PhD project which focuses on how first-grade pupils write for real audiences and how they develop audience awareness when provided with a play-based writing instruction.
The primary aim of the project is to contribute to the development of empirical knowledge about how first-grade students write for real audiences and develop audience awareness when provided with a functional and play-based writing instruction.
I also seek to investigate how teachers’ instructional practices support students’ writing development, with particular emphasis on audience orientation.
Norwegian and international research shows that children starting school encounter highly unequal opportunities for writing when they enter first grade. The final report from the evaluation of the six-year-old reform (Bjørnstad et al., 2024) describes a ‘writing instruction in uphill terrain,’ noting limited opportunities for writing during the autumn semester of first grade.
At the same time, findings indicate that teachers who allow students to create their own texts in the classroom see gains in writing competence, including technical skills (Bingham et al., 2017).
Method
The project is practice-oriented and conducted in collaboration with first-grade teachers. Emphasis will be placed on the role of functional writing within play, and the role of play within functional writing. Examples of texts include letters, invitations, research reports, applications, and similar genres. Various framed play scenarios will be facilitated, such as shop, hospital, or restaurant play.
The teachers implement the instruction, while the researchers act as participating observers, collecting students’ texts, taking photographs, and recording using GoPro cameras. To capture teachers’ experiences with writing instruction and their perceptions of functional and play-based writing pedagogy, teacher interviews will also be conducted.”
Hanna Myklebust Våland's publications (nva.sikt.no).
Randi Solheim (NTNU)
