Portfolios
I agree 100% of NCTE's recommendations on how to use portfolios effectively. I say this because it sounds logical, and I have no hands-on with portfolios yet. I especially like the idea of organizing it into sections and weighing the portfolio and paper grades independently. I'm just not certain that I agree with the prioritization of the levels of concern. I might categorize them in the same manner but title them differently.
Top 10 Reasons to Revise
1. You just can't help yourself! Revision occurs throughout the writing process.
2. Revision can generate new ideas.
3. Revision can result in a better structure/organization.
4. Revision may mean throwing out pieces thereby creating a stronger whole.
5. The idea of revision being recursive blows a hole in the linear model of writing.
6. Finding strong nouns/verbs instead of adjectives/adverbs strengthens your writing.
7. To flush out ideas from generalizations to snapshots or thoughtshots.
8. To make sure your tone is appropriate for your audience.
9. To focus on word choices and add details that make your piece sing.
10. Because your teacher tells you to.
2. Revision can generate new ideas.
3. Revision can result in a better structure/organization.
4. Revision may mean throwing out pieces thereby creating a stronger whole.
5. The idea of revision being recursive blows a hole in the linear model of writing.
6. Finding strong nouns/verbs instead of adjectives/adverbs strengthens your writing.
7. To flush out ideas from generalizations to snapshots or thoughtshots.
8. To make sure your tone is appropriate for your audience.
9. To focus on word choices and add details that make your piece sing.
10. Because your teacher tells you to.
Grades and Grading
I've always bought into Mastery Learning where the focus is on growth and comprehension. I was shocked and impressed with the rubric for NIWP, and also relieved. It expressed a vote of confidence, not just expectation, toward the whole group.
A superintendent recently told me that he didn't see the point of students getting anything lower than a C, as it doesn't show any growth or success. He suggested a grade of "not yet," Blynt's sentiment exactly. He also said that he thought that grades should be reflective of what students know. Maybe middle school students don't buy into grades, but obviously college students do. We need to find a system that de-stresses students to open them up to learning. Pressure exerted does not result in good product or learning.
The question remains: What system identifies both individual competencies AND growth?
A superintendent recently told me that he didn't see the point of students getting anything lower than a C, as it doesn't show any growth or success. He suggested a grade of "not yet," Blynt's sentiment exactly. He also said that he thought that grades should be reflective of what students know. Maybe middle school students don't buy into grades, but obviously college students do. We need to find a system that de-stresses students to open them up to learning. Pressure exerted does not result in good product or learning.
The question remains: What system identifies both individual competencies AND growth?
What I've Learned from our Workshops
- Creating a sense of community in our classrooms is critical. Creating a sense of community in a workshop is difficult but at least some sort of introduction between attendees should occur.
- Knowledge is cumulative. Each presenter learned something from the previous.
- The workshop needs your voice and style to be authentic and effective - just like writing.
- We need to be mindful of our audience when choosing text to support our activities.
- We need to be mindful of our audience in our tone and approach.
- Most activities can be adapted to a variety of grade levels. Often it's choosing more difficult supporting text to raise that level.
- Using various forms of media (images, video clips and reading aloud) are helpful.
- There is no substitute for experience.
- Publishing can be fun.
- There are evolving ways of looking at content.
- Brainstorming with experienced teachers is the best way to solidify and find holes in your plan.
- Making 13 copies of your workshop handout may take longer than you think.
- My colleagues are amazing!
- I want to participate in more workshops!
- Knowledge is cumulative. Each presenter learned something from the previous.
- The workshop needs your voice and style to be authentic and effective - just like writing.
- We need to be mindful of our audience when choosing text to support our activities.
- We need to be mindful of our audience in our tone and approach.
- Most activities can be adapted to a variety of grade levels. Often it's choosing more difficult supporting text to raise that level.
- Using various forms of media (images, video clips and reading aloud) are helpful.
- There is no substitute for experience.
- Publishing can be fun.
- There are evolving ways of looking at content.
- Brainstorming with experienced teachers is the best way to solidify and find holes in your plan.
- Making 13 copies of your workshop handout may take longer than you think.
- My colleagues are amazing!
- I want to participate in more workshops!
Bird by Bird
Best of Part 3:
- Always her descriptions
- Always her realism
- Always her ability to make the tragic situations seem normal
Entire Book:
Anne Lamott's descriptions are unparalleled, and her insight can be helpful; however, her endless dives into her sea of emotions was tiring. It was like reliving my ex-husband's manic depression. I'm at a place in my life that I need structure and support for my transition. This feels like a self help book in narrative form. I had a hard time relating, as I was raised to just suck it up and do your best. Jill said it was humorous to her, but it left me feeling like there is no way that I would want to earn a living purely as a writer. Apparently the positive outweighs all of the negative for her though as she says "But the truth is that there can be a great deal of satisfaction in being a writer, in being a person who gets some work done most days, and who has been published and acknowledged. I carry this around in my pocket, touch it a number of times a day to make sure it is still there. Even though so much of my writing time is stressful and disheartening, I carry a secret sense of accomplishment around with me, like a radium pack implanted near by heart that now leaches a quiet sense of relief through my system. But you pay through the nose for this."
Gallery Walk:
- Write for yourself using personal experience and truth.
- Writing is developmental and takes persistence.
- Step back and view your personal writing like you would when creating a character or snapshot from scratch (critical eye).
- Always her descriptions
- Always her realism
- Always her ability to make the tragic situations seem normal
Entire Book:
Anne Lamott's descriptions are unparalleled, and her insight can be helpful; however, her endless dives into her sea of emotions was tiring. It was like reliving my ex-husband's manic depression. I'm at a place in my life that I need structure and support for my transition. This feels like a self help book in narrative form. I had a hard time relating, as I was raised to just suck it up and do your best. Jill said it was humorous to her, but it left me feeling like there is no way that I would want to earn a living purely as a writer. Apparently the positive outweighs all of the negative for her though as she says "But the truth is that there can be a great deal of satisfaction in being a writer, in being a person who gets some work done most days, and who has been published and acknowledged. I carry this around in my pocket, touch it a number of times a day to make sure it is still there. Even though so much of my writing time is stressful and disheartening, I carry a secret sense of accomplishment around with me, like a radium pack implanted near by heart that now leaches a quiet sense of relief through my system. But you pay through the nose for this."
Gallery Walk:
- Write for yourself using personal experience and truth.
- Writing is developmental and takes persistence.
- Step back and view your personal writing like you would when creating a character or snapshot from scratch (critical eye).
Other Book:
I definitely believe that I should have read Zinzer's book "On Writing Well" instead. It is said to be a nuts and bolts book about revision and economy of words, which really lends itself to my personality and inexperience writing anything outside of transactional writing.
Ways to Use Notebooks
- brainstorming
- first drafts
- new vocabulary
- quotations
- interesting passages
- store ideas/junkyard
- journal about the writing process
- questions for instructor for conferencing
- trying new strategies
- experimenting with genres
- doodling to flush out ideas
- recording events
- research data collection
- prompt for classroom management's sake
- way to document new skills/concepts/strategies in own words
- copy lesson objective
- copy idea to ruminate on
- "What you learned in science" to link pieces of days together
- 10 words to combine into a sentence or paragraph
Notesbooks provide:
- ownership of writing
- organize in sections (different content areas)
- use TOC (documents assignments)
- paste in handouts
- sticky notes to identify purpose of writing event/lesson
Further Reading:
- Notebook Know-How: Strategies for the Writer's Notebook by Aimee Buckner and Ralph Fletcher
- Language! what Lewiston teachers are required to teach.
- first drafts
- new vocabulary
- quotations
- interesting passages
- store ideas/junkyard
- journal about the writing process
- questions for instructor for conferencing
- trying new strategies
- experimenting with genres
- doodling to flush out ideas
- recording events
- research data collection
- prompt for classroom management's sake
- way to document new skills/concepts/strategies in own words
- copy lesson objective
- copy idea to ruminate on
- "What you learned in science" to link pieces of days together
- 10 words to combine into a sentence or paragraph
Notesbooks provide:
- ownership of writing
- organize in sections (different content areas)
- use TOC (documents assignments)
- paste in handouts
- sticky notes to identify purpose of writing event/lesson
Further Reading:
- Notebook Know-How: Strategies for the Writer's Notebook by Aimee Buckner and Ralph Fletcher
- Language! what Lewiston teachers are required to teach.
Top 10 Aha’s about Conferencing
- Conferencing is not about editing: do not EDIT their ideas or their paper
- Conferencing is leading the author in a meaningful direction toward his/her most effective writing
- Conferencing was more productive when we had the writing in hard copy during the second reading. Readers could clarify just where there was confusion or an unwanted shift, and writers could refer back to the mark-ups during revision.
- Conferences should be motivating
- We are looking beyond the product at the writer and his/her process (Calkins)
- We need to be fully present as a listener
- Identify strategies that might help the writer instead of one-shot solutions (Calkins)
- Sometimes writers with “nothing to say” just need to be mobilized. You can discuss pre-writing strategies later.
- Conferences are just conversations
- There are various types of conferences: Content, Design, Process and Evaluation
- Conferencing is leading the author in a meaningful direction toward his/her most effective writing
- Conferencing was more productive when we had the writing in hard copy during the second reading. Readers could clarify just where there was confusion or an unwanted shift, and writers could refer back to the mark-ups during revision.
- Conferences should be motivating
- We are looking beyond the product at the writer and his/her process (Calkins)
- We need to be fully present as a listener
- Identify strategies that might help the writer instead of one-shot solutions (Calkins)
- Sometimes writers with “nothing to say” just need to be mobilized. You can discuss pre-writing strategies later.
- Conferences are just conversations
- There are various types of conferences: Content, Design, Process and Evaluation
Teaching Conventions - Bonnie Warne
I was encouraged to hear Bonnie speak about her experience connecting writing to testing. It's exciting to hear that grammar, reading, writing integrated into a writing workshop can raise test scores but more importantly teach the student to internalize the use of grammar through writing. I like her quote by Romano, "...if their writing is a mechanical disaster, their natural voice might be dismissed by others, regardless of how authentic, colorful, and pointed it is." This is so true. We need to learn grammatical conventions and distinguish between prescriptive and descriptive grammar to use language well.
I am a prescriptive grammarian with one exception. Because I am about the equity of punctuation and learning about grammar, I am often corrected in my use of the serial comma. This drives me crazy at times. The serial comma replaces the word "and"; therefore, it need not be used between the last two items in a series unless the omission results in ambiguity. I think it's a total copout to use it when it's unnecessary. Including it regardless of necessity is a way to relieve writers of the responsibility for understanding grammatical conventions.
Here's what Webster's Compact Writers Guide says: (I love it as it refers to both prescriptive and descriptive use of grammar)
Comma: with items in a series. NOTE: Style varies regarding the use of the comma between the last two items in a series if those items are also joined by a conjunction. In some cases, as in the example below, omitting the final comma (often called the serial comma) can result in ambiguity. Some writers feel that in most sentences the use of the conjunction makes the comma superfluous, and they favor using the comma only when a misreading could result from omitting it. Others feel that it is easier to include the final comma routinely rather than try to consider each sentence separately to decide whether a misreading is possible without hte comma. Most reference books, including this one, and most oother book-lenth works of nonfiction use the serial comma. In all other categories of publishing, according to our evidence, usage is evenly or nearly evenly divided on the use or omission of this comma.
Example:
We are looking for a house with a big yard, a view of the harbor, and beach and docking privileges. [with serial comma]
We are looking for a house with a big yard, a view of the harbor and beach and docking privileges. [without serial comma]
I am a prescriptive grammarian with one exception. Because I am about the equity of punctuation and learning about grammar, I am often corrected in my use of the serial comma. This drives me crazy at times. The serial comma replaces the word "and"; therefore, it need not be used between the last two items in a series unless the omission results in ambiguity. I think it's a total copout to use it when it's unnecessary. Including it regardless of necessity is a way to relieve writers of the responsibility for understanding grammatical conventions.
Here's what Webster's Compact Writers Guide says: (I love it as it refers to both prescriptive and descriptive use of grammar)
Comma: with items in a series. NOTE: Style varies regarding the use of the comma between the last two items in a series if those items are also joined by a conjunction. In some cases, as in the example below, omitting the final comma (often called the serial comma) can result in ambiguity. Some writers feel that in most sentences the use of the conjunction makes the comma superfluous, and they favor using the comma only when a misreading could result from omitting it. Others feel that it is easier to include the final comma routinely rather than try to consider each sentence separately to decide whether a misreading is possible without hte comma. Most reference books, including this one, and most oother book-lenth works of nonfiction use the serial comma. In all other categories of publishing, according to our evidence, usage is evenly or nearly evenly divided on the use or omission of this comma.
Example:
We are looking for a house with a big yard, a view of the harbor, and beach and docking privileges. [with serial comma]
We are looking for a house with a big yard, a view of the harbor and beach and docking privileges. [without serial comma]
Reaffirming the Writing Workshop - Sheryl Lain
I didn't post when I initially read this article. There were just too many important points that took my brain in too many directions to focus on the workshop as a whole then. Now I can step back and look at it more objectively with experience from our workshop.
The major points that struck me in Lain's article were time, use of the notebook and ownership. Time and ownership are discussed in other articles, but there is not much about using a notebook. I'd definitely appreciate any resources further defining the use of a notebook as a writing tool.
The major points that struck me in Lain's article were time, use of the notebook and ownership. Time and ownership are discussed in other articles, but there is not much about using a notebook. I'd definitely appreciate any resources further defining the use of a notebook as a writing tool.
Conferring - Lucy Caulkins
I think it would be great to have a chart of questions for my own various types of conferences. I found it very interesting when Christy? suggested that we identify questions as a class for peer review. So much of this is intuitive, but I still have to remind myself to take it one step at a time - the first step to be fully present as a listener and let the student own their work. It's difficult for me to step back when I'm so used to being involved in the process of editing people's work. I definitely need practice conferencing.
Writing as a Recursive and Individual Experience - Bonnie Warne
I really like the "slinky" analogy and wonder if in writing about it, does Bonnie agree with Jago's supposition about producing product ("writing under pressure builds character, but because it's one of the only ways I have found to make the reluctant writers produce")? Clearly, it would be hard to speak about writing without taking a piece through the process. I like Bonnie's strategy of writing a note about what they changed and why. Are there any other methods?
I realized today that elementary and secondary teachers may not embrace the fact that writing in hard copy versus composing it digitally is actually part of the individual experience. It took me a long time to embrace and successfully compose on the computer since I learned to write in hard copy. I now need to type it so I can get my thoughts down quickly before they escape me. (Maybe that's age???) I also recognize that I don't have as much patience with writing it by hand, let alone having to re-write it; however, I find it easier to map and brainstorm by hand.
I realized today that elementary and secondary teachers may not embrace the fact that writing in hard copy versus composing it digitally is actually part of the individual experience. It took me a long time to embrace and successfully compose on the computer since I learned to write in hard copy. I now need to type it so I can get my thoughts down quickly before they escape me. (Maybe that's age???) I also recognize that I don't have as much patience with writing it by hand, let alone having to re-write it; however, I find it easier to map and brainstorm by hand.
Revision Practices - Stephanie Dix
So first and foremost you have to understand the writing process and learn to recognize varied approaches to writing. I found it interesting "listening" to the different ways that the 3 guinea pigs approached the writing exercises and the analysis of how they discuss writing. I find it interesting that they didn't have choices in product. I wonder if there would be more meaning in their process if they were chosing their own topics.
Revision Strategies - Nancy Sommers
I love the quote: "My cardinal rule in revising is never to fall in love with what I have written in a first or second draft." So many people have a hard time revising and lose sight of their argument because they don't want to get rid of any words. I like the idea of cutting apart pieces of writing and shifting them. This way you can see how the pieces fit and support (or not) the point of the piece.
Embracing writing as a linear process has produced students who don't effectively revise. I believe that they can't see the incongruities between intention and execution because they are sometimes lost in the maize of their own thoughts and words. - wrote this before we even looked at The Motivation of Learning piece.
Embracing writing as a linear process has produced students who don't effectively revise. I believe that they can't see the incongruities between intention and execution because they are sometimes lost in the maize of their own thoughts and words. - wrote this before we even looked at The Motivation of Learning piece.
After the End Chapters 14-16 - Barry Lane
I couldn't help myself. I had to include what I like about #14. I love the explanation of the Norman Conquest (1066) as "...the day all the weaker three-syllable Latin words invaded all the strong one-syllable Anglo-Saxon words." I remember learning about this event historically, but not linguistically. I also like the idea of contracting for Grammar in Journal Writing, and replacing adjectives/adverbs with stronger nouns/verbs. This was something new that I could see immediate results from doing.
#15 I like the questioning strategy to determine if your piece is done. I'm going to use this myself. I also believe that "an uncorrected grammatical error in the hand of a parent is like a warrant for the teacher's arrest" unless the parent is aware of the philosophy of enabling students (writing workshop). I certainly don't need practice editing. The Revisor's Checklist is great too! I like the idea of an editing center. Has anyone tried this?
#16 What can you really say about this chapter except it was right on and funnier than heck! I wonder what the result of using his lead-in for a writing prompt might elicit???
After the End Chapter 12 - Barry Lane
Over the years, creative writing has been drilled out of me in deference to writing for meaning or communication. Despite enjoying reading, I began writing feeling mute until the sense of community expanded enough for me to write poetry, create reflection charts and to safely blog. I can't wait to share an environment where students find their own voices and take risks.
After the End Chapter 10 - Barry Lane
"Drill-and-kill" worksheet is a perfect description of my son's 2 & 3rd grade learning. The quote "They were taught to be passive learners...Give them a stack of worksheets, and they'll sit there all day doing them" hits home. Photocopying a basal reader and revising would be a great activity to help kids see a connection between reading and writing, and to "develop a critical sensibility." I can't relate to the desire for retribution toward basal readers as I don't remember learning that way. My friends learned with phoenics, but I already knew how to read despite the fact that we didn't have books at home. My husband learned with basal readers and now only reads for content. I want to ask each member of my family about their early experiences. It would speak about their journey of reading/writing. I remember being exposed to a Random House program in fourth grade to books like Paddington where I saw London through the eyes of a bear from Peru, and the All-of-a-Kind series where I became a Jewish sister in a family of five dusting for buttons and pennies. These kinds of books were transforming for me. My whole world opened up to different cultures and imagination which was a very different place from our house entrenched in responsibility and bigotry.
After the End Chapter 6 - Barry Lane
I really like the idea of graphing the character (change, conflict and resolution). It's flexible for a variety of uses (ensure effective character development or identify various issues in a story). I think modeling it using a Disney story, "after school special", or something we are reading in class (or all three) could work well. The extensions I especially like are: creating a modern resolution that alters the character's path (revising a classic), having students use it to graph their own stories to identify where employing certain techniques might enrich their writing, and holding a press conference to identify where the character might be developed further.
The Art of Teaching Writing - Lucy Caulkins
1. I'm really uncomfortable with page 202 regarding spelling inhibiting writing. I agree that we need to encourage invented spelling and de-emphasize its importance during pre-writing, but I found the comment "An editor can help you fix up spelling later if you want to publish your book" disturbing. Trying to read the early elementary pieces made me realize that spelling is important in writing to ensure proper meaning. I believe that we de-emphasize it yet integrate it within the writing process rather than deal with it as an afterthought.
2. The Faulkner quote" writing a first draft is like trying to build a house in a strong wind" really resonates with me. I am always trying to "build pianos" while my husband is more focused on "getting it quickly hammered down."
3. I can't help relating Donald Graves 'cha-cha-cha' curriculum" to Gene Kelly's tap dancing in the "Choreography" scene in White Christmas. Opposite, Danny Kaye's artistic free-form song/dance epitomizes the time we could spend choreographing when we don't have enough structure like Calkins cautions us about. I LOVE all of the lyrics...
"The theater, the theater, what's happened to the theater? Especially where dancing is concerned Chaps who did taps aren't tapping anymore They're doing choreography Chicks who did kicks aren't kicking anymore They're doing choreography Heps who did steps That would stop the show in days that used to be Through the air they keep flying Like a duck that is dying Instead of dance it's choreography Jakes who did breaks they're not breaking anymore They're doing choreography Chicks who did kicks aren't kicking anymore They're doing choreography Queens with routines That would stop the show in days that used to be One and all they're not chancing What we used to call dancing They're busy doing choreography One and all keep us guessing What the heck they're expressing Instead of dance it's choreography!"
2. The Faulkner quote" writing a first draft is like trying to build a house in a strong wind" really resonates with me. I am always trying to "build pianos" while my husband is more focused on "getting it quickly hammered down."
3. I can't help relating Donald Graves 'cha-cha-cha' curriculum" to Gene Kelly's tap dancing in the "Choreography" scene in White Christmas. Opposite, Danny Kaye's artistic free-form song/dance epitomizes the time we could spend choreographing when we don't have enough structure like Calkins cautions us about. I LOVE all of the lyrics...
"The theater, the theater, what's happened to the theater? Especially where dancing is concerned Chaps who did taps aren't tapping anymore They're doing choreography Chicks who did kicks aren't kicking anymore They're doing choreography Heps who did steps That would stop the show in days that used to be Through the air they keep flying Like a duck that is dying Instead of dance it's choreography Jakes who did breaks they're not breaking anymore They're doing choreography Chicks who did kicks aren't kicking anymore They're doing choreography Queens with routines That would stop the show in days that used to be One and all they're not chancing What we used to call dancing They're busy doing choreography One and all keep us guessing What the heck they're expressing Instead of dance it's choreography!"
Non-Magical Thinking - Janet Emig
I found using the two columns "I used to think" and "I'm beginning to think" very helpful in cementing the paradigm shift that I would like to model via my attitude about learning to write and facilitating writing.
I still believe that time for writing is our biggest enemy in a product-centered world, especially with technology advancing so rapidly.
I still believe that time for writing is our biggest enemy in a product-centered world, especially with technology advancing so rapidly.
What's Right with Writing - Linda Rief
Once again, the use of drawing intrigues me (from page 35, bottom right-hand column). I find the idea of using drawing to find writing, not merely to illustrate a piece or as a writing prompt, valuable. I think that it provides an easier method for connecting with the paper and creating a sensory memory of something significant that can be translated into words so you can climb the mountain and reflect on it's deeper significance rather than just focusing on creating a concrete snapshot.
I find comfort in the fact that writing is recursive, and I'm recognizing drawing as recursive as well. Tracing the object again to soften the edges or add a detail causes you to think and rethink the object and the characteristics about it that make it significant.
I find comfort in the fact that writing is recursive, and I'm recognizing drawing as recursive as well. Tracing the object again to soften the edges or add a detail causes you to think and rethink the object and the characteristics about it that make it significant.
Britton and Moffett Compared
I really like Britton's description of writing as expressive or transaction to describe the function and purpose of writing, but find it's depiction too linear. His writing is more readable than Moffett's though. Moffett's continuum is more clearly helpful in describing and interacting with audience. Now I can see why we're studying both models. I think that it would be helpful to develop a 3-D model like either Timothy or Warren suggested. I like when I can connect an image depicting theory to make it more reachable.
Moffett's alludes to the importance of peer response and moving from chronological to analogical discourse with a stronger focus on the writer while Britton is more intent on describing the effect of writing on the audience. I initially failed to see the connection between the two as they appear to be so dissimilar. The models in class helped; however, now I can better internalize that their models are related because they both describe the process of writing albeit from difference perspectives. It's like having two students write about experiencing field day at school and one writing about how he felt or event by event and the other writing about his parents' experience and how they as second-language speakers internalized and made sense out of the events.
Moffett's alludes to the importance of peer response and moving from chronological to analogical discourse with a stronger focus on the writer while Britton is more intent on describing the effect of writing on the audience. I initially failed to see the connection between the two as they appear to be so dissimilar. The models in class helped; however, now I can better internalize that their models are related because they both describe the process of writing albeit from difference perspectives. It's like having two students write about experiencing field day at school and one writing about how he felt or event by event and the other writing about his parents' experience and how they as second-language speakers internalized and made sense out of the events.
Moffet Reflection
I remember reading Moffett 20 years ago, and it wasn't any easier the second, third, fourth, fifth and six times. I like Tara's word, "masticate" to describe chewing on this piece. I've become very visual, and this article is difficult to break down, but not for lack of specific or effective terminology but rather due to the lack of formatting. That said, it is an invaluable essay when discussing the foundation of teaching writing.
Did I not understand Moffett's argument that "freezing" the student is the result of too much writing about reading? I think that responding to reading is always challenging the reader/writer to dig deeper to understand the author, the structure and the point of the piece. Moving from the concrete to the abstract requires this kind of analysis. Literary exegesis is the step (applied) between literal and applied comprehension.
At the beginning of the last paragraph Moffett also says that the student should be forced to "confront all the right issues of choice" as that will allow him to "develop the faculties necessary to produce the ideas of exposition." What are the "right issues"?
Did I not understand Moffett's argument that "freezing" the student is the result of too much writing about reading? I think that responding to reading is always challenging the reader/writer to dig deeper to understand the author, the structure and the point of the piece. Moving from the concrete to the abstract requires this kind of analysis. Literary exegesis is the step (applied) between literal and applied comprehension.
At the beginning of the last paragraph Moffett also says that the student should be forced to "confront all the right issues of choice" as that will allow him to "develop the faculties necessary to produce the ideas of exposition." What are the "right issues"?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
