‘‘She’s sort of dragging me into the story!’’ Student teachers’ experiences of reading aloud in Key Stage 2 classes

Abstract

This article explores the place of the class novel within the current primary curriculum. It begins with an overview of past and current thinking about reading aloud to older primary-age children. The discussion then moves on to describing research carried out with 43 primary postgraduate student teachers, which aimed to investigate the students’ school experiences of observing reading aloud and working on whole narrative texts. Lastly, the article focuses on how the findings influenced changes made to a postgraduate primary course in order to support and develop students’ understanding of the role that reading aloud plays in developing children’s critical understanding of story.

Reference

Collins, F. M. (2005). ‘‘She’s sort of dragging me into the story!’’ Student teachers’ experiences of reading aloud in Key Stage 2 classes. Literacy, 39(1), 10-17.

Journal

Literacy

Analysis

Is this article part of a larger project or series of studies?

Does this study draw on a large, preexisting data set?

Research Approach

Descriptive study

Geographic Setting

England

Institutional Context

University based

Certification Level

Primary (UK term)

Programatic Focus

Research Location Context

field placements (not related to methods courses)
Practicum experience
student teaching placement schools

Preservice Participants

Preservice Sample Size

Duration of Data Collection

1 semester

Data Sources

Observations
Questionnaire

Data Analysis Tools

Descriptive Analysis

Researcher Positionality

inside (staying their own students)

Research Questions

to investigate the students’ school experiences of observing reading aloud and working on whole narrative texts.
Is this research question explicit from the manuscript? Yes