Lindemann brings up controversial and realistic issues teachers face when teaching students how to write, and she also poses ways to view written discourse outside the English sphere, namely, the 'real world.'
The question students most frequently ask me is, "why do I have to know how to write an essay?" I will be honest and say that I often struggle to give them an answer. My usual reply is, "well, you will need to write for your college professors; this is practice." Admittedly, this is a weak answer.
The answer to this question can be answered with many of Lindemann's assertions about writing. "The ability to write well still creates economic power. If we will examine, together with our students, the kinds of writing required in jobs that interest them, they will discover important work-related reasons to improve their skills" (Lindemann, 4). While literary analysis is important, high school teachers and freshman college professors need to evacuate this realm and explore other modes of writing, such as expository, persuasian, technical writing, and dare I say, narrative writing.
"Writers write because they have to; they must explore their experiences and locate themselves in relation to a complex society" (Lindemann 7). This is in relation to the Humanistic approach to writing, which for many of us, was frowned upon when we were taught how to write. Such rules as "don't use 'I'", "don't give your opinion", "use the active voice" still plague many high school English classes. I do not find fault in a student who brings their own experiences into the conversation when discussing a short story, a poem, or a novel. This should be embraced, and channeled into their papers using modern writing conventions. I advocate a compromise between the 'old' way and the 'new' way of writing.
Many students have anxiety over the concept of audience. Who will be reading this? Depending on what the assignment is, the audience will vary. I agree with Lindemann when she states that helping students write "for increasingly diverse and complex audiences" will help them build networks of social relationships. At some point, the teacher and the professor will cease to be the audience, and in our place will be an executive, the human resources department, a secretary, a lab assistant, etc. Our students need to be prepared for a variety of audiences if they want to be successful.
I agree that students ought to be prepared for a variety of audiences, but I think it's an immense endeavor for an English Dept. to address alone. For students to be trained to write for a particular field - whether it be as scientist, historian, business person, etc. - they need to be trained by experts in those fields; and not too many English professors have a Ph.D. or MA in other fields besides English. If a student wants to learn how to write for a particular field outside the realm of traditional English classes, then other departments need to get involved and address this issue. Many schools have begun doing this. Cal State Long Beach, for example has chemistry courses designed to teach students to write papers like a chemist, biologist, physicist. I'm totally for a variety of classes in an English Dept., but one shouldn't expect it to encompass every form of writing - responsibility has to be taken by other departments.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your point about "responsibility has to be taken by other departments". On a few rare instances, I've collaborated with other departments and found it to be beneficial for all parties involved. For example, my students were writing persuasive narratives that applied to stem cell research projects they were doing in their science class. This way the students were getting feedback from both their English teachers and their science teachers on the same topic. It was a great experience, but unfortunately I find good collaborative work like this happen on rare occasions due to time constraints and scheduling.
ReplyDeleteI struggle with the same "Why do I have to write an essay?" question all the time. My response is very much the same as yours. When I read Lindemann's quote "Writers write because they have to; they must explore their experiences and locate themselves in relation to a complex society" (Lindemann 7). I was reminded that we are still guiding our kids. We must continue to find ways to develop good writing, while continuing to develop their skills (even if they are resistant) It sounds so easy!
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Ron's comment about the responsiblity being dispersed amongst all subject areas. Unfortunately, we carry this burden on our shoulders when it should be reinforced and practiced within all the discourses in a school. This is such a vital element to Lindemann's point that effective communication is an essential skills in most areas of employment. Students need to experience the various forms of writing and their purposes in different subjects for this reason.