Why is writing (so) difficult?

I have borrowed the title of the book written by the educator Philippe Meirieu to write these reflections on the complexity of introducing children to the world of writing. It is a short book, included in the new Minerva collection published by the Rosa Sensat Teachers' Association, reviving the name of the collection offered at the beginning of the 20th century by the Barcelona Provincial Council and later by the Commonwealth of Catalonia.

This book is a balm for all of us who undertake the challenging yet fascinating task of awakening children's interest in learning to read and write. I call it a balm because, lately, the debate surrounding educational outcomes in reading comprehension has seen a resurgence of a technical and behaviorist approach, often disguised as something new and supported by scientific evidence.

In the book's summary, Meirieu begins with the first cast and ends with the first chat, after touching on the first letter to the Three Kings (from the East, of course!), the first stories, the first word games, and other moments brimming with meaning and life. It is crucial that educational reform movements challenge the arrogance of the approaches I mentioned earlier. Unfortunately, these approaches are finding fertile ground, nurtured by the sense of failure generated by a pessimistic and biased interpretation of poor results on standardized tests.

To be able to read and write with a critical sense

From my perspective, it is crucial at this time to bring to the forefront of the debate how reading and writing are learned and taught, and the human and social dimensions of this learning. When I say "human," I mean considering the importance of taking into account a series of dimensions that are often unpredictable and, therefore, difficult to interpret from an overly scientific perspective, because every child and every person is unique and irreplaceable.

If schools want to put humanity before technology, they must prioritize aspects such as the need to communicate through writing, the discovery of the worlds children find in children's literature, the development of feelings and affections through the exchange of messages, the right to have and express an opinion about a fact or phenomenon, dreams, play, songs, poetry, theater… This entire list, which can be expanded even further, is what schools should nurture and develop, offering a multitude of avenues through which children can discover a passion for learning to read and write.

Meirieu says, at one point in his book:What the child wants is to know how to read and write. But he soon discovers that to know this, he needs to learn. It would be too wonderful if all children wanted to learn. What they want is to know!

This is precisely our task today: to do everything possible to awaken in children and young people a desire to learn. In these times dominated by technology, it's deceptively easy to feel like you "know," but knowledge is often disguised as ideologies, prejudices, or advertising. Knowing how to read and write critically will be the best lesson we can give them to navigate this complexity without stifling their identity.