Transforming research on morphology into teacher practice

Research suggests that the explicit teaching of morphological principles will improve children’s spelling. Despite the fact that reference is made to morphology in English policy documents, teachers make limited use of morphology when teaching spelling, relying more heavily on phonic and visual strategies. After attending a course on role of morphemes in spelling, teachers’ own awareness of morphology increased and this was reflected in their practice. This in turn caused their pupils to make significant gains in spelling, compared to a control group. This reinforces the proposition that explicit instruction about morphemes is helpful to children’s learning. It demonstrates the fact that research can be transformed into teacher practice, but it also illustrates the difficulties. Policy documentation alone is insufficient. Professional development can effect change but this may be hard to sustain. Children’s gains are contingent on teacher’s continuing to dedicate class time to focussed intervention