WRITER(S)-WITHIN-COMMUNITY MODEL OF WRITING AS A LENS FOR STUDYING THE TEACHING OF WRITING

It is commonly assumed that teachers play an essential role in students’ development as writers. Yet, we know surprisingly little about those who teach writing and how they teach it. This chapter provides one tool for addressing this shortcoming by describing a model that can be used as a lens for studying writing and writing teachers. The Writer(s)-within-Community model presented here combines social and cognitive viewpoints to provide a broad platform from which to examine writing and how it is taught. The components of a writing community, the cognitive capabilities and resources of the teacher, and the operating principles underlying the model are presented with a specific focus on teachers. We provide multiple examples on how the model can be used to describe, explain, predict, and enhance writing teachers’ knowledge, beliefs, and actions.