Las TIC en la enseñanza de la escrituracomponentes, efectividad y variables moduladoras

  1. González Laguna, María Victoria
Supervised by:
  1. Raquel Fidalgo Redondo Director
  2. Gert Rijlaarsdam Director
  3. Paula López Gutiérrez Director

Defence university: Universidad de León

Fecha de defensa: 28 October 2024

Committee:
  1. Jesús Nicasio García Sánchez Chair
  2. Celestino Rodríguez Pérez Secretary
  3. Charles MacArthur Committee member

Type: Thesis

Abstract

This dissertation focuses on the study of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) as a resource for teaching writing skills. It is composed of five studies that address the subject of the dissertation based on two complementary study perspectives. The first focuses on the comprehensive analysis of empirically validated writing interventions carried out using ICTs, considering the specific elements that compose them (Studies 1 and 2) and how these can influence the effectiveness of the intervention (Study 3). The second perspective consists of finding out how compulsory education teachers are integrating ICTs into their teaching of writing skills in our current educational system (Study 5), exploring in turn whether there are teacher modulating variables (internal and external) that influence the use of ICTs in the teaching of writing skills (Studies 4 and 5). The first study was aimed at analyzing the instructional design of different effective ICT-based writing interventions, it considered two dimensions, content (what is taught) and instructional (how it is taught). In this study, the empirical review method was used. The sample consisted of 22 empirical articles, of which the content/writing processes and types of knowledge worked on in the intervention (content dimension) were analyzed through a specific reporting system, as well as the instructional principles, learning and instructional activities, and types of ICT, feedback and scaffolding used in the intervention (instructional dimension). The results showed that most ICTs focus on teaching high-level writing processes, and on providing procedural knowledge. Regarding the instructional dimension, ICTs are mainly used in observation, convergent thinking and practice learning activities. In respect of instructional activities, ICTs are mostly used in the principle of integration and in direct instruction activities, provision of high-quality text examples, modeling, provision of different digital writing spaces, games and text publication. Likewise, they are prominently used in the provision of corrective and elaborative feedback of the textual product, as well as for static and procedural scaffolding. Finally, the most widely used ICTs when teaching writing skills are virtual classes and tools that only allow the creation, edition and storage of texts. The second study was aimed at analyzing different instructional practices, with and without ICTs, geared towards improving the writing skills of students who present risk factors for social deprivation. This study followed an empirical review method. The sample consisted of 11 empirical studies, which identified the type of writing processes worked on, the variables evaluated and the results of the intervention. Likewise, the studies also identified the type of tool that used in the interventions with ICTs, while those without ICTs, collected data on the type of instruction used. The results showed that the number of interventions that address the teaching of writing skills using ICTs with this type of students is greater than those that do not employ ICTs. Furthermore, the interventions focus mainly on low-level cognitive processes. Finally, self-regulation, modeling and scaffolding are effective in improving high level cognitive processes, organization and textual quality, while games, both analog and digital, are effective in improving low level cognitive processes. The third study was aimed at compositionally analyzing different writing practices carried out with ICTs focused on teaching high level cognitive processes to improve students' writing competence based on different instructional components, analyzing their effect size and the influence that these instructional components and the agent through which they are carried out have on it. For this purpose, a meta-analysis was carried out with a sample of 11 empirical articles, which identified their instructional principles and activities, as well as the types of feedback and scaffolding. These variables were coded taking into account the agent through which they were implemented, distinguishing between teacher, ICT or teacher and ICT jointly. Subsequently, the overall effect size was calculated, and meta-regression analyses were performed with the aforementioned variables. The results showed a large overall effect size with great heterogeneity among the studies. As for the meta-regression analyses, a significant relationship was only found in the effect size differences with the principle of integration, self-regulated feedback, metacognitive scaffolding, and brainstorming activities, modeling, provision of writing spaces, and publishing. In addition, it was shown that, in general, the effect of these variables was greater when they were implemented jointly by ICT and the teacher. The fourth study focused on exploring the different modulating variables that affect the use of ICTs in the classroom by compulsory education teachers. This study followed the empirical review method with a sample of 28 articles. In order to analyze these articles, the summary was reviewed to identify the modulating teacher variables that influence the use of ICTs in the classroom, which were coded on the basis of four categories created through a deductive process: sociodemographic factors, teacher training, external factors and internal factors. The results show that the teachers who use ICTs the most are the younger teachers who have fewer years of experience and teach in private schools. Likewise, those teachers who have more training and digital competence are those who use ICTs the most. Furthermore, the teachers who have a constructivist theoretical approach, high self-efficacy, positive beliefs about the usefulness of ICTs and positive attitudes towards their use tend to use them more frequently. Finally, ICTs are used to a greater extent when the school has a variety of ICT resources and receives support from key groups regarding their use. The fifth study concentrated on finding out how compulsory education teachers used ICTs when teaching writing skills, as well as analyzing the influence of different modulating teacher variables on their use in this area. This non-experimental study used a survey method via an ad hoc questionnaire that collected information on training in ICTs and writing, the use of ICTs for teaching writing skills, and external and internal factors that influence such use. The sample consisted of 360 teachers in Castilla y León who taught Spanish Language and Literature in primary or secondary education. The results indicated that, although teachers at both levels have an intermediate level of digital competence, secondary school teachers feel more prepared to teach writing skills using ICTs. Likewise, at both levels, training for teaching high-level cognitive processes of writing through ICTs is lower compared to low-level processes, therefore contents and activities are more focused on the latter. Additionally, primary school teachers have more positive attitudes towards ICTs, which, together with a high self-efficacy, is related to a greater use of ICTs.