Motivating Students to Write: A Field-Based Action Research Project

MEL 550
December 12, 2014
Deena Proctor

Introduction
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Writing is an important communication tool that is useful, if not necessary, across all
disciplines. To be successful in school or the workplace, one must be able to write in a clear,
coherent manner. Unfortunately, most students do not develop the appropriate knowledge and
strategies for doing so. According to the Nations Report Card: Writing 2011, about one-quarter
of all students write proficiently. In my own classroom, about one half of all students scored
mastery or above on the writing portion of last years WESTEST, West Virginias yearly
standardized test.
Many of my students are often disinterested in writing, grumbling at the mention of a
writing activity. Though I take care to assign a variety topics and styles that are interesting, these
students constantly complain of not enjoying writing. Some flat out refuse to write. They express
frustration over generating ideas about the given prompt, and complain they dont like the topic
that has been assigned. I often have to drag students through writing lessons because they shut
down once writing class has started. It has become apparent that my students need more
motivation to write than fun writing prompts and engaging lessons.
Students must practice writing often in order to develop necessary skills. Furthermore,
they must be motivated to write in order to gain practice. This paper will explore a possible
solution for the lack of motivation to write: offering students choices of writing topics.
Research Question
Does offering topic choices increase student motivation to write?
Literature review
There is considerable concern that the majority of adolescents do not develop the
competence in writing they need to be successful in school, the workplace, or their personal

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lives. Despite the importance of writing, too many youngsters do not learn to write well enough
to meet the demands of school or the workplace (Graham, Perin.) The National Commission on
Writing (2003) states Writing is the most neglected of the three Rs in the American classroom.
Background/ context
This action research project will be conducted in a fifth grade classroom where sixty
five students in three homerooms rotate through three main sixty-minute blocks (classes) daily.
One of the blocks is Reading/ Language Arts which includes writing instruction. The research
will span twelve weeks.
The students are from a low socioeconomic community and attend a Title I school that
has been identified as a Community Eligibility school where all students receive free breakfast
and lunch daily. Nine students are on IEPs and receiving special education services. Four of the
students are homeless.
Method:
Students will take a survey on their attitudes about writing. During twelve weeks of
writing instruction, students will be given topic choices for all writing assignments. Afterward,
students will take a post-survey to gauge any changes in attitude. The delivery methods for
teaching writing concepts will remain the same.
Data collection:
The student survey consisted of nine statements, and students were directed to indicate
their level of agreement or disagreement: strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, and strongly
disagree. The nine statements and the percentage of students who responded with either agree
or strongly agree during the original survey and post survey, respectively, were:

I like writing.

42.42%

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64.24%

I am good at writing.
I can improve my writing skills with practice.
I like to share my writing with my classmates and my family.
I like to read what my classmates write.
Writing skills are important in school.
Writing skills are important in most jobs.
I like to choose what to write.
I like to be given a topic to write about.

57.57%
69.75%
36.92%
56.92%
76.69%
65.92%
34.24%
24.56%

61.50%
72.24%
40.69%
63.44%
93.00%
82.52%
56.92%
25.84%

The figure on the left shows the average level of agreement with each of the nine statements on
the original survey while the figure on the right depicts the increases in agreement levels.

Outcome Analysis:
Student attitudes toward writing changed for the better after being offered topic choices
during writing instruction for twelve weeks. Students were more confident in their writing ability
and enjoyed choosing their own writing topics. This translated into more effective writing
practice. Four statements that showed a considerable positive increase were: I like writing
(21.82% increase), Writing skills are important in school (16.31% increase), Writing skills are

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important in most jobs (14.6% increase), and I like to choose what to write about (22.68%
increase). This shows that students are now more willing to write and understand the importance
of practicing writing. Overall, the offering of student choice of writing topics does increase
student motivation to write by positively affecting their attitudes about writing.
Considerations and Limitations:
This research was very limited as far as time. A full school year would be a more
desirable amount of time and might produce more accurate results. It would also offer a chance
to see if writing scores increased on the next WESTEST.
Implications for future research:
Some interesting and useful extensions of this research include looking for correlations
and connections between writing attitudes and abilities with literacy and reading comprehension.
Additionally, research on how offering writing choices affect the writing attitudes of students in
other grade levels. It might also be beneficial to explore whether or not student choice affects
quality of student work.
Summary:
Students must be prepared for the demands of school, as well as work, by developing
effective writing skills. Too often, schools fail to prepare students to use this important
communication tool. Students are disinterested in writing, often expressing a strong dislike for
the writing process. In order to give students the practice they need to strengthen their craft,
teachers must find ways to intrinsically motivate students to write. According to this research,
offering students topic choices in writing can be a source of motivation. More research needs to
be done to see if this holds true with larger sample sizes, over longer periods of time, and with
students of different ages.
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Works Cited
Journal of Educational Psychology. 2007, Vol. 99, No. 3, 445-476 Steve Graham, Dolores
Perin.
National Commission on Writing. (2003, April). The neglected R: The Need for a Writing
Revolution.
National Center for Educational Statistics. The Nations Report Card: Writing 20011. November,
12, 2014. http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/pubs/main2011/2012470.asp#section1

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