English Language Learners’ Writing Practices and Attitudes

Sarah J. McCarthey ; Georgia Earnest García University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Abstract

This study of English language learners, six Mandarin-speaking and five Spanish-speaking elementary students, revealed that students engaged in a variety of writing practices at home and school. A continuum of attitudes, from positive to negative, characterized students’attitudes toward writing in English and their native languages. Students’ writing practices and attitudes toward writing were influenced by home backgrounds and classroom contexts. Home background influences included parents’ educational backgrounds and income levels, plans for staying in the United States, support for writing at home, and cultural expectations. School and classroom factors included frequency and quality of opportunities for writing and teachers’ expectations for writing tasks. Implications of the study include the necessity to provide multiple opportunities for students to write for purposeful audiences in their native language as well as in English.

Journal
Written Communication
Published
2005-01-01
DOI
10.1177/0741088304271830
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
Closed
Topics
Export

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (2)

  1. Written Communication
  2. Assessing Writing

References (62) · 8 in this index

  1. Abbott, J. (1996). Profiles of fifth-gradechildren who write avidly …
  2. Literacy instruction in multicultural settings
  3. Improving schooling for language-minority children: A research agenda
  4. Research in the Teaching of English
  5. Reading Teacher
Show all 62 →
  1. 10.2307/377850
  2. The art of teaching writing
  3. Sociocultural contexts of language and literacy
  4. Journal of Educational Issues of Language Minority Students
  5. Phi Delta Kappan
  6. Research in the Teaching of English
  7. Writing in a bilingual program: Hablía una vez
  8. Handbook of research on teaching
  9. Listening to the world: Cultural issues in academic writing
  10. National Reading Conference Yearbook
  11. Handbook of reading research
  12. Social linguistics and literacies
  13. 10.1086/499678
  14. A fresh look at writing
  15. Close to home: Oral and literate practices in a transnational Mexicano community
  16. 10.1177/0013124592024002006
  17. Research in the Teaching of English
  18. When writers read
  19. 10.1017/CBO9780511841057
  20. Journal of School Improvement
  21. 10.1016/S1060-3743(01)00034-0
  22. 10.3102/00028312037004971
  23. 10.1598/RRQ.38.4.4
  24. 10.1086/499688
  25. 10.1017/CBO9780511815355
  26. Invention as a social act
  27. “East is east, west is west”? Home literacy, culture, and schooling
  28. 10.1086/499665
  29. 10.2307/3588428
  30. 10.1080/10862960109548119
  31. Students’ identities and literacy learning
  32. Research in the Teaching of English
  33. Case study research in education: A qualitative approach
  34. Qualitative data analysis: A sourcebook of new methods
  35. 10.1086/461941
  36. 10.1086/499680
  37. Language, culture, and teaching: Critical perspectives for a new century
  38. 10.1598/RRQ.38.1.2
  39. 10.1080/00220671.1997.10544593
  40. Reading, writing, and learning in ESL: A resource book for K–12 teachers
  41. Learning in two worlds: An integrated Spanish/English biliteracy approach
  42. 10.17763/haer.62.4.d522623315485031
  43. Research in the Teaching of English
  44. On second language writing
  45. Research in the Teaching of English
  46. The art of case study research
  47. Basics of qualitative research
  48. Children of immigration
  49. 10.1037/0003-066X.54.11.913
    American Psychologist  
  50. Growing up literate: Learning from inner city families
  51. 10.58680/la19983286
    Language Arts  
  52. Statistical yearbook of the immigration and naturalization service
  53. Valdés, G. (1996). Con respeto . New York: Teachers College Press.
  54. So much to say: Adolescents, bilingualism, and ESL in the secondary school
  55. Research in the Teaching of English
  56. Research in the Teaching of English
  57. Reading Horizons