ERIC Number: EJ1013992
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013-Apr
Pages: 29
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0007-8204
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Supernovas and Superheroes: Examining Unfamiliar Genres and Teachers'
Pedagogical Content Knowledge
Bentley, Erinn
English Education, v45 n3 p218-246 Apr 2013
Within the field of writing teacher education, scholars and practitioners agree that effective writing instructors (at both the P--12 and postsecondary levels) are not simply cognizant of composition pedagogies, rhetorical theories, and their students' unique learning needs. Effective writing instructors also regularly participate--themselves--in the practice of writing. As Tom Romano (2007) explains, "Those who teach a craft ought to do a craft. When teachers of writing write, particularly in the genres they teach, they develop their insider knowledge" (p. 171). Realistically, many inservice English language arts teachers do not have an extensive amount of time to write, reflect on their writing, and translate their "insider knowledge" into pedagogical practices. One place where this type of writing-teaching reflection and development may occur, however, is in the postsecondary classroom. This article describes a graduate-level methods course, in which
middle-grades and secondary-level ELA teachers completed two projects focused on analyzing, composing, and teaching an unfamiliar genre. This study extends current research regarding the use of unfamiliar genres to improve students' writing proficiencies (Bastian, 2010; Beckelhimer,
2011; Fleischer & Andrew-Vaughan, 2006, 2009) by adapting these projects to a new group of writers: inservice ELA teachers. Using a qualitative research design, this study draws upon Grossman's (1990) theoretical framework, pedagogical content knowledge, to name and define four specific ways in which the course's unfamiliar genre projects promoted teachers' "insider knowledge" as writers, thus affecting their beliefs and practices for teaching writing. (Contains 2 figures.)
Descriptors: Pedagogical Content Knowledge, Writing (Composition), Writing Instruction, Teacher Education, Teacher Effectiveness, Graduate Study, Methods Courses, Inservice Teacher Education, Language Arts, English Teachers, Skill Development, Course Descriptions, Teaching Methods, Literary Genres, Qualitative Research, Teacher Attitudes, Case Studies
National Council of Teachers of English. 1111 West Kenyon Road, Urbana, IL 61801-1096. Tel: 877-369-6283; Tel: 217-328-3870; Web site: http://www.ncte.org/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A