopoorly.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree23.It’seasyformetowritegoodcompositions.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree24.Idon’tthinkIwriteaswellasmostotherpeople.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree25.Idon’tlikemycompositionstobeevaluated.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree26.I’mnogoodatwriting.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree
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Daly,J.A.&Miller,M.D.(1975).Theempiricaldevelopmentofaninstrumenttomeasurewritingapprehension.ResearchinTeachingEnglish,9(3),242–249.Retrievedfromhttp://www.jstor.org/stable/40170632
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1.Myelementaryschoolwritingteachersdidagoodjobwhenthey:2.Iwouldhavelearnedmoreabouthowtobecomeabetterwriterifmyteachershad:3.Thebesttwowaysawritingteachercanhelpstudentsis:4.Theworsttwothingsawritingteachercandoare:5(a).Lookingback,Iwishmywritingteacherswouldhave:5(b).Rightnowinmyteachereducationcourses,Iwishmyinstructorswould:6.Thenumberonegoalforawriteris:7.Mymostsignificantmemoryaboutwritingis:8.Thepersonwhohadthemostinfluenceonmywritingis________________________becauses/he:9.Tomethetwomostimportantthingsaboutwritingare:10.WhenIamateacher,thetwomostimportantthingsIcandotohelpstudentswithwritingare:
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WritingmemoriesForeachtimeperiodpleasemakeadrawingthatrepresentsamemoryaboutwriting
Pre‐Kthroughgrade4 Grades5‐8
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Semi‐structuredinterview#1Generalbackgroundinformation:a.Educationalbackground–highschoolsize/gradesb.Yearintheprogramc.Favoriteeducationcourses/whyd.Leastfavoriteeducationcourses/whye.Favoritenon‐educationcourses/whyf.Leastfavoritenon‐educationcourses/why1.Discussionofdrawing:
a. Pre‐K–grade4b. Grades5–8c. Grades9‐12d. College
2.Whattraitsdoyouthinkmakeagoodwriter?3.Whataspectsofwritingdoyoufindeasyorenjoyable?4.Whatexperienceshaveyouhadthatinfluencedthis?5.Whataspectsofwritingdoyoufinddifficultorchallenging?6.Whatexperienceshaveyouhadthatmayhaveinfluencedthis?7.Whattwowordsbestdescribeyouasawriter?8.Whenyouthinkaboutbeingateacher,whatdoyouthinkwillbethetwomostimportantfactorsinteacherwritingtostudents?9.Whatstrengthswillyoubringtoteachingwriting?10.Whatchallengeswillyouhavetoovercome?11.Finishthesentence.Thebestwritingteachers:
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Opening:1.Tellusyournameandyouryearintheprogram.Introductory:2.Whatarethefirstthreethingsthatcometomindwhenyouthinkaboutwriting?3.Writing:positiveornegativeexperience?Why?Transition:
4.Lookingback,whatfactorsmayhaveinfluencedyourfeelingsaboutwriting?Keyquestions:5.Whatdoesthewritingprocesslooklikeforyou?6.Whatpartsofthewritingprocessfeeleasyorenjoyabletoyou?7.Whatpartsofthewritingprocessfeelfrustratingorchallenging?8.Hasyourwritingprocesschanged?Ifso,how?Whatpromptedthosechanges?9.Whatisyourviewofteachingwriting?Inyourfutureclassroom,whatthreethingswillplayakeyroleinwritinginstruction?Endingquestions:10.Ifyouhadachancetogivefuturewritingteachersadvice,whatwouldyousay?11.Movingforward,arethereanychangeswouldyousuggesttoimprovewritinginstructioninourteachereducationprogram?12.Isthereanythingelseanyonewouldliketoaddthatyoudidn’tgetachancetosay?
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Semi‐structuredinterview#21.Whattraitsmakeagoodwriter?2.Whataspectsofwritingdoyoufindeasyorenjoyableatthispoint?3.Whatfactorsinfluencedthis?4.Whataspectsofwritingdoyoufinddifficultorchallengingatthispoint?5.Whatfactorsinfluencedthis?6.Whenyouthinkbacktothebeginningofthesemester,howdidyoufeelaboutwriting?7.Haveyourfeelingsaboutwritingchanged?Ifso,how?8.Whenyouthinkbacktothebeginningofthesemester,howdidyoufeelaboutyourselfasawriter?9.Haveyourfeelingsaboutwritingchanged?Ifso,how?10.Whattwowordswouldyouusetodescribeyourselfasawritertoday?Explainwhy.11.Atthispoint,whatstrengthsdoyoubelieveyouwillbringtoteachingwriting?12.Atthispoint,whatobstacleswillyoustillhavetoovercomeinteachingwriting?13.Whatstepswillyoutaketoovercomethese?14.Pleasefinishthesentence:Thebestwritingteachers:15.WhenIthinkofmyselfasawritingteacher,Iwillalways:16.WhenIthinkofmyselfasawritingteacher,Iwillnever:
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