Revising techniques.
I'm bad at revising. Anyone who has read my work can attest to that. Let me explain my point to you, and all will be well, but make me write it and refine it? Not a chance. I've always been this way, from the time I wrote detective stories as a third grader, to that awful paper I turned in to _________ (insert any professor here) in college. I don't like to change things. I don't like to write.
So how the hell do I teach my students to do it? I'm not against revising per se, I see the value in it and teaching it, but I have a hard time selling things to students that I don't 100% buy. That's what really struck me about the readings this week. They are FULL of good ideas, tons of 'em. But what on earth do I do with the student that is like me. She may be articulate, intelligent and have a great understanding of the text. Her papers are passable (A or B range) on their first draft, though they lack the polish they should probably have. She, like me will argue, "That's cool if you want to give it a B, it doesn't deserve much better." She continues, "When I really need to look over a paper, I can do it... my college essays are a perfect example, but the things I turn into you just aren't that important in the long run."
What then?
Do I tell her:
a)Fine, if you're cool with the grade, that's your business, you're almost an adult and have obviously thought this through?
b)I'm not going to accept this paper without previous drafts attached... AND THEY BETTER BE DIFFERENT AND MARKED UP?
c)If you don't think my papers are important you can get the hell out of my class?
d)I think it would really help you as a writer if you worked hard on the revision process. Your work shows so much potential, but it could be stellar if you gave it some time and effort?
If you answered a and d, you're just like me. But if you answered option d, you're allied with my conscious. There is obviously a lot of worth in the revision process, for both polished academic pieces as well as creative writing and correspondence. I need to figure out a way to make it quick and painless for short assignments, and comprehensive and complete for longer ones...
again, any ideas?
So how the hell do I teach my students to do it? I'm not against revising per se, I see the value in it and teaching it, but I have a hard time selling things to students that I don't 100% buy. That's what really struck me about the readings this week. They are FULL of good ideas, tons of 'em. But what on earth do I do with the student that is like me. She may be articulate, intelligent and have a great understanding of the text. Her papers are passable (A or B range) on their first draft, though they lack the polish they should probably have. She, like me will argue, "That's cool if you want to give it a B, it doesn't deserve much better." She continues, "When I really need to look over a paper, I can do it... my college essays are a perfect example, but the things I turn into you just aren't that important in the long run."
What then?
Do I tell her:
a)Fine, if you're cool with the grade, that's your business, you're almost an adult and have obviously thought this through?
b)I'm not going to accept this paper without previous drafts attached... AND THEY BETTER BE DIFFERENT AND MARKED UP?
c)If you don't think my papers are important you can get the hell out of my class?
d)I think it would really help you as a writer if you worked hard on the revision process. Your work shows so much potential, but it could be stellar if you gave it some time and effort?
If you answered a and d, you're just like me. But if you answered option d, you're allied with my conscious. There is obviously a lot of worth in the revision process, for both polished academic pieces as well as creative writing and correspondence. I need to figure out a way to make it quick and painless for short assignments, and comprehensive and complete for longer ones...
again, any ideas?
posted by Justin at 3:41 PM
3 Comments:
I'd go with option C. Less work for you.
Well, for me, the answer is A. But I would have some assignments that require the revision process, and that require drafts be handed in or checked over as you go. Hopefully this will rub off, even if it's just a little.
For one and done assignments, revising is the student's responsibility. If she can write stellar-ly for her college essays, why does it matter that she makes a concious choice to write only above average for you?
MadS
Is it me, or do you know more about this ELL stuff than SR? You've corrected her pronunciation, told her about readings and how to navigate the website. HAHAHA. Awesome.
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