To get started on my Pedagogy Statement, I think I will take you up on the offer to answer questions first, and soon, I will revise it and organize it into themes.

First, I would identify myself as a tutor and as such I have to consider each of my students

individually. For ELL students it's about progress, but I feel this is the right attitude for all

students. You take students where they are and help them to make substantial progress. I

suppose I incline to go for mastery, when teaching skills. Whether it be writing a summary, or a

letter, or using quotation marks, I do want them to be within like 80 -85% proficient before I

move on. If I am with a large group and I have to move on, then I will try to give that one or two

students extra time for more practice. I measure mastery by number of mechanical errors in

their piece. However, I also pay attention if the student can both perform and feel confident

that he knows he knows and he realizes that he can do it.


I am not sure what your meaning is between mastery, or competency or transformational. I will

gues that I aim for a bit of all three. I have noted in my blogging that I would like my students

(especially the older ones) to wake up and be conscious of the world around them and the needs

of others. I am not talking about guiding them toward saving the world but just realize what

prejudice is, how insidious it can be in subtle ways. I want them to be exposed to if not text then

movies and discussion and then writing so they can realize and say," I have experienced

prejudice and perhaps racism and I don't want to add to that in this world and so being friendly

and kind to all is a noble and necessary way to live. ( So am I an idealist?) . That is one part.

Another part is what I consider life skills( albeit academic) I have taught children and adults

how to use the telephone book, use a ruler ( middle school) , how to use a dictionary and value

that. Study skills are a big thing with me. I believe kids who fail , fail for a great part because

they have never learned to find a way to be organized, to ask questions, to talk to the teachers

with concerns, to study. Too many students do not know how to study!! Also I want students to

fall in love with reading and writing. I want to prove to them that their are books they will enjoy

and that writing gets a bad rap. I do this by finding ways like the 1850 guys Morley and Frost.

I want to encourage students to write form their thoughts, feelings and experiences and

compare themselves to characters they read about. I want them to write poetry easily and

admit that it is not what they thought. I am always collecting new but simple ideas that will

make writing for natural and meaningful and so more enjoyable. Let's see, for example I am

going to use more pictures!

I want my students to grow in every way including academic skills. I want them to grow in

confidence, that they can do what they want and they can make goals and reach them. In writing

I want their writing to become more theirs, more sophisticated in style - dabbling with

techniques- maybe using foreshadowing and flashbacks in stories subtle inferences; in

nonfiction being able to make a sound argument in a provocative attention getting way. I want

them to grow and continue to grow their vocabulary and master the skill of giving great

examples that really work. I am impressed that the example has been valued since antiquity.


For ESL students and most,cooperative learning creates success. Students often learn better

from a peer than a teacher. The power may be more equal. I try to encourage and arrange

students who have different strengths and I am explicit in explaining the advantage of this.

One student may be strong in computer skills or organization or mechanics and another may be

good with ideas bit doesn't know how to do these other things.


I always want to be certain that my students hae some backgorund before getting into an

assignment or I must help them connect or build their backgorund knowledge. I feel strongly

that students learn best in their sphere of proximity. I have to be sure to push students to

reach their ability but I also need to be aware that I need to back up a bit because it's over their

heads conceptually or just in their level of skills mastered. I am also convinced that teachers

must be learning as they teach. teachers of reading should be reading and teachers of writers

must must be writing and using their personal writing as an example, in the sense that I have

good ideas but I need to revise and I enjoy writing. I write about whatever I ask them to write

about.

I have not covered all the questions I am sure, but I believe it is a good start for a first draft attempt.

Nancy and Packaging Theory ( or wrapping it up)

Boy am I glad I read Wendy Bishop first! I could understand most of what she was expressing. As each article has become more difficult to wrap my head around, i feel like the hiker hat starts off out of shape and out of breath, wondering when we will get to the top ( or the end). BUT if the hiker climbs long enough she begins to get in a rhythm and by the end she is feeling stronger and is almost ready to take on the next small mountain.

Here's another comparison. When I read ( tried to read) this last article I felt like the student of the losing side - the one trodding through the current-traditional paradigm. She was asked to read and write about abstract topics that she knew next to nothing about.

So the first of three distinct moments was the moment of practical criticism, and the next wave of anthologies - Adams, Kaplan, Lodge and others marks a subtle shift. I'm not sure what the third was.

Amongst this spate of anthologies seemed to have come a closure of theory; "Theory is no longer a contested domain, a model vying for prominence, but has arrived as a fully licensed paradigm." Now we have a canon to draw from. Is this to say that we now have a field of anthologies ripe for picking and there is plenty to put away for a cold winter's day?

the author has even better metaphors like the presidential hall- of Fame anthologies and the food group.

I knew I was lost when I read,"I see the history of critism and theory not only as a march of ideas, a progression of thought existing somewhere in the contemplative ether of intellect."

I thought, " We're not in Kansas anymore Toto!"

Then I read , "To diverge briefly, the second grouping of theory anthologies - the school/ approaches model- is the strongest precisely on this ground, offering theory as a system of alignments rather than statements of great Men." So Instead of great Men, we have Great ideas??

Finally I was confused about how feminism was being treated. "Feminism is treated as an equal grouping, akin to reader response or deconstruction." Then it says current theory anthologies maintain the institutional BRACKETING of feminism among the domain theory, acceptable as a literary subgroup - but not as a parallel configuration." ??? Is that a good thing?

I am sorry but I could not construct enough meaning for me to take much away from this article.

Nancy and Lucille M Schultz: Elaborating our History in the Mid-19th Century

At first I thought this article was truly about Diversity in composition Pedagogy.
Said Schultz, "the landscape of current-traditional paradigm appeared uniform even seamless" and then some,"features of the landscape that initially overshadowed ," and turned out to be "significant markers, ( representing, ) the diversity that characterized the teaching of writing even during a century dominated by Grammar, Rules, Style, and abstract topics."

Quickly I learned that this was not about Diversity but it was a race about compositon methods of teaching. I read on to find out who would win...

It seems that composition teaching on the college level was Still emphasizing Grammar first , followed by Rules , style and Only allowing abstract topics and NO personal writing. While this strong hold had stood it's ground for ... centuries? Quietly teachers , perhaps on the secondary or younger level ( not universities) were trying to find better ways to teach writing, perhaps to see them more engaged in writing and becoming more independent; having a less restricted control over what they wrote about, and actually writing about things they knew about- themselves and their experiences.

This didn't take off for quite awhile as the teachers of younger students did not mix much in those days. They did not have professional journals yet, or not too many and so the university professors did not learn about this new way to teach writing, for a long time.

The teachers of writing for younger students began to publish many books to help their students like "First Lessons " and "First Book of Composition." While John Walker's book called"Easy Rules fo Writing Themes and composing Exercises .." that contained Themes, Regukar Subjects, Easy Essays and Narrative. The theme section included six parts and 21 themes like "Nip sin in the bud." However, the teachers of younger students were giving students pictures and 1-2 prompts of how they could describe the picture, or the scene.

The then dominant thought at the university level was that "students learn to write by learning rules and young writers are not capable of inventing their own subject matter."
Two leaders who helped to interrupt these habits were Charles Morley and John Frost among others.
Morley I believe would give the student a model text to read and also some questions to answer, Then he would ask them to write an essay based on a skeleton of the story.Then the students are asked to write the story over in their own words.

I personally believe that though this will help the young student who may still need that support, that a writing teacher can give even more freedom to the student, For example the student could learn to respond with a personal connection , and so identify with a character or situation or she could write about another story that has some similarities of theme, etc. However I like the idea of giving students questions to answer to get them thinking about the story more in depth.

So eventually teachers like Morley and Frost began to publish and the wheels of writing pedagogy progress began to turn. The idea grew that students can write very good essays in their own voice about things that they knew. I am especially impressed with the idea of encouraging students to write about people and jobs that they knew of: carpenters and farmers , blacksmiths, and shoemakers, and the mason.

I think of all the students I have whose dads work in construction. Only once did I open the opportunity for a boy to write about his dad up on the roof , finishing the tiles. I remember he wrote with pride as he described how he had to throw up the right tool to his dad.
We had just studied Martin Luther King and his years at home with his Mom and Dad and the lessons he learned from them. The prompt was , "What have your parents taught you or what have you learned form them?" I still have a copy of his essay.

Starting tomorrow I will plan to include this kind of prompt for all my students.

Nancy and Richard Fulkerson/21st century

The topic was long and complex as was the article.

The topic might appeal more to a veteran professor; still as an outsider and in spite of my lack of understanding of many terms, I did have some thoughts as well as questions.

I am starting to form an idea of what might be Critical/Cultural studies. I am wondering if ethnic research ( from another article) and Cultural studies mean that people are writing about their own ethnicity and how they or others might be disenfranchised or marginalized in general or also in academia. Liberation would be the theme of this writing, or the unequal power in a classroom.
Dr. Souder admitted that this is true. Perhaps because I don't feel marginalized in this class, it is not an issue here. In my workplace yes, but I don't think I would choose that content to write about in a composition class.

I was surprised to hear the author admit that "no one in contemporary composition theory assumes any epistemology other than a vaguely interactionist constructivism. We rejected "truth" as derivable by deduction from unquestioned first principles."

However, toward the end of the article the author states that,"In rhetorical approach to composition, Epistemologically, adherents believe that values and decisions are reached through dialectic; Rhetorical teachers would not be comfortable with the claim that all truth ( reality) is is a social construct. They grant that evidentiary statements can be true or false. ( ie facts do exist)

I am not sure if I understand the above, but i am thinking that if I had to label myself in all these approaches , I would be a Rhetorical teacher of genre analysis. !?

I kind of understand the content envy on the part of lit-based course as opposed to the cultural studies ( that are not expected to actually teach writing). But what happened to writing across the curriculum. If all contents areas are responsible to be sure that their students write well within that subject, then they all would be teachers of writing in that they give opportunities to wite and their are certain expectations of correctness.

As far as the question, do we try to raise the consciousness of our students in addition or through writing , I think yes! "Helping them evolve as socially just citizens seems overwhelming ," but it's not so difficult to choose a short text or movie clips with a theme of justice and ask them to write in response, using that to help them form an opinion which they will use in a composition. In my class I used the movies Stand and Deliver and the Freedom Riders to encourage them to think outside their world, relate to the the students who also were learning , and to come up with their own opinions through writing. There are dismal statistics about how many teens know nothing about the holocaust.

On the other hand, I agree with the author, Durst, who says most CCS courses seem inappropriate, because, " Reading, analyzing , and discussing the texts upon which their course rests are unlikely to leave room for any actual teaching of writing.

Also, Durst said, teachers dedicated to exposing their own opinions of classism or homophobia could not accept student viewpoints that deny such views.

I experienced this in a theology class, post undergrad. I was taking a few classes out of interest. The professor asked us to write a composition explaining our understanding of one doctrine. It was openly controversial by different authors. I based an excellent paper on sound theologians knowing that my professor did not agree, and I was shocked that he dropped my grade one letter because I didn't accept his point of view.

I also noticed that in Chris Burnham wrote about Expressive pedagogy: the overiding goal is " to foster aesthetic, cognitive, and moral development" not to improve communication or encourage critical thinking. That approach would mean failure of ELL students. One of three standards for ELLs is to obtain English to be able to communicate in all forms.

Again I feel from the little I gather from this article that my approach to composition is Rhetorical knowledge, Critical Thinking, Processes, and Knowledge of Conventions.

Nancy More History lessons

All 1 posts on this page are selected. Select all 1 draft posts All 1 draft posts are selected. Clear selection Nancy (more) History lessons I did not agree or enjoy this article as much. First, the author Danald Stewart seemed angry. It is true that as the ancients said, when we want to persuade someone, it is good to be aware of the feelings of the audience. His arguments sounded like rhetoric in the negative connotation. Secondly, I am fatigued with the position that misguided composition teachers are ruining our children because we believe that grammar matters. ( I am trying to sound not angry - but logical. I hope to learn more about enthymemes and syllogisms as I continue in this class!) Third, from my own 15 years of teaching writing to K-adults, I know that elementary, middle school, high school, and adults who missed the basics along the way need punctuation and organization to successfully explain, persuade or entertain through composition. If young students don't learn to make their writing readable by putting in periods , capitals and commas, then when? If they come to college still not having this skill because some one thought it was not important enough, then it has to be taught a the university level. We know that this crisis is requiring more remedial classes at the freshman level. The argument that writers can use the computer for all their spelling and grammar needs is like telling the employees in fast food stores that they don't need to know how to calculate the math to figure out the bill, or even read the items in order to use the cash register(now with pictures) . Technology has taken care of that for them too. I do agree that there is a bit too much emphasis on the framing part ( 5 paragraph essays and other writing recipes) and often the grammar is addressed first instead of last in the writing process. But consider the shy student or the ELL that is culturally and linguistically challenged and will not write because she doesn't know how to start and is terrified. Vygosky taught us that students learn best in their zone of proximity. That means that we support learners on a certain level and encourage independence until they can move up the levels of freedom of expression where little guidance is needed. There are many formulas to help students of composition get started in the right direction. One mistake may be giving too much framing at a point where students no longer need it. Middle school students should have moved away from colored paper to help with organization and students in high school and college may not need the 5 paragraph essay structure. Happily we are growing younger and younger writers - K-1 who are able to express themselves freely and feel good about writing. With some direct instruction from the teachers, these young authors will go into the second grade automatically knowing when to capitalize to show the reader that a new sentence has begun and making that decision when to end a thought with a period! We have learned that the ancient orators had definite pauses, possibly marking the end of a thought. Eventually that pause, chosen by the orator, became a period in composition for the same reason. If orators were not taught explicitly, then certainly by example. I believe the sacred example is one of the best ways to teach writing. The following quotes from the book Because Writing Matters, by the National Writing Project and Carl Nagin, clarifies my point, in the section 'Integrating Content and Skills." ( pp 36-37) Donald Graves , proponent of writing -as- a process acknowledged that their research "prompted a rigid sequence for the writing process: a day of freewriting, another class on drafting,, followed by a workshop on editing, and then the final draft." ( Because Writing Matters 2006) Jim Burke, high school teacher in Burlingame, California and founder of CATEnet describes the problem,"States throughout the country are drafting legislation for curriculum that calls for renewed emphasis on the teaching of grammar ( or conventions). This stems from the frustration in the workplace and in college writing programs with students lack of grammatical correctness. (The English Teacher's Companion. 1999) Lisa Delpit, author of, Other People's Children, Cultural Conflict in the Classroom, focuses on the practice of "teaching down" to minority children. She says that focusing just on isolated skills can be boring and meaningless for low-scoring students. On the other hand when students are asked to"find their own voice" or write endless drafts, minority students may never learn the basics of standard English. Delpit criticizes those who view direct instruction as "repressive." "Students need technical skills to open doors, but they need to be able to think critically and creatively" (also.) "Let there be no doubt: a "skilled" minority person who is not capable of critical analysis, becomes the low-level functionary of the dominant society." "On the other hand, a critical thinker who lacks the "skills" demanded by the employers and institutions of higher learning, can aspire to financial and social status only within the disenfranchised underworld. 1 – 1 of 1

I want to respond to the two articles that are related to composition studies and the history from the turn of the 20th century.

The article Edwin Hopkins and the Costly Labor of Composition was a little confusing at first with Randall Popken as author but who took from Bruce Horner who it seems is experiencing what Edwin Hopkins experienced as a composition teacher at the university level. We did learn a great deal about our composition history as far as poor treatment or "the material social conditions professors had to put up with( tho we don't really learn about Mr. Horner?)

Horner says we value scholarship and publishing much more than teaching. In fact teaching is referred to as labor while publishing is called work!

The subject Edwin Hopkins, who we study, was a committed professor and writing teacher as well as a committed Christian. He suffered as his student load grew and grew and we teachers of writing know that this means more and more papers to grade and students to conference with.I enjoyed this article as I was able to connect or identify with him in several places in the article. I couldn't help thinking that ESL teachers in my district K-12 are working harder and spending less time with our students or less quality time. Out numbers like ELLs everywhere continue to go up. And additional teachers are not beng hired quickly enough. We are asked to do more and more record keeping and it takes away from our student contact time.

Though I am also a committed Christian I don't feel exactly as Hopkins did. I too feel a certain calling to be a teacher. But when I was looking for a job I looked not where I might be needed most but where I could be paid well.

I at times am struck with a desire to be more of an activist and explain to the top administrators that our students are getting the short end. We too as ELL teachers are marginalized. Because we are tutors, we are considered as Paraprofessionals instead of the licensed professionals that we are, and thus we are squeezed into the smallest work area , perhaps sharing space and often asked to move again to let someone else have our room. At one point last year I thought I had no room at all and was expected to tutor in the hallways practically. While I am a survivor I am not a fighter as was Mr. Hopkins. Just as teachers of writing , as tutors we need to individualize and teach every student differently according to their needs. This is one reason that I want to get a masters degree. I want to teach regular teachers to know better how to teach their ELL students, as we are often blocked access to them.

I was a little annoyed with Mr. Hopkins for letting his commitment to his students begin to ruin his health. He had a wife and I believe while our jobs are important - so is our family. Although I too have the same problem. Twice during my career my physical and emotional health was going down. My mentor said I cared too much! How do yo care less ? I have been married for 35 years now and though we have had our bumps., I am taking seriously how my stress affects my husband. and so I did not argue when I was asked to move to a second elementary school instead of an elementary and a middle school. I was working night and day trying to help those middle schoolers and most of my energy was going toward guiding them into the joy of composition. I was sad to leave them mid year, but the other teacher wanted to leave the elementary and be at the middle school and high school, and tho it was difficult, I realize now it was good for my physical and mental, emotional health.

I am grateful for the work that he and the NCTE have done to convince administrators that students need individual attention to their writing and therefore giving professors less student load. My son is a professor at a private school but he has a very very reasonable student load!! He has enough flexible time that he will be much of a house husband when their first child comes in May

Following are comments on the second historia compositon article - shorter but less interesting...

nancy re Wendy Bishop

I have just read Wendy Bishop's article,"Against the Odds in Composition and Rhetoric, apparently her conference-chair-address to an address to the 52nd CCCC. I actually had to look up the CCCC as I did not know what it stood for or who she was. Our little piece in Combiblio gave me a bit of background,and as I always tell my students: getting drawing on background to get started as a reader does help.

However, Wendy doesn't want to talk about reading but instead only about Rhetoric and Composition which she describes as "true love." I had to smile as I read the article. For one thing I was pleasantly surprised that while she was writing about academia, and the rigors of Rhetoric, I could actually understand, and even more, I could relate. So reading her article was enjoyable.

I loved her comparison between those of us who write and the description in Gerald's Manley Hopkins's poem "Pied Beauty.""Glory to God," he says, for the dappled, the plotted landscape, all things counter, strange, fickle and freckled."

She speaks of those who study writing as outsiders, perhaps mot valued for their scholarly approach to composition. But then she also imagines that if "our field" became dominant. She argues, I believe, that though it may be fatiguing, and scholars and teachers of composition may be against the odds compared to those who study liteature, she would still prefer composition. Other wise tho fatiqued if she were inn the llimelight, she may be bored.

Bishop prefers, "openness, a lack of plan, a chance to .. choose my own way," and believes that those who chose to study composition may be looking for a refuge from , "less hospitable spaces. Interesting thought!

In the last segment of the article Bishop seems to take off the writers' hat and puts on the Conference chair seat, I assume to stand up for Rhetoric and Composition against the Odds. Having been to many conferences NCTE, CCIRA, and TESOL, both participating and as a first time presenter, I had to smile at her accurate description of what goes on there - on the inside and out.

I agree with her delightful descriptions and metaphors. I too think that fatique and burnout can be fought by studying my classroom, keep going to conferences, celebrate good work, talking, listening and sharing.
I was happy to find myself enjoying our first scholarly composition.If I write less the next time , it may be that I didn't "get it." nancy

Why Comp Theory?

I believe if we study a subject, we will understand more and so become better at it. If we study composition theories, we may become better teachers, and hopefully better writers. In all of art there is a theoretical side which one can study and become proficient. There are many painters who studied and their art is exquisite. There are also artists like Grandma Moses who have fumbled onto a unique method and they too are able to paint beautifully. The same with music. There is music theory and a basic undiscovered singer is able to stretch and develop as a singer as she studies and adds theory to talent.
Then there is writing. Emily Dickinson I believe did not study poetry and low and behold she has produced much poetry that has lasted for gnerations. I believe she read a lot but perhaps did not study theories of poetry. The author of to Kill a Mockingbird, possibly only wrote one novel in her life, but what a classic beautiful work of literature. Authors who study theories may get better, may be able to write more, in short may have more success. Experience also is a teacher. However, I am fairly sure I am not an Emily Dickenson or a Grandma Moses, and therefore I am seeking to study Composition Theory, so that I may understand, and grow and be able to write academic articles as well as other forms of writing.

It's Wednesday and I can't believe I had to have a student tell ME that there is no school on Monday! Is it my new school? Is it the new baby coming - not mine but our son and daughter-in-law's?
How could I have run out of gas? I have never let that happen to me? Or, is it my new Graduate class that has promised to be rigorous? Maybe it's just winter allergies. I can't figure it out.