What strikes me most about this essay is
this statement: “The teacher must give the responsibility for the text to the
writer…”(34) in that it, for me, perfectly sums up how teachers, with the best
of intentions, can sometimes hinder a basic writer’s progress. When students
turn in a first draft, many teachers immediately mark errors related to lower
order concerns (LOC). The student then revises the document; however, the
teacher has interfered with the revision process by giving students information
about where the students should focus his/her efforts—on LOCs. The student
typically trusts that the teacher is giving them the correct information and
focuses his/her revision process on spelling, punctuation and grammar. While students need to understand and use
these conventions to be truly proficient, these errors are --by far -- less
important than organization, clear focus and development of the narrative so
that the audience can access the writer’s purpose. The students’ revision process,
disrupted in this way, may lead them to simply correct the errors marked by the
teacher and, after learning nothing, consider their work done. This focus, by
the teacher on LOCs, basically subverts the process and potential of writing.
It inhibits the growth of critical thinking skills, the ability to reflect on
writing and the discipline to tough it out through what can be a very difficult
process. Teachers—and again, I’m including myself—need to allow students to do
their own work in a way that benefits them in the long run. We need to
relinquish control of the process and trust that our students will improve
without excessive intervention regarding low order concerns.
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