Writing and Pedagogy Jun 2026

Exploring Scottish University Teacher Educators’ Conceptualisations of “Good Writing”

Rebekah Sims University of Strathclyde ; Sharon Hunter University of Strathclyde

Abstract

This article focuses on teacher educators’ approaches to supporting discipline-specific undergraduate writing at the University of Strathclyde, the largest provider of initial teacher education (ITE) in Scotland. Although the Scottish Enlightenment had a substantial influence on positioning language, and therefore rhetoric, as a field of study ( Shieber, 2023 ), contemporary Scottish higher education—including teacher education—has no teaching of rhetoric or composition and no formalised general writing education (e.g., first-year composition). Yet, ITE students are expected to write in a variety of genres throughout postsecondary education. We position writing instruction as part of socially just teacher education. Our qualitative study investigates how university teacher educators conceive of student writing and enact these conceptualisations in practice. This study offers insight into how teacher educators evaluate the role of writing in teacher education and how they connect it to professional practice, positioning writing instruction as part of socially just teacher education.

Journal
Writing and Pedagogy
Published
2026-06-01
DOI
10.3138/wap-2025-0007
CompPile
Open Access
Closed
Topics
rhetorical criticism genre theory first-year composition writing pedagogy graduate education teacher development qualitative research
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