4/06 Reading Response

Several passages in the Sommers’ article resonate with my own experiences as a student writer. Sommers stated, “We have observed an overwhelming similarity in the generalities and abstract commands given to students…The uniform code of commands, requests, and pleadings demonstrates that the teacher holds license for vagueness while the student is commanded to be specific…Students are told that they have done something wrong and that there is something in their text that needs to be fixed before the text is acceptable. But to tell students that they have done something wrong is not to tell them what to do about it…For the most part, teachers do not respond to student writing with the kind of thoughtful commentary which will help students to engage with the issues they are writing about or which help them think about their purposes and goals in writing a specific text” (383 -384).

I realize that these are a long succession of quotes; however, I find them immensely important. Before continuing, I should state that I am not teacher-bashing. I, myself, desire to teach; nevertheless, in my quest for writing, I have encountered these same concerns and non-articulated expectations – mostly occurring in undergraduate studies. I have been in English courses where, after waiting weeks for the paper to be returned, the grade is not optimal and the comments are scarce. As a student, I was left speechless, confused, and frustrated. Where did I go wrong? Why did I receive a B on the paper that I spent all week writing?

In summary, Sommers highlights real student concerns in the English classroom. Students need more commentary on their writing assignments. Vague comments should not be the norm in academia; instead, the educator should give more detailed directions in making the paper better. For example, instead of commenting that a concept is vague, a teacher can state, “You should explain more on the concept of class in America. Add historical facts, show statistical information, and/or demographic details. How are the classes divided in America? Is it based on economics alone or is race a factor? How does class affect women versus men?” These extra steps will benefit the students’ writing, and, in turn, increase the probability of the teacher reading a better prepared, better written paper from the student.

3/30 Reading Response: Basic Writing Pedagogy

Deborah Mutnick’s “On the Academic Margins: Basic Writing Pedagogy" was a wonderful article, and, in the opening paragraph, I was hooked. The language was powerful and rhetorical. In the opening lines, Mutnick states, “Basic writing reflects both this country’s promise and its deepening contradictions. It signifies struggles for inclusion, diversity, and equal opportunity; debates over standards and linguistic hegemony; the exploitation of faculty and staff on the academic margins; and the policies that opened and now threaten to close higher education’s doors to masses of people.” The quote allowed me to ponder on the importance of basic writing skills. I have mixed views in a sense; however, I do take a more liberal approach.

Colleges and universities have routinely eliminated remedial courses, and, in turn, the student who is poor and without many resources – tutors, knowledgeable parents, or caring teachers – will get lost in the system. A few months ago, I was listening to Byron Allen (I believe that is his name) on Book TV on CSPAN. He recounted his experiences in college. He stuttered. He was poor, and he was black. His mother worked three jobs to support the single parent home. At an early age, he was misdiagnosed as mentally challenged.

He recalled being discouraged from attending college; however, he did well in sports. His freshman year, an English teacher, as he states “virtually destroyed him” and his confidence.” He failed his basic English course the first semester. He could not write well. He took the same professor the next semester and was advised to give up. He just wasn’t smart enough. He could not write. While sobbing in the court guard, another professor stopped by and asked, "What was wrong." He stated she was plainly dressed – like a janitor would be – but she told him to stop by her office. He did, and now he is a wealthy journalist, sportscaster.

Those stories (and there are plenty like them) are why I believe colleges and universities should maintain some type of policy that allows those who are destined by “society” to fail – to instead succeed. For me, I want to help students succeed, not write them off as inferior or too dumb. I will not address the socio-political aspects of this. The blog is not equipped for the discourse or the path I would take.

3/25 Reading Response: Community-Service Pedagogy

Laura Julier article on service learning made me think of the modern practices of programs, specifically women’s studies and African American studies programs. Within these programs, there is a call for social activist activities. In fact, they are integrated within the essence of the program. One can easily see the need to work in the community on the rights of women and minorities – those who are often oppressed in a patriarchal society.

However, Julier addresses the service learning to the teaching of composition. I had not contemplated the relationship prior to this article. She states, “There are those…who make the case that service to community groups is precisely the place for students to study the complexities of writing and discourse” (137). The quote allows one to see the importance of writing. Writing is a powerful form of communication. Often, poor writing skills keep the uneducated from access to jobs and higher education. I envisioned using my writing abilities to help those who are “without voice” in society. One of the primary goals of such activities is to “make better citizens” in the world (137).

These correlations between democracy, citizenship, and writing have come up repeatedly; however, there are two trains of thought on this matter – those who believe that they are linked and those who do not. I am still weighing in.

3/23 Reading Response: Educational Technology

Charles Moran discusses the rising expectation for educators to incorporate technology in the classroom. He also claims that “this pressure on educators to use technology exists despite the fact that…there is no proof yet that technology improves students’ learning” (203). Recently, Dr. Jennifer Bowie did a small study on student-podcasting. See the link for details http://www.screenspace.org/Podposter.html.

As podcasting relates to education, Dr. Bowie’s podposter quotes, “[A study] found that students who listened to the podcasts with PowerPoint handouts and took notes scored higher on an exam than students who attended a lecture with PowerPoint slides.” I have always been a proponent of triangulating the audio, the visual, and the traditional methods of learning. Each person learns differently, and, using multiple learning methods in one presentation/lecture, combining the audio-visual with the traditional method of teaching will ultimately benefit the student. Thus, I like preparing PowerPoint presentations for any and all oral presentations. Despite having read this article before, I found the fact that student-based podcasts are significant for oral communication and delivery skills as a phenomenal outcome.

As a literature major, I can see how student-produced reading response podcasts can be quite useful in lower division English courses. Adding to the educational benefit of such an endeavor is the ease of promoting and instituting such a project in the English classroom – along with blogging reading responses or creating website projects for paper presentations. Technological endeavors – like podcasting, blogging, and web design – are not limited to the rhet/comp student. The world of academia should mirror the real world of podcasting, blogging, and web design. From science to education to the humanities and abroad, these technological devices can aid learning across the entire curriculum – and even the non curriculum.

Moran states, “Computers have altered our landscape. They have changed the medium in which some fraction of our students read and write. Therefore we, as writing teachers, need to pay attention to what is happening. On the basis of this knowledge, we will be able to make informed decisions about our use of technology in our teaching” (204). I agree with Moran’s assessment and the newly required skills of educators. Change has come and is coming. Educators must rise to the expectation and the technological demand.

3/16 Reading Response: Writing Center Pedagogy

It interesting that both articles quote Stephen North’s assertion, “Our job is to produce better writers, not better writing.”

Harris and Silva’s article “Tutoring ESL Students: Issues and Options” addressed issues regarding the ESL student and their struggles in the writing. While reading the article, I continually thought back on my linguistics class, a requirement for my major. I distinctively remember the extensive discussions on the ESL. Some of the comments were negative, other impartial, and a few comments were positive. In addition, I think of my own issues with second language acquisition. Becoming adequately coherent, not fluent, in both French and Spanish, I sympathize greatly with the ESL student. I argue that two of the major obstacles in tutoring ESL students are the tutors and the tutors.

First, unlike most countries who are multilingual, many Americans revel in their ignorance of other languages. This mindset is transposed on the ESL student by the tutor. Second, I believe another barrier for the ESL student is the lack of linguistic training in the writing center tutors. There is a disconnect from practical and effective oral and writing communication. I make the argument based on my own observations. I realize that ESL learners must learn to write in English. They must learn to communicate effectively; however, I have see time and time again a condescending tone and belittling gestures towards these students by the people who should be trained to help them. I wonder how they would feel if someone blatantly laughed in their faces about writing stylistically in English, told them repeatedly what was wrong and incorrect about their English style, and refused to see any value in the English way of writing. In essence, I believe the article should have had a stronger statement against the presuppositions and prejudices of the writing tutors.

On the other hand, Harris and Silva provided one resource that extremely helpful. One that I will use in my classroom. They suggest “early in the semester, invite all your students to write you letters describing their histories as writers…detailing anything you need to know about them to work with them as writers. In conferences with individual writers, use…the letter to initiate a conversation” (517).

3/2 Reading Response: Visual Rhetoric

Digital or visual Rhetoric is the triangulation of technology, visuals, and written texts. Visual rhetoric is all around us. In most instances, if not all, visual Rhetoric affects the way we view the world around us. Hocks explains that visual rhetoric operates digitally in three distinct ways. First, through audience stance – the audience participates, and the author of the visual texts creates ethos (340). Next, transparency is achieved through is conventional familiarity. Last, hybridity combines the visual with the verbal design. It encourages multifaceted identities. Together, it is a creative and intellectual process.

Bringing the analysis of visual culture is important in the classroom. It encourages our students to be more actively engaged in their world, to think more deeply about relations between the visual and the written texts (while understanding the implications of rhetoric – from political extremes to personal motivation are instrumental.) In addition, students will gain technological astuteness as well.

2/25 Reading Response: Feminist Pedagogy

Susan C. Jarratt’s “Feminist Pedagogy” was informative and on-point. Of course, I am quite biased when it regards Feminist theory and, now, feminist pedagogy. In my classroom, I would like to “Decenter or share authority, recognize students as sources of knowledge, focus of processes of writing and teaching,’ and highlight the world as sexist and patriarchal – especially the literature.

Many students have an ill-informed idea of what feminism entails. It is not male bashing; instead, it is a willingness to uncover the truth – in literature, in politics, and in economics. For instance, why did Eliot’s canon include only white men? Why are women less likely to get tenured positions in English departments? Why do white women make 72 cents for every dollar a white male makes? Or why do black women only make 50 cents for every dollar?

What about gender differences? We know biologically there are differences, but do girls and boys engage differently with text. According to the statistics, why do all girl schools make a difference in female education? There are so many questions and so few answers. It is interesting and engaging work.

2/23 Reading Response: Critical Pedagogy

I was not in total agreement with Ann George’s “Dreaming of Democracy.” Several points were intuitive and thought provoking; however, there were several points that I contend. I remember in the Harker presentation (new candidate talk), a question was asked regarding his thoughts on the purposes of English 110 and 1102. One of the professors stated that she believed, in such classes, that the priority was to teach the students to be good citizens in a democracy (something to that effect). Harker disagreed and stated that the priority of the teacher in English 1101 and 1102 is to give the students the skills to be good readers and writers.

I agree with Harker. The purpose of English 1101 and 1102 is to instruct on skill sets, analysis, etc. However, I am a womanist, and I can see many valid points in the George argument. Our world is not a vacuum. There are many outside influences that affect our outcomes. I believe that good reading and writing skills can empower and socially transform individuals. I suppose I just do not believe that citizenry and democracy building are the main goals in an English 1101 and 1102 classroom; however, it can be an added benefit.

2/18 Reading Response: Cultural Studies and Composition

While reading today’s assignment, I noted striking language, “Emphasis on the multicultural…implications of race class and gender...Cultural studies has infiltrated composition studies…represents a more deliberate use of popular culture.” All these short phrases are profound because they attempt to explain the impact of culture on teaching and writing. Cultural studies in composition are the core concepts of what Thiong’o mentions in one of his books, Moving the Centre. The backlash is unwarranted for several reasons. First, we live in a multicultural society, and the literature of one culture is not innately sublime to other cultures – although oftentimes our history has ignored that fact. Cultural studies are representative of the interconnectedness and intersectionality of American literature, art, and culture, specifically popular culture. The kids should be required to learn the established canon as well as the latest exhibition on Post Secret as well as African novels. If anything, it will help our students to be well-rounded and more grounded in the community at large. I had an opportunity to see popular culture in the classroom on yesterday. The students were engaged, and, more importantly, they were learning. For me, it is the most important – the ability to learn, make connections, and have discourse.

2/16: Reading Response-Collaborative Pedagogy

Rebecca Moore Howard’s “Collaborative Pedagogy” provided me more practical application to classroom teaching. With each reading, I have taken little snippets or clippings of practices that I would like to institute in my own classroom teaching practices. In addition, I wished that we had received the handout for Bruffee. It would have been a nice complement to the Howard article/essay.

Particularly, Howard discusses the use of group work or team work in the classroom. I have never been a proponent of grouped classroom assignments. In my experiences, and they have never been positive, I have ended up doing more work or extra assignments for those who had not read or some other act of fate – my grandmother died (three times during the semester).

I see the benefits of collaborative writing and the feedback that it allows in the writing process. I suppose, in a few classroom activities, I would encourage collaborative pedagogical approaches in the developmental stages of a writing composition; however, the final submission would be an independent project.

In the end, all the short essays have allowed me to create a bricolage of ideas and will aid me in teaching in the classroom.

Reading Response 11 Feb 2010: Rhetorical Pedagogy

Interestingly, I was familiar with the concepts in today's reading. During a Rhetorical theory course, I read and re-read Aristotle, Booth, Perlman, Burke, and others. For me, the most striking statement in William A. Covino's "Rhetorical Pedagogy" was the reference to race, class, and gender (49). As a womanist, I am always aware of the implications of triad of race, class, and gender. Covino states, "As Berlin notes, 'Cultural studies argues that the division between the cultivated poetic and the mundane rhetorical or popular is based on class, race, and gender bias and is the result of particular groups forwarding their own interests as universal values.'" After reading the statement, I immediately ordered Rhetorics, Poetics, and Culture: Refiguring English Studies and Cultural Studies in the English Classroom as well as Olson's Race, Rhetoric, and the Postcolonial.

Taking a womanist perspective in my thesis, I had explored literary texts and had not contemplated pedagogy. From the reading, I suppose I realized that inspiration could come from peculiar places. In the future, I want to explore the implications of race, class, and gender in literary texts and culture, and I want my students to have the skills to question universalist canons and standpoints.