Recitation and Reasoning in Novice History Teachers' Use of Writing

Abstract

Using artifacts of teachers' practices, classroom observations, and interviews, we explore how 2 novice history teachers use writing in their middle school classrooms. Both teachers focused on evidence-based, interpretive writing in their preservice work, an approach promoted by their methods courses. After graduation, one teacher continued this focus and improved his ability to scaffold his students' essay writing. The second teacher emphasized summary of content and proper formatting in her use of writing, although some of her assignments integrated evidence-based interpretive writing. These case studies illustrate how 2 similarly prepared teachers convey entirely different notions of history through their use of writing. These teachers' school contexts and disciplinary understandings influence their use of writing. Their experiences make the case for integrating general literacy skills with disciplinary literacy and practicing historical writing instruction in different contexts during teacher education in order to meet the demands novices face in diverse school contexts.