Understanding discourse knowledge and its role in writing among first-graders
Date
2016
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Theoretical models of early writing support the importance of discourse knowledge to writing (Bereiter & Scardamalia, 1987; Berninger & Winn, 2006). However, there is limited research on beginning writers’ understanding of discourse knowledge and its relationship to writing outcomes. This study aims to explore: 1) what first-grade students' level of discourse knowledge is when they start school and how that knowledge develops across a school year; 2) whether first-grade students' discourse knowledge is predictive of end-of-year writing outcomes. 380 first-grade students participated in the study. Each student was given a six-question discourse knowledge interview and a battery of assessments in handwriting fluency, spelling, reading, vocabulary and writing. Descriptive statistics and paired-sample t-tests were used to understand first-grade students' discourse knowledge in the fall and its change across a school year. Hierarchical Linear Modeling was employed to investigate whether discourse knowledge is predictive of students' narrative and descriptive writing. Results showed that first-graders had limited but emerging discourse knowledge with slow development across the school year. Discourse knowledge was found predictive of writing, but its predictive role depended on the type and genre of end-of-year writing outcomes. The findings could contribute to our understanding of young students' writing knowledge, and could offer teachers insight into first-grade writing instruction. Keywords: discourse knowledge, narrative writing, descriptive writing, first grade