‘Playing the Game called Writing’: Children’s Views and Voices

Abstract

Teachers' perceptions of their changing practice in the context of the National Literacy Strategy have been well documented in recent years. However, few studies have collected pupils' views or voices. As part of a collaborative research and development project into the teaching and learning of writing, 390 primary pupils' views were collected. A marked difference in attitude to writing and self-esteem as writers was found between Key Stages 1 and 2, as well as a degree of indifference and disengagement from in-school writing for some KS2 writers. A strong desire for choice and greater autonomy as writers was expressed and a preference for narrative emerged. This part of the research project 'We're Writers' has underlined the importance of listening to pupils' views about literacy, in order to create a more open dialogue about language and learning, and to negotiate the content of the curriculum in response to their perspectives.

Boys as writers: perspectives on the learning and teaching of writing in three primary schools

“…Where teachers recognised boys as individuals, they did not base their judgements on a stereotype. Rather, they sought to better understand the reasons for the boys' reluctance to write, through a constructive dialogue with the children (Flutter, ; Grainger et al, ; Rudduck and Flutter, ). This gave the teachers a better understanding of the issues the boys faced and how practice might be adapted to improve things for them.…”

“…Although the teachers were aware of the restrictions of SATs testing and the NLS programme of teaching, (D'Arcy, ; Grainger et al, ; Moss, ), they did not allow this to dominate their practice nor did they adapt their practice based on gendered assumptions about boys and their writing, a practice criticised by many writers (Lingard, Martino, and Mills, ; Martino, ; Watson, Kehler, and Martino, ). Rather, they adapted their practice to best meet the needs of the individual children they taught.…”

“…The underachievement of boys in writing, in comparison with girls, over the last two decades in the UK, has been well documented (DfES, ; Gorman et al, ; Ofsted, ). If, as some have suggested, there is a link between negative attitudes to writing and lower achievement (Clark and Dugdale, ; Gorman et al, ; Moss, ; Ofsted, ; Ofsted, ), we need to better understand what shapes boys' attitudes and what helps and hinders their literacy learning, most importantly by seeking the views of the pupils themselves (Flutter, ; Grainger, Gouch, and Lambirth, ; Robinson, ; Rudduck and Flutter, ).…”

“…Research suggests that there are benefits from consulting with children to find out how they are feeling about their literacy learning (Rudduck and Flutter (), Grainger et al () and Flutter (); but Robinson () found that the impact of this in teachers' classroom practice had been limited. Nevertheless, constraints on teachers' time and autonomy, as a result of Government interventions such as the National Literacy Strategy (NLS) (DfEE, ), have led to less flexibility in the classroom for teachers to adapt their practice to meet the needs of the children they teach (D'Arcy, ; Grainger et al, ; Moss, ). The politicisation of the teaching and assessment of writing and the constraints this has placed on teachers were very evident in our study (Edwards, ).…”

Editorial

“…In addition, some researchers have expressed concern about the reduction in opportunities for extended writing (Frater, 2000) and the lack of independence and choice offered young writers (Fisher, 2006). Worryingly, there is evidence to suggest that children in school may simply be ''playing the game called writing'' (Grainger et al, 2003), while engaging in more diverse forms of written communication at home (Dowdall, 2006). The over-emphasis on writing as a product also appears to have adversely affected teachers' and student teachers' perceptions of writing (Grainger et al, 2005;Turvey, 2008) and may have limited their practice as a consequence.…”