Writing lessons : case studies of beginning teachers
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- This longitudinal, comparative case study of two large teacher preparation programs investigates how elementary teachers learn to teach writing. I follow nine teachers through their preservice preparation and first year of teaching. Using a cultural-historical activity theory framework (Engeström, 2001), I analyze settings for learning to teach writing in order to illuminate the features within and across settings that support or constrain learning. At the end of the preservice year, differences in teacher learning between cohorts were due to the degree of alignment between the methods course and the field placement and to the quality of instruction in the methods course. Importantly, I found that teachers in the stronger preparation program developed a cohesive set of tools, or conceptual framework for writing instruction, while graduates of the weaker program had a very limited repertoire of tools for teaching writing. This framework remained stable through the first year and guided teachers' decision-making. However, graduates from both programs needed more support in learning to teach writing across the grades and in acquiring the subject-matter knowledge needed to teach writing. Teachers entered the field with a tenuous grasp on how to teach writing, and their teaching quality in the first year depended largely on school and district support. Teachers who had focused grade-level and school/district support fared better than teachers who worked in settings that were unsupportive or settings that were supportive but unfocused. Writing curriculum played a significant role in many teachers' practices, regardless of other supports. Curricular materials varied in terms of the features of practice that were highlighted and the degree to which these features were explained. These differences afforded different opportunities for learning. Directions for future research and implications and for teacher education, administration, policy, and curriculum are discussed.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Form | electronic; electronic resource; remote |
| Extent | 1 online resource. |
| Publication date | 2010 |
| Issuance | monographic |
| Language | English |
Creators/Contributors
| Associated with | Hebard, Heather Tiffany |
|---|---|
| Associated with | Stanford University, School of Education. |
| Primary advisor | Grossman, Pamela L. (Pamela Lynn), 1953- |
| Thesis advisor | Grossman, Pamela L. (Pamela Lynn), 1953- |
| Thesis advisor | Borko, Hilda |
| Thesis advisor | Juel, Connie |
| Thesis advisor | Murata, Aki |
| Advisor | Borko, Hilda |
| Advisor | Juel, Connie |
| Advisor | Murata, Aki |
Subjects
| Genre | Theses |
|---|
Bibliographic information
| Statement of responsibility | Heather Tiffany Hebard. |
|---|---|
| Note | Submitted to the School of Education. |
| Thesis | Thesis (Ph.D.)--Stanford University, 2010. |
| Location | electronic resource |
Access conditions
- Copyright
- © 2010 by Heather Tiffany Hebard
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
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