Do We Train Teachers on Writing? Writing Opportunities Across the Curriculum in Elementary Teacher Education Programs

Abstract

Writing takes part in the repertoire of knowledge and skills inherent to teacher education, as stated in teacher education policies and regulatory frameworks and in research on its formative role. However, there is little knowledge about the curricularization of writing in teachers" educational experience. This multiple case study analyzes elementary teacher training programs in three certified Chilean universities. A purposeful sample of course syllabi was constructed and written pedagogical competencies and practices were identified to describe the presence of writing in the designed curriculum. These data were triangulated with focus groups of students and professors in each institution, which collected evidence of the experienced curriculum. The results show a significant presence of writing in the teacher education curriculum at all institutions, although mostly implicitly. The courses with the greatest potential for working on writing through the curriculum are not necessarily identified as such by teachers and students, since there is a high impact of each teacher's implementation of the programs. These results highlight the need for crosscutting and sequencing the teaching of writing.