The multimodal writing process: changing practices in contemporary classrooms

Abstract

This paper presents research exploring ‘writing and text construction’ practices in contemporary primary classrooms. In particular, the ways 17 teachers and their students engaged with technologies in the construction of classroom texts were investigated. The case studies presented prompt the necessity to extend more traditional understandings of classroom writing and the writing process. This paper challenges and broadens ‘what counts’ as classroom writing, and results reveal that the pedagogy of writing requires teachers to account for the collaborative dimension of constructing texts in writing instruction. Results challenge teachers to use technology to enhance students’ creative possibilities in the construction of new and dynamic texts and build learning about the elements of design into their instruction. It is argued that the prevalence of design, presentation and production in classroom writing lessons now demands that it be reframed as ‘the multimodal writing process’.

Keywords:

• multimodal
• multimodal writing
• design elements
• creativity
• technoliteracies