Re-visioning

I’m doing this backwards; I responded to someone’s forum writing before I’d written my own forum contribution or even my blog. Forever the rebel. But it’s given me plenty to cogitate on. After reading Doug’s response to the writings, I wrote: When referring to what happens in the author’s classroom, you stated, “These activities may be valuable as little exercises to generate ideas or freewrite, but they in and of themselves do not teach students how to write.” My sentiments exactly. As a student, the main thing I want to know is how to write. I’ve also taught writing so I know there are many students who are frustrated, feeling like everyone else seems to just pour their thoughts out on paper while they sit for an interminable time trying to conjure up more than a few feeble sentences. It’s like pulling someone through a knothole just to get a few paragraphs of meaningful text out of them. I know writing is like every other skill in that it takes practice to improve on and the author gives some wonderful ideas for this, but students are desperate for concrete instructions. More than anything else, they do want those real world skills!
It wasn’t long before someone very respectfully disagreed with both Doug and my comments and with some very interesting points. Sarah stated, “What happens if my students begin to see what constrains them when they write? What happens when they learn that they are being constrained, pushed, and pulled in all different directions, but that they can take control of their own text? What happens is this: they begin to learn how to be a writer”. Interesting point. I guess I was considering a few students I’d had that were so constrained (but by what?) that nothing ever seemed to help them just let it flooooow. Maybe a few more exercises like Summerfield’s article suggested? I think it would be interesting to try a few of these exercises in our classroom. I guess I could try them at home, alone, but it just wouldn’t be the same. Since I’m a science major, I haven’t had many experiences of writing in other classrooms.

Welch’s Rethinking Revision made some very good points. Looking back on my own writing I can think of times when I probably threw some of my best work down on the cutting room floor in order to produce work that fulfilled the narrow assignment. Welch’s suggestion that “instead of adapting a text to suit a particular reader or each sentence to suit a particular thesis, a writer my need to rethink that work of adaptation…especially in her first draft”. The first draft is most likely where the writer’s real voice can be heard. In the future, I’ll make a particular effort to search for that “dissonance” which Welch says is not necessarily a problem to be corrected but could be something that instigates a change in direction or a real “re-visioning” of the text.

I’m a little confused about the final project. It seems very open, which I appreciate, but it seems it will take a little time for me to define its final form. I’m really considering doing the Service Learning Option. I love becoming a part of any community that is quite different from the everyday communities I participate in. I have access to some very diverse communities though so I just can’t quite decide. There’s the community of Muslim women that I have been graciously accepted into. I especially like the cultural experience of visiting to see their newborns. There’s always the common bowls of food, shared by all the family and the anointing of all the wonderful oils they have made from bark, leaves, and berries carefully transported from their countries. I taught one to drive; it was a first for any female in her family. Would this be a good community to explore or should I become part of something new and completely different? I have never been musical so taking part in any musical endeavors would really be a challenge to my creativity. And that’s what I’m looking for; ways to challenge myself, do anything that causes me to reach and grow, look at the world in a different way or through the eyes of someone who has a completely different perspective.