Dr. Renske Bouwer

Associate Professor
Language and Communication
Language and education
r.bouwer@uu.nl
Projects
Project
Deliberate literacy in secondary education: reading and writing with genres 01.09.2024 to 31.08.2029
General project description

Literacy education in secondary schools is experienced as dull and ineffective. We investigate how reading and writing education in lower grades of vmbo-tl and havo can be made more challenging and meaningful through a cross-curricular genre-pedagogical approach. Students learn to deliberately apply genre knowledge in Dutch and history lessons. With teachers we design lesson units for deliberate genre literacy. Effectiveness is tested in a large-scale intervention study. A cross-curricular genre pedagogy is expected to increase students’ knowledge, skills and motivation. We also investigate what subject-specific didactic expertise is needed for teachers, and what it yields for integration between curriculum subjects.

Role
Co-promotor & Researcher
Funding
NWO grant NRO Knowledge for education of the future - Large
External project members
  • dr. Ninke Stukker (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen)
  • dr. Jannet van Drie (Universiteit van Amsterdam)
  • prof. dr. Carla van Boxtel (Universiteit van Amsterdam)
  • dr. Jeroen Steenbakkers (Hogeschool Windesheim)
  • Stefan Glasbergen (Hogeschool van Amsterdam)
  • prof. dr. em. Kees de Glopper (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen)
  • prof. dr. Wilbert Spooren (Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen)
Project
Promoting the reading-writing nexus: how teachers can guide students in becoming academic writers across the curriculum 01.09.2023 to 31.08.2025
General project description

In collaboration with students, teachers, and coordinators from five faculties and support services, this project aims to reveal how students learn to write academic synthesis texts, and what teaching activities and feedback they need when to self-regulate and promote their academic writing progress. Ultimately, this project enables teachers and coordinators to shape the writing curriculum in a more evidence-informed way and tailored to students’ needs.

Role
Project Leader
Funding
Utrecht University Utrecht Education Incentive Fund
Completed Projects
Project
Dialogic writing: An integrative approach for meaningful language education in the upper primary grades 08.03.2021 to 08.09.2022
General project description

In het huidige taalonderwijs is er weinig aandacht voor de productieve taalvaardigheden schrijven en spreken. Ook worden ze vaak in aparte lessen behandeld, waardoor het voor leerlingen lastig is om de samenhang te zien. Daarnaast krijgen leerlingen weinig kansen om taal in verschillende betekenisvolle contexten te gebruiken als middel om te communiceren. In dit onderzoeksproject zetten wij in op een integrale aanpak van de schriftelijke en mondelinge taalvaardigheid in het basisonderwijs door leerlingen in dialoog te laten gaan over eigen geschreven teksten. De verwachting is dat dit de kwaliteit van de geschreven teksten en de gesprekken in de klas bevordert.

Role
Project Leader & Researcher
Funding
NWO grant NRO Kortlopend Onderwijsonderzoek
External project members
  • Chiel van der Veen (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)
  • Kike Olsder (Stichting Taalvorming Amsterdam)
  • Monica Koster (Tekster)
  • Bea Pompert (De Activiteit)
  • Leanne Zwama (basisschool Groen van Prinstererschool)