As a child/ student you rarely reflect on "how" you are being taught something new, therefore as an adult trying to remember back on how I was taught to write, I find it a difficult to totally recall. I do remember however, that my elementary years were a bit more controlled and the focus was more on the traditional conventions of writing and less on the content being authentic or meaningful to me as the student. I can picture my teachers teaching the whole-class a specific skill and then giving the topic to write about. We focused quite a bit on punctuation, grammar, and handwriting and ignored elements of creativity. I can remember a time in third grade when I was working on a story that I thought was so funny. I had put a lot of energy into this piece and was really excited when I got to meet with my teacher about it. While I understand now as an adult that a teacher and a third grade student are probably not going to have the same level of humor, I was devastated when my teacher made no mention to me about the content of my story. She made comments solely on my writing conventions and the organization of the piece. This experience had a big effect on me as a writer because it caused me to alter the way I approached writing tasks for the next several years.
As I progressed into high school, I remeber having more investment in my writing as I was given a little more freedom. Writing was taught less directly to the class as a whole, and was approached on a more individual basis. After eighth grade, writing was no longer a subject, it was just something you did. When I was allowed to write about something I chose, I remember feeling more invested in my writing, and taking it more seriously. This autonomy allowed me to grow as a writer and I began again to focus more on content, and therefore developed better writing conventions.
These two separate experiences allowed me exposure to both of the two views of writing according to Freeman and Freeman (2004). My elementary experience was more of the "Learning View: Traditional Writing Classroom" where the "teacher directly instructs students in how to form letters, then words, then how to combine word into sentences, and the sentences into paragraphs"(2004). Where as my writing instruction in high school was the "Acquisition View: Process Writing Classroom" where the "teacher creates conditions for authentic written responses and then helps students express themselves in writing"(2004). While research suggest that the "Acquisition View" lends itself to more student buy-in and production of authentic writing, I believe my exposure to both instructional strategies was beneficial and meaningful. I think at a young age students do need more structure and can gradually move to more authentic free writing. For me, I just wish it had happened a little sooner.
Lauren, our experiences in writing seem like they were very similar. As an elementary student, I was also taught more about conventions/grammar than content, and as a high school student my writing shifted more towards my own interests.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that, "...The 'Acquisition View'lends itself to more student buy-in and production of authentic writing." I also agree that exposure to both the Learning View and Acquisition View is beneficial to students because there are certain conventions that students must follow when writing, but focusing on content creates more engagement for students.
I think that a mixture of the two views of teaching writing would be most beneficial when it comes to teaching students who are acquiring English. The message of the writing should be valued, but students must be held to conventions so that their work can be easily read and understood by others.
Lauren-
ReplyDeleteI like your comment,"Exposure to both instructional strategies was beneficial and meaningful. I think at a young age students do need more structure and can gradually move to more authentic free writing." I am curious as to which approach you use in your own classroom.
I know personally having experienced a very structured Learning/Traditional approach to writing throughout my own education,I lean more toward an acquisition view in my own classroom. I value and understand the importance of the structure of the Traditional approach but find myself drawn to the opportunities for self expression for me students. I wonder if being exposed to both views in your own education if you balance your teaching approach or sway one way or another.