“Fish out of Water?”

Targeted Intervention for Boys’ Writing at Padstow School

Abstract

Is it possible that a place-based learning approach might have direct impact on literacy outcomes? Six 11-year-old boys from the harbor town of Padstow, Cornwall, UK worked with educationalist Will Coleman and film maker Brett Harvey to make short documentary films on the subject of fishing and also to write articles for their community magazine. All six boys made dramatic improvements in their literacy scores but also reappraised their relationship with their own community.