Bullying Concerns in Fourth-Grade Fiction Illustrate Our Educational Responsibility to Safeguard Writing Instruction

• In Event: Teachers on Writing and Writing Instruction

Abstract

Creative writing can address students’ social emotional learning needs by helping them process emotions (Edmunds & Edmunds, 2005; Pennebaker & Smyth, 2016). Bullying is a prevalent source of anxiety for children (NCES, 2011), and a recent content analysis of 237 narrative fiction stories composed by fourth graders [name withheld] revealed bullying as the most frequent source of plot conflict (n = 41). With this study, researchers examined students’ depictions of bullying and discovered instances of emotional and physical bullying; attempts to fight back against bullies; and compassion extended toward bullies. By showing how students fictionalized both the problem of bullying and its potential solutions, this study supports a renewed emphasis on creative writing to promote elementary students’ socioemotional wellness.

Authors

• Rachelle Kuehl, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

• Amy Price Azano, Virginia Tech

• Carolyn M. Callahan, University of Virginia