We started class with a discussion of Peter Elbow's concepts of doubting and believing as relationships to writing process. We compared the two processes in terms of the notes below.
Doubting game
Mark things identified as important
Notice “errors” in terms of content or the way it is written
Judge the writing = Find a way to argue against it
Consistent with our experience?
Compare to outside standards
Coherent (any internal conflicts?)
Might challenge style or emotional content
Believing game
Looking for strengths rather than weaknesses
Get into the idea of the paper
Assume the writer (you) have something valuable to say and that they can say it
Affirming the writer’s ideas
Saying back ideas
Not judging encourages writers to take more risks
You then worked in groups to use the believing game as a way to respond to, think into, and receive your literacy narratives. In class discussion after this exercise, you observed that it was HARD to step out of the the doubting/ciritiquing game - but that seeing classmates work, and receiving it in affirming ways was - as Elbow said - a constructive way to think about how to move forward in your own writing.
Freewriting
We talked about the two ways freewriting works to turn off the internal editor: 1) by separating the gathering information/creative processes from the selecting the right language/polishing the ideas process; and 2) establishing a habit of mind where ideas and words are welcomed onto the page. The habit of mind is especially important - because you can step into that mode whenever you get stuck - and simply let yourself write through the tough spots - and then you can come back to them later, when more words are on the page.
After this discussion you did an experiment where you did an open freewrite = to prime the pump, followed by a focused freewrite where you wrote to prompts for the process narrative. For some of you this worked, for some of you- you didn't need any loosening up, and for some of you - it felt like an interruption to switch focus. So - use the results that apply to you!
Cooking-Growing
We briefly talked over Elbow's rationale and process for his write-the-paper-four-times method before there was an overpowering smell of smoke in the room. I think you his main idea - that letting go of control and trusting writing as a discovery process can work to create papers - and that it might even create papers with less agony that keeping tight control of the decision making for all the right language and sentences at the same time you are trying to discover.
For next week:
Read: Elbow, Chapter 3
Write: keep working on your process narrative and bring whatever notes you have to class
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
2.22 Audience, Literacy Narrative +Process Narrative
We started class with a discussion of audience - and whether (or not) or to what degree writers should write to an audience - rather than from their perspectives.
You raised the point that in many ways - the writing piece itself will select the audience, so in some sense, writing to an audience can change what you have to say. This line of thinking seems to indicate that "writing to audience" might be a kind of compromise in what writers have to say. At the same time, you also pointed out that writing is about communication, and that it can be important to say things in ways that readers will understand (like filling in enough background) or in ways that readers will be able to hear (like acknowledging their point of view and connecting it to the different point of view in the writing).
You also pointed out that there were different audience considerations for school work and other public writing, for creative writing, and for writing you did for yourselves. You raised lots of important points about this - but at this point I got so involved in listening to you that I stopped taking notes. I think the conflicts between "audience" (especially when audience is mostly teachers) and writers authority over their material and the forms they want to explore present lots of problems in writing classrooms. You pointed out that you wanted to use writing to learn and think - but that often what was "taught" in writing classes (the audience expectations) did not leave room for that = both in terms of the forms and subject matter you were expected to "learn." I noticed these same themes in your literacy narratives - where many of you had two kinds of experiences with writing: good experiences where you used writing for your own purposes; and not always bad - but often frustrating - experiences where you "had' to write in formulaic patterns on content that was not relevant to you. We will think about this some more.
I gave you some general feedback on your literacy narratives - mostly about sharpening your focus and developing your stories so they were fully rendered - as opposed to functioning like voice-overs. Each story should make a particular point to develop your focus. And your focus needs to be idea centered => some observation or generalization about how your identity as a writer connects to or was shaped by the cultural stories we have been talking about.
We also talked about the process narrative = and about creating data for the process narrative. The assignment for next class - the first two chapters in the Elbow book - will move us forward in terms of thinking about writing process and how it works. For now - you are gathering your data.
For next week.
Read: Writing as process: Elbow. Introduction to the second edition; Chapters 1 & 2 (Freewriting, & Growing) => think about this as kind of process narrative.
We will talk about Elbow - explore some of his ideas in terms of your writing - and do some more writing for your process narratives.
Due: Final draft Literacy Narrative
Thanks for the good class today.
Different levels of “freedom” with respect to audience
depending on what kind of writing it is
Writing to audience can
What defines “directness” + what we want to say is kind of shaped by who is going top read
Most of us know who is going to read the paper and how we want them to perceive us =
You raised the point that in many ways - the writing piece itself will select the audience, so in some sense, writing to an audience can change what you have to say. This line of thinking seems to indicate that "writing to audience" might be a kind of compromise in what writers have to say. At the same time, you also pointed out that writing is about communication, and that it can be important to say things in ways that readers will understand (like filling in enough background) or in ways that readers will be able to hear (like acknowledging their point of view and connecting it to the different point of view in the writing).
You also pointed out that there were different audience considerations for school work and other public writing, for creative writing, and for writing you did for yourselves. You raised lots of important points about this - but at this point I got so involved in listening to you that I stopped taking notes. I think the conflicts between "audience" (especially when audience is mostly teachers) and writers authority over their material and the forms they want to explore present lots of problems in writing classrooms. You pointed out that you wanted to use writing to learn and think - but that often what was "taught" in writing classes (the audience expectations) did not leave room for that = both in terms of the forms and subject matter you were expected to "learn." I noticed these same themes in your literacy narratives - where many of you had two kinds of experiences with writing: good experiences where you used writing for your own purposes; and not always bad - but often frustrating - experiences where you "had' to write in formulaic patterns on content that was not relevant to you. We will think about this some more.
I gave you some general feedback on your literacy narratives - mostly about sharpening your focus and developing your stories so they were fully rendered - as opposed to functioning like voice-overs. Each story should make a particular point to develop your focus. And your focus needs to be idea centered => some observation or generalization about how your identity as a writer connects to or was shaped by the cultural stories we have been talking about.
We also talked about the process narrative = and about creating data for the process narrative. The assignment for next class - the first two chapters in the Elbow book - will move us forward in terms of thinking about writing process and how it works. For now - you are gathering your data.
For next week.
Read: Writing as process: Elbow. Introduction to the second edition; Chapters 1 & 2 (Freewriting, & Growing) => think about this as kind of process narrative.
We will talk about Elbow - explore some of his ideas in terms of your writing - and do some more writing for your process narratives.
Due: Final draft Literacy Narrative
Thanks for the good class today.
Different levels of “freedom” with respect to audience
depending on what kind of writing it is
Writing to audience can
What defines “directness” + what we want to say is kind of shaped by who is going top read
Most of us know who is going to read the paper and how we want them to perceive us =
2.15 Rose and writing process
Main point(s):
Writing is a problem solving process: understanding the problem, processing, solving.
Unblocked writers were less rigid in their application of the rules for writing
Heuristic writers generally less blocked
Important vocabulary:
Cognitive – thought/ thinking processes
Algorithms –precise rules applied the same way
Heuristics – rules of thumb = more flexible and less specific than algorithms
TOTE
Plan: bigger than a heuristic, has a sequence & hierarchy
Set: what you bring from your past, assumptions, values & beliefs + thinking patterns
FINDINGS
How writers got blocked
Blocked writers use algorithms rather than heuristics, and they use rules as absolutes
Sets (assumptions) from past experiences = can interfere with what you need to do for a particular writing task (Martha’s need to see writing as linear, logical and a straight path)
Were resistant to – or didn’t make use of- feedback
Can get stuck in intro paragraph (bad rule = have to write the intro first)
Closed system limits possibilities can lead to conflict (plans don’t take into account unanticipated factors in the audience, purpose or form of the writing task)
Too many rules (without a plan for how to choose among them)
Who didn’t get blocked and why
Just write and look at what happens
Lots of feedback considered
Knew how to respond to feedback
Flexible about finding alternatives = pragmatic approach – if the rule didn’t work, pick another rule
Didn’t take rules too seriously
For next week:
Keep working onyour literacy narrative
Post your notes on your writing process. Include the writing you did for the prompts
Writing is a problem solving process: understanding the problem, processing, solving.
Unblocked writers were less rigid in their application of the rules for writing
Heuristic writers generally less blocked
Important vocabulary:
Cognitive – thought/ thinking processes
Algorithms –precise rules applied the same way
Heuristics – rules of thumb = more flexible and less specific than algorithms
TOTE
Plan: bigger than a heuristic, has a sequence & hierarchy
Set: what you bring from your past, assumptions, values & beliefs + thinking patterns
FINDINGS
How writers got blocked
Blocked writers use algorithms rather than heuristics, and they use rules as absolutes
Sets (assumptions) from past experiences = can interfere with what you need to do for a particular writing task (Martha’s need to see writing as linear, logical and a straight path)
Were resistant to – or didn’t make use of- feedback
Can get stuck in intro paragraph (bad rule = have to write the intro first)
Closed system limits possibilities can lead to conflict (plans don’t take into account unanticipated factors in the audience, purpose or form of the writing task)
Too many rules (without a plan for how to choose among them)
Who didn’t get blocked and why
Just write and look at what happens
Lots of feedback considered
Knew how to respond to feedback
Flexible about finding alternatives = pragmatic approach – if the rule didn’t work, pick another rule
Didn’t take rules too seriously
For next week:
Keep working onyour literacy narrative
Post your notes on your writing process. Include the writing you did for the prompts
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Workshop your drafts
1. Author: Talk to you coach about what problems you had with your draft + what you want to work on.
2. Author: Read your draft to your coach (mark it as you read);
Coach = take notes as the author reades
3. Coach: say back what you heard as the main point + state what you saw each point as showing with respect to the focus
4. Talk together about issues the author wanted to work on
5. Make a plan about what you want to change
2. Author: Read your draft to your coach (mark it as you read);
Coach = take notes as the author reades
3. Coach: say back what you heard as the main point + state what you saw each point as showing with respect to the focus
4. Talk together about issues the author wanted to work on
5. Make a plan about what you want to change
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Writing Option Survey
The writing option pre-survey site has been made available until February 16. If you have not yet taken the survey, please complete it as soon as you can.
http://ku.us2.qualtrics.com/
http://ku.us2.qualtrics.com/
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
2.8 Becoming literate in the information age
We started class with a discussion of the literacy narratives co-authored by Hawisher, Selfe, Pearson & Moraski. Melissa & Brittney's life stories provided us examples of how literacies are situated within complex cultural ecologies.
In order to explore some of the complex, inter-related factors that "shape and are shaped by" literacy learning and practice in these stories - you worked in groups to analyze the two narratives. You identified important events, situations, sponsors and experiences; "situated" them within their cultural, material, educational and familial circumstances, and identified cultural stories associatd with these events.
I collected your analysis and wrote it up - unfortunately I lost the notes (complicated story about having "drafts" for this blog post on two different computers). I am hoping you have good notes from this discussion. I do remember some of our summing up comments about the different cultural stories the two narratives connected to.
For Melissa - it was a kind of a "bootstrap" - success through individual, hard work; with literacy skills as a foundation for that success.
Brittney's story also connected to a literacy myth kind of version of success, but also connected to "small town girl makes good - goes to big (digital) city" kinds of stories.
Digital portfolio.
We spent the second part of class creating the digital portfolio and talking through how to work up the draft for next week. You used the model portfolio to create your portfolios (through your kean email). For now - you only created the the introduction page and page 6 - the literacy narrative page. You posted your brainstorming writing, and we talked about how to turn the brainstorming into a "narrative" => through a back and forth process where you look at your stories, identify themes, turning points, or etc (listed on page 2 of the assignment sheet) as a way to identify your focus.
In-class writing prompts:
Journal prompt: who owns your literacy practices? you and who else?
Journal prompt: What themes or patterns are you noticing in your literacy narrative? How does your narrative connect to what we have been reading?
For next week:
Read: Mike Rose, "Rigid Rules, Inflexible Plans, and the Stifling of Language: A Cognitivist's Analysis of Writers' Block"
Write: draft literacy narratives- sent as an attachment and posted to portfolio
As discussed in class, your narrative should be the whole 5 pages, it should have a focus (or be working on one) and be working on meeting criteria for development & organization. Don't slave over the language/spelling at this point = think about the how the essay fits and works as a whole.
Also - jot some notes about your writing process. We will post them to the portfolio next week.
In order to explore some of the complex, inter-related factors that "shape and are shaped by" literacy learning and practice in these stories - you worked in groups to analyze the two narratives. You identified important events, situations, sponsors and experiences; "situated" them within their cultural, material, educational and familial circumstances, and identified cultural stories associatd with these events.
I collected your analysis and wrote it up - unfortunately I lost the notes (complicated story about having "drafts" for this blog post on two different computers). I am hoping you have good notes from this discussion. I do remember some of our summing up comments about the different cultural stories the two narratives connected to.
For Melissa - it was a kind of a "bootstrap" - success through individual, hard work; with literacy skills as a foundation for that success.
Brittney's story also connected to a literacy myth kind of version of success, but also connected to "small town girl makes good - goes to big (digital) city" kinds of stories.
Digital portfolio.
We spent the second part of class creating the digital portfolio and talking through how to work up the draft for next week. You used the model portfolio to create your portfolios (through your kean email). For now - you only created the the introduction page and page 6 - the literacy narrative page. You posted your brainstorming writing, and we talked about how to turn the brainstorming into a "narrative" => through a back and forth process where you look at your stories, identify themes, turning points, or etc (listed on page 2 of the assignment sheet) as a way to identify your focus.
In-class writing prompts:
Journal prompt: who owns your literacy practices? you and who else?
Journal prompt: What themes or patterns are you noticing in your literacy narrative? How does your narrative connect to what we have been reading?
For next week:
Read: Mike Rose, "Rigid Rules, Inflexible Plans, and the Stifling of Language: A Cognitivist's Analysis of Writers' Block"
Write: draft literacy narratives- sent as an attachment and posted to portfolio
As discussed in class, your narrative should be the whole 5 pages, it should have a focus (or be working on one) and be working on meeting criteria for development & organization. Don't slave over the language/spelling at this point = think about the how the essay fits and works as a whole.
Also - jot some notes about your writing process. We will post them to the portfolio next week.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Physical self/material setting <= Experience=> Cultural stories
In today's class we focused on seeing the "cultural stories" that lay beneath our experiences with literacies. I began with a mini-discussion of how experience is not just "out there" for use to perceive "the way it is." Rather, I suggested that there are values and assumptions that are more or less "invisible" - because everyone accepts them almost unconsciously - and that these values and assumptions kind of clump together into stories or interpretations that "sum up" or experience without our even knowing.
We read through the first couple paragraphs of Mary's literacy narrative about growing up dyslexic and becoming a writer, and pulled out the "cultural stories" that she used to "make sense" of her experiences. Using Mary's narrative and your reflections on your own writing, we came up with the following list of "cultural stories" that we (often unconsciously) use to interpret our experience.
Cultural Stories
We read through the first couple paragraphs of Mary's literacy narrative about growing up dyslexic and becoming a writer, and pulled out the "cultural stories" that she used to "make sense" of her experiences. Using Mary's narrative and your reflections on your own writing, we came up with the following list of "cultural stories" that we (often unconsciously) use to interpret our experience.
Cultural Stories
- good writing = correctness
- "good" writing is defined by external authorities (usually teachers/school) rather than the writer his/herself
- "real" writing does NOT include online writing or texting
- nonstandard writing is "wrong" and has to be corrected
- not being able to read makes you "less than" a person= shameful
- reading "good literature' is "good" for you (make you smarter/a better person)
- you ”have” to be able to do technology
- being smart is bad = cool to hate reading+ (anti story) =geeking out
- online writing is “bad’ is ruining our ability to write
- we can have a tendency to write how we talk
- a love of writing goes hand in hand with a love of reading = to be a good writer you have to read (the right books)
- friendships, peers and role models shape a person’s writing style in ways that school can’t
- good writing is inspired
- writing “proves “ what you know
- grades are the measure of how good your writing is
- knowing more words means you are a better writer
- a “free” place helps you write
- personal writing doesn’t count as real writing
- perfection is expected = mistakes are shameful
- textbooks are not fun to read= but they are real reading = if reading is fun it’s worthless
- learning is “hard” – if it is fun it can’t be real learning
- you need a teacher/school to learn to write
As we noted in class - some of these are "observations" and some are cultural stories. It is probably worth while to take a hard look at what we see as "real " (observations) and what we see as myth - since often our "assumptions" FEEL like they are real This is a great list and should be very helpful in writing your narratives.
Developing a rubric and range-finding (making sure we apply the rubric the same way)
Rubric:
Focus (40)=> in addition to specific points in the assignment, an "A" essay needs to make a coherent point
Development (30)
- specific, detailed stories
- reflections on stories
- detailed connections between the focus and the stories
Organization (20)
Correctness/style (10)
We didn't really have quite enough time to compare our scores - but it looked like you were on the right track. Great!
For next week:
As you might have noticed - we did not have time to create the portfolio like it said on the calendar that we were going to - we will do that next week in class. So keep copies of your journaling (or make a MS word copy) so that you can post it next week in class.
Writing homework: make some notes on your writing process - for the literacy narrative assignment or any other assignment. It is OK to write from memory - but it will be better if you write specific observations of what you do as you write - while (or shortly after) you write.
See you next week.
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