Writing attainment in 9- to 11-year-olds: some differences between girls and boys in two genres

Abstract

Gender differences in the imaginative narrative and persuasive description writing of a sample of Year 5 (9- to 10-year-old) children were investigated using a standardised test and a repeat design, with the same tasks being undertaken a year later. The texts were analysed using test guidelines and genre-specific rating scales derived from the relevant literature. Differences in writing attainment were found to exist, with boys generally performing less well than girls. In the five constituents of writing assessed by the test, girls scored significantly higher in four in both years. Boys did not score significantly higher than girls in any constituent in either year. However, boys wrote significantly more in Year 6 than they had written in Year 5, and this may reflect increases in handwriting attainment. Boys’ under-attainment was less pronounced in the persuasive description writing, and they scored significantly higher than girls in Year 5 in three features of this writing. Although a subgroup of the highest-attaining children contained more girls than boys, a detailed analysis did not indicate any girl–boy differences in textual effectiveness, content or language use. Some possible implications for practice and suggestions for further research are provided.

Keywords:

• writing
• gender
• genre
• primary school education

Acknowledgements

The study was funded by a grant from the Economic and Social Research Council, RES-000-22-1050. The authors would like to thank Sharon Besser, Bronwen Swinnerton and Godfrey Pell for all their work at different stages of the study, the members of the rater panels and all the children and teachers who participated.

Notes

1. ‘Pupils’ writing in a range of forms is lively and thoughtful. Ideas are often sustained and developed in interesting ways and organised appropriately for the purpose of the reader. Vocabulary choices are often adventurous and words are used for effect. Pupils are beginning to use grammatically complex sentences, extending meaning. Spelling, including that of polysyllabic words that conform to regular patterns, is generally accurate. Full stops, capital letters and question marks are used correctly, and pupils are beginning to use punctuation within the sentence. Handwriting style is fluent, joined and legible’ (QCA 1999, Appendix 7).

2. All excerpts from the children's writing are reproduced with the original spelling and punctuation.