Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Revisions
With my revision, I tried to narrow down on my audience. I focused less on the student aspect of my piece, and more towards the teacher. This was so I can relate to teachers that are having difficulty adjusting to the digital age. I rear aged the last few paragraphs so they had a different flow, and talked about the difficulties teachers faced first, then lastly I talk more about possible solutions to these problems within the classroom.
Beans, Buns, and Fun
Bean's Main Points
From what I gathered from the Bean article, teachers need to get their students from reading at a surface level. There are too many times when teachers are forced to somehow summarize, explain or simplify a difficult article, when in fact the student should be sharpening their critical reading lens. When teachers give this simplification, it deludes the student's chance of achieving a deep reading technique. By giving the students an understanding that some of these texts are meant to be difficult, and that it would be surprising if they would even understand 50 percent of it, we can lower their anxiety levels by helping them understand that confusion is part of the process. As teachers, we need to be empathetic, and relay that empathy towards the students so the students understand the weight of the reading is meant purposely. Ways for helping students read these text is to have the forget about highlighting, and whenever they feel the urge to highlight, have them write a quick sentence on the margin of the page. This will help the students have an easier time absorbing the information that seems convoluted.
Bun's Main Points
Bun want's people to read like a writer so people stop taking things at face value. He relates these ideas to people wanting to have directions for everything, and that there is a constant need to know how something is done. "When we read like writers we understand and participate in
the writing. We see the choices the writer has made, and we see how the writer has coped with the consequences of those choices (75). By reading like a level, we become more engaged with the words that we read, thus know that there is a specific reason why the author made the choices he/she made in conveying their message. This will allow the reader to further engage with the reading, and participate and possibly implement these techniques within their own writing. When reading like a writer, we are able to try and define the intended audience and purpose for the piece of writing, which will then give the reader a greater sense of understanding why the author made certain choices for the community they are writing for.
Bean and Bun
I enjoyed the Bean article, because I saw many things that I could relate to. I have been in these theory classes where I seemed lost, but I suppose that is sort of the point. We need to make our way through the confusion and try to come to terms with the information given. The way that Bean proposes to teach students through the teachers own personal experiences seemed like a good idea. There are too man times when I had a hard time in understanding where to underline, speed-read of skim certain passages. Even the concept of taking notes on a dense article can feel intimidating. But knowing how your teacher goes about with these articles is very beneficial, it gives empathy towards the students, and allows them to understand that these articles are difficult. In terms of the Bun article, I found the RLW approach beneficial as well. I have learned in the past that while reading pieces, there is a selective audience that many theorist write for. So there is meant to be confusion to a certain extent, especially if you are outside of the audience. So by trying to define the audience, the reader can then understand the choices why the author wrote the way that he did.
From what I gathered from the Bean article, teachers need to get their students from reading at a surface level. There are too many times when teachers are forced to somehow summarize, explain or simplify a difficult article, when in fact the student should be sharpening their critical reading lens. When teachers give this simplification, it deludes the student's chance of achieving a deep reading technique. By giving the students an understanding that some of these texts are meant to be difficult, and that it would be surprising if they would even understand 50 percent of it, we can lower their anxiety levels by helping them understand that confusion is part of the process. As teachers, we need to be empathetic, and relay that empathy towards the students so the students understand the weight of the reading is meant purposely. Ways for helping students read these text is to have the forget about highlighting, and whenever they feel the urge to highlight, have them write a quick sentence on the margin of the page. This will help the students have an easier time absorbing the information that seems convoluted.
Bun's Main Points
Bun want's people to read like a writer so people stop taking things at face value. He relates these ideas to people wanting to have directions for everything, and that there is a constant need to know how something is done. "When we read like writers we understand and participate in
the writing. We see the choices the writer has made, and we see how the writer has coped with the consequences of those choices (75). By reading like a level, we become more engaged with the words that we read, thus know that there is a specific reason why the author made the choices he/she made in conveying their message. This will allow the reader to further engage with the reading, and participate and possibly implement these techniques within their own writing. When reading like a writer, we are able to try and define the intended audience and purpose for the piece of writing, which will then give the reader a greater sense of understanding why the author made certain choices for the community they are writing for.
Bean and Bun
I enjoyed the Bean article, because I saw many things that I could relate to. I have been in these theory classes where I seemed lost, but I suppose that is sort of the point. We need to make our way through the confusion and try to come to terms with the information given. The way that Bean proposes to teach students through the teachers own personal experiences seemed like a good idea. There are too man times when I had a hard time in understanding where to underline, speed-read of skim certain passages. Even the concept of taking notes on a dense article can feel intimidating. But knowing how your teacher goes about with these articles is very beneficial, it gives empathy towards the students, and allows them to understand that these articles are difficult. In terms of the Bun article, I found the RLW approach beneficial as well. I have learned in the past that while reading pieces, there is a selective audience that many theorist write for. So there is meant to be confusion to a certain extent, especially if you are outside of the audience. So by trying to define the audience, the reader can then understand the choices why the author wrote the way that he did.
Friday, March 15, 2013
Hannelore Kinney
I thought being able to identify what sentences were best written, and had the most meaning was a good exercise in being able to critically read your own paper. This was effective so hopefully I can implore these skills at other points of my paper. This technique was used by many people we read about in our theory articles, so there is no doubt that there is a benefit here. However, I felt confused what he general outcome of the assignment was suppose to be. For using this assignment in the future, there should be further guidelines in the goals that states the purpose of why we should be able to make these identifications.
Angela Mosby Assigment
I enjoyed Angela's assignemt because it had me examine my writing in a vulnerable way. By having the sentences seperated and having them much more visually stand out, I was able to identify a few patterns in the way I write. This was effective due to the isolation of each sentence, which gave me individual time with each seperate part within a specific paragrahph. By using this technique in the future, I can hopefully have peers extract meaning, content, and indivual sentence patterns within paragraphs.
The assignment didn't have stated goals for what was expected as an outcome at the end of the assignment. This was the only major thing the assignment lacked. So if used in the future, goal would definitely be beneficial.
The assignment didn't have stated goals for what was expected as an outcome at the end of the assignment. This was the only major thing the assignment lacked. So if used in the future, goal would definitely be beneficial.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
ASSIGNMENT
Audience and Argument
From what I've gathered from our peers, and even myself, there can be a difficulty having a cohesive argument that identifies with your audience throughout your paper. There may be times you veer off topic, rant, or even start taking your argument to whole new place completely. By the end of this assignment, I hope a connection can be made between your audience and argument. We should all be making an argument that makes sense for the group we are writing for, and strengthen the weak points of our argument whenever possible.
Step 1
Sharon Crowley's essay on invention says, "I use the term argument to refer to any rhetorical situation in which people disagree with one another, although ' argument' can also refer to the proofs developed by a specific rhetoric for use in a given situation"(32). Within your own paper, I want you to find areas in which someone may disagree with your argument. Then ask yourself, what is there to disagree with? Write a response on the areas of disagreement, and then afterwards, try and think of ways to reach disagreement your audience may have with your audience.
Step 2
Find areas where your argument speaks the best to your audience, then write about why this is.
Ask yourself the following while finding these areas:
From what I've gathered from our peers, and even myself, there can be a difficulty having a cohesive argument that identifies with your audience throughout your paper. There may be times you veer off topic, rant, or even start taking your argument to whole new place completely. By the end of this assignment, I hope a connection can be made between your audience and argument. We should all be making an argument that makes sense for the group we are writing for, and strengthen the weak points of our argument whenever possible.
Step 1
Sharon Crowley's essay on invention says, "I use the term argument to refer to any rhetorical situation in which people disagree with one another, although ' argument' can also refer to the proofs developed by a specific rhetoric for use in a given situation"(32). Within your own paper, I want you to find areas in which someone may disagree with your argument. Then ask yourself, what is there to disagree with? Write a response on the areas of disagreement, and then afterwards, try and think of ways to reach disagreement your audience may have with your audience.
Step 2
Find areas where your argument speaks the best to your audience, then write about why this is.
Ask yourself the following while finding these areas:
- What am trying to tell my audience?
- Why should my audience agree with me?
- Are there any potential setbacks by making this argument to my audience?
Once these are established, I want to then try and find the weakest areas of your argument and answer the previous three questions again. This time around, by viewing these setback, you can then try to find and address the misunderstanding a person in your audience may have. This will allow you to expand your thought process in your writing, and understand any questions your audience may have while reading your piece.
Step 3
Now that you have pinpointed your weakest areas, have you realized that some of what you wrote doesn't apply to your audience at all? If this is the case, scrap the area (but save it just in case!) and try to write a new paragraph that helps target your audience. Then afterwards, ask yourself why this new paragraph fits your audience and arguemnt more so then it did before.
week 8: Revision plan!
So, I've come to realize that I still have a way to go on my paper. I spent too much time trying to find my argument and audience, while ignoring style almost altogether. I finding the proper style is most certainly at the top of my list of things to do. Next, I also need to focus my argument more on my audience. This is proving to be difficult, but I'm still not done with the paper yet either. I have the words down on the page, but I still need to find the write link in my thesis that puts it all together. When I have this understood, I can then get my transitions down, I might save this towards the end of my paper. I tend to move paragraphs around after writing a paper to see if things fit better in a different order.
Week 8: Revision!
So, what I've come to gather from most of my peer feedback--I need to establish my argument. I think that my audience has finally been found, but I need to somehow engage my arguement with my audience to a greater extent. I originally wanted to write about the use of digital media technologies and how it effects the k-12 classroom. Then I realized that this is too vague, and I needed to tighten up the audience. So instead of making a k-12, parent, teacher, student audience, I focused on mainly teachers and students. This still proved to be difficult and found that just aiming for the prospective of teachers and digital media technology was the best route. My issue then is having all of this left over information from my previous paper, and trying to zone it in on the teacher perspective. Therefore, I need to find the proper source to thread it all together.
1)Not quite yet, I have established my audience, but need to relate the arguemnt with my audience to a greater extent. Regardless, I believe that I still have a strong thesis.
2)So far yes, however, I'm still talking about how digital media effects students, when it should be more about teachers. I need to somehow make this a contrast in how teachers can learn from the technical abilites students have over teachers.
3) I would say so, I'm trying to write this paper as someone that isn't that tech savy, so it allows the reader to sympathize and understand that many are going through the same process.
4)Not quite yet, I need a few more paragraphs and something to connect my ideas together.
5)Not quite yet, I need some work in this area.
6) I would hope so, I'm trying to write clear an concise.
7)I engage my audience, and try to relate my arguement to my audience. Unfortunately, I still need to fit these two together.
8)Not quite yet.
9)I think they do.
10) I don't have one yet.
1)Not quite yet, I have established my audience, but need to relate the arguemnt with my audience to a greater extent. Regardless, I believe that I still have a strong thesis.
2)So far yes, however, I'm still talking about how digital media effects students, when it should be more about teachers. I need to somehow make this a contrast in how teachers can learn from the technical abilites students have over teachers.
3) I would say so, I'm trying to write this paper as someone that isn't that tech savy, so it allows the reader to sympathize and understand that many are going through the same process.
4)Not quite yet, I need a few more paragraphs and something to connect my ideas together.
5)Not quite yet, I need some work in this area.
6) I would hope so, I'm trying to write clear an concise.
7)I engage my audience, and try to relate my arguement to my audience. Unfortunately, I still need to fit these two together.
8)Not quite yet.
9)I think they do.
10) I don't have one yet.
Week 8: Bartholomae
Bartholomae claims that in order to get our students writing, teachers shouldn't be giving instructions to writing as a subject, he calls this the "Big Bang Theory". To teach an entire semester on writing, and have no writing in the process because the students are "poor writers" doesn't help anyone in the process. This would be like giving students a math lecture with no homework--there would be no time to absorb the lesson. Instead, Barthalomae gives examples of how writing can be incorporated in the classroom so it can be dissected, and be seen as a learning process. Through revision, and repetition on past writings, students can look at old writings with a new "richness", allowing them to look at old work through a new light, and learn from others within the composing process.
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Writing should be taught through the composing process
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I find when Bartholomae talks about the negative aspects of learning about writing, while not incorporating the terms into your own writing important. I myself, need to try and incorporate more of these devices into my writing. I found it suprising how past writings, such as journals, can be used and made into a new assignment. By having the students write about write about what they learned through reading their journal, rather than write about what they learned while writing the journal, forced the students to look at past writing through a new lens. I wouldn't mind using this technique in my own classroom eventually. This is a non judgmental form of writing practice that allows the student "to write about journal writing without writing about the writing in the journal"(37). This would be good for students that speak in languages that are not the Standard White English It will allow them to write in their native thoughts, and then through the composing process, look back on what they wrote.
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Writing should be taught through the composing process
--------
I find when Bartholomae talks about the negative aspects of learning about writing, while not incorporating the terms into your own writing important. I myself, need to try and incorporate more of these devices into my writing. I found it suprising how past writings, such as journals, can be used and made into a new assignment. By having the students write about write about what they learned through reading their journal, rather than write about what they learned while writing the journal, forced the students to look at past writing through a new lens. I wouldn't mind using this technique in my own classroom eventually. This is a non judgmental form of writing practice that allows the student "to write about journal writing without writing about the writing in the journal"(37). This would be good for students that speak in languages that are not the Standard White English It will allow them to write in their native thoughts, and then through the composing process, look back on what they wrote.
Week 8: Reflective Writing.
I've been thinking more about the process of writing than ever before. Even outside of this class, I've been trying to incorporate Invention, Arrangement, Style and Delivery into many of my other English papers. In order to describe these main processes to someone that has never encountered these four devices, I'd have a person describe their own writing to me. This can build them from the ground up, and allow me to incorporate these methods into what they already know and expand upon that knowledge.
From our past reading, I have realized that writing is a cultural identity If you judge the writing, you are almost judging the person and their ideological beliefs. Knowing this allows me to be a tad more self aware, and understand that the way I write comes from the background of where I came from. By knowing this, I'd like to try new things in my writing and try to take new steps in understanding the composing process.
From our past reading, I have realized that writing is a cultural identity If you judge the writing, you are almost judging the person and their ideological beliefs. Knowing this allows me to be a tad more self aware, and understand that the way I write comes from the background of where I came from. By knowing this, I'd like to try new things in my writing and try to take new steps in understanding the composing process.
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Week Seven: Response to Feedback....
I felt the feedback was very beneficial, I'm still having difficulty pinpointing my argument but at the same time the topic is there. So I need to have the two meet, and make my argumentative voice stronger in my paper.
Week 7: Where my Writing is at this Stage....
I suppose my writing at this stage would be around the Drafting stage. I'm still making my thesis concrete, and was glad that I got feedback on how to do it. I was focusing on the use of digital media technology with students and teachers, but with the help of feedback, I narrowed it down to teachers. After I receive my peer-reviewed draft, I think I'll be able to get further into my draft. I'm about a few weeks away from revising.
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Week 7: Responding to others' writing
While responding, I tried to find areas of the person's argument that I really enjoyed. I though Harris idea of focusing in on the areas that are good, and why they are good would be benifical for my peer to understand from an audience's perspective. I also use the criteria that the writer asked me to use, therefore offering feedback in areas that they were curious about.
Week Seven: Blog 2
I feel that I should respond to my peers writing in a way that constructivley questions and critques their writing. By telling them about parts of their paper that I like, and why I like it, will help them try and emulate this style throughout their paper. I want to use Richard Larson's 4 step criteria
1. Does the writer perform felicitously the act he promised?
2. Are the conclusions, the judgments, consistent with and supported by
the data and arguments that precede them?
3. Is it possible for the reader to see, from beginning to end, in what
direction the piece is moving, what steps are taken to reach the writer's
goal, and why?
4. Who is talking to us? Are we in the presence of a faceless speaker or a
distinctive identity? Is that identity consistent within the paper, and is it
suitable to the writer's goal in coming before us? 6
This is to help test the effectiveness of a students piece of writing as a whole "Larson". I should also make my evaluation aimed towards the reader so the student can "practice and refine their critical skills"
1. Does the writer perform felicitously the act he promised?
2. Are the conclusions, the judgments, consistent with and supported by
the data and arguments that precede them?
3. Is it possible for the reader to see, from beginning to end, in what
direction the piece is moving, what steps are taken to reach the writer's
goal, and why?
4. Who is talking to us? Are we in the presence of a faceless speaker or a
distinctive identity? Is that identity consistent within the paper, and is it
suitable to the writer's goal in coming before us? 6
This is to help test the effectiveness of a students piece of writing as a whole "Larson". I should also make my evaluation aimed towards the reader so the student can "practice and refine their critical skills"
Week 7: Faigley and Harris
Faigley has an old school way of thinking in terms of responding to people's writings. He talks of the 1931 Commission of English and their report, Examining the Examination of English. This nine member board talked about what makes a well written English entrance exam.
They passed a certain student because "...pupils should have the opportunity to 'execise and reveal their powers"(401). And according to the Commision, this can be done through metaphor. Along with this, Faigley quotes Roger Garrison by saying that, "Good writing is inevitably honest writing. Every writer, beginner or not, needs what Hemingway called a built-in crap detector'. All of us, like it or not, are daily immersed in tides of phony, posturing, pretentious, tired, imprecise, slovenly language which both suffocate and corrupt the mind"(223). There seems to be some insight here, but a little hypercritical as well. In order to try knew things, people probably have to write in different styles to find their own honest style. By trying to sound academic, I suppose it comes across as phony, but to achieve this, people need to at least emulate what their surroundings.
Harris claims that in order to get students to write well, is to get them off the idea that teachers should judge a final product. Rather teachers should "...turn the student loose to become self-regulating editor who can effectively spot the need to reorganize, revise and correct"(83). He also claims that peer evaluation is important within the prewriting stage to help find the writers stance on their issue. Through various stages of the writing process, there should be a discussion and anaylsis of what works in a pupils paper, why it works, and what could be changed.
They passed a certain student because "...pupils should have the opportunity to 'execise and reveal their powers"(401). And according to the Commision, this can be done through metaphor. Along with this, Faigley quotes Roger Garrison by saying that, "Good writing is inevitably honest writing. Every writer, beginner or not, needs what Hemingway called a built-in crap detector'. All of us, like it or not, are daily immersed in tides of phony, posturing, pretentious, tired, imprecise, slovenly language which both suffocate and corrupt the mind"(223). There seems to be some insight here, but a little hypercritical as well. In order to try knew things, people probably have to write in different styles to find their own honest style. By trying to sound academic, I suppose it comes across as phony, but to achieve this, people need to at least emulate what their surroundings.
Harris claims that in order to get students to write well, is to get them off the idea that teachers should judge a final product. Rather teachers should "...turn the student loose to become self-regulating editor who can effectively spot the need to reorganize, revise and correct"(83). He also claims that peer evaluation is important within the prewriting stage to help find the writers stance on their issue. Through various stages of the writing process, there should be a discussion and anaylsis of what works in a pupils paper, why it works, and what could be changed.
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