Preservice Teachers Explore their Conceptions of the Writing Process with Young Pen Pals
Abstract
Linking preservice teachers' professional education with meaningful classroom practice is an important goal of teacher preparation (Burk, 1989; Darling- Hammond, 1997, 1998; Goodlad, 1990; Korthagen & Kessels, 1999). In this study, 44 preservice teachers enrolled in two language arts methods courses were paired as pen pals with two classes of first and second graders for ten weeks. The purpose of the study was to explore the influence of the children's writing on the preservice teachers' conceptions of writing as a complex growth process (Dyson, 1996) rather than a discreet set of skills. Throughout the ten-week study, the preservice teachers examined the developmental nature of the writing process using the six-trait writing analysis (Spandel and Stiggins, 1997), wrote journal entries relating what they were learning about the writing process based on their regular analysis of the children's letters, and engaged in follow-up classroom discussion and peer verification of an on-going assessment of their pen pal's writing. The preservice teachers' participation in a shared classroom experience generated genuine questions and concerns within the context of an authentic approach to teacher preparation (Boyd, Boll, Brawner, & Villaume, 1998). While many preservice teachers began the study thinking of writing as a set of linear skills to teach, their paradigms shifted as they came to recognize the highly predictable and developmental nature of the children's writing evidenced through emerging linguistic patterns and strong student voice.
Reference
Moore, R. A. (2000). Preservice teachers explore their conceptions of the writing process with young pen pals. Literacy Research and Instruction, 40(1), 17-33.
Journal
Literacy Research and Instruction
Analysis
Is this article part of a larger project or series of studies?
no
Does this study draw on a large, preexisting data set?
no
Research Approach
- Pre-test, Intervention, Post-test
- Qualitiative
- Survey
Geographic Setting
Institutional Context
Certification Level
Programatic Focus
- English Language Arts (ELA)
Research Location Context
- ELA methods course
- field-based methods course
Preservice Participants
Preservice Sample Size
44
Other Participant Data
- Cooperating teachers
- Students as pen pals
Duration of Data Collection
Data Sources
- fieldnotes
- journal entries
- Profiles written about students in tutoring (pre and post)
- reflections
- Reflective journals
- Six-Trait Writing Assessment process (Spandel & Stiggins, 2997)
- student work
Data Analysis Tools
- Constant comparative analysis
- Triangulation
Researcher Positionality
Research Questions
"The following research questions served to focus the inquiry and explore the conceptions about children's writing held by preservice teachers as they learned firsthand of the developmental nature of emergent writers" (p. 19)
Is this research question explicit from the manuscript? Yes
"What conceptions did the preservice teachers hold prior to the study about the development of the writing process?" (p. 19)
Is this research question explicit from the manuscript? Yes
"How did on-going analyses of the children's letters shape the preservice teachers conceptions of the development of the writing process and their role as teachers?" (p. 19)
Is this research question explicit from the manuscript? Yes