Young Authors Online: Exploring the Meaning Making Process Through Positionings in Place and Space

Abstract

Abstract Identity studies in education are germane to interpreting how adolescent writers perceive their lives, culture, and, in literacy, their schooling and educational goals. Positioning theory analysis helps reveal both tacit and explicit patterns of meaning making as authors collaborate and craft creative writing artifacts shared as blog posts. In this study of interactions around the digital writing of young authors aged 12 to 16 years, participants self-selected writing topics and genres from nondominant culture through a connected learning design. Transformations of power structures occurred along storylines as writers positioned themselves and others while taking on new tasks. This study looks at conversation around writing in terms of people, their modes of embodiment, the online writing context, and compares the establishment of rights and duties located in the physical space where participants gathered to those established on the Internet blog space.