30th Annual Student Research Conference
Examining Voice: A Study of How Various Writing Contexts Affect Student Writing Voice
Michelle Hadler♦
Dr. Rebecca Dierking, Faculty Mentor
Writing voice is repeatedly listed as one of the six traits of writing found on many rubrics. Students are scored on their voice, often times without fully understanding what “voice” refers to. Many students leave high school without a strong understanding of their own writing abilities and are unable to write effectively for various purposes and audiences. This research study explores how various audiences and purposes affect student writing voice, giving students an opportunity to construct an understanding of voice through reflections upon their own writing in different contexts, discussions of writing voice, and reflections on themselves as writers. Students considered how their voices changed when writing to different audiences for different purposes, and the codeswitching, or adjustment in register, that resulted. The study took place in a suburban Midwestern high school senior English class. Data includes written student artifacts, whole-class discussion, individual conferences, teacher observations, and student self-perceptions. Analysis will be applied through a constructivist paradigm to explore how students' self-confidence as writers was affected by more concrete understanding of their own writing voice.
Keywords: Voice, Purpose, Audience, Codeswitching, AAVE, Register, Confidence, Writing
Topic(s):English MAE Intern
English
Education
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 202-1
Location: MG 1090
Time: 9:30