Educational intervention in the production of narrative texts for primary education students
Keywords:
Narrative, macrostructure, microstructure, intervention, assessment
Abstract
The aim of the present study is to investigate the degree of improvement in the writing of written narrative texts of students, with and without learning difficulties, after teaching the structural and linguistic elements of narrative that constitute the two levels of narrative, the macro- and micro-structure, respectively. 18 students of the third grade of a public primary school in Attica participated in the survey. Of the 18 students in the sample, 7 had a learning disorder or learning difficulties. The evaluation of the research subjects was conducted both before (pre-test) and after (post-test) the implementation of the educational intervention programme in order to determine its effectiveness. A variety of teaching methods and techniques and enriched multisensory materials were used to support the educational needs of all students. The evaluation of the produced narrative, initial and final, was based on the examination and co-evaluation of the structural and linguistic elements required for a coherently structured narrative. After the educational intervention, a comparison of pre-test and post-test results was conducted, which showed that all students, with and without learning difficulties, improved significantly in the production of narrative texts.
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References
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Bogaerds-Hazenberg, S.T.M., Evers-Vermeul, J., & van den Bergh, H. (2021). A Meta-Analysis on the Effects of Text Structure Instruction on Reading Comprehension in the Upper Elementary Grades. Reading Research Quartely, 56(3), 435-462. https://doi.org/10.1002/rrq.311.
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Gillam, S.L., Gillam, R.B., Fargo, J.D., Olszewski, A. & Segura, H. (2017). Monitoring Indicators of Scholarly Language: A Progress-Monitoring Instrument for Measuring Narrative Discourse Skills. Communication Disorders Quarterly, 38(2) 96–106. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1128815.pdf
Gillam, S. L. & Gillam, R. B. (2016). Narrative Discourse Intervention for School-Aged Children With Language Impairment. Supporting Knowledge in Language and Literacy. Topics in Language Disorders, 36(1), 20-34. DOI: 10.1097/TLD.0000000000000081
Gillam, S. L., Hartzheim, D., Studenka, B., Simonsmeier, V. & Gillam, R. (2015). Narrative Intervention for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 58, 920-33.
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Hall-Mills, S. & Apel, K. (2015). Linguistic Feature Development Across Grades and Genre in Elementary Writing. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 46(3):242-55. doi: 10.1044/2015_LSHSS-14-0043.
Heilmann, J., Miller, J. F., Nockerts, A., & Dunaway, C. (2010). Properties of the narrative scoring scheme using narrative retells in young school-age children. American Journal of Speech Language Pathology, 19, 154- 16.
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Justice, L., Kaderavek, J., Ukrainetz, T., Eisenberg, S. & Gillam, R. (2006). The Index of Narrative Microstructure: A Clinical Tool for Analyzing School-Age Children’s Narrative Performances. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 15, 177–191.
Kanellou, M. A., Korvesi, E. A., Ralli, A., Mouzaki, A., Antoniou, F., Diamanti, V., & Papaioannou, S. (2016). ΟιΑφηγηματικέςΔεξιότητεςσεΠαιδιάΠροσχολικής&ΠρώτηςΣχολικήςΗλικίας. [Narrative Skills in Preschool & Early School Age Children]. Preschool and Primary Education, 4(1), 35–67. https://doi.org/10.12681/ppej.207.
Kendeou, P., Bohn-Gettler, C., White, M. J. & Van de Broek, P. (2008). Children’s inference generation across different media. Journal of Research in Reading, 32, 259–272.
Kim, Y.-S., Al Otaiba, S., Sidler, J. F. &Gruelich, L. (2013). Language, literacy, attentional behaviors, and instructional quality predictors of written composition for first graders. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 28(3), 461–469. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2013.01.001
Kintsch, W., Mandel, T.S. &Kozminsky, E. (1977). Summarizing scrambled stories. Memory & Cognition, 5(5), 547–552. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03197399.
Lever, R. & Senechal, M. (2011). Discussing stories: On how a dialogic reading intervention improves kindergartners’ oral narrative construction. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 108, 1-24.
Mar, R.A., Li, J., Nguyen, A.T.P. & Ta, C.P. (2021). Memory and comprehension of narrative versus expository texts: A meta-analysis. Psychonomic Bulletin Review, 28(3), 732-749. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-020-01853-1
Matsangouras, H. (2004). Text-centered approach to the written word, Athens: Grigoris.
Panteliadou, S. &Patsiodimou, A. (2007). Teaching assessment applications and learning difficulties. Thessaloniki.
Parisis, I. & Parisis, N. (2003).Dictionary of literary terms. Ed. D' OEDB.
Printezi, A. & Polychronis, F. (2016). Dealing with difficulties in writing: A psycho-pedagogical approach. Pedagogicaldiscourse, 1, 153-174.
Ralli, A. M. & SidiropoulouT. (2011). Ησημασίατηςαναδιήγησηςστηνανάπτυξητουαφηγηματικούλόγουπαιδιώνπροσχολικήςηλικίας. [The importance of retelling for the development of narrative skills of preschool children.] EuropeanJournalofSpecialNeedsEducation, 26 (2), 233-249. DOI:10.1080/08856257.2011.563609.
Riley, J. & Burrell, A. (2007) Assessing children’s oral storytelling in their first year of school. International Journal of Early Years Education, 15 (2), 181-196.
Rouse, A.G. & Graham, S. (2014). A Meta-Analysis of Writing Interventions for Students With Learning Disabilities. Exceptional Children, 80(4), 454-473. DOI:10.1177/0014402914527238
Samosa, R. C., Villar, M. S., Balasta, S. C., Gugulan, J. M., Macato, A. D. (2021). Ask, ReflectAnd Text (Art) Strategy AsAn Innovative Teaching Strategy To Enhance The Learners’ Narrative Writing Skills. International Journal of Academic Multidisciplinary Research (IJAMR), 5 (12), 98-103.
Sharples, M. (1999). How We Write - Writing as Creative Design. London: Routledge.
Sharples, M. (1996). An Account of Writing as Creative Design. In C.M. Levy & S. Ransdell (Eds.), The Science of Writing - Theories, Methods, Individual Differences and Applications, 928. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Spencer, T. D. & Slocum, T. A. (2010). The effect of a Narrative Intervention on Story Retelling and Personal Story Generation skills of Preschoolers with risk factors and narrative language delays. Journal of Early Intervention, 32 (3), 178-199.
Stadler, M. A. & Ward, G. C. (2005). Supporting the Development of Young Children. Early Childhood Education Journal, 33 (2), 73-80.
Stein, N. L., & Glenn, C. (1979). An analysis of story comprehension in elementary school children. In R. O. Freedle (Ed.), New directionsin discourse processing, 53–120. Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
Thorndyke, P.W. (1977). Cognitive structures in comprehension and memory of narrative discourse. Cognitive Psychology, 9(1), 77-110. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0010028577900056
Tsimpli, I. M., Peristeri, E., & Andreou, M. (2016). Narrative production in monolingual and bilingual children with specific language impairment. Applied Psycholinguistics, 37(1), 195–216. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0142716415000478.
Walker, B., Shippen, M.E., Alberto, P., Houchins, D.E. & Cihak, D.F. (2006). Using the Expressive Writing Program to Improve the Writing Skills of High School Students with Learning Disabilities. Journal of Direct Instruction, 6(1), 35–47.
Westerveld, M. F., Gillon, G. T. & Moran, C. (2008). A longitudinal investigation of oral narrative skills in children with mixed reading disability. International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 10, 132-145.
Babayiğit, S., Roulstone, S., & Wren, Y. (2021). Linguistic comprehension and narrative skills predict reading ability: A 9‐year longitudinal study. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 91(1), 148–168. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12353
Berman, R.A., & Nir-Sagiv, B. (2007). Comparing Narrative and Expository Text Construction Across Adolescence: A Developmental Paradox. Discourse Processes, 43(2), 79-120. https://doi.org/10.1080/01638530709336894
Bogaerds-Hazenberg, S.T.M., Evers-Vermeul, J., & van den Bergh, H. (2021). A Meta-Analysis on the Effects of Text Structure Instruction on Reading Comprehension in the Upper Elementary Grades. Reading Research Quartely, 56(3), 435-462. https://doi.org/10.1002/rrq.311.
Brown, J.A., Garzarek, J.E. & Donegan, K.L. (2014) Effects of a Narrative Intervention on Story Retelling in At-Risk Young Children. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 34 (3), 154-164.
Dunn, M., Tudor, D., Scattergood, C. & Closson, S. (2010). Ask, Reflect, Text A narrative Story-Writing Strategy . Childhood Education, 87(2), 98–105. https://doi.org/10.1080/00094056.2011.10521453
Galbraith, D. (1999). Writing as a Knowledge-Constituting Process. In M. Torrance & D. Galbraith (Eds.), Knowing what to write: Conceptual processes in text production, 139–160. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.
Gillam, S. L., Vaughn, S., Roberts, G., Capin, P., Fall, A.-M., Israelsen-Augenstein, M., Holbrook, S., Wada, R., Hancock, A., Fox, C., Dille, J., Magimairaj, B. M., & Gillam, R. B. (2023). Improving oral and written narration and reading comprehension of children at-risk for language and literacy difficulties: Results of a randomized clinical trial. Journal of Educational Psychology, 115(1), 99–117. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000766
Gillam, S.L., Gillam, R.B., Fargo, J.D., Olszewski, A. & Segura, H. (2017). Monitoring Indicators of Scholarly Language: A Progress-Monitoring Instrument for Measuring Narrative Discourse Skills. Communication Disorders Quarterly, 38(2) 96–106. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1128815.pdf
Gillam, S. L. & Gillam, R. B. (2016). Narrative Discourse Intervention for School-Aged Children With Language Impairment. Supporting Knowledge in Language and Literacy. Topics in Language Disorders, 36(1), 20-34. DOI: 10.1097/TLD.0000000000000081
Gillam, S. L., Hartzheim, D., Studenka, B., Simonsmeier, V. & Gillam, R. (2015). Narrative Intervention for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 58, 920-33.
Hall, C., Capin, P., Vaughn, S., Gillam, S. L., Wada, R., Fall, A.-M., Roberts, G., Dille, J. T., & Gillam, R. B. (2021). Narrative instruction in elementary classrooms: An observation study. The Elementary School Journal, 121(3), 454–483. https://doi.org/10.1086/712416.
Hall-Mills, S. & Apel, K. (2015). Linguistic Feature Development Across Grades and Genre in Elementary Writing. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 46(3):242-55. doi: 10.1044/2015_LSHSS-14-0043.
Heilmann, J., Miller, J. F., Nockerts, A., & Dunaway, C. (2010). Properties of the narrative scoring scheme using narrative retells in young school-age children. American Journal of Speech Language Pathology, 19, 154- 16.
Hegsted, S. (2013) Narrative Development in Preschool and School-Age Children. Undergraduate Honors Theses. Paper 140 http://digitalcommons.usu.edu/honors/140
Inzidis, E., Papadopoulos, A. Sioutis, A. &Tiktopoulou, A. (2007). The amazing pencils, Teacher's Book, Methodological instructions. Athens: Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs, Pedagogical Institute.Bibliography.
Janssen, L., Scheper, A., Groot, M., Daamen, K., Willemsen, M., Vissers, C. & Verhoeven, L. (2020). Narrative group intervention in DLD: Learning to tell the plot. Child Language Teaching and Therapy, 36(3) 181–193. doi.org/10.1177/0265659020950386.
Justice, L., Kaderavek, J., Ukrainetz, T., Eisenberg, S. & Gillam, R. (2006). The Index of Narrative Microstructure: A Clinical Tool for Analyzing School-Age Children’s Narrative Performances. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 15, 177–191.
Kanellou, M. A., Korvesi, E. A., Ralli, A., Mouzaki, A., Antoniou, F., Diamanti, V., & Papaioannou, S. (2016). ΟιΑφηγηματικέςΔεξιότητεςσεΠαιδιάΠροσχολικής&ΠρώτηςΣχολικήςΗλικίας. [Narrative Skills in Preschool & Early School Age Children]. Preschool and Primary Education, 4(1), 35–67. https://doi.org/10.12681/ppej.207.
Kendeou, P., Bohn-Gettler, C., White, M. J. & Van de Broek, P. (2008). Children’s inference generation across different media. Journal of Research in Reading, 32, 259–272.
Kim, Y.-S., Al Otaiba, S., Sidler, J. F. &Gruelich, L. (2013). Language, literacy, attentional behaviors, and instructional quality predictors of written composition for first graders. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 28(3), 461–469. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2013.01.001
Kintsch, W., Mandel, T.S. &Kozminsky, E. (1977). Summarizing scrambled stories. Memory & Cognition, 5(5), 547–552. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03197399.
Lever, R. & Senechal, M. (2011). Discussing stories: On how a dialogic reading intervention improves kindergartners’ oral narrative construction. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 108, 1-24.
Mar, R.A., Li, J., Nguyen, A.T.P. & Ta, C.P. (2021). Memory and comprehension of narrative versus expository texts: A meta-analysis. Psychonomic Bulletin Review, 28(3), 732-749. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-020-01853-1
Matsangouras, H. (2004). Text-centered approach to the written word, Athens: Grigoris.
Panteliadou, S. &Patsiodimou, A. (2007). Teaching assessment applications and learning difficulties. Thessaloniki.
Parisis, I. & Parisis, N. (2003).Dictionary of literary terms. Ed. D' OEDB.
Printezi, A. & Polychronis, F. (2016). Dealing with difficulties in writing: A psycho-pedagogical approach. Pedagogicaldiscourse, 1, 153-174.
Ralli, A. M. & SidiropoulouT. (2011). Ησημασίατηςαναδιήγησηςστηνανάπτυξητουαφηγηματικούλόγουπαιδιώνπροσχολικήςηλικίας. [The importance of retelling for the development of narrative skills of preschool children.] EuropeanJournalofSpecialNeedsEducation, 26 (2), 233-249. DOI:10.1080/08856257.2011.563609.
Riley, J. & Burrell, A. (2007) Assessing children’s oral storytelling in their first year of school. International Journal of Early Years Education, 15 (2), 181-196.
Rouse, A.G. & Graham, S. (2014). A Meta-Analysis of Writing Interventions for Students With Learning Disabilities. Exceptional Children, 80(4), 454-473. DOI:10.1177/0014402914527238
Samosa, R. C., Villar, M. S., Balasta, S. C., Gugulan, J. M., Macato, A. D. (2021). Ask, ReflectAnd Text (Art) Strategy AsAn Innovative Teaching Strategy To Enhance The Learners’ Narrative Writing Skills. International Journal of Academic Multidisciplinary Research (IJAMR), 5 (12), 98-103.
Sharples, M. (1999). How We Write - Writing as Creative Design. London: Routledge.
Sharples, M. (1996). An Account of Writing as Creative Design. In C.M. Levy & S. Ransdell (Eds.), The Science of Writing - Theories, Methods, Individual Differences and Applications, 928. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Spencer, T. D. & Slocum, T. A. (2010). The effect of a Narrative Intervention on Story Retelling and Personal Story Generation skills of Preschoolers with risk factors and narrative language delays. Journal of Early Intervention, 32 (3), 178-199.
Stadler, M. A. & Ward, G. C. (2005). Supporting the Development of Young Children. Early Childhood Education Journal, 33 (2), 73-80.
Stein, N. L., & Glenn, C. (1979). An analysis of story comprehension in elementary school children. In R. O. Freedle (Ed.), New directionsin discourse processing, 53–120. Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
Thorndyke, P.W. (1977). Cognitive structures in comprehension and memory of narrative discourse. Cognitive Psychology, 9(1), 77-110. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0010028577900056
Tsimpli, I. M., Peristeri, E., & Andreou, M. (2016). Narrative production in monolingual and bilingual children with specific language impairment. Applied Psycholinguistics, 37(1), 195–216. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0142716415000478.
Walker, B., Shippen, M.E., Alberto, P., Houchins, D.E. & Cihak, D.F. (2006). Using the Expressive Writing Program to Improve the Writing Skills of High School Students with Learning Disabilities. Journal of Direct Instruction, 6(1), 35–47.
Westerveld, M. F., Gillon, G. T. & Moran, C. (2008). A longitudinal investigation of oral narrative skills in children with mixed reading disability. International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 10, 132-145.
Published
2025-04-10
How to Cite
Papoutsaki, K., & AnnοpoulouE. (2025). Educational intervention in the production of narrative texts for primary education students. GPH-International Journal of Educational Research, 8(03), 185-196. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15193746
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Articles
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