I got really worked up by Sirc's visit. I guess I think the foundation of his argument is wrong. He does have a lot of very good points about teaching writing.
1) Good writing is authentic
2) Good writing is honest
3) Formulaic writing is neither honest nor authentic
4) Writing teachers should be open to more new ideas and new genres.
5) The modern world and its technology is changing what writing and how we use and interact with it
6) Personal, high interest writing is motivating and interesting while traditional writing assignments are boring
7) Composition classes stifle original and artistic writing
However, I believe that writing is a craft.
I spent the better part of my life studying writing and I believe there are tools and techniques you can learn. I agree with Sirc that I would much rather have a student who writes honestly than one that is stuck in tradition -- but I would then take that student and teach them to write.
Good writing MUST be honest and authentic and enthusiastic. But honesty, authenticity, and enthusiasm do not, in themselves, make writing great. The masters spend their lives honing their craft. Teaching students that honesty is all that matters is a really bad idea. We will have a generation of enthusiastic scribblers who aren't worth reading. Not all of three thousand years of literary study should be tossed out the window -- the trick it s to not let ourselves be constrained by it.
And what were those videos we watched from Sirc's friend's class? Were those the end product of an assignment? Is this what undergrads are spending their time doing instead of learning to communicate effectively?
Oh, and by the way, I know this is mean, but maybe Sirc would have been more convincing if the essay he read to us was well written, or even understandable...
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2 comments:
Way to diatribe, man. Way to defend what you believe in.
We've talked about this presentation quite a bit in the last week, so I feel commenting here is a bit redundant, but I'll just say that I wasn't overly impressed with the videos either. But then, I'm overly impressed with minimalism.
I'm not worked up, but I agree that the foundation is worth teaching. But something I struggle with is how not to remake my students in my mold. I am a writer. I love writing. To do it artfully is an asset for me in my life and vocation. I don't mind the idea of letting some students veer off that path from time to time with something like the box logic stuff. That said, I wouldn't deny any student the foundational part because that would be denying critical cultural capital.
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