Mackenzie, N., & Veresov, N. (2013). How Drawing can Support Writing Acquisition: Text Construction in Early Writing from a Vygotskian Perspective. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 38(4), 22–29. DOI:10.1177/183693911303800404 In the introduction part, the authors established what early childhood means. It is defined as the 'period of time from birth to eight years of age' (UNESCO, 2013). The definition here is important because in this period is when foundations for literacy are established (Mackenzie and Veresov, 2013). The paper suggests that many schools have their focus on letters, words and forms and leave behind real communication. According to Mackenzie and Veresov (2013), drawing is considered as a time-filler and not like a technique to help students communicate. Regarding Theoretical Underpinnings, the research makes usage of the Cultural-Historical Theory (CHT), in which development is a complex process influenced by sociocultural contexts, and Genetic Research Methodology (GRM), which allows theoretical and experimental tools to analyse the data. The research question this paper tries to answer is ‘how does drawing support the learning of written text? To answer it, in the Method Section, the researchers chose randomly 60 children in the first year of formal schooling and their 10 volunteer teachers. Mackenzie and Veresov (2013) established three experimental conditions to carry out the study and what participants should do. Then, in Finding Section, researchers explain how drawing has been used by the children and how it gives more meaning to the texts. At first, drawing has more relevance than formal writing (Mackenzie and Veresov, 2013). In this section, there are six examples of how children have made (or not) use of drawings to support their texts. For instance, a child did not know how to write ‘church’ so instead of writing it, he drew it. Then, in the Discussion Section, it is explained how children go through a process, in which drawing is used, and gradually they start making more use of formal writing. As a summary, children are able to create their own stories by means of a combination of drawing and some formal letters. Then, they started adding more words to the drawing and, in the latest stage, it could be seen how written text dominate the complete message. Finally, there is the Conclusion Section. Mackenzie and Veresov (2013) claim that the research question has been answered on favour. Drawing supports the acquisition of sign use (writing) and it also helps student reaching self-expression. However, they established that the sample was small but the materials to analyse were good. Finally, they state that drawing could be considered as a valued element in the early stages and be part of the curriculum. I personally recommend this paper owing to the fact that, nowadays, many schools only focus on making things ‘perfect’. However, the important thing in schools is making things right to allow our students developing in the best way possible. Besides, I have always considered drawing as a great tool to motivate students and engage them to learn. So, if it can help students learn how to write, making this complex process a little bit easier, better for everyone.
