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Feedback on writing in the virtual classroom. “It became a new way of thinking of learning for me as a teacher”

Research topic/aim

The Covid-19-pandemic gave desires to stive for new pedagogical and didactic ways and habits of literacy use in classroom teaching. In this paper I explore the linking of teachers' feedback on writing and students' achievement of disciplinary literacy in social sciences in virtual classroom teaching at upper secondary school. The aim is to turn attention to the influence of the teachers' feedback as a tool for thinking, talking and meaning-making to develop disciplinary literacy (Shanahan & Shanahan, 2008, 2012; Sandahl, 2015; Gibbons, 2006) in students collective writing for learning. Questions asked are:

• How does the teacher use feedback in writing to contribute to the students' knowledge development?
• What function does the use of text and collective writing have in the virtual teaching?
• How are the use of digital breakout rooms reshaping classroom teaching? 

Theoretical framework

This study takes a multimodal approach to learning and digitalisation in the classroom (Jewitt, 2006; Bezemer & Kress, 2016; Jewitt & Kress, 2003; Nordmark, 2023). In accordance with Jewitt and Kress (2003), four aspects for representing meaning are considered: materiality, framing, design, and production.

Methodological design

Data were collected in 2020-2022 and consist of classroom audio recordings in social science during the pandemic, and post-pandemic video recordings. In total 7 lessons and 10 video recorded interviews with students.

Expected conclusions/findings

Preliminary findings, the teacher's feedback on writing during the students' text composition is highly appreciated and seen as very valuable. Also that the teacher in virtual teaching classroom is always present as an expert who helps the students to develop the text and answer questions. The text-oriented teaching contributes to students gaining access to more complex forms of text and text composition through social studies subject concepts and thinking tools. Students identify writing in social studies as focused on the content and not on form and structure.

Relevance to Nordic educational research

This study is relevant in a Nordic context and contributes to greater understanding of how virtual classroom teaching requires language awareness, and teachers planning for students' active participation to scaffold learning in disciplinary literacy.

References

Gibbons, P. (2006). Stärk språket, stärk lärandet. Språk- och kunskapsutvecklande arbetssätt för och med andraspråkselever i klassrummet. Hallgren & Fallgren. 

Jewitt, C. (2006). Technology, Literacy, Learning. A Multimodal Approach. Routledge.

Jewitt, C. & Kress, G. (2003). Multimodal literacy. Peter Lang. 

Jewitt, C., Bezemer, J. & O´Halloran, K. (2016). Introducing Multimodality. Routledge. 

Nordmark, M. (2023). Legitimation of digitalisation in education. A case study of vocational student teachers´lesson plans. Utbildning & Lärande, 17(1), 65–83. https://doi.org/10.58714/ul.v17i1.12757

Sandahl, J. (2015). Medborgarbildning i gymnasiet. Ämneskunnande och medborgarbildning i gymnasieskolans samhälls- och historieundervisning. [Doktorsavhandling, Stockholms universitet]

Shanahan, C. & Shanahan, T. (2008). Teaching Disciplinary Literacy to Adolescents: Rethinking Content Area Literacy. Harvard Educational Review, 78(1), 40­–59. 

Shanahan, T. & Shanahan, C. (2012). What is Disciplinary Literacy and Why Does it Matter? Topics in Language Disorders, 32(1), 7-18.

Over the last few decades, Higher Education institutions in Sweden and across the globe have been working on widened participation, sustainable development, and increased accessibility to university studies. The impact of these initiatives can be seen in today’s student populations, which are characterised by diversity and a wider range of academic skills. Other effects, however, include (a) concerns about lowering standards, (b) a discourse of deficit that focuses on the knowledge and skills students lack, and (c) a remedial approach to tackle said deficits. A common (mis)conception is that students lack language skills (e.g., language proficiency, writing skills) and that referring students to writing centres will solve the issue. However, research (e.g., Blåsjö, 2004; Barton, 2007; Shanahan & Shanahan, 2012; Wingate, 2012; Catell, 2013; Solheim et al. 2022) shows that integrating literacy efforts within disciplines is a more effective way to scaffold student learning. 

This presentation reports on preliminary findings from an ongoing empirical study on teaching practices for the development of university student’s academic literacies in the social sciences. In particular, the focus is on the changing views of teaching staff on scaffolding and the role of academic literacies in the students’ learning journey. 

The study rests on Academic Literacies (Lea & Street, 1998; Lillis, 2003; Lea, 2004; Eklund Heinonen et al., 2018) as its theoretical framework. The data consists of: (a) video-recorded ethnographic interviews with two lecturers in an undergraduate programme in the Social Sciences; (b) text analyses of, e.g., assignment instructions, feedback provided by lecturers, and samples of student writing; and (c) workshop-style sessions where the informants were given opportunities to explore hands-on strategies to scaffold the development of their students’ academic literacies.

The results show a change from a discourse of deficit and a remedial approach to integrating academic literacies in the discipline. More specifically, the findings illustrate the lecturers’ changing views in relation to:

1.    The students’ needs: From basic proficiency to disciplinary practices. 

2.    The lecturers’ own abilities: From outsourcing to collaboration.

3.    Teaching practices: Modelling, strategy use, and formative feedback emerge as useful scaffolding tools. 

4.    The role of writing in the development of content knowledge.

This study highlights the benefits of a collaboration between researchers at a writing centre and subject lecturers. The results show that applied linguistics can contribute to scaffolding the students’ learning journey by fostering engagement with disciplinary discourse to build disciplinary knowledge.

Som en följd av Covid-19-pandemin har behov av mer kunskaper om undervisning och digitalisering i den svenska skolan uppmärksammats. Syftet med presentationen är att med fokus på ämneslitteracitet (Shanahan & Shanahan, 2008, 2012) synliggöra hur gymnasielärare i samhällskunskap genom digitala breakout-rum, som mötesplatser, skapar möjligheter till handledning av elever i språk- och kunskapsutveckling (Gibbon, 2006). Studien är en del av det pågående och praktiknära projektet Digitala resurser i undervisningen där 13 lärare och en forskare samarbetar kring utvecklande av nya kunskaper om multimodalitet, literacy och lärande i klassrummet (Jewitt, 2002; Bezemer, Kress & O´Halloran, 2016; Jewitt & Kress, 2003; Nordmark, 2023). I denna delpresentation består materialet av sju klassrumsobservationer vid grupparbete i digital undervisning, en klass under pandemin och en klass efter pandemin, samt 10 videoinspelade intervjuer med elever. För denna delstudie har videoinspelade undervisningssekvenser valts ut för fördjupad analys med fokus på ämnesord och samhällsvetenskapliga tankeredskap (Sandahl, 2015). Särskilt intresse läggs på hur lärarens språkutvecklande handledning kan bidra till elevernas kunskapsutveckling i ämnet. De preliminära resultaten visar att när läraren börjar använda breakout-rum i undervisningen uppmärksammas didaktiska värden i elevers gemensamma skrivande samt integreras läsande, samtalande, lyssnande och skrivande med olika modaliteter. Breakout-rummen främjar mångfald genom att läraren ges möjlighet att uppmärksamma och ge feed forward till både enskilda elever och samtliga grupper under en och samma lektion. Användningen av breakout-rum uppfattas av lärare och elever som främjande för literacy engagement och literacy achievement (Cummins, 2015).

Nyckelord: breakout-rum, ämneslitteracitet, språk- och kunskapsutvecklande arbetssätt, multimodalitet, lärande

Referenser

Cummins, J. (2015). Language Differences that Influence Reading Development. I P. Afflerbach Handbook of Individual Differences in Reading, Reader, Text, and Context, (s. 223–244). Routledge.

Gibbons, P. (2006). Stärk språket, stärk lärandet. Språk- och kunskapsutvecklande arbetssätt för och med andraspråkselever i klassrummet. Hallgren & Fallgren. 

Jewitt, C. (2006). Technology, Literacy, Learning. A Multimodal Approach. Routledge.

Jewitt, C. & Kress, G. (2003). Multimodal literacy. Peter Lang. 

Jewitt, C., Bezemer, J. & O´Halloran, K. (2016). Introducing Multimodality. Routledge. 

Nordmark, M. (2023). Legitimation of digitalisation in education. A case study of vocational student teachers´lesson plans. Utbildning & Lärande, 17(1), 65–83. https://doi.org/10.58714/ul.v17i1.12757

Sandahl, J. (2015). Medborgarbildning i gymnasiet. Ämneskunnande och medborgarbildning i gymnasieskolans samhälls- och historieundervisning. [Doktorsavhandling, Stockholms universitet]

Shanahan, C. & Shanahan, T. (2008). Teaching Disciplinary Literacy to Adolescents: Rethinking Content Area Literacy. Harvard Educational Review, 78(1), 40­–59. 

Shanahan, T. & Shanahan, C. (2012). What is Disciplinary Literacy and Why Does it Matter? Topics in Language Disorders, 32(1), 7-18.

Research topic/aim

Digitalisation in education has been studied in terms of how it affects multimodality, literacy, and learning in the classroom (Jewitt, 2002; Bezemer & Kress, 2016; Jewitt & Kress, 2003).

The Covid 19 pandemic highlighted the need for greater knowledge about digitalisation in education in Swedish schools. The change from face-to-face teaching to virtual teaching put a critical spotlight on teacher’s knowledge of didactic choices (Hodges et al., 2020).

Here are presented preliminary results from ongoing practice-based research project ‘Digital resources in teaching’. 13 teachers at upper secondary school, together with a researcher, collaborated to make use of teacher knowledge of digital resources acquired during the pandemic. Challenges and opportunities were identified for scaffold language and scaffold learning (Gibbons, 2006). This presentation aims at discussing the use of digital breakout rooms in teaching, its implications for teachers and their pupils, with special focus on participation and engagement.

Theoretical framework

This study takes a multimodal approach to learning as its theoretical point of departure. Based on the notion of multimodal literacy (Jewitt & Kress, 2003), the study analyses how digital resources in a range of modes contribute to the shaping of knowledge and what it means to be a teacher in the virtual classroom. In accordance with Jewitt and Kress (2003), four aspects for representing meaning are considered: materiality, framing, design, and production.

Methodology/research design

Data were collected in 2020-2022 and consist of five videorecorded interviews with the same focus group involving three teachers. Additionally, audio-recorded observations of 16 lessons in virtual classrooms involving three different classes were collected. 

Expected results/findings

Preliminary findings show virtual teaching corresponds to a big change for both pupils and teachers, despite previous exposure to working with digital screens. The virtual group rooms, ‘breakout rooms’, were valuable in teaching, learning and interaction. Teachers noted breakout rooms contributed to more pupil engagement and participation. The usage of breakout rooms meant teachers started looking for ways to integrate reading, conversation and writing of different modalities. Teachers emphasise how virtual teaching put importance on language use and written text in meaning making. Written text and text composition becomes prioritised when teaching becomes virtual.

Relevance to Nordic educational research

This novel data contributes to greater understanding of how virtual teaching caused by the global pandemic has impacted teaching in Swedish upper secondary schools.

In 2018, the curricula and subject syllabi in Sweden were revised, the aim being to increase the digital competence of pupils. This article presents a study of how vocational student teachers at upper-secondary school legitimise the use of digital tools in their lesson planning as a means to support the learning of pupils. This provides knowledge of what vocational student teachers view as central to their teaching. Using Theo van Leeuwen's legitimation analysis, the lesson plans of 25 vocational student teachers, as well as eight ethnographic interviews, were analysed. In legitimation, the vocational student teacher argues using references or actions that need to be performed, or not performed. The task of the argument is to justify language or actions so that they are acceptable to others. Legitimation also makes visible the relationships and responsibilities between different parties. The results show that vocational student teachers legitimise their choices to authority. The lesson plans are based on the relationship of vocational student teachers to their own actions in teaching. However, how pupils develop their learning and digital competence is not affected. The digital tools as resources in teaching are legitimised with reference to speed, agility, control, and overview. The use of digital tools links strongly to writing, which affects the educational environment and professional life.

2018 reviderades läroplanerna och ämnesplanerna i Sverige med syfte att stärka elevernas digitala kompetenser. Syftet med denna artikel är att undersöka hur yrkeslärarstudenter i gymnasieskolan legitimerar användning av digitala verktyg i lektionsplaneringar för att stödja elevers lärande. I artikeln analyseras vilken kunskap, vilka möjligheter och utmaningar som yrkeslärarstudenter konstruerar som legitima i sina lektionsplaneringar i relation till digitaliseringsreformen. Detta ger ett kunskapsbidrag om vad yrkeslärarstudenterna motiverar som centralt i undervisningspraktiken. Utifrån Theo van Leeuwens legitimeringsanalys analyseras 25 yrkeslärarstudenters lektionsplaneringar samt åtta etnografiska intervjuer. Legitimeringsanalysen illustrerar yrkeslärarstudentens argumentering med referenser eller med handlingar som behöver utföras, eller inte utföras. Argumenten har till uppgift att rättfärdiga språkande eller handlingar så de blir accepterade av andra. Legitimeringen synliggör även relationer och ansvar mellan parter. Resultaten visar att yrkeslärarstudenterna legitimerar sina val till auktoritet. Lektionsplaneringarna utgår från yrkeslärarstudenternas förhållande till sitt eget handlande i undervisningen. Hur eleverna ska utveckla sitt lärande och digitala kompetenser berörs dock inte. De digitala verktygen som resurser i undervisningen legitimeras med referenser till snabbhet, smidighet, kontroll och överblick. Användande av digitala verktyg är starkt kopplat till skrivande vilket inverkar på studie- och arbetsliv.

Over the last few decades, Swedish Higher Education institutions have been working on widened participation (Högskolelagen, 1992, p.1434) as part of a wider effort towards sustainable development and increased accessibility to university studies (Agenda 2030). As a consequence, student populations today bring with them a wider range of academic skills. This, in turn, means that teaching staff across disciplines face a myriad of challenges. In our presentation, we discuss an ongoing empirical study on teaching practices for the development of university students’ academic literacies in the social sciences, with a particular focus on the role of modelling as a teaching strategy. Using Academic Literacies (Lea & Street, 1998; Lillis, 2003; Lea, 2004; Eklund Heinonen et al., 2018) as the theoretical framework, the study aims at (a) identifying challenges as experienced by teaching staff in the Social Sciences, and (b) carrying out a pedagogical intervention. The project, which is a collaboration between two lecturers from the Social Sciences and two researchers from the Language Support Unit, comprises four stages, namely: (1) a needs analysis to map the faculty’s existing teaching practices and to identify their challenges in relation to their students’ academic skills; (2) planning of a pedagogical intervention through a series of workshops; (3) implementation of the intervention; and (4) assessment of the project. So far, the findings reveal that modelling is a crucial teaching strategy in making tacit knowledge and task instructions explicit. The project is also expected to contribute to our understanding of (a) the challenges teaching staff experience in Swedish Higher Education today and (b) how to best support university students’ development of academic literacies. Furthermore, the project’s findings will be used to develop a course for professional development targeting teaching staff at our university.

Med Covid-19-pandemin behövde gymnasieskolan våren 2020 göra en hastig omställning från klassrumsundervisning till virtuell undervisning. Likt Hodges et al (2020) ser jag omställningen som ”emergency remote teaching”. Omställningen satte akut fokus på användning av digitala resurser i undervisningen och hur dessa formar multimodalitet, literacy och lärande i klassrummet (Jewitt, 2002;Bezemer & Kress, 2016; Jewitt & Kress, 2003). Denna presentation diskuterar preliminära resultat från det pågående praktiknära och praktikutvecklande forskningsprojektet Digitala resurser i undervisningen. 13 gymnasielärare och en forskare samarbetar kring utveckling av nya kunskaper om digitala resurser som förvärvats i samband med pandemin. Kunskaper som omfattar villkor för språkutveckling, läsande och skrivande i ett vidare perspektiv. Syftet med presentationen är att diskutera utifrån ett bokcirkelprojekt där språk och litteratur med hjälp av digitala resurser korsbefruktar varandra. Materialet består av 16 virtuella klassrumsobservationer under engelsklektioner i tre klassrum samt nio videoinspelade intervjuer med två lärare. Jewitt och Kress (2003) används för analys av multimodalliteracy och hur digitala resurser bidrar till att forma kunskap. Fyra aspekter för att representera mening beaktas: materialitet, inramning, design och produktion. Följande forskningsfrågor ställs: Hur är digitala resurser länkade i undervisningen för att ge eleverna möjligheter till aktivt språkligt deltagande? Vilka lärdomar lyfter lärarna fram för att utveckla elevernas samtalande, läsande och skrivande? Preliminära resultat visar att trots tidigare vana hos elever och lärare att arbeta på skärmar blev omställningen stor när undervisningen gick över till att bli helt virtuell. För lärarna innebar det ett didaktiskt nysökande efter hur läsande, samtalande och skrivande med hjälp av olika modaliteter kan integreras och i interaktion med eleverna. Lärarna understryker också vikten att uppmärksamma både elevers och lärares språkanvändning samt tillgång till skrivna texter för aktivt meningsskapande. Utifrån resultaten diskuteras digitala resursers användning i språkundervisningen i det virtuella klassrummet ochi det fysiska klassrummet.

Learning from the Covid-19 pandemic: What is the role of digital resources and multimodal literacy in virtual teaching?

Research topic/aim

The Covid-19 pandemic has entailed challenges as well as opportunities for education in Sweden. During the spring of 2020, teachers in Swedish upper secondary schools had less than a week to make the change from face-to-face to virtual teaching. In December 2020, they once again had to switch to virtual teaching. For teachers and pupils, these changes in teaching modality involved new uses of digital resources. The purpose of this study is therefore to highlight Swedish upper secondary school teachers' practices and perspectives on modifying their teaching with respect to the use of digital resources and multimodal literacy in the virtual classroom. 

Theoretical framework

This study takes a multimodal approach to learning as its theoretical point of departure. Based on the notion of multimodal literacy (Jewitt & Kress, 2003), the study analyses how digital resources in a range of modes contribute to the shaping of knowledge and what it means to be a teacher in the virtual classroom. In accordance with Jewitt and Kress (2003), four aspects for representing meaning are considered: materiality, framing, design, and production. 

Methodology/research design

Data for the study were collected in 2020-2021. The analysis is based on 19 video-recorded interviews with three focus groups involving a total of 13 teachers, as well as audio-recorded observations of 16 lessons in virtual classrooms involving three different classes. The focus group constellations being based on teachers being from three different schools. 

Expected results/findings

The results indicate that all teachers in the three focus groups emphasise the importance of the written text in the virtual classroom, while in the traditional classroom, written texts function more as a form of support. Access to digital pedagogical resources has been uneven among the three groups. Focus group 1 has limited access to digital resources and believes that the digital resources have functions as a storage place for making documents available and checking data on a platform. Focus group 2 has access to extensive digital resources and describes that this enables individualisations in the digital classroom. Focus group 3 has gained access to digital breakout rooms and argues that these were a pedagogical and didactic breakthrough for virtual teaching. The digital breakout rooms contribute to support learning in interaction between the participants in the multimodal literacy practice. 

Relevance to Nordic educational research

In Nordic countries, there is ample research on literacy studies in digitally rich environments. This study can contribute with a broader picture of how digital literacies are situated in ordinary and naturally occurring virtual classrooms. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, teachers have been faced with new challenges for instruction and teaching virtually. This study thus provides additional insights into the important role of focusing on pedagogical and didactical ways of involving teachers and pupils in the use of multimodal literacy and digital resources. 

Reference

Jewitt, C. & Kress, G. (2003). Multimodal Literacy. Peter Lang. 

Research topic/aim

Writing is a key competence in an increasingly digital society – and teachers and teacher education need knowledge of how students in the classroom are trained on written composition development. Using data from newly graduated teachers in years 4-6 and teachers at upper secondary school, I elucidate what of written composition development they bring with them from their teacher education to their own classroom teaching in Swedish.

Theoretical framework

Based on threshold concepts (Meyer & Land 2005), analyses of which knowledge in teaching writing is seen as central. Thus, the threshold concepts can name key concepts, elements, thoughts and experiences that the new teachers need to develop the students' writing. Meyer & Land (2005) understand threshold concepts like portals, which open up new understandings and perspectives. 

Methodology/research design

The data is created in spring 2020, in the first wave of Covid-19 in Sweden. The research is based on video-recorded semi-structured interviews with eight newly graded teachers three months after exam. Further analyses investigate relationships of written composition development to the curricula in the two teacher training programs. 

Expected findings

The preliminary findings indicate that teachers feel comfortable teaching with digital resources in writing, but they see many thresholds concerning didactic and pedagogical knowledge about how they can teach writing development. The teachers express the lack of tools to teach students to create texts, to develop texts to a higher quality and to support students who are in need of special support in writing. Indirectly, they have learned about writing when they themselves have written assignments, particularly the degree project has been a good resource for learning about writing and writing tutoring.

Relevance to Nordic educational research

This study can contribute with current pictures from newly graduated teachers teaching practices linked to recently completed teacher training in mother tongue education. It seems that digital resources is the new normal in classroom teaching but teaching and learning to learn is not yet linked to written composition development. Research on written composition is rare. Written composition is important for learning, meaning making and a potentially better future for studies, professional life and active participant in society.