Writing for the sake of writing? Technology for the sake of technology?
A statement in one of last week’s readings brought to mind a question posed by Doug Hesse when he was visiting campus recently: “Is it a writing class? Or is it a class with lots of writing?”
In “Characteristics of Peer Review,” Breuch notes that a primary difference of the interaction is that it entirely takes place on-line, instead of face-to-face. Immersed in a text-based environment, the virtual classroom becomes “a written classroom, not just a writing classroom” (quoting William Condon) and all exercises become acts of writing instead of acts of speaking. Breuch pulls out an excellent point here – the very essence of the writing class has been transformed, perhaps into something of a writing teacher’s dream (“All writing, all the time!” the radio commercial would proclaim). But even as the potential of an on-line class grows as the dynamics of communication are changed, both Breuch and Hesse likely would caution us that the sheer volume of writing is not necessarily helping us to meet our pedagogical goals. And it reminds me of the question of whether adding computers to the writing classroom is merely adding technology for technology’s sake.
Technology without the pedagogical elements of the traditional writing class, such as the practice of revision and self-critique, provides a lot of opportunity for writing – but not as much for learning about writing. Technology offers many conveniences and advances to the classroom, but simultaneously should remind us of the necessity of questioning whether we are meeting our goals as teachers, no matter what the medium. A class in which one spends hours writing on the computer can be equally as ineffective for the student who spends hours writing essays on paper at his desk. Neither is necessarily achieving what we want.
On the other hand, we cannot merely dismiss the on-line environment as merely just a class with lots of writing. Condon goes on to say that the on-line world of interaction through text “provides a powerful environment for helping students see themselves as writers” (47). Last week, in my Comp I class, I had my students complete a Techno-Autobiography, and I am anxious to read their response essays. To me it seems a vital part of the writing classroom for students to understand how they can become better writers, to practice those skills and work toward improvement, but also to come to realize how much technology is part of their lives as writers.
In “Characteristics of Peer Review,” Breuch notes that a primary difference of the interaction is that it entirely takes place on-line, instead of face-to-face. Immersed in a text-based environment, the virtual classroom becomes “a written classroom, not just a writing classroom” (quoting William Condon) and all exercises become acts of writing instead of acts of speaking. Breuch pulls out an excellent point here – the very essence of the writing class has been transformed, perhaps into something of a writing teacher’s dream (“All writing, all the time!” the radio commercial would proclaim). But even as the potential of an on-line class grows as the dynamics of communication are changed, both Breuch and Hesse likely would caution us that the sheer volume of writing is not necessarily helping us to meet our pedagogical goals. And it reminds me of the question of whether adding computers to the writing classroom is merely adding technology for technology’s sake.
Technology without the pedagogical elements of the traditional writing class, such as the practice of revision and self-critique, provides a lot of opportunity for writing – but not as much for learning about writing. Technology offers many conveniences and advances to the classroom, but simultaneously should remind us of the necessity of questioning whether we are meeting our goals as teachers, no matter what the medium. A class in which one spends hours writing on the computer can be equally as ineffective for the student who spends hours writing essays on paper at his desk. Neither is necessarily achieving what we want.
On the other hand, we cannot merely dismiss the on-line environment as merely just a class with lots of writing. Condon goes on to say that the on-line world of interaction through text “provides a powerful environment for helping students see themselves as writers” (47). Last week, in my Comp I class, I had my students complete a Techno-Autobiography, and I am anxious to read their response essays. To me it seems a vital part of the writing classroom for students to understand how they can become better writers, to practice those skills and work toward improvement, but also to come to realize how much technology is part of their lives as writers.
posted by Beth @ 12:43 PM
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