Fantasy or reality? The use of enterprise in education as an alternative to simulated and imaginary contexts for raising pupil attainment in functional writing

Abstract

Much of the debate surrounding the use of contexts for pupils' writing focuses on the need for purpose, relevance and a sense of audience outwith the immediate classroom environment. This article seeks to explore whether there is any evidence to suggest that the use of enterprise in education may have a greater beneficial effect on the quality of pupils' functional writing than other types of contexts in the primary school. The author reports on the assessment data emerging from a small, exploratory case study of 50 pupils, and the interview data emerging from a wider sample of 130 pupils and their teachers. Although the findings are tentative, the emerging data suggest that some short‐term benefits may emerge from enterprise contexts for some children, but that other strategies may result in as much, if not more, benefit to others.