tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post5855729193772650340..comments2023-11-14T05:00:35.846-08:00Comments on nulla dies sine linea - not a day without a line: Overcoming the Gruesome Legacy of English CompositionUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-18280222986426382502013-09-09T14:57:14.986-07:002013-09-09T14:57:14.986-07:00Thanks, Pete :) You're right about the questio...Thanks, Pete :) You're right about the questions, except they are intended for me to answer rather. Here are 3 for you:<br />1) Use a red crayon to circle details in the Illustration from "The Hapless Child" that suggest the child's lack of commitment to schoolwork.<br />2) Find three new words and write them neatly in the space below:<br /> _________ _______ _______<br />3) Write a formal essay about the usefulness of essays.Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02861148464927428401noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-43725941809461924312013-09-05T12:48:47.221-07:002013-09-05T12:48:47.221-07:00As your brother and fellow traveler through our sh...As your brother and fellow traveler through our shared life, I thought it was funny that you ended your statement with three "questions for review" ala the "Think and Do" book that I hated in Catholic grade school. Great entry and I wish that you'd been my teacher instead of the variations on Frau Blucher.Petehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04313990389168403250noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-1059463344280362882013-08-28T16:43:57.946-07:002013-08-28T16:43:57.946-07:00Thank you so much -- what I am coming to understan...Thank you so much -- what I am coming to understand as I read all of these comments is that the first writing classes in college should focus on thinking, exploring, connecting, questioning and entering into a dialogue with readers. A part of what prompted this change in my teaching was that my students did not approach information thoughtfully, could not speak with authority on any topic, confused media sound-bytes with news, etc. If they continue in academe, as you suggest, the essay may be a useful form to have at their command. However, the "essay course," whatever it's called on various campuses, should be treated as an elective for non-majors but possibly required for an English major. <br /><br />Exploratory reading and writing are rigorous by nature, regardless of those who suggest there is a built-in looseness when students have more freedom. Freedom=responsibility. Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02861148464927428401noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-70445742034917396332013-08-28T08:02:37.290-07:002013-08-28T08:02:37.290-07:00I write. The more I write, move thoughts into word...I write. The more I write, move thoughts into words and words into story, the more I learn about writing. <br /><br />This essence of what I love about what you did with your class was that they became excited about writing and discovered their unique voice and it sounds as if they were excited and found value in themselves where the least expected and, indeed, may have dreaded. <br /><br />The ones that will, will find classical essay, the ones that will, will go into Rhetoric and Literacy, but for the multitudes that don't further investigate classical forms and higher education-they will have had an experience that was fulfilling and maybe they will just write, for their communities, loved ones and themselves. <br /><br />That to me is home run in what you have done. You made writing for many of those people as common as singing. Very few of us sing for a living but we all like to do it; in church, on community stages and in the shower and it gives us something, a way to communicate. So have you had these students show themselves a way to communicate. You let them discover their voice in a new way for them. That ca be/maybe life altering. Brav-f-ing-OGoochhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13791834352848959922noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-86456350970733143932013-08-26T16:24:35.081-07:002013-08-26T16:24:35.081-07:00I'd love to hear how they do in college and wh...I'd love to hear how they do in college and whether this leads to better critical thinking and writing skills.The Contemplative Cynichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02088570661592922436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-42508954940503781562013-08-26T07:15:19.566-07:002013-08-26T07:15:19.566-07:00I like your thoughts here, Mary, and can certainly...I like your thoughts here, Mary, and can certainly see the value in having students write with enthusiasm. It's clear that you are working at making a positive learning experience for students who may otherwise be unmotivated to write. <br /><br />I tend to agree with Ildiko on this one, though. I agree that the blog is a wonderful idea and is one I've used in writing classes, as well. However, I tend to use it as a scaffolding assignment or one among three or four others in a semester-long course. <br /><br />While I love the idea of the freedom of the blog, I think students also need to learn that there are different contexts for writing--different rhetorical situations--and that each context has its own set of expectations. I generally begin the semester with a blog or op ed on an issue of my students' choosing and have them build increasingly more complex assignments from that issue as the course progresses. My course usually follows this trajectory: op ed to analysis of the issue to proposal for a solution, and reflection throughout the semester. <br /><br />I want my students to see that different tasks require different ways of thinking and writing--that in their disciplines and future careers, not all writing tasks will be essays or blogs and they need to be prepared for the heavy lifting (thinking, stylistic concerns, disciplinary expectations, etc.) that comes with those tasks. What that often means is that they must learn the nuts and bolts of stating a thesis and supporting it logically, with evidence that goes beyond personal opinion and reader response; the essay is still a valid tool for learning those moves. <br /><br />It's true that students are more engaged with tasks that pique their interest and less so with "dry" assignments, as the traditional essay frequently is. However, I also think we do our students a disservice by allowing them to think that all tasks (in class and in life) are going to be enjoyable, OR that the traditional essay has to be boring and dry. I give my students the full disclosure statement: writing is hard and sometimes tedious. Does it always have to be? Of course not. <br /><br />Blogs can be a great way to introduce pleasure and joy into the process. I just wonder if the students are getting a fuller picture of the complexity of writing if this is the only genre they practice? And I wonder why we feel this urge to move toward a "customer satisfaction" mode of education that suggests that all teaching and learning has to be entertaining, as well? <br /><br />Like Ildiko, I may not be popular here, but I tend to err on the side of rigor, and that sometimes means that I can be a bit curmudgeonly in my beliefs about approaches to teaching and learning. I was glad to see in your reply that you do work toward narrowing, writing with authority, solid use of research, and other activities generally associated with more traditional essays. Does each student take a variety of approaches to their blogs in order to explore different writing situations? Rebekahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02757448032878568452noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-91781937261136463182013-08-25T23:25:49.530-07:002013-08-25T23:25:49.530-07:00Ildiko and Mary, I think we can benefit from accep...Ildiko and Mary, I think we can benefit from accepting new forms and media for expression while recognizing that good writing has and will continue to require a disciplined,logical process such as that taught in the traditional academic essay form. <br /><br />I have always had my students focus primarily on purpose and audience, whether they are reading or writing, the point being that no matter the genre or level of technology or time period, the successful communication of a writer's ideas must consider the entire writing situation and its constraints.<br /><br />There is no good or bad form of writing. There are only different situations. An academic essay is perhaps a bad way to communicate one's amorous interest in a potential mate, and a personal letter may not be the ideal way to broadcast a scientific breakthrough.<br /><br />Blogs and other social media posts are legitimate forms of communication with their own rules for good writing. Preparing students to communicate effectively in the 21st century must go beyond fruitless attempts to inculcate the belief that the formulaic academic essay is the only legitimate way to write. The focus should be on the art of writing to accomplish one's purpose with one's audience in an appropriate forum and medium.<br /><br />We need to develop wordwrights, skilled craftspeople who can wield the appropriate tools to spin the 26 raw materials of our language into elegant expressions that sing meaning to the reader.<br /><br />Why not assign students to post an online review of a product or service? Why not free them to participate in a blog such as this for credit? Why not ask them to demonstrate how they will apply (and increase) their skill as wordsmiths as they publish high quality writing in multiple media?<br /><br />I say, "Write on!"<br /><br />MichaelAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02144618994888991726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-41759766398828375152013-08-25T20:02:09.121-07:002013-08-25T20:02:09.121-07:00Thank you! It is my job, as a person, to be nice, ...Thank you! It is my job, as a person, to be nice, although that's not part of my job description at the college :) Have a nice simmer break!Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02861148464927428401noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-55366864668912414582013-08-25T16:33:25.807-07:002013-08-25T16:33:25.807-07:00Thank you, Mary! I've learned a lot from your ...Thank you, Mary! I've learned a lot from your class such as finding information, thinking independently, creating survey, and contacting with others. I feel more comfortable about writing gradually. I really appreciate the chance you gave to me. You told me your job was to be nice. And you are doing exactly what you say. I think it's every student's pleasure to take your class. Take care! Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01730598572872225978noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-84675838329649488882013-08-25T13:53:09.398-07:002013-08-25T13:53:09.398-07:00Thanks, Amy! I'd love to hear more about this....Thanks, Amy! I'd love to hear more about this.Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02861148464927428401noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-63557199119046028362013-08-25T13:52:32.656-07:002013-08-25T13:52:32.656-07:00Thank you so much -- you clearly care about teachi...Thank you so much -- you clearly care about teaching writing! You didn't rain on my parade-- just introduced a brisk wind :) <br /><br />As you say, the essay is flexible. It makes a point and supports that point--as does all good writing: a sonnet, an article, play. Even a grocery list can be compelling. What I object to is not so much the essay as how it has been interpreted in schools, whether K-12 or in academe. I also studied many years to get my Ph.D. in literacy, and I was fortunate to study with the likes of Donald Graves, Donald Murray and Jane Hansen. They made me question everything I did in the classroom. <br /><br />Graves used to say that the most important question any teacher could ask is "What's it for?" What is this class for? What is this assignment for? "Because what it's for has everything to do with what we're for." He also encouraged us to always follow that question with another, "Does it make sense?"<br /><br />I teach at a community college now, although I've also taught in high schools, universities and eminent liberal arts colleges. The general understanding throughout these institutions is that the purpose of the intro writing class is "teaching the academic essay"-- that, and some kind of citation system. The writing class has evolved, in my opinion, to serve a form rather than the form serving students' thinking and learning. As long as the form equals purpose, the constraints of that form will be paramount.<br /><br />If my goal is for students to grow and change through their writing, this doesn't make sense. Nor if I want to show them that writing for a real audience makes them more responsible and thoughtful writers. <br /><br />I think you have confused me with some teachers who actually do have a Summerhill approach. We work hard in my class, narrowing topics, finding the information necessary to write with authority, making sure that what's been written is ready for audiences when they at last hit the "publish" button. My goal is not that they please me with their writing, but that, over time, I can see growth and that they recognize what they've done well and what needs more work. <br /><br />There is much more to say. Perhaps we should collaborate on a book in the style of Screwtape Letters. :)<br /><br />Mary<br /><br /><br /><br />Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02861148464927428401noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-73991692976868847102013-08-25T11:20:12.713-07:002013-08-25T11:20:12.713-07:00Thanks, Penny -- Have a great year!Thanks, Penny -- Have a great year!Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02861148464927428401noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-28375306533202654602013-08-25T06:53:32.442-07:002013-08-25T06:53:32.442-07:00I've had my high school student writing in blo...I've had my high school student writing in blogs for four years now. Moving their writing to the blog forum is the single most important thing I've done to advance student writing skills and content. AMYhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16181360437040955311noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-728366299657800232013-08-25T06:24:03.637-07:002013-08-25T06:24:03.637-07:00I am sorry to rain on this parade, but I am not co...I am sorry to rain on this parade, but I am not convinced. The essay was started a long time ago, but it has been proven to be a flexible genre that can endure changes in all directions. It can be very personal and free floating as well as more firmally structured, like the science research paper with expected sections in expected order. The news is, blogs are also essays; the blog is not a new genre, just a new technology or medium.<br /><br /> The bottomline is that all essays--written in pen, or on computer try to make a point and support that point somehow. Otherwise, no one would want to read mindless rambling. Teaching students the many options they have in making a point and arranging the support is what I perceive the college teacher's job to be. I personally do not like the anything goes, be yourself, spill your guts approach because it disadvantages the underprepared students. It looks like your students were not underprepared and met your expectations. I am not sure, however, that making the teacher happy should be the only standard or measure for good writing. Students have to develop a sense for writing in many genres, not just blogs. <br /> I am not a supporter of standardized tests, but some of them and if they are used with moderation can be useful to measure familiarity with writing conventions or reading comprehension. <br /><br />I have been called "current traditional" and other names at conferences, so I expect not to be popular here. I studied writing for many years to earn my PhD in rhetoric, and it always makes me sad how so many in writing teaching are still drawn to the idea that essays(defined by them as rigid and meaningless) are bad and if we don't teach students how to write, they will write wonderful things (wonderful defined as anything to the teacher's liking, or anything that gets many readers, even from Russia?!). <br /><br />Ildiko Melishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09278650377635304285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-75342315521563791822013-08-25T02:50:08.416-07:002013-08-25T02:50:08.416-07:00Just what I needed this morning as I head into hig...Just what I needed this morning as I head into high school teaching this fall armed with Graves and Murray beside me. Thank you for a marvelous post.Penny Kittlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04655909998933785937noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-13099926510270509722013-08-24T21:46:32.271-07:002013-08-24T21:46:32.271-07:00Thanks, Bonnie. Seems to me that this approach is ...Thanks, Bonnie. Seems to me that this approach is the only way I write well. I can't imagine having to write straight essays again! Ack! I sent this off to one of the NCTE groups will look forward to comments, if any.Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02861148464927428401noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-6472853565227098162013-08-24T21:44:00.352-07:002013-08-24T21:44:00.352-07:00Thanks, Linda. I love your blog and the photograph...Thanks, Linda. I love your blog and the photographs often speak to me -- but I often don't know what to reply. I'd love to have you share your thoughts, feelings and imaginings about your art. Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02861148464927428401noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-48378790621212535402013-08-24T17:23:21.453-07:002013-08-24T17:23:21.453-07:00Mary, Hooray! I want to show this to my "App...Mary, Hooray! I want to show this to my "Approaches to Teaching Writing" students...and I hope a whole lot of people read your blog....and a whole lot of students write blogs for you--and me--and, most important, for THEMSELVES. Let's all keep asking--and trying to answer--these very questions! As always, you and Graves and Murray and Edward Gorey "nailed it." A marriage of investigation and reflection indeed. Your students and your contract-givers are lucky lucky lucky. I miss you, but your words will help me start my semester. Yay for you!!Bonniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00373236926843563989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598179801234420202.post-9799823062579645542013-08-24T16:23:56.573-07:002013-08-24T16:23:56.573-07:00Mary, this is brilliant! Kudos to you for finding...Mary, this is brilliant! Kudos to you for finding this way to excite and encourage your students. <br /><br />You've made me think about my blogs with this post. I love posting photos and when I first began my photo blog, I thought it was only about that. However, the longer I've done it (with occasional entropy breaks) the more I find I relish coming up with a clever or interesting bit of wording for the blog title. Additionally, I always want to write something clever (in my mind, at least) to go with the photo. Just posting photos without comment seems boring and dull to me. And so does posting photos no one looks at. I wonder how your students feel about having their blogs read or not read?Linda Heinsohnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11741712827466946917noreply@blogger.com