Final Reflection on Writing Across the Curriculum

To be perfectly honest, I didn't have very high expectations going into this class. I chose Writing Across the Curriculum from a list of possible electives for the Winter semester because nothing else on the list was the least bit intriguing. My background is in English and I love to write, but initially I didn't exactly take this course thinking I was going to be helped in any significant way. However, after spending the last few months in this course, working with my colleagues and spending time with Corey (and Alan) at Hawthorne, I am walking away from Writing Across the Curriculum feeling as though I am taking quite a bit away from the course.

At first, it seemed a little obvious to me that writing could be incorporated into any class subject. However, this course opened my eyes to the fact that writing can be used to extend learning in any subject in a meaningful way rather than simply be used in a cheap way, like asking students to write a reflection on what they learned that day. Specifically, I really liked the idea of using conventional writing forms typically restricted to the English classroom, like poetry, to allow students to demonstrate their understanding of a different subject, like math. I think that using written forms students may be more familiar with is a great way to have them work through understanding concepts that may be more foreign to them. Personally, I was never strong in subjects like math or science. Had I had opportunities to explore concepts from those classes in writing, either by creating my own pieces or reading stories or poems about given subjects, for example, I think I could have been more successful in those areas.

Writing Across the Curriculum was most fulfilling to me, however, in my work in mentoring a student writer at Hawthorne. First and foremost, I very much appreciated the fact that this mentorship assignment allowed me to put what I was learning into practicing immediately. In every other class this year, we were always being asked to create lesson or unit plans for specific subjects. However, there was never a reason to do so other than the fact that we had to know how to create these things; there was no student to teach or classroom to implement these plans in. This, to me, made the process of creating these plans extremely redundant because I couldn't justify how I was learning anything from using the same templates over and over again while simply plugging in different information from curriculum documents and various resources. Our mentorship assignment, however, enabled me to fulfill similar responsibilities of gathering information and determining an effective way of presenting that information while also putting all those plans into action by working with a student. I found this process challenging at times, because Corey, my student, gave me very vague answers at times with regards to what areas of writing he needs help with or how he would like the process to unfold. However, the challenge is what made the process so fun, too. I was forced to think of different ways to get information across to Corey (or Alan in week 2) on the spot when the strategy I had planned wasn't working and was able to see my work, as well as his own, pay off through the progress and growth he'd made as a writer by our final session together. Working with Corey on a weekly basis was an incredibly worthwhile process because it gave me the opportunity to do the things I had been learning in all my classes in a hands-on way that was not done in any other class this year.

The mentorship process proved to also be a great resource because of the fact that my classmates were also involved in the same process. As such, I was able to track their progress and see what techniques or resources they were using by checking their writing blogs or speaking to them outside of the classroom. Teachers don't all go about reaching the same goal through the same process; in witnessing the work my fellow student teachers were doing, I was able to truly understand that there is not right way of doing things, but rather that there is a right way of doing things for the student. Everyone catered their teaching style to the student they were paired with, which ultimately meant that our blogs were filled with unique resources to cater to each student's learning style and mode of writing. I hope that this will prove to be a tremendous resource for me down the road when I come across students who have a variety of learning styles.

From thinking that I wouldn't take away much from this course at the beginning of the semester, I think I've actually done the complete opposite. I've learned a lot from working with different writing forms, mentoring a student writer and observing my colleagues do the same, not to mention the incredible resource our course textbook has proven and will continue to prove to be (it's seriously the only course textbook I've found helpful when it comes to real teaching practice so far).

Now that the on-campus portion of the BEd program has come to an end and I look forward to my second practicum with excitement and anticipation, I have found myself reflecting on my time in this program as a whole and what I have taken away from it that will directly inform my teaching practice. Although each class has fulfilled that in a variety of ways and to varying degrees, I can't help but think that the work I've done this semester in Writing Across the Curriculum will actively inform my practice in terms of what goes on in my future classroom and how my students will go about learning.

A Few Words of Inspiration

Since I started coaching basketball five years ago, I have been collecting inspirational quotes to share with my players to keep them motivated or give them something to think about when it came to sport, school or life. My collection has reached a rather large number by this point, one that isn't feasible to be shared in its entirety in this venue. However, I've included a small sample below of the quotations I have collected over the years, paying particular attention, in this case, to some that I look to for inspiration when it comes to creativity and teaching:

Without inspiration the best powers of the mind remain dormant. There is a fuel in us which needs to be ignited with sparks.

-Johann Gottfried Von Herder-

Enthusiasm is the mother of effort, and without it nothing great was ever achieved.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson-

Definiteness of purpose is the starting point of all achievement.

-W. Clement Stone-

Limitations live only in our minds. But if we use our imaginations, our possibilities become limitless.

-Jamie Paolinetti-

Have the nerve to go into unexplored territory. Be brave enough to live life creatively.

-Alan Alda-

All growth depends upon activity. There is no development physically or intellectually without effort, and effort means work.

-Calvin Coolidge-

Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.

-Albert Einstein-

What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.

-Jane Goodall-

Not only can you not plan the impact you're going to have, you often won't recognize it when you're having it.

-Dick Costolo-

What we first find impossible, we later deem unlikely, and eventually accept as inevitable.

-Bill Bennett-

From what we get, we can make a living. What we give, however, makes a life.

-Arthur Ashe-

Lack of direction, not like of time, is the problem. We all have 24 hours.

-Zig Ziglar-

The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping from old ones.

-Ella Jane Fitzgerald-

Children must be taught how to think, not what to think.

-Margaret Mead-

The mediocre teacher tells.

The good teacher explains.

The superior teacher demonstrates.

The great teacher inspires.

-William A. Ward-

You have brains in your head, you have feet in your shoes,

You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.

-Dr. Seuss-

Minds are like parachutes. They only function when they are open.

-Unknown-

Each day when I awake I know I have one more day to make a difference in someone's life.

-James Mann-

High achievement always takes place in the framework of high expectation.

-Jack Kinder-

The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn't being said.

-Peter F. Drucker-

6+3=9, but so does 5+4. The way you do things is not always the only way to do them. Respect other people's way of thinking.

-Unknown-

Week 3 at Hawthorne

I was very happy to see Corey walk into the classroom as our third week at Hawthorne began. It had been a long time since we last saw each other and I was really looking forward to getting started. At the same time, it felt like we were starting over in a way.

Our time at Hawthorne began with Corey's teacher stressing the importance of identifying goals for the remainder of our time working with our students. Once Corey and I got settled in the computer lab, I asked him if he had thought about what he wanted to get out of this experience. His response was quite simple: he wants to get better at writing. Things hadn't changed since our first session, when he told me that he wanted help in organizing his ideas more effectively and picking up any tips on improving the presentation of his work (formatting, editing, etc.)

We jumped right into our work. Corey is working on a persuasive piece arguing that pre-ordering video games has had a negative impact on gaming culture. It's obvious that he's passionate about the subject (and has perhaps been previously disappointed in a game after it's been hyped up in ads).

To help Corey better organize his ideas, I brought in a Persuasion Map handout for us to work with. The first step was identifying his position. Then, we pulled up his piece on his laptop (I had also brought in two copies of it to work with, but he preferred working on his computer) and began deconstructing! Because his writing was not structured properly (no paragraphs/separation of ideas), he found it difficult to clearly identify his reasons (the handout calls for 3). Instead, we decided to work backwards and pick out the supporting evidence he had and grouping them into two categories (which would be his reasons). Once we did this, his two reasons were labeled.

Now that we had a basic outline to Corey's piece worked out, we worked on creating an introduction (which he didn't have originally and he has admitted to not being strong at creating). I provided him with a sample introduction, which showed him out, in its most basic form, the introduction is used to give the reader context to the argument to follow and provide a thesis statement.

Corey's passion really comes through in his recollection of different games or reviews that lend themselves to his reasons for arguing against pre-ordering games. However, none of them are supported with actual evidence. I suggested he do some research and find evidence on websites that support his claims. With the little time we had left, we began brainstorming where he could find this evidence (primarily in video game reviews and industry websites).

As our session came to an end, I asked Corey to take some time before Monday to find some type of supportive evidence for each of his six pieces of his claims and plug them into his Google Doc so I could check on his progress. In our fourth and final session, I plan to work with Corey on creating the first of his body paragraphs, including using topic and transition sentences, and how to properly use evidence in support of claims (i.e. state your claim, use your evidence, explain it). If we have time left, I want to touch on how to write a conclusion (since he's admitted to also having problems there) and hope that our work on the first body paragraph will be enough to help him write the rest of his piece on his own. I will also be giving him a sheet with basic editing tips to help him clean up his work.

Very excited to continue this process next week!