A Look within Individual Cases into Elementary Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices of Writing Instruction

Year 2008, Volume: 7 Issue: 2, 512 - 521, 26.06.2008

Demet Seban

Abstract

Teachers’ beliefs are defined as deep philosophical principles or belief systems that guide
teachers’ expectation about student behavior and the host of decisions they make during teaching. The purpose
of this study is to investigate elementary teachers’ beliefs towards teaching writing and their instructional
practices and examine what relationships exist between teachers’ self-reported beliefs about teaching writing,
their instructional practices, professional / educational background, and type of institutional setting. In this study
a qualitative method was employed. Teacher beliefs and practices concerning the teaching of writing were
assessed through interviews and observations. A brief survey was also conducted with a sub-sample of
participants. The data indicated a wide range of perspectives among teachers about writing instruction and there
were significant differences in writing practices of teachers who were belong to same category. The data also
revealed that teachers tended to use more skill-based practices even though this contradicts the self-reported
beliefs.

Keywords

Teachers’ beliefs, writing instruction, elementary

Öğretmenlerin Yazılı Anlatım Öğretimi Hakkındaki İnanç ve Uygulamalarına Durum Çalışmaları Üzerinden Bir Bakış

Abstract

Öğretmen inançları, öğretmenlerin eğitim-öğretim süreci içinde verdikleri kararlar ve öğrenci davranışları ileri sürülen inanç sistemleri veya derin felsefi prensipleri tanımlamak. Bu çalışmanın amacı, ilkokul öğretmenlerinin yazılı anlatımını öğretmek ve öğrenmek inançları ve uygulamaları. hakkında bilgi edinmektir. Ayrıca, öğretmenlerin yazılı anlatım öğretimi hakkında belirttiği düşünceleri ile sınıf uygulamalar, mesleki ve eğitim geçmişleri ve okul türleri arasındaki benzer bir ilişki tespit etmektir. Nitel araştırma yöntemi kullanılmış ve veriler görüşmeler ve sınıf gözlemleri ile toplanmıştır. Veriler öğretmenler arasında yazılı anlatım öğretimi hakkında çok farklı görüşler benimsediklerini ve aynı adlı kişinin yazılı anlatım uygulamalarıyla önemli farklılıklar ortaya çıkıyor koymustur..Mesela. Veriler ayrıca öğretmenlerin benimsedği öğretim şekline aykırı olmasına rağmen beceriyoruz esas alan, öğretmen merkezli öğretim şekli uyguladıklarını gösterebilirsiniz. Öğretmenlerin inançları ve okul öncesi okul türüne göre -devlet veya özel- çok değişikliği göstermediği ama sahip onların eğitimli ve mesleki geçmişlerinin etkili olabileceği gözlenmiştir

Keywords

öğretmen inançları, yazılı anlatım

References

• Bawden, R., Buike, S., & Duffy, G.G. (1979). Teacher conceptions of reading and their influence on instruction (Research Series No. 47). East Lansing: Michigan State University, Institute for Research on Teaching. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED174952).
• Brantlinger, E. (1996). Influence of pre-service teachers’ beliefs about pupil achievement on attitudes toward inclusion. Teacher Education and Special Education, 19(1), 17- 33.
• Brindley, R., & Schnider J. J. (2002). Writing instruction or destruction. Lessons to be learned from fourth-grade teachers’ perspectives on teaching writing. Journal of Teacher Education, 53(4), 328-341.
• Calderhead, J., & Robson, M. (1991). Images of teaching: Student teachers’ early conceptions of classroom practice. Teacher and Teacher Education, 7(1), 1-8.
• Calkins, L. M. (1994). The art of teaching writing. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
• Chomsky, C. (1971). Write now, read later. Childhood Education, 47, 296-299.
• Clark, C. M. (1988). Asking the right questions about teacher preparation: Contributions of research on teacher thinking. Educational Researcher, 17(2), 5-12.
• Davis, M., Konapak, B., & Readence, J. (1993). An investigation of two chapter one teachers’ beliefs about reading and instructional practices. Reading Research and Instruction, 33, 105-188.
• Delpit, L. (1986). Skills and other dilemmas of a progressive Black educator. Harvard Educational Review, 56(4), 379-385.
• Delpit, L. (1988). The silenced dialogue; Power and pedagogy in educating other people’s children. Harvard Educational Review, 58 (3), p. 280-298.
• Deryakulu, D. (2004). Epistemolojik Inançlar. In Y. Kuzgun ve D. Deryakulu (Eds.), Egitimde Bireysel Farklılıklar (pp. 259-287). Ankara: Nobel Yayın-Dagıtım.
• Donlan, D. (1974). Teaching writing in the content areas: Eleven hypotheses from a teacher survey. Research in the Teaching of English, 8(2), 250-262.
• Dreher, J. (1990). Perservice early childhood teachers attitudes toward the process approach to writing. Early Childhood Development and Care, 56, 49-64.
• Dyson, A. H., & Freedman, S. W. (1991). Writing. In J. Flood, J. Jensen, D. Lapp, & J. Squire (Eds.), Handbook of research on teaching the English language arts. (pp. 754-775). New York: Macmillan.
• Fang, Z. (1996). What counts as good writing? A case study of relationships between teacher beliefs and pupil conceptions. Reading Horizons, 36, 249-258.
• Fear, K. L., Anderson, L. M., Englert, C. S., & Raphael, T.E. (1987). Research in literacy: Merging perspectives. 36th Yearbook of National Reading Conference (pp. 255-263). Rochester, NY: National Reading Conference.
• Fitzgerald, J., and Stamm C. (1990). Effects of group conferences on first graders’revision in writing. Written Communication, 7 (1), p. 96-135.
• Flint, A. S., & Cappello, M. (2003). Negotiating voice and identity in classroom writing events. In C. M. Fairbanks, J. Worthy, B. Maloch, J. V. Hoffman and D. L. Schallert (Eds.), National Reading Conference Yearbook, 52, (pp. 181-193). Oak Creek, Wisconsin: National Reading Conference.
• Freedman, A. (1993). Show and tell? The role of explicit teaching in the learning of new genres. Research in the Teaching of English, 27(3), 222-251.
• Graham, R. J. (1999). The self as writer: Assumptions and identities in the writing workshop. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 43(4), 358-364.
• Graham, S. (2000). Should the natural learning approach replace spelling instruction? Journal of Educational Psychology, 92(2), 235-247.
• Graham, S. & Harris, K. R. (1994). Implications of constructivism for teaching writing to students with special needs. The Journal of Special Education, 28(3), p. 275-289.
• Graham, S., Harris, K. R., MacArthur, C., & Fink, B. (2002). Primary grade teachers’ theoretical orientations concerning writing instruction: construct validation and a nationwide survey. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 27, 147-166.
• Graves, D. (1983). Writing: teachers and children at work. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
• Hagemann, J. A. (2003). Balancing content and form in the writing workshop. English Journal, 92 (3) p. 73-79.
• Harp, B., & Brewer, J. (1996). Reading and writing: Teaching for the connections. Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt Brace.
• Harste, J. C., & Burke, C. L. (1977). A new hypothesis for reading teacher research: Both the teaching and learning of reading is theoretically based. In P.D. Pearson (Ed.), Reading: Theory. Research and Practice (pp.32-40), New York: Mason Publishing Company.
• Harste, J. C., Short, K. G., & Burke, C. (1996). Creating classrooms for authors and inquiriers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
• Kinzer, C. (1988). Instructional frameworks and instructional choices: Comparison between preservice and inservice teachers. Journal of Reading Behavior, 20, 357-77.
• Lipa, S. E., & Harlin, R. (1993). Assessment: Insights into teachers’ beliefs and practices. Reading Horizons, 33(3), 195-208.
• Lipson, M. Y., Mosenthal, J., Daniels, P., & Woodside-Jiron, H. (2000). Process writing in the classrooms of eleven fifth-grade teachers with different orientations to teaching and learning. The Elementary School Journal, 101(2), 209-231.
• MacArthur, C., Schwartz, S., & Graham, S. (1991b). Effects of a reciprocal peer revision strategy in special education classrooms. Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, 7, p. 89-95.
• Marzano, R. J. (1991). Language, the language arts, and thinking. In J. Flood, J. M. Jensen, D. Lapp, & J. R. Squire (Eds.), Handbook of research in teaching the language arts (pp. 559-586). New York: Macmillan.
• Merriam, S. (1988). Case study research in education: A qualitative approach. San Fransisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publisher.
• Öngen, D. (2003). Epistemolojik inançlar ile problem çözme stratejileri arasındaki ilikiler, Eitim Fakültesi örencileri üzerinde bir çalıma, E
  itim Aratırmaları, 13, 155-162.
• Pajares, M. F. (1992). Teachers’ beliefs and educational research: Cleaning up a messy construct. Review of Educational Research, 62(3), 307-332.
• Porter, A. C., & Freeman, D. J. (1986). Professional orientations: An essential domain for teacher testing. Journal of Negro Education, 55(3), 284-292
• Spiegel, D. (1992). Blending whole language and systematic direct instruction. The Reading Teacher, 46, p. 38-44.
• Tabachnick, B. R., & Zeichner, K. M. (1984). The impact of the student teaching experience on the development of teacher perspectives. Journal of Teacher Education, 35(6), 28-36.
• Wing, L. A. (1989). The influence of preschool teachers’ beliefs on young children’s conceptions of reading and writing. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 4, 61-74.