Blog Post #7 - Some Thoughts on Chapter 11
At the beginning of Chapter 9 Randy Bomer states that "compared to most people, I am a facile writer and spend a lot of time doing it." I don't doubt this statement at all. I wish I was a facile writer, too.
As a teacher it is important that I foster this in my students. I'm focused on the Social Studies at a secondary school level, and to be candid I'm not overly interested in my students simply remembering the dates of historical events or places on a map. I want my students to be able to think about what they are learning, and reflect on how a current or historical event affects them and others.
As part of this process the idea of using writing as a thinking tool makes great sense.
Chapter 11 delves into some different approaches for teaching about how to write to think.
My favorite approach is the first one listed, "Accepting What Comes." In this blog post we have been asked to avoid direct quoting, but I am especially struck by what William Stafford says when he concludes that "For the person who follows with trust and forgiveness what occurs to him, the world remains always ready and deep..." In other words, not being fully open to feelings and ideas, not trusting in oneself to think and be creative, and not forgiving oneself when mistaken ideas or interpretations come to mind will act as constraints. Limits are imposed on writing, thinking, and learning.
With respect to mistakes in particular I believe that most of us, especially students, don't fully understand and accept that mistakes are part of learning. We are often too afraid of making them. Truly effective learning means students have to take some risks, and recognize that mistakes are part of the process of learning.
I want my classroom to exhibit the trust and forgiveness that Stafford refers to. I think that for many students, myself included, writing is seen as an assignment, and that we may fear mistakes in terms of missing what the assignment requires, or believing that something should be done or interpreted a certain way to be correct. It's as if we should be following a recipe, and, once again, in believing this we place a constraining box around the thinking process.
Yes, my students will have to write papers that will be graded, and some grades will be higher than others. But I want my students to feel that they are in a safe place to think, write, and make mistakes as they develop their thoughts. This will carry through to better learning.
I am also attracted to the approach of "Thinking About a Person" in helping my students write to think. My students, as adolescents and young adults, are developing their own sense of who they are as a person, and using particular people as examples, or models, can help my students clarify their own thinking. Robert E. Lee comes to mind as an excellent candidate for such examination, as his complex life was exemplary in many ways. Of course, he was also a general in the Confederate army.
Changing topics, I have to say that virtually all of my writing has been part of a school assignment, or perhaps some kind of business correspondance. I've never kept a journal or notebook, or at least one where I've written more than simple descriptions of places I've visited, or other things that I needed to remember. I have not viewed writing as a way to help my thinking.
I'm slowly coming around to the idea. I have recently taken a stab at a journal that is truly my own, one where I can write down and develop thoughts and ideas - or anything else - that I might want to consider. I'm not doing it because it's an assignment.
So, Bomer's discussion of "Intentional Strategies Versus Assignments" was timely reading, and made an impression on me. Bomer touched on how he thinks notebooks or journals should be used, and he also touches on how they are actually used in practice. This may seem a bit melodramatic, but I found Bomer's statement about how students should develop a sense of agency in their own writing lives to be liberating. I agree that the journal or notebook should be more than just a place to write what the teacher asks for, and be a special place for the student that truly supports thinking.
As a teacher it is important that I foster this in my students. I'm focused on the Social Studies at a secondary school level, and to be candid I'm not overly interested in my students simply remembering the dates of historical events or places on a map. I want my students to be able to think about what they are learning, and reflect on how a current or historical event affects them and others.
As part of this process the idea of using writing as a thinking tool makes great sense.
Chapter 11 delves into some different approaches for teaching about how to write to think.
My favorite approach is the first one listed, "Accepting What Comes." In this blog post we have been asked to avoid direct quoting, but I am especially struck by what William Stafford says when he concludes that "For the person who follows with trust and forgiveness what occurs to him, the world remains always ready and deep..." In other words, not being fully open to feelings and ideas, not trusting in oneself to think and be creative, and not forgiving oneself when mistaken ideas or interpretations come to mind will act as constraints. Limits are imposed on writing, thinking, and learning.
With respect to mistakes in particular I believe that most of us, especially students, don't fully understand and accept that mistakes are part of learning. We are often too afraid of making them. Truly effective learning means students have to take some risks, and recognize that mistakes are part of the process of learning.
I want my classroom to exhibit the trust and forgiveness that Stafford refers to. I think that for many students, myself included, writing is seen as an assignment, and that we may fear mistakes in terms of missing what the assignment requires, or believing that something should be done or interpreted a certain way to be correct. It's as if we should be following a recipe, and, once again, in believing this we place a constraining box around the thinking process.
Yes, my students will have to write papers that will be graded, and some grades will be higher than others. But I want my students to feel that they are in a safe place to think, write, and make mistakes as they develop their thoughts. This will carry through to better learning.
I am also attracted to the approach of "Thinking About a Person" in helping my students write to think. My students, as adolescents and young adults, are developing their own sense of who they are as a person, and using particular people as examples, or models, can help my students clarify their own thinking. Robert E. Lee comes to mind as an excellent candidate for such examination, as his complex life was exemplary in many ways. Of course, he was also a general in the Confederate army.
Changing topics, I have to say that virtually all of my writing has been part of a school assignment, or perhaps some kind of business correspondance. I've never kept a journal or notebook, or at least one where I've written more than simple descriptions of places I've visited, or other things that I needed to remember. I have not viewed writing as a way to help my thinking.
I'm slowly coming around to the idea. I have recently taken a stab at a journal that is truly my own, one where I can write down and develop thoughts and ideas - or anything else - that I might want to consider. I'm not doing it because it's an assignment.
So, Bomer's discussion of "Intentional Strategies Versus Assignments" was timely reading, and made an impression on me. Bomer touched on how he thinks notebooks or journals should be used, and he also touches on how they are actually used in practice. This may seem a bit melodramatic, but I found Bomer's statement about how students should develop a sense of agency in their own writing lives to be liberating. I agree that the journal or notebook should be more than just a place to write what the teacher asks for, and be a special place for the student that truly supports thinking.
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