Children's views on the use of popular culture in the teaching of writing in the primary classroom

• Main Author: Dunn, Jill Elizabeth
• Published: Queen's University Belfast 2013
• Subjects: 372.623
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.601370

The current educational climate of concern for children's achievement in literacy has resulted in a plethora of policies aimed at raising standards. Considerable research has been carried out in the field of popular culture and its potential for motivating and engaging children in literacy learning. However, there has been li ttle research on children's views on this issue. This study was influenced both by the changing perceptions of childhood, which recognises children's capabilities and agency, and by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child with its commitment to children's rights, and particularly to their participation. It aims to add to the literature on popular culture by presenting children's views on the use of popular culture in the teaching of writing. A variety of participatory methods was used to gather views from children from two Primary Three classrooms in two primary schools drawing from different socioeconomic catchment areas. A Children's Research Advisory Group (CRAG) was used in each school to assist with developing the research methods and interpreting the data. The results show that children have a strong desire for more choice when writing in school and, when given this choice, popular culture features strongly in what they would like to write about. All children, both boys and girls and chi ldren from different socio·economic backgrounds, demonstrated their diverse knowledge and enjoyment of a wide range of popular culture. However, Bourdieu's concept of habitus appears to be influential in the children's views on what their parents and teachers would think about the inclusion of popular culture in the classroom. This small scale study provides valuable insights into children's views on the use of popular culture for the teaching of writing and raises challenging questions for policy and practice in the continuous quest for a meaningful curriculum for contemporary children.