Description
In the context of an increasingly prescriptive, regulated and standards-driven educational environment, the markers of a dominant performativity and measurement culture influence preservice teachers’ learning about matters of heart. For those undertaking a Primary English Specialisation, the pressures of meeting mandated literacy teaching requirements weigh heavily. Elements of pleasure and enjoyment can be elusive.“Teaching about children’s literature in pre-service teacher education is quite rare, even though research shows it is crucial for teachers to be good at teaching reading as well as being committed readers” (Simpson, 2021, p.26). This presentation reports on the initial research findings from a new English specialisation that focuses on Children’s Literature introduced into a Masters of Teaching (Primary) in 2021. It also considers some of the pedagogic approaches adopted to enrich the academic work offered in this newly developed unit of study.
The small cohort of students participated in an online survey investigating the research question: What are Primary English specialisation students’ perceptions of their subject, of their personal reading habits and children’s literature, and of their identities as teachers of English? Data were collected to inform understanding of the ways preservice Primary teachers conceptualise English as a subject, their knowledge of children’s literature and other texts, and their perceptions of themselves as readers and English practitioners. There are implications to consider from this research about our guidance of emergent practitioners in their teaching of subject English. The findings reveal their desire to engage more with the imagination in reading and to investigate different worlds and interesting characters in their future classrooms. They want to share their personal enjoyment of English through reading aloud, exploring lots of texts, and showing “children how fun reading and writing can be”.
| Period | 2022 |
|---|---|
| Event title | Australian Literacy Educators' Association (ALEA) & Australian Association for the Teaching of English (AATE) National Conference. Landscapes of Learning: Hearts, Minds & Stories |
| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Darwin, Australia, Northern TerritoryShow on map |