For Love of the Word: English Teaching, Affect and Writing

Teachers as writers: a systematic review

“…Two studies found that teachers of English/literacy were more likely to present themselves as keen readers than keen writers. The majority of secondary trainees in Gannon and Davies' (2007) study cited a love of reading as their motive for becoming English teachers -only 10 of 73 mentioned writing in their responses. They were more likely to describe their strengths in reading and the satisfaction afforded by reading than any equivalent in writing.…”

“…74% of prospective teachers in Gardner's (2014) study referred to affective dimensions, identifying the expression of emotion in writing, the feelings induced by the act of writing and the effect of past experience of writing as significant. Gannon and Davies (2007) observed the strong positive affects of 'love', 'enchantment' 'passion' and 'immersion' which characterised the writing dispositions of teachers who were also accomplished authors. This contrasts markedly with the negative emotions expressed by many less confident teachers.…”

“…By contrast, a practising teacher in Cremin and Baker's (2010) study attributed her growth in confidence to a single teacher and his commitment to writing tutorials. The successful teacher-writers in Gannon and Davies' (2007) study cited inspirational teachers as important contributors to their love of writing; 22 of the 73 trainee teachers questioned mentioned a teacher/s, many by name, who had brought them to a love of English (although not explicitly writing).…”

“…One experienced teacher in Cremin and Baker's (2010) study recalled writing at primary school with 'horror' and could bring to mind no positive memories of writing at secondary school either; he began to find value and enjoyment in writing only when afforded greater freedom as an undergraduate. Only four of the 48 trainees surveyed by Gannon and Davies (2007) recalled high school as the site of their most enjoyable or successful writing whereas almost half identified university. Teachers often linked enjoyment or dislike of school writing with particular writing pedagogies, associating negative memories with teachers who emphasised 'prescriptive correctness over meaning and expression' (Street 2003, 42) or 'secretarial skills…over content' (Gardner 2014, 141).…”

What we know about teaching writing

“…Not all those experiences were positive or transfer well into today's classrooms. Gannon and Davies (2007) show that many teachers are drawn to teach English by a love of reading but are less enthusiastic about writing and often lack assurance as writers. When teachers develop such an assurance however, this can, scholars argue, have a positive effect on their teaching (Andrews, 2008 Cremin and Baker (2010) and Pritchard (1987) suggest that when teachers readily engage in writing themselves, they come to reconsider and transform their pedagogic practice and may show increased empathy for younger writers.…”