Chapter 8 reflection
Comments(1) The opportunity to write for pleasure is often decreased significantly after a certain age and become limited to writing solely for school assignments. At the same time, it can be difficult for secondary students to try out and experiment with new vocabularies in assignments when they count towards their marks. In example, I remember a friend back in secondary school who always had marks taken off of his assignment for using words from the thesaurus in a context that does not make sense. This in turn results with discouragement in his exploration of new words in writing activities that are forms of assessment. I believe that although they should be corrected, students should not be penalized for these attempts, as it is through these trial and errors that they learn the usage of different vocabularies.
The informal writing activities discussed in chapter eight represented activities that are low in stress where students will not be penalized for trying out new words. I also like these activities in that they can be incorporated in different subject areas. For a Home Economics class, there may be little chance for students to practice writing if the class followed a repeated cycle of demonstration – lab – demonstration – lab format. However, activities like “try these terms” can easily be implemented during the end of a lesson. I especially like the “perspective papers” activity as well as I can ask students to write in the perspective of various types of nutrients and allow them to practice narrative writing as well. Food culture and history of different cuisines can also be incorporated with this activity by having students write in the perspective of the historical person, or specific dish in relation to cultural significance.
I completely agree with you that writing for pleasure is rarely encouraged in the high school setting; so many rules are attached that whenever students do write it becomes a strenuous, high pressure exercise. However, just like giving ELL students the chance to practice oral English in a safe environment where they can take risks with the language without worrying about making mistakes, I feel that teachers should provide opportunities for students to practice writing in whatever forms they choose in a completely safe manner. In English classes for instance, reading journals can be encouraged as a form of writing practice; these can be periodically collected and checked for completion. This way students can safely experiment with their writing or practice academic writing in a low pressure setting. Teachers can loosely structure these journals in giving prompts, questions, themes etc. that relate to what the class is working on; students can alternate between silent reading and silent writing at the beginning of the class. In addition, writing about texts and ideas on a regular basis allows students to engage with the material on a deeper and more meaningful level.