September 17th, readings...

The Robert Brooke Article

Brooke's article about the underlife of composition classes was interesting. I like to see composition articles that combine their findings with findings of other disciplines. I found it intriguing that students’ conversations in the classroom are actually often directly related to what is happening in the classroom. I guess I assumed that students spent their time discussing parties and relationships, when the teacher wasn't looking. It makes sense though that students want to assert their identities outside of the ones they are given in the classroom. No one wants to be cast out of a strict mold. We don't want to be strictly students. We want to be artists, friends, family members, etc..

Brooke states that the number one type of conversation that students have in the classroom is conversations that "find creative uses for classroom activities and materials" (144). They apply what they are learning to their own lives. Teachers often find this behavior to be distracting to the goals of the class, but I think they are wrong. As we have read in several other articles, students want to know how what they are learning applies to their own lives. When they have this context, they are far more likely to be receptive and engaged in the classroom. As teachers, we need to always strive to provide the "why" for our students. We need to make them see how our lessons apply to their every day lives.

I found it interesting that students think of their classroom time as gameplay. They see themselves as almost gaining and losing "virtual" points. I don't know if this way of thinking is necessarily helpful or conducive to learning. I don't think students should think of themselves as in contest with the teacher. I am not sure what can be done to remedy this, however. Even when teachers attempt to assure students that the main goal of the classroom is learning, not the attainment of high grades, students rarely believe them. From kindergarten, they are taught to think of school as a contest, a game.

It is funny that Brooke calls the underlife of teachers the disruptive kind. But, it is true. Teachers, especially composition teachers, tend to stray from what the education system deems "proper" teaching. They strive to lo make students individual thinkers. And to be honest, this bucks the system! Both students and teachers are concerned with the identity of the student. Students try to distance themselves from the traditional role of teacher, and teachers try to get them to do the same.

Very interesting.