Teaching Literacy Effectively in the Primary School. By David Wray, Jane Medwell, Louise Poulson and Richard Fox. RoutledgeFalmer, pound;15.99 each

Primary teachers in England have recently undergone an unprecedented drive to improve the way they teach literacy. The aim of the National Literacy Strategy (NLS) is nothing less than major systemic change, with resources and training poured in at all levels. Ultimately, though, for this initiative to succeed, it must alter permanently the way teachers think and act. These two books report research projects that focus on how literacy is actually taught from day to day.

Ros Fisher looks at a sample of schools over the two years following the introduction of the NLS. She gives a wealth of information about teachers’ changing views as they came to terms with the new demands. Most had mixed feelings at first, and became more positive as they grew familiar with the strategy and made it their own. But one or two, especially those who favoured a very structured teaching approach, actually moved in the opposite direction.

The easiest aspect of the literacy hour to tackle was whole-class, shared reading, which was popular from the start. Guided reading with groups and individuals took longer to become established. Inside the Literacy Hour has a special focus on mixed-age classes where, perhaps surprisingly, the literacy hour proved to work well, as long as teachers were prepared to be flexible and did not try to focus on too many objectives at the same time.

This book offers a unique document of the view from the classroom. A mix of research methods provides a multifaceted picture, and the observations of teachers and children at work are particularly valuable in highlighting the nature of effective interaction and focused teaching. One key stage 2 teacher, for example, taught formal and informal letter writing by working with The Jolly Postman, using a high-quality text to teach both reading and writing. Questions such as “How many differences can you find?” encouraged children to extend their thinking.

Some observations, however, suggest that teachers may have changed less than they think - in one example, the teacher aimed to teach tongue-twisters, but actually focused the children’s attention on the contents of a sandwich! As well as offering well-researched advice, this book throws into question the sustainability of the change.

Teaching Literacy Effectively in the Primary School by David Wray and colleagues addresses a similar issue. Their research sought to identify the features that set apart successful teachers of literacy. They start by identifying a sample of effective teachers and, through classroom observations, interviews, attitude measures and assessments of subject knowledge, go on to describe their relevant attitudes and skills.

These teachers place constant emphasis on the meaning of texts, and lessons are purposeful and rapidly-paced. Some of these features are very close to aspects of the NLS, which post-dates the research. It would be very interesting to repeat this study in the current NLS-dominated world, to find out what has changed.

Marian Sainsbury is a principal research officer at the National Foundation for Educational Research