Browsing by Subject "writing"
Now showing items 1-3 of 3
-
(2014)Writing is one of the most important skills learned in school. Studies have indicated that pupils' writing skills need improvement which evokes to observe the practices of teaching writing. This thesis contemplates the teaching of writing from the feedback's point of view. The goal of my thesis is to find out what kind of conceptions the sixth-graders have about the feedback they receive from writing and how pupils describe the meaning and effectiveness of feedback. Research type was qualitative study. Data was gathered from three different classes by using method of empathy-based stories. Data consists of 69 pupils empathy-based stories that deals with response given from the opinion essays. Material was analysed by using qualitative theory-guided content analysis. Study indicated that according to pupils' stories feedback wasn't given until the text was finished. Response consisted mainly of text evaluation. In the pupils' stories the response was given verbally and in writing generally by classmates and the teacher. Besides the content of the text and pupils working effort, the feedback was often focused on opinions in the text. When feedback was given by the classmates it was sometimes targeted at the pupil receiving the response and contained inappropriate features such as mocking. Empathy-based stories showed that feedback clearly had a meaning but experience of the feedback may consist of many different factors. In the story conceptions and expectations considering the feedback had the most influence on pupil's experience. In most cases feedback had an effect on pupil's experience at emotional level. In the stories feedback was also seen to have an influence on future writing, pupil's self-esteem, conception of feedback and person giving it. The results showed that the pupils have lots of resources to reflect the quality of the feedback and its meaning for the writer. According to the stories the benefit of feedback was tangential from the writings point of view and the idea of giving feedback was in accordance with conventional evaluative feedback. I think the results support the idea that feedback should be more firm part of the actual writing process. The person receiving the feedback should be more active and the pupils' aptitudes to utilize the feedback should be supported more.
-
(2016)Goals. The writing performance level of Finnish schoolchildren, especially of boys, has been an area of concern over the past few years. The present study is part of a longitudinal intervention study (RoKKi), which has created an encouraging feedback model for trying to find ways to enhance writing skills. Research has shown that writing self-efficacy and writing performance are related, so this study will examine whether the encouraging feedback model will improve the self- efficacy of the students. A central element of the encouraging feedback model is peer feedback. The idea is that the pupils feel that attention is being paid to what they have written. Pupil experience has not figured significantly as an issue in writing research, so this study will tackle that subject as well. Methods. The study was carried out in three 5th-grade classes between autumn 2011 and autumn 2012. The established class had already used the encouraging feedback model before the study, while the treatment class started to use it at the beginning of the intervention. In the control class, the teacher gave feedback according to a more traditional manner. The data consists of four measures of self-efficacy and writing experience. They were analysed using one-way ANOVA, repeated measures ANOVA, t-tests and the equivalent nonparametric tests. Results and conclusions. The encouraging intervention didn't have a statistically significant effect on the self-efficacy beliefs of the 5th-graders. However, the self-efficacy in the established class was higher and the writing experiences were statistically significantly higher than in the other two classes. In the established class, the experiences remained positive regardless of the genre that was being exercised whereas, in the control group, not even the normally positively experienced genre of story could improve the writing experience of the boys. The intervention seemed to have a positive effect for boys in particular, but one needs to take into account that the starting level of the self-efficacy of the boys in the test class was also high, which is exceptional in the light of earlier research. In the control class, the girls had much higher levels of self-efficacy and better writing experiences than the boys whereas, in the established class, the results were quite even. The positive writing experiences and self-efficacy beliefs – and the equality of the genders – in the established class suggest that the encouraging feedback model might be of value in long-term use.
-
(2011)Objectives. In primary education the pupils form a basis for their writing skills. By assessing pupils' writing skills the teacher gathers information about the development of their skills and notices possible learning disabilities. The assessment of writing skills requires both knowledge of different evaluation methods and the phonological system in Finnish language. The purpose of this study is to analyze the pupils' writing skills and different assessment methods that help the teacher in writing evaluation. The pupils' writing skills are viewed from spelling, composing and writing motivation's point of view. Methods. The research material consists of dictation exercises, written stories and writing motivation self-assessments of 19 pupils. Dictation exercises measured the spelling skills of pupils and they were written in the spring of the first grade and the autumn of the second grade. Dictation exercises were analyzed with two different methods: mistake analysis and word-structure analysis. Information of pupils spelling skills' development was gathered by comparing their performance in autumn's dictation exercise to spring's dictation. Composing skills were measured with stories that the pupils wrote. Both the stories and the writing motivation's self-assessment were made in the autumn of the second grade. Composing skills were analyzed according to assessment criteria formed for this study. Results. The spelling skill of most of the pupils had developed from the first grade's spring to the second grade's autumn. The spelling skills of half of the pupils (N=9) had improved significantly. The composing skills of the pupils varied largely. Strongest part of the pupils' composing skill was following instructions and the weakest part was the use of versatile vocabulary and clause structures. The girls outdid the boys in all segments of their composing skills. For most pupils their spelling skill reflected their composing skill: good spellers were also good story writers. The relation between writing motivation and general writing skill was not this simple: some pupils (N=5) writing motivation was much higher than what would have been expected based on their writing skills.
Now showing items 1-3 of 3