The impact of kinaesthetic teaching on story writing

This thesis examines the use of kinaesthetic methods on the story writing of primary age children. There have been many claims by learning theorists and the protagonists of learning theories, but these have not been tested. I test the claims of one learning theory, VAK, which are quickly rejected. One aspect of the theory however is investigated in depth, the kinaesthetic element. Kinaesthetic teaching offered the hope of increased attainment as well as more purposeful learning. Mantle of the Expert was used in the context of Literacy. It was combined with Pupil Voice, metacognition and a range of other initiatives. These initiatives together created an environment in which the children, having been taught kinaesthetically, took on the role of experts. The children’s perspectives were gained using interviews, questionnaires and field notes of their comments. The role of metacognition in learning was briefly investigated. The attainment of two classes (N=57) was then compared to the national average improvement in attainment of two parts of a level using the case study approach. Results were quantitatively analysed to establish the validity of the increased attainment using the kinaesthetic method. The main findings were that learning styles are not consistently chosen by children of primary age. The findings also indicated that the children enjoyed learning kinaesthetically and that subsequently it helped them to write. The finding that kinaesthetic teaching improved attainment could not be supported. The findings suggest that if teaching and learning was made more practical, the children would enjoy learning and significantly enhance their attainment. The research and notably the role of the children in the study, led to the synthesis of kinaesthetic memory and emotional contagion in an educational context.