Basic Writing

Shaughnessy makes a lot of important parts when she discusses the Basic Writing course for the many freshman who are entering college because of the new open admissions policy’s being instated around the country in the 1970’s and today. The first important point she makes is about the type of students that we are referring to in the Basic Writing course, “BW students write the way they do, not because they are slow or non-verbal, indifferent to or incapable of academic excellence, but because they are beginners and must like all beginners, learn by making mistakes.” (pg390) Before the times of open admission the freshman students entering college were the students that had been taught to write for college and were expected to attend a university upon graduation after high school. Many students today entering the college classroom have not had this training in high school, because traditionally they are not on a “college prep track” for reasons we do not know at this time. So, when we are discussing the students that are entering our college composition classrooms it is important for us to remember that not all of the students are going to be at the same level or at the level that we expect them to be when they first enter college. In short we are talking about the remedial students who for whatever reason are deciding after high school to enter college rather than the workforce. It is not fair to write these students off, because we do not know their circumstances before entering college. Many may have had home lives that did not allow them to pursue upper level courses or be ESL students who are still learning the language. All of the students have the ability to succeed if they want too and it is up to us as teachers to take time to help them.
Shaugnessy also points out that the errors these students are making in their papers cannot be linked to a specific issue such as always using one particular tense. Many of the errors are due to confusion about the use of language. It is important to not ignore these errors, because by totally ignoring the errors the writers never improve and become better writers. It is also important to not just point out the errors, but to help the students determine why they are continually making these errors. What I have taken from this personally is that it is important for me as a teacher to not simply find all of the errors and slap an F on the paper, but to take time to work with the student to figure out why they are making the errors to help them become more sophisticated writers. I frequently have students have other countries in my class who are very intelligent, but who struggle with the English language. It is my job to help them learn to become better writers and speakers by correcting their errors whether in oral or written communication. The question is what is the best way to do this? I think it is important to not overwhelm the students by pointing out every single error every time, but it is important to take it a step at a time and tackle a few errors at a time and correct as we go through the school year. This may not be as easy to do when you only have one semester to work with the students, but if they are in remedial classes then perhaps this would be a viable option for the classroom over multiple semesters if you are working with a vertical team.

Week 2 Thoughts

The thing that occurred to me this week is that there are a lot of problems that we are all aware of with the modern education system. I think that the issues come from the fact that the last time the curriculum was evaluated was in 1892 by three guys who were trying to decide what needed to be taught to elite students who would be pursuing scholarly careers. We are living in a different world than they were and students are entering college without the intention of continuing in to the realm of academia. The purpose of secondary education has changed also and although states have tried to adapt the mandatory curriculum to the constantly changing students by introducing high stakes testing they have unknowingly shifted the focus in the classroom from the student’s education to the test results.
What options are available for us to solve these issues? I think the first step is for everyone to stop blaming everyone else and to look around and see what the students need to be successful in today’s world. They need to know how to write, critically think, and read information closely. Students also need time to find out who they are and what they want to do with the rest of their lives. That is a lot of stuff to work learn and work through at one time. As the Harvard committee did originally it is important for educators to work together from the beginning to the end. That means that high school educators should be working with college educators to determine what needs to be taught where. I would like to propose that at the secondary level the focus is on the basic skills of writing, note taking, critical reading skills, and critical thinking skills. Then when the student enters freshman composition class the college educator will develop the basic skills they have been taught in to upper level writing and reading. I think that college should also be a time for students to explore other disciplines to determine what they would like to pursue in the future. No one fully knows what they want to do with the rest of their life at 18 and that is okay. Obviously, not everyone in the United States or the world will agree and it will take time for everyone to come together. It will require teachers such as myself asking questions and trying to work with college professors to rework the curriculum to improve the quality of students entering college. It would also help if college would reinstate the higher level of expected qualifications for students instead of continuing to lower the standards to increase enrollment.

Week 1 thoughts

A couple of thoughts that have come to my mind after reading this week’s selections are “oh, that’s why we teach that!” and “Does high school composition serve the same function as college composition?” I have begun to wonder if perhaps the secondary education system has become confused about what exactly its purpose is for today’s student. When the committee met and decided what should be taught in composition classes I think the student they anticipated would be in the classroom was one that was focused on a scholarly career and was a member of the elite group in society. Today’s student is required to be in high school and expected to attend college even if that is not where their interests or talents lie. As I look back at my first 2 years of teaching and consider what my function and purpose is as a teacher in a secondary classroom I do not think that it is easy to determine exactly what I am supposed to be doing. How do I educate students who are not interested in being in a classroom working towards a college education? How do I prepare these students who are expected to go to college how to function in the world if they choose not to follow that path? In my opinion it is a disservice to demand that a student who excels in music or perhaps a manual type job learn how to write upper level essays intended for scholarly pursuits. It has also come to my attention that the committee set forth a program that focused on teaching the students the skills of composition with the intention that then the student would apply and develop these skills in their other subjects as well.

I spent the last 4 days in a classroom with other teachers learning about a program called Laying the Foundation this week and discovered that the focus of the program is on teaching the students the skills of composition and grammar first. Programs like this are becoming more popular in school districts and I think that there is going to be a shift in the education system over the next few years to this type of teaching. By focusing on the skills of composition first I think that the students leaving secondary education will hopefully be better prepared for freshman English in college and therefore college can return to their original function of creating scholars. In order for this to truly improve the type of students entering college administrators at the college level will have to raise the expectations for the students they admit to the college, but as we all know and discussed n class on Monday night money is what education is all about at this time. The more students enrolled the more money the university or college will receive; because of this colleges will consider to lower their standards to allow the maximum number of students possible in to their programs. I believe that because of this it is my job to try as best I can to help students master at least the foundation of college composition before they leave the secondary level of school.