Abstract
This article uses a discursive lens to illuminate how writing and the writing child is constructed in different texts since the nineteenth century. The concept ‘image’ is used as an analytical tool to gain perspective on dominant ideas about children as writers and their educational writing practices. These images are produced in educational practices, theories of writing, societal conceptions and didactic models, which together are referred to as a formation. The article ends by reflecting upon what consequences may be seen if taking a critical child perspective. The article provides an analysis against which writing teachers, teacher educators and researchers can gain a perspective on dominant ideas about young writers and their educational writing practices.Abstract: This article uses a discursive lens to illuminate how writing and the writing child is constructed in different texts since the nineteenth century. The concept 'image' is used as an analytical tool to gain perspective on dominant ideas about children as writers and their educational writing practices. These images are produced in educational practices, theories of writing, societal conceptions and didactic models, which together are referred to as a formation. The article ends by reflecting upon what consequences may be seen if taking a critical child perspective. The article provides an analysis against which writing teachers, teacher educators and researchers can gain a perspective on dominant ideas about young writers and their educational writing practices.
Highlights
YOUNG CHILDREN’S WRITING EVENTS Writing is discerned as a major issue in the national curriculum of Sweden (Swedish National Agency for Education, 2009a), as well as a key competence in the Recommendation of the European Parliament and of the Council (European Commission, 2006)
Writing appears to have escaped from being problematized in relation to what constitutes writing in young children’s educational writing practices; practices which have embedded thoughts and ideas about writing as well as about young children as writers
We know nothing about our future, there is no doubt that writing will be essential for individuals as well as for society in large. This is one reason, Kress argues, why it is important to scrutinize the debate as well as problematize the talking and thinking about writing. Another reason is that as young children make their paths into writing they do learn how to write, they learn something about what writing is in different settings, educational as well as in out-ofschool settings (1997)
Summary
School-master Stav starts to dictate as soon as Martin and his classmates are seated, “He has beans in his sieve to eat with his tough meat, and receives with pleasure and relief the beams of the sun through the boughs.” (Martinsson, 1935/ 1936, p. 197). Researchers and educators were seeking the best methods and procedures in order to make it possible for children to reach the predetermined outcomes, as in spelling and handwriting (Ewald & Garme, 2007; Luke, Carrington & Kapitzke, 2003) From this point of view, research on writing often regarded the learning of mechanics of translating, either speech into writing or meaning into visual symbols (Sperling & Freedman, 2001). The Påhlman’s writing method showed how to reach the best outcomes in handwriting through detailed prescriptions for correct penmanship and muscular training movements (Påhlman, 1939) In summarizing this formation, the dominant image of a young adult writer has the quality of expressing a sense of form and structure, showing a writing child in need of external skills such as spelling, syntax, phonological awareness and handwriting, primarily learned through methods affixed to it. The writing child will in this way be imperceptible for the benefit of a young adult writer – a young adult writer which involves knowing the basic skills of writing
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