Statement of Teaching Philosophy

            Autonomy.  Autonomy is the ultimate goal I set for all of my students.  By the time they leave my class, I hope they have the tools and confidence to tackle the various writing issues they may face.  Part of this comes from simply allowing the students to understand that they have the ability to write successfully.  Students are typically far more prepared to think and write analytically than they allow themselves to believe.  They are almost always thinking critically and developing up with new ideas both in and out of the classroom.  Most often they simply need someone to point out that they are doing this.  Students also frequently complain that “they don’t know how to write,” or they, “just can’t fix it,” but more often than not, they have at least some idea of the problems they face as well as how to address them.  As a teacher of writing, I believe that it is my job to tap into this latent, unacknowledged knowledge.

            There are several ways in which I encourage students to take control of their own writing.  I give individual attention as often as possible, create an in-class workshop environment, and give significant feedback on students’ assignments through my assessment system.

            Throughout the semester I make myself available and encourage students to make appointments with me or visit my office hours.  I also, at least once during the semester, require that my students meet with me individually.  During these individual meetings I try to do several things.  Because of my experience as a writing tutor, I begin by “waiting and seeing,” or attempting to get the students to solve their problems on their own.  I encourage students to think about the problem at hand; I turn their questions back on them; and I play dumb all in an effort to coax writers to reveal what they already know.  When “waiting and seeing,” I try, without abandoning the student, avoid giving him or her help by answering questions or making comments about a paper.  If this fails to produce any results, I slowly “fallback,” giving the student incrementally more help, yet still encouraging autonomy.  Sometimes I may have to “fallback” and ask questions that lead the student in the right direction.  Occasionally it will mean giving an example unrelated to the student’s actual paper.  However, as soon as I do any of these things, I resume “waiting and seeing,” to see if the student can make use of the new information and apply it to the work at hand.

            Obviously, such individual attention is not always possible in a large classroom.  However, I try to use the same techniques of rephrasing students’ questions and asking them what they think.  If the student who posed the question cannot give an answer, then I turn the question to the whole class.  Because such tactics require that a class be alert and responsive, I take care to create an atmosphere in which my students feel comfortable.  This atmosphere is particularly important when the class becomes a workshop in which the students, either in small groups or as a class, are asked to share their work and comment on it.

            A workshop setting allows students access to tools that may not otherwise be available.  They can hear their work read aloud so they may better identify issues in their structure, tone, and organization.  It also does something that is frequently overlooked.  A workshop gives students the opportunity to hear a sample audience’s reaction – before anyone makes a single comment.  Students get the rare opportunity to hear an audience chuckle, gasp, cringe, or yawn as they hear a work. 

            One of the other essential aspects of a workshop environment is that it encourages students to take ownership of their writing by publicly claiming it in front of a class.  Such an environment is not without its perils, though, as students may be derisive, overly flattering, or entirely silent, to which the writer may respond by becoming defensive or retaliatory.  Therefore, I implement several guidelines in all of my classes.  Before any papers are read aloud, I hand my students a list of ways to approach others’ works.  As a class we discuss what we all think are useful areas to comment upon, and what to avoid.  It is easy for students to fall into the habit of picking apart typographical or grammatical errors, so during a workshop session these areas are off limits.  I also make students ask the class three questions about their own work.  I believe this forces the students to consider their own issues and not simply rely on others to solve their “problems.”  A workshop is about a give and take that allows students to see and discuss perspectives other than their own.  Asking students to come up with their own questions also directs the discussion toward topics the writer considers important and is willing to work on.

            After discussing the writer’s own questions, I direct my students to discuss simply what happened in the piece of writing.  We discuss how it is structured, and the tone it takes.  I ask my students to explain what the argument is and what evidence is used to support that argument.  In general I try to get my students to ask questions of the writer, and I discourage them from simply criticizing, or prescribing solutions.

            When the students later turn their work into me, I make sure that I give comments on as much as possible without overburdening the writer.  I focus on major issues, such as organization, argument, or evidence first.  As in the workshop setting, punctuation, grammar, and typographical errors, though important, are left until the end of the writing process.  I try, as I do when I am working one-on-one with a student, not to simply tell him or her what I believe the issues to be.  Almost all of my comments are in the form of questions that encourage the student to think about what he or she might work on.  I then continue on to what I consider to be the most important part of the writing process: revisions. 

            In all of my writing classes I structure assignments so that they can be revised several times before being finally graded.  If there is time in the class, I also try to build in time to take a break from a given writing assignment so we can return to it later in the semester with a fresh pair of eyes.  When I finally do grade, I try to do so based on the progress students have made over the course of the semester.  I use slightly different systems based on the class I am teaching, but in general I try not to give grades on early drafts.  Students get credit for completing the assignment and putting a significant amount of work into it, but their final grade on the assignment comes on the final draft.  Students are also graded on reflective papers which ask them to think about the work they have done.  In many of these reflective assignments I try to get students to think about their own process and how they go about creating a work.  I ask them to consider the problems they faced and the solutions they used to overcome those problems.  Additionally, I assign a series of reports, in which the students must read from a diverse range of authors.  In my playwriting classes, I typically use works by Christopher Durang, Suzan-Lori Parks, and Doug Wright, among others.  For these assignments, students must analyze the works and respond critically, thinking about form as well as content.  They may be asked to use outside evidence for support, but their own ability to make a solid critical argument is the essence of the report.

            The assignments I give as well as my in-class teaching attempt to reach students who learn in different ways.  In addition to writing assignments, readings, and workshops, I show relevant video clips when possible, lecture when necessary, and bring in handouts to read and examine.  And, if the classroom permits, I attempt to use multimedia technology via the internet.  Sometimes this means showing video clips that are online; other times it may mean demonstrating how to assess the quality of a website.  Overall, though, I hope to appeal to a broad range of learning styles in my classroom.

            Structure, argument, and evidence are all extremely important tools of writing, and students learn how to use these tools through in-class exercises, and homework.  In fact, I try to give my students some sort of assignment for almost every class period through which they attempt to develop their writing skills.  Sometimes they succeed and sometimes they struggle, but almost all begin to think of themselves as writers, and all of them are validated as such in my classroom.  Because of this they begin to deal with issues on their own.  The first person they ask questions of is themselves.  It is rare that students leave any class with a complete mastery over any discipline, especially one as difficult as writing.  However, they begin to understand the various angles from which they can attempt to look at and solve problems.  They begin to think of themselves as capable.  They begin to become autonomous.