When I introduce myself to my students on the first day of class these are some of the random and/or/but pertinent facts about myself that I share. I should probably also tell them that the last one is a subtle warning about a large amount of upcoming work, especially group work, in the course. But I don’t. I let them discover that on their own.
Emphasizing the collaborative nature of knowledge production is important to me because I came to composition and writing studies by way of library research and information literacy instruction. Both the writing teacher and the librarian are somewhat burdened by a current traditionalist stereotype of their professions (grammar and red pens and shushing and buns). When my students bring those expectations to my classroom, my first concern is to encourage my students to embrace the rigorous and demanding but also exciting and powerful practices that good composition requires. I assure them that their grammar is not my priority, but the presentation of their unique voice certainly is. But developing that voice and finding the courage to lift it is not easy. This is where group work enters the picture. I use this strategy to make the writing process more visible to students in a multiplicity of iterations: they see each other doing writing tasks in their own unique approach and with their own particular spins on the content. Through this process, they gain respect for each other’s efforts and results. Because I break writing assignments into small tasks, they also are given multiple opportunities to practice a new skill and receive feedback from their peers and myself before their performance is assessed. Ultimately, students improve their mastery of writing by actively performing the techne of writing, and I make clear to them that my emphasis on small tasks and group work is meant to give them multiple opportunities to practice new skills. When I’ve had athletes or artistic performers in my classes, it’s easy to help them understand my approach and to get their buy-in, while students that are less familiar with the rigors of a daily practice routine find it harder to adjust. But this aspect of the course has become one of the most common compliments I hear from students at the end of our time together. They say they appreciate the multiple drafts and the collaborative environment because it helped them manage their time and energy and gave them multiple viewpoints and suggestions to build on. When the same students who were dismissive or doubtful in the beginning tell me that they now value their writing as a process and a collaboration, I feel that I have succeeded in a much more important endeavor than just improving their writing skills. I have also helped them become comfortable with sharing and developing their ideas by working with others, and that skill will always be a crucial part of human communication, even if we someday abandon type. |
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