Literature Review: Working Memory and Genre Instruction

Abstract

Teaching children to write is a complex and sophisticated task that teachers undertake in all subject areas.  For students to be successful writers, teachers benefit from developing a strong understanding of the writing process and the components necessary in a successful writing program.  This literature review, relevant for teachers of young children, focuses on two aspects of writing. It first looks at current writing practices in North American schools, and the role working memory plays in learning to write. Secondly, it focuses on the effectiveness of teaching genre through the lens of Systemic Functional Linguistic (SFL) theory.  Although limited research has been conducted on SFL in an English Language Arts context, and all the research included on SLF is from an Australian context, the results show positive effects on students’ writing.  Future research focusing on the impact of SFL in a writing classroom is highly recommended, especially for a North American classroom context. This literature review posits that when children receive explicit, research-driven writing instruction, writing performance improves.