Aspiring writers often receive the advice to read extensively, as reading helps develop writing skills. Learn from famous masters and develop your own style.
Although producing excellent literature is not one of the key objectives, this tip remains relevant for writing education.
In fact, Steve Graham offers the same counsel. He has spent years exploring the connection between reading and writing. The 2018 study is the culmination of previous efforts.
Graham's research highlights how reading education can improve pupils' spelling, writing abilities, and overall literacy skills.
The Link Between Reading and Writing: Graham's Research Findings
Graham's colleagues demonstrated that readers and authors use similar sources of knowledge. Graham's earlier research examined how to effectively teach reading and writing.
Research shows that integrating reading and writing instruction is an effective strategy for improving literacy skills in students. Furthermore, he has demonstrated that writing training enhances not only pupils’ writing skills but also their reading abilities and comprehension.
Is the reverse also true? You'd think it almost has to be. However, a scientist like Graham needs to see evidence: do kids genuinely write better after reading instruction?
He has thoroughly and critically analysed all experimental research on this topic: are they sound studies, are they not comparing apples to oranges, and does the reading instruction under consideration include some writing?
He was able to pick ninety studies (published between 1984 and 2015) that could survive critique from a large pool of research. These studies included both primary and secondary school children, however the majority were from primary school.
This comprehensive meta-analysis addresses two core questions: Does explicit reading instruction enhance writing skills, and can encouraging reading or observing textual analysis improve writing outcomes?
Key Insights on How Reading Impacts Writing Skills
Out of the ninety studies analysed, 54 focused on reading teaching. These were phonological awareness (39%), letter-sound association (28%), text comprehension (22%), vocabulary (2%), fluent reading (2%), and combinations (7%).
Almost all cases (94%) showed a beneficial influence on writing skills. Providing teaching on phonological awareness and letter-sound connection improves pupils' spelling abilities.
Providing text comprehension instruction improves pupils' writing abilities. Only eleven of the 54 research examined long-term impacts. Graham is cautiously optimistic: in 70 percent of cases, the effects proved to be long-lasting.
The 36 studies used to answer the second research question focused on the impact of given words or texts on spelling (38%), encouraging pupils to read more (23%), observing others' interpretations (20%), and reading and analysing texts from fellow pupils (13 percent) and reading well-written example texts (8 percent). It almost always (98%) resulted in improved spelling and text quality. Despite promising short-term results, the long-term impacts remain unclear due to limited research in this area.
Reading lessons and extensive reading improve spelling and writing skills. Graham emphasises the need for distinct writing instruction. Direct teaching is always helpful.
Reading and reading teaching provide significant benefits that should not be overlooked. Graham recommends incorporating reading teaching into writing instruction.
Reading and writing use the same knowledge sources. Jill Fitzgerald and Timothy Shanahan (2000) provide detailed descriptions of these sources.
For instance, knowledge of the world is essential for both readers and writers to comprehend and communicate information effectively.
Understanding the purpose and function of written language is also crucial. This improves text comprehension and enables self-expression on paper.
Third, procedural knowledge is required to extract information from a book through enquiries, predictions, and summarisation. A writer must consider what the reader will get from the content. Reading and writing require understanding of vocabulary, spelling, and grammar.
Practical Implications of Reading-Writing Synergy in Education
Our language instruction is organised into many talents. Graham emphasises the need of maximising skill synergy. Reading and writing are closely linked and can strengthen each other.
This is also supported by Graham's research: children improved their spelling and writing through reading instruction and extensive reading; writing instruction, in turn, aids reading and text comprehension.
While reading and writing frequently go hand in hand at first, they appear to drift apart as pupils progress through their education. As if they are independent capabilities. That represents a squandered opportunity.
Schools can boost student literacy by adopting a cohesive approach that integrates reading and writing instruction. Furthermore, the classes become more appealing to pupils (since they are more natural), and you make better use of your limited time on the schedule.
It stands to reason that an increasing number of schools are implementing combined reading and writing instruction.
How to Integrate Reading and Writing in Your Classroom
Reading and writing come from the same sources. By integrating reading and writing tasks in your classroom, students become more proficient in both areas, boosting overall literacy.
We all believe that paying attention to letter-sound links helps pupils spell better. Most teachers relate these two skills.
However, this also holds true for text comprehension and writing. Encouraging pupils to consider the structure of a text and why the writer chose certain words or comparisons helps them understand that writing is a process that involves making choices and considering the audience. Link writing tasks with reading assignments and vice versa.
For the same reason, having pupils remark on each other's texts is quite effective. This method not only saves time on marking, but also enables pupils to critically analyse texts and structure. Providing feedback on a work can benefit both the writer and the reader.
Take a look at your processing assignments for reading books in this way. Targeted writing activities enhance reading comprehension while also improving writing skills.
Key take-aways
- Reading and writing use the same sources of knowledge.
- Reading training enhances spelling and writing skills.
- Continue to provide both reading and writing education.
- Why Integrating reading and writing education saves time and improves effectiveness.
Reference:
Graham, S., et al. (2018). Reading for writing: A meta-analysis of the impact of reading interventions on writing.