Data and Pedagogical Practice News

Spoken and written communication function to convey meaning. It can be thought that spoken language is acquired naturally and informally. In contrast, written language can be thought of as an invention and therefore one that must be taught. Whether this is true or not, one thing for sure is that the mechanisms for oral language occur much earlier than those required for writing, and as such if we allow for greater focus on written language, improvements in these mechanisms will occur over time (Kern, 2000). At Marist College Ashgrove, we want to cultivate good habits of writing. Not only will this give our boys the skills for creative thinking and expression, it will more importantly, promote their sensorimotor memory. This is important for learning as it is the feedback we obtain from our senses, muscles and brain and when writing is embedded throughout our curriculum, it promotes the brain’s attentive focus to classwork, boosts memory, allows for reflection and is a source of conceptual development and stimulus of the brain’s highest cognition (Willis, 2011).

Throughout the course of the next Semester, students in Years 5, 7 and 9 will participate in a ‘Drop Everything and Write’ initiative. Studies have shown that when writing becomes a key focus, over time, students will not only improve written language use but also have higher levels of vocabulary, reading comprehension and spelling (Joshi et al, 2006). At 11:10 am (Years 5 and 9) and 1:40 pm (Year 7) students will stop work and be provided with a writing prompt or stimulus to write continuously for 10 minutes. 

Your son will be provided with an exercise book, which he will be required to carry with him throughout the course of the day and write in when it is time to ‘Drop Everything and Write’. The classroom teacher will be supported by other staff members to assist in checking your son’s writing. Teachers will be looking for correct grammar and punctuation, sentence structures, and paragraph formation. Improving our students' writing has implications for performance across all areas of the school curriculum.

There are also things that you can do at home to help support your son’s spoken and written communication skills. Two of these include:

• Promoting reading – good writers are often avid readers because they are exposed to new vocabulary in context. Encourage your son to read for 20 minutes each night.
• Journaling – allows for young people to practise their writing skills and helps generate ideas.

We would like to encourage you to check your son’s writing each week and discuss with them what they have written and why.

Joshi, R.M., Aaron, P.G., Hill, N. et al. Drop Everything and Write (DEAW): an innovative program to improve literacy skills. Learn Inq 2, 1 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11519-007-0024-y

Kern, r. (2000). Literacy and Language Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press

Wills, J. (2011). Metacognition and Sensorimotor Components Underlying the Process of Handwriting and Keyboarding and Their Impact on Learning. An Analysis from the Perspective of Embodied Psychology. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273524630_Metacognition_and_Sensorimotor_Components_Underlying_the_Process_of_Handwriting_and_Keyboarding_and_Their_Impact_on_Learning_An_Analysis_from_the_Perspective_of_Embodied_Psychology [accessed Feb 15 2021].