Patricia A. Gourley-Biggs

ENG 608

July 10, 2003

biggsPaper4

Reflections on Teaching Writing

During my first year of teaching I really didn’t think about integrating reading and writing literacy into my instruction curriculum. I teach business education courses such as accounting, sports marketing, and ninth grade communications, careers, and computers a course that combines information technology (keyboarding) with communication (personal letters, memos, business letters, prose, technical writing, etc.). There are opportunities for the students to compose essays in most of the classes; however, I did not specifically direct the written exercises to the essay questions. The course curriculum that is selected by the school district is a programmed learning system, highly structured, with all of the lessons generated either from a text or the computer. The writing that is required consists of the corresponding exercises for each lesson that I instruct. There is not much time left for spontaneous writing exercises to develop literacy in the classroom.

The OWP Writing Workshop has changed my perspective on teaching writing in the classroom. I find that in reviewing the courses that I teach I can include spontaneous writing in the structure of the course. Sports marketing has enormous possibilities that would allow for students to design their own written work on subjects of their choice giving them the opportunity to express their opinion, passion, voice, and personal views on various sports, events, athletes, and the myriad of issues surrounding sports and the entertainment industry. Accounting provides an opportunity for the development of research papers or short essays on topics of interest to the accounting student. Whether it is the one of the multitude of occupations associated with the accounting field or one of the many issues confronting accountants (ethics, honesty, government regulations, or employer relations involved in business accounting) the accounting student could create a written work that expresses their voice, interest, and future plans in accounting.

The communications, careers, and computers course has possibilities in developing literacy in reading and writing. The students are required to complete a research paper that involves researching, documenting sources, writing a rough draft, editing and revising, then completing the final paper for grading. The possibilities for this course could include writing short essay responses in class using the keyboarding techniques they are learning. There is the possibility that short stories could be included of a simple form as well as some non-fiction written work. By involving the students in writing outside of the computer or text exercises would allow them to develop their voice, writing style, express their passion, and personal writing interests.

The OWP Writing Workshop has directed my attention to the need to include "fun" in writing exercises. Students dread having to write about subjects that are chosen for them, however if they are allowed to pick their own appropriate topics I think that writing might be more fun for them. I found that the writing workshop allowed me to make errors in grammar, use fragmented sentences, and write about topics I hadn’t written about. Writing became "fun." The book reports were enlightening giving me a new perspective on reading, writing, learning, and literacy. The papers gave me the opportunity to write about subjects that were personal or professional without having to "perform" at a scholarly level. The atmosphere was one of sharing our written works in a non-threatening atmosphere with complete acceptance from our colleagues. Criticisms took the form of suggestions and were constructive in nature performed without red marks on my papers. I would like to bring this type of attitude and application to my students next year. I will express this to my students; explain to them that the writing is not for grades but for participation in the experience (creating personal written works) without worrying about the process (grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc.). Their grade for the writing workshop will be based on their level of participation in the workshop not the product or the production.

I will include sharing and response groups similar to the OWP Writing Workshop. The groups will allow the students to experience sharing their written works with their peers in a non-threatening environment of acceptance of their personal writing ideas. I would like to include a writing workshop in my careers, communication, and computers course for the 2003-2004 academic year. The writing workshop is an excellent process to gain the student’s attention to reading and writing within a literate community such as the classroom. A writing workshop would integrate the non-threatening atmosphere to the writing process that would allow the students to drop the curriculum/standards based atmosphere they are accustomed to in exchange for relaxed creative personal written works. This is an idea that I plan to contribute to my colleagues at in-service activities. To my knowledge at my high school there is not a writing workshop that is ongoing in any of the language arts classes. I plan to give a presentation to my colleagues using the OWP Writing Workshop as a model for implementation of a HHS Writing Workshop.

Some other changes that I plan to make include better and more frequent modeling of what a good writing and response group looks like. I will initiate the peer response groups after first modeling then giving the students opportunity to practice their responses in the sharing time as work that is authored and their responses are to that author. I want the students to respond to the writing not with "what I liked" or "what you need to change" but with authentic responses that include positive comments with specific suggestions based upon author requests or what needs expressed by the author.

After the students have had the opportunity to practice responding to written work in a reader and author format I will begin the reading response groups encouraging them to reflect carefully on the written work before they respond with their comments. The pause before responding gives them the needed time to assimilate in their mind that this is an independent written work by a peer author not an assignment that they are responding to.

Lastly, to encourage reading literacy I will make time each day, at least twenty minutes, when students can read books of their own choosing. In high school periods are short but if carefully managed time can be found in a twenty minute block at least two days of the week for "choice" reading. In the response groups I will encourage students to discuss favorite books or favorite authors or favorite bookstores that they love to browse. I will discuss book reviews with the students giving an oral book review to interest them in a book. I will explain the process of selecting books for the school library using book reviews in the selection process. I will integrate book reviews into the writing workshop to encourage students to write book reviews of favorite books to share with their response group. By encouraging my students to read books I can help them note what authors do suggesting that they attempt similar writing styles when they write in the workshop. I will ask them to select especially well written paragraphs that use stimulating language or pertinent descriptions of characters or a scene depicted in vivid detail. By teaching the students to select especially well written paragraphs in their favorite books the students will begin to develop writing sensitivities about what really engages a reader when critically reading for pleasure and information. The students can then begin composing their own engaging written works to share with their response group.

The OWP Writing Workshop made me aware that as a society we must move toward more critical literacy using the definition of literate as being a more educated or literate community of citizens. This requires that teachers model the roles and operations of thinkers and learners, readers and writers, critics and reviewers for their students. The move toward a literate or educated citizenry includes schools that provide a network of literacy tools to enable the teacher to teach students so they may acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for reading and writing and learning literacy. Teachers must be provided with the necessary tools so they may teach students new skills to problem solve, interpret, evaluate, analyze, and apply that knowledge to reading, writing, and learning literacy. This is one of the most important responsibilities in teaching learners how to be literate for life. The changes that I plan to implement in my classes for 2003-2004 academic year will reflect my commitment toward improving reading, writing, and learning literacy in my students.