Academic Margins
Basic writing is a weird subject to me. I don't see why anyone would want to abolish basic writing courses. They seem so mandatory these days. I understand that if someone is in college, the SHOULD know how to write, but that isn't usually the case. Many students who are in poorer high schools have no control over what they are being taught, and usually don't know better to try and change it. If those students choose college, college should want to help those students out and educate them to the best of their ability. Basic writing is needed for every class that will be taken and is needed for most jobs and careers. How are we supposed to just throw them into a composition course if they are just going to fail. What should the college care about teaching basic writing? If students are placed there, they will need to take that before the comp class. They are still paying for their education. I hope it isn't an issue of race and class prejudice as Mutnick points out.
I like the idea of, "errors represent the writer's attempt to systematize language, to approximate the standard written code in the absence of adequate instruction and practice." That is a good point, I have never though about that.
Basic writing can help out many students, and good teaching can show the students their potential for being great writers. The goal should be to get them to move "inside the margins."
Technology and the Teaching of Writing
This essay was funny because it did seem outdated as we said in class. Just talking about "word-processing" seemed ancient to me. Moran also seems to be stating the obvious for this generation.
Technology has been a hot topic. I agree with Shipka that technology is almost inescapable in a classroom, be it the lights, the chalkboard, the clothes that people are wearing, etc. It is frustrating to hear a teacher talking about how they are not going to change what they are doing, when in fact they are using technology. I think that it is important in a classroom. I may not be super savvy on computers, but I do think they are the future, just like the students.
E-mail is weird. We talked about this as well. Would I allow students to e-mail me? In high school? You know, I don't think I would give them all my e0mail the first day of class or anything, but if there was situation where I wouldn't see student for a period of time, then sure. I think e-mail is a great way to communicate, as long as everyone has it, which everyone does not. Online discussion is the same way. Although that frustrates me more. I want to be able to say what I want, when I want...I hate when I am not heard, or am over shadowed by others who are chatting. The Internet is great for a classroom. There are so many projects and fun things for students to do on the web.
Technology always come up. It seems that we talk about it in every class, even when it isn't the subject of conversation. I think that technology will be something that I will be hearing about for a long time.
Monday, May 14, 2007
May 8th WAC and Writing Center
WAC
I always wondered what writing across the curriculum actually was. I think I have a better understanding, although I am still a little cloudy on the subject. I see that it helps. "students to become critical thinkers and problem solvers," and that it helps their communication skills. I didn't know that there were two different approaches to WAC, the writing to learn and the writing to communicate. I guess I use writing to learn more than I thought. I like the idea of journals and free writing. I know that they are pointless to some, but I think it is so important to have something so student based, something that students won;t worry because it isn't graded, but it is for them. I think that I will use this approach a lot in my classroom, especially with journals. Writing to communicate is just as important. Being able to write for the audience, for the reader is a skill that students must learn. This will apply to everything they write, in their future jobs and so on. I like how the teacher is a guide, or a "tribal elder to initiate."
Understanding processes is also important. I think that if we don't understand the process, we can't fully understand the result.
It would be interesting to go to a writing workshop. I think I would get frustrated though, because even though McLeod says that at workshops one must "model the pedagogy" I think it would still be someone telling me what to do, and I don't like that.
Writing Center
Hobson is definitely an advocate for the writing center. I have many thoughts on writing centers. I understand that they are designed to instruct and support writers. That writers have a place to go where they can join together with other disiplines and unite, forming a superhero writing group. I guess I am jsut tainted because it isn't always like that. Hobson does talk about how all writing centers are different, but he doesn't talk about the negatives that may occur there. First of all, I have had some bad tutors at writing centers. Most of the time they don't know what they are talking about, or they aren't looking at the contenet at all, just the format and the grammar, etc. They may not even ask me questions about what I was doingand why...it is just wrong, or teachers don't like that. I know that this isn't the point of writing centers. I think that the intentions are good. I think it is a great goal to, "produce better writers, not better writing." I just don't think that happens very much. I think that if we are going to have writing centers, we need experienced people working there. As for writing centers being a training site for teachers, I haven't experienced that yet.
I always wondered what writing across the curriculum actually was. I think I have a better understanding, although I am still a little cloudy on the subject. I see that it helps. "students to become critical thinkers and problem solvers," and that it helps their communication skills. I didn't know that there were two different approaches to WAC, the writing to learn and the writing to communicate. I guess I use writing to learn more than I thought. I like the idea of journals and free writing. I know that they are pointless to some, but I think it is so important to have something so student based, something that students won;t worry because it isn't graded, but it is for them. I think that I will use this approach a lot in my classroom, especially with journals. Writing to communicate is just as important. Being able to write for the audience, for the reader is a skill that students must learn. This will apply to everything they write, in their future jobs and so on. I like how the teacher is a guide, or a "tribal elder to initiate."
Understanding processes is also important. I think that if we don't understand the process, we can't fully understand the result.
It would be interesting to go to a writing workshop. I think I would get frustrated though, because even though McLeod says that at workshops one must "model the pedagogy" I think it would still be someone telling me what to do, and I don't like that.
Writing Center
Hobson is definitely an advocate for the writing center. I have many thoughts on writing centers. I understand that they are designed to instruct and support writers. That writers have a place to go where they can join together with other disiplines and unite, forming a superhero writing group. I guess I am jsut tainted because it isn't always like that. Hobson does talk about how all writing centers are different, but he doesn't talk about the negatives that may occur there. First of all, I have had some bad tutors at writing centers. Most of the time they don't know what they are talking about, or they aren't looking at the contenet at all, just the format and the grammar, etc. They may not even ask me questions about what I was doingand why...it is just wrong, or teachers don't like that. I know that this isn't the point of writing centers. I think that the intentions are good. I think it is a great goal to, "produce better writers, not better writing." I just don't think that happens very much. I think that if we are going to have writing centers, we need experienced people working there. As for writing centers being a training site for teachers, I haven't experienced that yet.
April 3rd Feminist and Community service
Feminist Pedagogy
I don't know, I guess I am not crazy into this essay. I like feminist ideas. I think that it is important to look at things differently, especially when you are a student. I guess I think that feminist pedagogy isn't something that should need to be done, but that it is kind of already done by choosing certain books to read, and writing on certain subjects. I think that anything more than that needs to be a separate class on Feminism. Women are very important and deserve a whole class that is devoted to them. Composition courses should include women writers and as Jarratt says it includes, "decentering or sharing of authority, the recognition of students as sources of knowledge, a focus on processes," etc. I like the idea of trying to change the way thing usually are in a classroom. I am not sure why I am not crazy about this chapter though. I guess I just don't think that way, I guess I think things are changing and it isn't necessary to use feminism as a pedagogy. I think I need to learn more about it before I talk more about it. I didn't get a clear idea of what it is through this reading. I'm not sure if men can be feminists either.
Community Service Pedagogy
I think this is a good idea, but it shouldn't be the only way. I also think, as we said in class, that community service should be voluntary, not mandatory. I do think that forcing students into it may not be as beneficial as it is supposed to be. I didn't experience any community service stuff in high school, but I wish I did. I think that working with the community is important for students to get an idea of where they live, what surrounds them, and how they can help, even how they can't help. I disagree with Julier though and do think that service learning is community service. Why isn't it? I also think it is volunteerism, if you signed up for it. I see how it can be beneficial to writing, I see that many ideologies are brought together. I like the idea, just maybe not forcing it on anyone.
I don't know, I guess I am not crazy into this essay. I like feminist ideas. I think that it is important to look at things differently, especially when you are a student. I guess I think that feminist pedagogy isn't something that should need to be done, but that it is kind of already done by choosing certain books to read, and writing on certain subjects. I think that anything more than that needs to be a separate class on Feminism. Women are very important and deserve a whole class that is devoted to them. Composition courses should include women writers and as Jarratt says it includes, "decentering or sharing of authority, the recognition of students as sources of knowledge, a focus on processes," etc. I like the idea of trying to change the way thing usually are in a classroom. I am not sure why I am not crazy about this chapter though. I guess I just don't think that way, I guess I think things are changing and it isn't necessary to use feminism as a pedagogy. I think I need to learn more about it before I talk more about it. I didn't get a clear idea of what it is through this reading. I'm not sure if men can be feminists either.
Community Service Pedagogy
I think this is a good idea, but it shouldn't be the only way. I also think, as we said in class, that community service should be voluntary, not mandatory. I do think that forcing students into it may not be as beneficial as it is supposed to be. I didn't experience any community service stuff in high school, but I wish I did. I think that working with the community is important for students to get an idea of where they live, what surrounds them, and how they can help, even how they can't help. I disagree with Julier though and do think that service learning is community service. Why isn't it? I also think it is volunteerism, if you signed up for it. I see how it can be beneficial to writing, I see that many ideologies are brought together. I like the idea, just maybe not forcing it on anyone.
May 1st Cultural/Critical
Cultural Studies
I'm unsure why, but I dislike this essay. Maybe because they almost try to act "middle of the road" but they are certainly favoring sides, which is cool with me, it just gets annoying. Anyway, cultural studies is interesting, but was hard for me to understand. When I think of cultural studies, I don't normally think about politics. I know that is not what this is all about, but there is a lot of politics involved it seems. When it comes to teaching, I guess cultural studies focuses on "multiculturalism, the politics of literacy, and the implications of race, class, and gender." I did like the way they talked about how certain, or many of the themes and issues in this genre can't be made into linear ways of writing, or composing. I guess I see that, but I think I see that with most genres of pedagogy. I was glad to get some definition of what cultural studies are, and that they fall into three categories, although there may be more.
I think that using media, music, etc, as I have said before is very important for students. I like to think that that is where cultural studies is going, if it isn't there already. Mass communication and popular culture are things that are really present at the moment. Self-education is an interesting idea. I see where that could go, but I also think that there needs to be some sort of teacher. I like the idea of working with a student to figure out what the student wants to do.
Cultural studies is important in many other fields as well. Writing in general, whether it be composition, reports, grants, and so on could be helped through cultural studies.
I really like the statement, "the cultural studies approach to the writing classroom addressed the question of what constitutes the content of a composition course with the idea that content is right under our noses, in the culture of everyday life." This would be a great way to teach, but difficult in a high school setting that is ruled by curriculum and standards.
Critical Pedagogy
This was crazy talk! I liked it, but was shocked to read some of what was said. They talked about how it isn't the teacher that are poor, or it isn't a wrong technique when students aren't learning, but that it is the right thing, it is a way to keep the lower class down. That was wow to me. Also when community colleges are brought up, and that they are there to build a "large pool of unskilled workers for a shrinking number of increasingly deskilled jobs." That they, "train students to follow orders and accept subordinate roles in society." I know that is what Shor argues and not George, but Wow! I don't agree with that, at least not in my experience. This critical pedagogy seems very "hippie" to me. That isn't a bad thing, it is just that George talks a lot about oppression, resistance, and how we are trapped.
I guess the goal of critical pedagogy is, "to enable students to envision alternatives, to inspire them to assume the responsibility for collectively recreating society." I like this idea, and I see how it would be tricky to do, especially in a traditional classroom. There sometimes needs to be a line that shouldn't be crossed. The class shouldn't be able to vote the class out of existence. I guess I am also thinking about high school, so that may make a difference. I do think that students should be aware of the power they do hold. They should also be able to direct their own education, but there, once again needs to be a line.
I'm unsure why, but I dislike this essay. Maybe because they almost try to act "middle of the road" but they are certainly favoring sides, which is cool with me, it just gets annoying. Anyway, cultural studies is interesting, but was hard for me to understand. When I think of cultural studies, I don't normally think about politics. I know that is not what this is all about, but there is a lot of politics involved it seems. When it comes to teaching, I guess cultural studies focuses on "multiculturalism, the politics of literacy, and the implications of race, class, and gender." I did like the way they talked about how certain, or many of the themes and issues in this genre can't be made into linear ways of writing, or composing. I guess I see that, but I think I see that with most genres of pedagogy. I was glad to get some definition of what cultural studies are, and that they fall into three categories, although there may be more.
I think that using media, music, etc, as I have said before is very important for students. I like to think that that is where cultural studies is going, if it isn't there already. Mass communication and popular culture are things that are really present at the moment. Self-education is an interesting idea. I see where that could go, but I also think that there needs to be some sort of teacher. I like the idea of working with a student to figure out what the student wants to do.
Cultural studies is important in many other fields as well. Writing in general, whether it be composition, reports, grants, and so on could be helped through cultural studies.
I really like the statement, "the cultural studies approach to the writing classroom addressed the question of what constitutes the content of a composition course with the idea that content is right under our noses, in the culture of everyday life." This would be a great way to teach, but difficult in a high school setting that is ruled by curriculum and standards.
Critical Pedagogy
This was crazy talk! I liked it, but was shocked to read some of what was said. They talked about how it isn't the teacher that are poor, or it isn't a wrong technique when students aren't learning, but that it is the right thing, it is a way to keep the lower class down. That was wow to me. Also when community colleges are brought up, and that they are there to build a "large pool of unskilled workers for a shrinking number of increasingly deskilled jobs." That they, "train students to follow orders and accept subordinate roles in society." I know that is what Shor argues and not George, but Wow! I don't agree with that, at least not in my experience. This critical pedagogy seems very "hippie" to me. That isn't a bad thing, it is just that George talks a lot about oppression, resistance, and how we are trapped.
I guess the goal of critical pedagogy is, "to enable students to envision alternatives, to inspire them to assume the responsibility for collectively recreating society." I like this idea, and I see how it would be tricky to do, especially in a traditional classroom. There sometimes needs to be a line that shouldn't be crossed. The class shouldn't be able to vote the class out of existence. I guess I am also thinking about high school, so that may make a difference. I do think that students should be aware of the power they do hold. They should also be able to direct their own education, but there, once again needs to be a line.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
April 24 Pedagogy
Rhetorical Pedagogy
Hmmm....honestly I found this chapter so boring. I guess I just had a hard time reading it because of how it was written, and the subject. This pedagogy seems to set for me. I liked the Platonic pedagogy for some reasons, such as the lack of seriousness and the mystery involved. I think though that in general, rhetorical pedagogy is all about truth and clarity, as well as correctness. These are things that are important, but not the way I think I'll be teaching. I think it is important for teachers to mess up. I don't think that it is a sign of weakness, but it shows students that teachers are human, and if we make mistakes, then they should be okay with making mistakes too. I also think that second and third chances just need to be given some times. I don't want to focus on correctness, that isn't the most important thing. I want to focus on the student learning and getting something from my class, and maybe possibly even enjoying themselves. I don't really need to persuade my students into thinking something, I want them all to have and keep their own ideas and values. I know that Truth is a big part of this pedagogy, and I am down with that, I just think perhaps I am too student focused for it.
Collaborative Pedagogy
This pedagogy is something more that I would do. Actually, I don't need to do anything, it is already there. I do think, especially now that I have listened to Shipka, that we are always collaborating. I do think that all writing is collaborative, as Howard points out that Charlotte Thralls says, "Active readers function as collaborative partners; the writers sense of anticipated audience constitutes a form of collaboration; the community in which the act of writing takes place or toward which it is aimed contributes constraining (and enabling) conventions such as word choice, tone, organization; and sources that the writer has read exert their influence." I think that the pedagogy of collaborating is beneficial in many ways. It does eliminate some of the competition between students, it also gives students an example of work place writing, and so on. I don't think that collaborating in the sense of peer review is always helpful as I have said before. In general though, I think this is a good way to teach.
Hmmm....honestly I found this chapter so boring. I guess I just had a hard time reading it because of how it was written, and the subject. This pedagogy seems to set for me. I liked the Platonic pedagogy for some reasons, such as the lack of seriousness and the mystery involved. I think though that in general, rhetorical pedagogy is all about truth and clarity, as well as correctness. These are things that are important, but not the way I think I'll be teaching. I think it is important for teachers to mess up. I don't think that it is a sign of weakness, but it shows students that teachers are human, and if we make mistakes, then they should be okay with making mistakes too. I also think that second and third chances just need to be given some times. I don't want to focus on correctness, that isn't the most important thing. I want to focus on the student learning and getting something from my class, and maybe possibly even enjoying themselves. I don't really need to persuade my students into thinking something, I want them all to have and keep their own ideas and values. I know that Truth is a big part of this pedagogy, and I am down with that, I just think perhaps I am too student focused for it.
Collaborative Pedagogy
This pedagogy is something more that I would do. Actually, I don't need to do anything, it is already there. I do think, especially now that I have listened to Shipka, that we are always collaborating. I do think that all writing is collaborative, as Howard points out that Charlotte Thralls says, "Active readers function as collaborative partners; the writers sense of anticipated audience constitutes a form of collaboration; the community in which the act of writing takes place or toward which it is aimed contributes constraining (and enabling) conventions such as word choice, tone, organization; and sources that the writer has read exert their influence." I think that the pedagogy of collaborating is beneficial in many ways. It does eliminate some of the competition between students, it also gives students an example of work place writing, and so on. I don't think that collaborating in the sense of peer review is always helpful as I have said before. In general though, I think this is a good way to teach.
sticky embrace April 17
I think we had a really good discussion of this chapter in class. I think Wysocki is absolutely right on her idea of beauty and aesthetics. The Peek ad was a perfect ad to talk about. It is amazing what a small ad can really do. I found it very interesting to learn about how this ad was set up for our eyes. How the brightest spot is where we look first, at her ass. How the words on the ad flowed through so that it was pleasing to the eye. All of these things are really important. I did find it interesting that she said "we are not encouraged to ask about the woman in the ad as a woman, only as a shape." I though it was funny she would say that because when I first saw the ad, I actually did wonder who that woman was, is she just a model, or is she someones friend, where is she now, etc. Maybe I wonder that stuff because I am an artist who sees my subjects as people, not just subjects, and that is what really can add to or take away from a drawing or picture. Anyway, I think that students should be taught about these visuals more because we see this stuff everyday. Not only do we see this everyday, we too have to make these sorts of choices when it comes to our writing. Composing visuals is important as well for students and I think they need to be able to do it well. I thought that Kant's aesthetics were interesting. Knowing about understanding, reason, and judgement are very important to composing and making choices. Beauty is how we make it. We can do a lot with images, words, colors, and so on, it all depends on how we use these things that will decide if it is beautiful or now.
Box Logic April 12
I really enjoyed this chapter. I know I talked about it in class, but I just really think that Sirc has a great way of looking at composition as art. I think I relate to him because I definitely see the art in most things. I understand that some people may see students collecting things to put in a "box" may not fulfill the composition requirements, but I think that this way is just as effective as any other way. Perhaps some students may want to throw some stuff into a box and call it a day, but I think that if we gave students more opportunities to compose this way, that they would take it seriously and come up with amazing pieces. I definitely think that if I were to do this in a classroom, I would require a writers memo with it, just so I could really understand what the student was going for. Also, this may eliminate any of those students who think this is a way of getting out of something. The chapter itself is really interesting too. The formatting makes sense for this chapter. I know we talked about why he chose this format, but I think that it is perfect for what he is talking about. I do wish I had a writers memo from him though!
Selfe, Towards New Media April 10
Once again, I agree with this section. As I said about the article by Sean Williams, visual literacy is just as important as verbal or any other literacy. I like how Selfe defines her own writing in this chapter. She spells everything out for her reader. She decides to call the author a composer/designer, she says how she will use terms, etc. I think that is important to define your own writing, so it is nice to see someone who is published doing it. I agree that we can no longer just focus on alphabetic literacy. The world has changed, and we must follow. Visuals have taken over and so we must incorporate them into education. Selfe gives plenty of examples on how to incorporate this literacy which is wonderful. So many times we will read about something we should be doing, but there are no examples on how to change. I think she had great ways of working with the visual. I especially liked the idea of the students evaluating each other. This really gives them a better understanding of what they are looking for. This literacy will probably be a topic of discussion for a long time because not everyone is willing to change yet, which is upsetting.
writers memo, explaining choices
When I first read about the writers memo, I thought that I have never been asked to do something like that. When Shipka brought up the statement of goals and choices, I was like...oh yeah. I think the reason I assumed I have never done one was because the article focuses on answering questions about writing, and the writing process. I know that I have done writing for Shipka, but when I think of the sogac, I think that I answered so many questions, about every part of the process, that I didn't even consider it as a writers memo. I guess also because when I read this article, I thought that students would hate it. They would not want to do this extra work, having to explain their choices. I though , would they even know what their choices were the whole time? I actually had fun doing the sogac, so maybe that is why I did not join the two at first. Now I see that I have done a writers memo, and I think that it was an amazing thing to do. It not only was something different to do, which is a huge plus when taking all English classes, but it really helped me. It made me see what I was doing, the choices that I made. Some were good choices, some were actually not so good, and I was able to recognise that for next time. It also helped me examine my own process for every thing that I do, not just projects for Shipka, but assignments for other classes, even outside of school stuff. I think that the writers memo is a great idea for writing. Students should be aware of their choices.
With Explaining Ones Rhetorical Choices, same idea, just in conferences. Like I said about Beach, I think that it is a great idea, just hard for high school. I do think that these conferences with students about their choices is doable. Even if it is hard, I think that it is really important to do. Teachers need to know and understand what it is their students are trying to say. They need to have the opportunity to tell teachers what they did and why. It may look bad to me, but if they have a reason for doing it that way, then how can I judge that?
With Explaining Ones Rhetorical Choices, same idea, just in conferences. Like I said about Beach, I think that it is a great idea, just hard for high school. I do think that these conferences with students about their choices is doable. Even if it is hard, I think that it is really important to do. Teachers need to know and understand what it is their students are trying to say. They need to have the opportunity to tell teachers what they did and why. It may look bad to me, but if they have a reason for doing it that way, then how can I judge that?
April 3
Probst:
Okay, well I agree and disagree with this one. I think that we definitely put our own experiences and culture and community into each word. I understand if the word dog means something nice to one person and something bad to another. However, the meaning of the word dog is the same. There are limits that we must follow, or at least assume when writing or reading. If we read something about a dog for instance, we must take that words meaning from the context it is in. If it is about a mean dog, then there you go. When writing, we must also be careful not to assume that everyone thinks the way we do. We need to explain what we mean sometimes. This may be hard for some students, but I think that if we approach writing with this idea, we are causing more problems for ourselves and others. I know that every culture, community, and individual in each of these has something new to bring, has some ideas already of what things are. I understand that and I accept it. I don't think that we CAN start focusing on something like that, we just need to be ready to have students explaining what they mean at times. If the student can explain themselves, then they are fine. The thing is, there is a dictionary, and every student should have one. If they are ever in doubt, they can use it. Of course I will always give my students an opportunity to tell me where they are coming from. I think that they do need to become skillful readers of their own writing. That will help them understand where perhaps they can be questionable.
Beach
I am not sure that Beach's ideas are realistic in a high school setting. Although I would love it if I could come up with a plan where there would be a workshop day, or a conference day during a regular classroom day to discuss this with students. I would actually say that there would have to be one on ones at some point with each student to discuss what they are doing in writing. I guess that Beach may say that this is an easy way to do this, but I think it is only easy to him because he has the resources to do it. I do think it is important for students to ask themselves questions in their writing, questions that focus on what they were trying to say, or who they are writing for, etc. Students understanding their own strategies would really help them out in their writing, as well as in reading and other subjects. If they can come out of it being able to assess their own writing, that would be great. Once again though, this may be hard in High School.
Okay, well I agree and disagree with this one. I think that we definitely put our own experiences and culture and community into each word. I understand if the word dog means something nice to one person and something bad to another. However, the meaning of the word dog is the same. There are limits that we must follow, or at least assume when writing or reading. If we read something about a dog for instance, we must take that words meaning from the context it is in. If it is about a mean dog, then there you go. When writing, we must also be careful not to assume that everyone thinks the way we do. We need to explain what we mean sometimes. This may be hard for some students, but I think that if we approach writing with this idea, we are causing more problems for ourselves and others. I know that every culture, community, and individual in each of these has something new to bring, has some ideas already of what things are. I understand that and I accept it. I don't think that we CAN start focusing on something like that, we just need to be ready to have students explaining what they mean at times. If the student can explain themselves, then they are fine. The thing is, there is a dictionary, and every student should have one. If they are ever in doubt, they can use it. Of course I will always give my students an opportunity to tell me where they are coming from. I think that they do need to become skillful readers of their own writing. That will help them understand where perhaps they can be questionable.
Beach
I am not sure that Beach's ideas are realistic in a high school setting. Although I would love it if I could come up with a plan where there would be a workshop day, or a conference day during a regular classroom day to discuss this with students. I would actually say that there would have to be one on ones at some point with each student to discuss what they are doing in writing. I guess that Beach may say that this is an easy way to do this, but I think it is only easy to him because he has the resources to do it. I do think it is important for students to ask themselves questions in their writing, questions that focus on what they were trying to say, or who they are writing for, etc. Students understanding their own strategies would really help them out in their writing, as well as in reading and other subjects. If they can come out of it being able to assess their own writing, that would be great. Once again though, this may be hard in High School.
March 29 Students rights
I actually love this article. I completely agree with what is said here. The classroom is such a weird thing to me. In the "real world" a reader does assume that the writer has some authority on what they are saying, and when we read something we don't pick at it, looking for something to correct. Well, maybe some of us do, but I don't. It is weird that in the classroom, that all goes out the window. The reader, or teacher still remains the authority figure and gets to tell the writer what they did or said wrong. That doesn't make a lot of sense. I understand that spelling can be corrected, and stuff like that, but how can we tell students that they are saying something wrong. I really like the idea of going through the writing, paragraph by paragraph, asking the students what they are saying, and how they intended to say it. They should have rights over their own texts. I think it is very detrimental to students to continue correcting them, essentially making their text into the what the teacher wants. This can only make the students not what to share their ideas or talents any more. Multiple drafts can help I think, but more so just communicating with the students, and finding out what they are doing before trying to change it.
March 27, Lauren
The first time I read this paper, I thought it was a "creative" way to get her point across. I bet this looks like sarcastic, smart ass shit to most teachers, but I do see where she was going with it, or at least I hope that's where she was going with it and this paper isn't actually serious. This is the cliche paper that many teachers are looking for. It has every component of a good essay. It has the perfect title, the attention getting introduction, the topic sentences that "flow" The thesis written clearly so that it can be seen. and so on. It is kind of sad to see this paper and think that this is what we do to get through school. I admit that I myself have written many of these papers, of course not so obviously. I understand that that is the way that the teachers were taught, so that is they way we are taught., The version with the nice comments was funny to me because they seemed SOOO fake, and I know they are, it is just that they were smart ass as well. It just shows that teachers are doing the same thing as students. They are giving in to the ideals that people place on them. They aren't even reading the paper. The content is of no meaning almost. The format is becoming the main focus. The paper with the negative comments was harsh, but something I would more expect coming from Shipka, if these are her comments. Maybe this paper is crap, but I think it gets a very real point across, that sometimes students may think what teachers expect is crap as well.
Feb 22....Perl and Runicman
Perl's chapter go hand in hand with our transcribing projects. I completely agree with Perl that writing is recursive. Just going through this "experiment" myself proved that to me. I was constantly moving backwards in order to move ahead. I thin that it is something important to recognize when writing, so that we can take the linear equation out. Not everything in writing is linear, or at least it shouldn't be. The process of writing is just as important if not more important than the writing itself. If the process is recursive, then what makes writing so linear? That just doesn't go together. The questions we ask ourselves during our process's help us move forward even if they imply to the past.
Runicman's writing is so true to me. It is interesting that people don't talk about or write about writing as something fun and pleasurable. I think this is something that we all need to take into consideration when we are teaching writing. Writing teachers need to change their attitude if they are going to give off a good feeling about writing to the students. Most of the time writing teachers are complaining about how frustrating it is to be them. I understand that as well, it must be frustrating to have so many different individuals, and try to determine how the write. However, if the teachers can show students that writing is fun and pleasurable, to them...the teachers, than maybe students will think it is okay to have a good time writing. Why shouldn't writing be fun?
Runicman's writing is so true to me. It is interesting that people don't talk about or write about writing as something fun and pleasurable. I think this is something that we all need to take into consideration when we are teaching writing. Writing teachers need to change their attitude if they are going to give off a good feeling about writing to the students. Most of the time writing teachers are complaining about how frustrating it is to be them. I understand that as well, it must be frustrating to have so many different individuals, and try to determine how the write. However, if the teachers can show students that writing is fun and pleasurable, to them...the teachers, than maybe students will think it is okay to have a good time writing. Why shouldn't writing be fun?
Febuary 6th
Thinking Out of the Pro-verbal box
I agree with Williams her. I think that it is important to not just teach using the verbal. Students in this day and age will be expected to understand not only what is said, but what is seen. There are so many visuals and other forms of media now, that students need to be taught differently than they used to. Teachers who only lecture, and talk, while students sit there and listen, will not teach students what they really need to know. By combining the verbal and the visual, teachers can start teaching in a way that students will better understand in their futures. There are so many ways for the students to be literate, not just the way that it has always been. I am willing to accept that technology is moving forward, even if I don't like it. I recognize that students today need to know computers, film, music, advertising, etc. Since that is the case, I MUST be willing to teach using those things so that the students will get the most out of my class for their lives. Critical thinking is also important for the students lives, and that is taken away by only focusing on the verbal. Like Williams says, "if composition's role is to help students acquire the skills to live a critically engaged life--that is, to identify problems, to solve them, and to communicate with others about them--then we need to expand our view of writing instruction to include the diverse media forms that actually represent and shape the discursive reality of students."
Writing and Learning at Cross Purposes in the Academy
I'm somewhat torn on this subject. I think that writing does lead to "a deeper level of processing" which leads to better learning. I do see though that students write for teachers, and that is the main reason for writing. Writing is important no matter what, and I already talked about teaching writing in an earlier blog. Even if the students are writing because they have to, even if they are "copying" other peoples writing (through form, etc.) they are still gaining something. Whether it be continued practice on grammar and spelling, process production, or whatever, they are getting something out of it. I'm sure a lot of students will say they get nothing out of this type of writing, but I think they are. I'm not sure how we could go about changing why students write. I would love to tell them to just write whatever they want all the time, but I'm afraid that many will not know what to do, or will need structure. It is a difficult topic.
I agree with Williams her. I think that it is important to not just teach using the verbal. Students in this day and age will be expected to understand not only what is said, but what is seen. There are so many visuals and other forms of media now, that students need to be taught differently than they used to. Teachers who only lecture, and talk, while students sit there and listen, will not teach students what they really need to know. By combining the verbal and the visual, teachers can start teaching in a way that students will better understand in their futures. There are so many ways for the students to be literate, not just the way that it has always been. I am willing to accept that technology is moving forward, even if I don't like it. I recognize that students today need to know computers, film, music, advertising, etc. Since that is the case, I MUST be willing to teach using those things so that the students will get the most out of my class for their lives. Critical thinking is also important for the students lives, and that is taken away by only focusing on the verbal. Like Williams says, "if composition's role is to help students acquire the skills to live a critically engaged life--that is, to identify problems, to solve them, and to communicate with others about them--then we need to expand our view of writing instruction to include the diverse media forms that actually represent and shape the discursive reality of students."
Writing and Learning at Cross Purposes in the Academy
I'm somewhat torn on this subject. I think that writing does lead to "a deeper level of processing" which leads to better learning. I do see though that students write for teachers, and that is the main reason for writing. Writing is important no matter what, and I already talked about teaching writing in an earlier blog. Even if the students are writing because they have to, even if they are "copying" other peoples writing (through form, etc.) they are still gaining something. Whether it be continued practice on grammar and spelling, process production, or whatever, they are getting something out of it. I'm sure a lot of students will say they get nothing out of this type of writing, but I think they are. I'm not sure how we could go about changing why students write. I would love to tell them to just write whatever they want all the time, but I'm afraid that many will not know what to do, or will need structure. It is a difficult topic.
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